10 Things to Do with Bay Area Kids in August 2026
Summer's basically on its farewell tour. Here are the 10 things to do with Bay Area kids in August 2026 — LEGO conventions, monster trucks, last-chance water parks, and free park days included.
Summer's not done with us yet. Between LEGO conventions, monster trucks, a brand-new Egyptian exhibit, and the last calls on bubbles and water slides before school starts back up, August is stacked. Here's your roundup of the 10 things to do with Bay Area kids in August 2026 Save this one, you'll want it.
1. Brick Blast: LEGO® Fan Convention 🧱 (sponsored)
If your kid's love language is loose LEGO bricks all over the living room floor, get ready for 20,000 square feet of build zones, fan creations, LEGO Masters guests, a Brick Derby, and a glow zone are landing in Santa Clara.
📍 Santa Clara Convention Center, 5001 Great American Pkwy, Santa Clara, CA 95054
📅 Saturday, August 22, 2026
🕐 Tickets release August 4 exclusively to email subscribers
**Save with my discount code BAYKIDS15 for 15% off, exclusively for Bay Area Kids Go families.
This post includes sponsored content for Brick Blast.
2. Live on Larkin: Back to School Edition (with Oogubi's Free Family Zone)
A free family-friendly street festival in San Francisco with live music, local eats, shopping, school supply giveaways for the first 100 families, arts and crafts, and chess lessons, plus Oogubi is running a free Family Zone with sensory play and a balloon house!
📍 Larkin St & Eddy St, San Francisco, CA (600 Larkin St)
📅 Saturday, August 8, 2026 🕐 12:00–5:00 PM
🔗 RSVP for Oogubi's Family Zone
3. Santa Clara County Fair
Carnival rides, livestock, home arts, gems and minerals, and five days of classic fair food. The Junior Livestock Auction is worth a stop if your kids love animals.
📍 Santa Clara County Fairgrounds, 344 Tully Road, San Jose, CA 95111
📅 Wednesday, August 19 – Sunday, August 23, 2026
🕐 Wed–Thu 4:00–10:00 PM | Fri–Sat 1:00–11:00 PM | Sun 1:00–10:00 PM
4. De Young Free Saturday + New "Treasures of the Pharaohs" Exhibit
The de Young opens its highly anticipated Egypt exhibit this month, featuring 130 rare artifacts on loan from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and the Luxor Museum. The last Egyptian showcase here drew over 300,000 visitors. Kids 17 and under always get in free to the permanent galleries, and Bay Area residents get free general admission every Saturday (special exhibit ticket required separately for Treasures of the Pharaohs).
📍 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr, San Francisco, CA 94118
📅 Exhibit runs August 1, 2026–January 31, 2027 | Free Saturdays for Bay Area residents ongoing
🕐 9:30 AM–5:15 PM
🔗 famsf.org/exhibitions/treasures-pharaohs
5. Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live: Glow-N-Fire
Fire-breathing dino robot, FMX riders, a brand-new Rhino-themed truck, and enough crashing and smashing to make any kid's summer. Pre-Show Party gets you arena-floor access and autographs.
📍 Chase Center, 1 Warriors Way, San Francisco, CA 94158
📅 Saturday, August 15 & Sunday, August 16, 2026
🕐 Sat: 12:00 PM & 7:00 PM | Sun: 2:30 PM (doors open 1 hour before each show)
🔗 chasecenter.com/events/hot-wheels-20260816
6. Free Entrance Day at National Parks
The NPS turns 110 this year, and they're waiving entrance fees at all sites that normally charge one. It’s a good excuse for a day trip to Muir Woods, Pinnacles, or wherever's on your Bay Area bucket list. Note: 2026 free days are limited to U.S. citizens and residents, so bring ID.
📍 Participating national parks, monuments & wildlife refuges nationwide
📅 Tuesday, August 25, 2026
🕐 Normal park hours apply
🔗 nps.gov
7. Summer Nights at Filoli — Last Chance
Golden-hour garden strolls, live acoustic music, food trucks, and Filoli's new "Creating Home" exhibit with giant nest sculptures kids can climb through. Plus this is also your last month for Filoli's Kids Go Free promo: up to 3 kids ages 0–14 get in free with every paid adult ticket, but it wraps at the end of August.
Note: Kids Go Free applies to daytime admission only — it does not apply to Summer Nights tickets.
📍 86 Cañada Road, Woodside, CA 94062
📅 Wednesdays & Thursdays through September 17 (Kids Go Free ends August 31)
🕐 5:00–8:00 PM
8. First Friday Nights at CuriOdyssey
A sea-themed after-hours event with live music, Ambassador Animal encounters, hands-on maritime science with the Sailing Science Center, harbor seal puppet-making, and food trucks.
📍 1651 Coyote Point Drive, San Mateo, CA 94401
📅 Friday, August 7, 2026
🕐 5:00–8:00 PM
🔗 curiodyssey.org/exhibits-events/first-friday-nights
9. Bubble Bash at Bay Area Discovery Museum — Last Chance
Giant bubbles, foam parties, and Bubble Blast photo-op moments under the Golden Gate Bridge, plus all the regular Discovery Zones. This one wraps right after Labor Day.
📍 557 McReynolds Rd, Sausalito, CA 94965
📅 Through September 7, 2026 | Open Wednesday–Monday
🕐 10:00 AM–4:00 PM (Member Hour 9–10 AM)
🔗 bayareadiscoverymuseum.org/bubble-bash
10. Last Call for Water Parks & Public Pools
Most Bay Area Water Parks are only open a little longer! Double check your city's community pool schedule, but most close or cut hours right after Labor Day.
- Dublin Wave through Sept 7th
- Aqua Adventure water park in Fremont is open through Sept 7th
- Gilroy Gardens water attractions stay open until Sept 20th.
- California’s Great America’s water park is open weekends only in September until September 26th.
Summer's winding down, but there's still plenty of fun left in August. Save this post and send it to the group chat, however you keep track, but we hope you get out there!
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