California Summer Festivals that are Totally Family Friendly
Boho festival family photos in artichoke field.
In California we have beautiful summer weather and it’s a shame to spend too much time indoors. Summer festivals are definitely a thing in Cali, but most of them are too loud and rowdy for families with children.
This blog post gives you some great options for summer festivals and events where you can feel comfortable bringing your littles ones. Some of them are even dog-friendly too!
Also if you’re new to summer festivals, I’ve got a complete guide to everything to expect when attending large outdoor festivals.
Boho festival family photos in artichoke field.
Boho teepee at outdoor summer festival in Northern California.
Northern California Child-Friendly Festivals
The Lights Festival
This whimsical outdoor festival comes to Northern California every April and it’s one of my favorites. After sundown, hundreds of candle-lit lanterns are released into the night sky. It’s a truly magical experience when you see it in person. See photos from my blog post when I attended in 2018.
Berryfest Strawberry Festival
Every year on Mother’s Day weekend the Berryfest Strawberry Festival takes place in Roseville. This family-friendly event has a parade, all kinds of strawberry foods, games and entertainment. You are allowed to bring your own picnic foods and dogs are allowed on Sunday between the hours of 1pm - 6pm. Kids under 5 years-old are free!
Sacramento’s Farm-to-Fork Festival
One of Sacramento’s best bragging points is that it is America’s Farm to Fork capital, meaning that a large portion of our fresh foods are grown and harvested locally. The Farm-to-Fork Festival takes place in September and is all about celebrating the bounty of foods and wines that come from Sacramento. At the street festival you can expect more than a mile of local foods, wines and craft beers, music and cooking demonstrations.
Half Moon Bay Pumpkin Festival
Half Moon Bay was my hometown growing up in California, and the Pumpkin Festival was by far the biggest event of the year. Technically it takes place in October which is the fall season, but Half Moon Bay has a unique climate with “Indian Summer” which means the best weather of the year runs from August - October. The traditional summer months from May - July are often foggy and gloomy.
As you can imagine, the Pumpkin Festival is all about Halloween and pumpkins. You’ll find all kinds of pumpkin foods (pumpkin ice cream is my favorite!), pumpkin carving, shopping from local artists and kid-friendly events.
Mama wearing flower crown at outdoor summer festival in Northern California.
Mama and daughter kisses at outdoor summer festival.
Central California Kid-Friendly Festival
Pismo Beach 4th of July Fireworks Show
San Luis Obispo is the hub for Central California and they hold an annual 4th of July spectacular event with food, music and fireworks at Pismo Beach. There’s nothing more quintessentially summer than that!
I’ve also got a complete guide to all the best California vacation spots where they have amazing 4th of July firework shows!
Artichoke Festival in Castroville
Artichokes are actually the state vegetable of California, so it’s very fitting that we have a festival to celebrate them! At the Artichoke Festival you can enjoy music, food, shop the farmer’s market and even take a tour of artichoke fields. A few of the photos in this blog post were taken in an artichoke field, the purple flowers in the photos are actually bloomed artichokes!
Summer Solstice Festival in Santa Barbara
If you love a touch of wacky and tacky good times, then the Summer Solstice Festival in Santa Barbara is for you. This June festival celebrates individuality (and of course summer) with creative costumes, food, music and parades. They even have a children’s specific parade and events in Alameda Park.
Avocado Festival in Carpinteria
I mentioned earlier that artichoke is the California state vegetables, and of course avocado is the state fruit. The Avocado Festival is hosted in Santa Barbara County in the month of October. This is one of California’s largest free festivals, and they even have a kid’s venue. At AvoFest you can eat all the guacamole your heart desires!
Have you tried my avocado toast recipes yet?!
Baby girl Scout at outdoor summer festival in Northern California.
Southern California Family Festivals
Gelato Festival in West Hollywood
All you can eat gelato? Count me in! This festival takes place in October on Melrose Ave in West Hollywood. If you are not familiar with LA neighborhoods, Melrose is pretty much the place to be. Inside the Gelato Festival there’s a super Instagrammable Gelato Village filled with adorable photo opportunities.
Disneyland in Anaheim
While Disneyland is not technically a festival, it is a great way to spend some family time outdoors. We used to go every summer when I was growing up and I made some awesome lasting memories. I especially love the new tradition of shopping for themed Mickey and Minnie Mouse ears for your trip. These sparkly Minnie Mouse ears would make for some really cute Disneyland photos!
Mermaid Market in Dana Point
This is basically a boho gal’s paradise place to shop and mingle. This is a great market to shop for locally made goods, drink and eat yummy foods and soak up all those socal vibes. The Spring/Summer market happens in late April and the Fall/Holiday market takes place in November.
CRUISIN’ GRAND VINTAGE CAR SHOW in Escondido
Cruisin’ Grand is a popular summer pastime for the locals of Escondido, and I personally think of it as much more than a car show. The main downtown strip of Grand Ave gets filled up with folks enjoying food, drinks, musics and yes of course the cars too. You don’t have to be a car enthusiast to enjoy the summer nights on Grand!
See my modern gal’s guide to Escondido!
More Fun ways to spend time outdoors in California this summer:
My guide to gardens in San Francisco.
Walk along the beach pedestrian trail in Santo Monica, Los Angeles.
Enjoy an outdoor patio lunch in California’s Silicon Valley.
