West Berlin, New Jersey might not seem like the hippest day trip destination within a 90-minute drive of Manhattan, but the brand new construction vehicle inspired theme park Diggerland USA is a childhood dream come to life, for boys and girls alike. Once there, you’ll realize you’d have gladly driven twice as long to have so much fun. Where else can your child operate heavy machinery, race mini-Land Rovers, drive dump trucks, climb a 4-story ropes course and take a spin on a one-of-a-kind carousel? Here are 13 reasons why Diggerland USA is worth the drive down the Turnpike.
Welcome to Diggerland USA
With an open-air indoor arcade, rides for kids of all ages and lots of shady spots for parents to rest, the just-opened Diggerland USA is bound become a must-visit destination in the Tri-State Area. You'll also love that wristbands allow for all-day reentry, which means you can leave the park's expensive food concessions behind to cool off at a local restaurant (we recommend Victory Sports Bar & Grill (795 New Jersey 73), located just 5 minutes down the road, with big screens showing all the World Cup matches and other games. Bonus: Kid's eat for $1.99 on Sundays and 2 kids eat free with each adult diner every Tuesday!)
Keep flipping through the photos to learn about the park's top rides and attractions.
Ages: All ages are welcome, but the park is best for kids who are at least 36 inches tall (the shortest height requirement for rides, though some require kids to be 42 or 48 inches tall). Shorter and younger kids can still enjoy the Kid Zone playground.
Cost: Full-day tickets to Diggerland USA are $29.95 online ($34.95 at the gate), with free admission for guests under 36″ tall and over the age of 65.
Hours: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. daily through Labor Day (weekend-only hours begin in September)
Have you checked out this one-of-a-kind theme park yet? Tell us about your trip in a Comment.
It’s hard to believe that a two hour drive east of Seattle can put you in a winter scene that’s worthy of a snow globe. But that’s exactly what you find in the quintessentially quirky town of Leavenworth, a faux Bavarian village nestled in the snow-covered Cascades. Leavenworth is known for a lot of things: Nutcrackers. Brats. Beer. Not to mention it’s penchant for celebrating Christmas year-round. Fact is, it’s also a destination for family fun.
What to Do:
The heart of the town is Front Street Park Strausse, with its Bavarian-style buildings festooned in colorful lights throughout the winter months. Bring a sled so the kiddos can cruise down one of the small paths created on the slight hill of the park. Leavenworth shops are Disneyesque (the same architecture is what you find in Fantasyland at WDW in Orlando!), so it’s especially fun for kids to stroll through them. Try on hats at The Hat Shop; dig into big, old-fashioned candy jars at the Bearly Perfect Gift Shop; watch the machine making taffy at the Taffy Shop; check out the selection of toys at Alpenhaus Toys. An absolute must see is the Nutcracker Museum, which houses 6,000 nutcrackers from around the world. (You can start your own collection downstairs at Nusskaacker Haus, which sells them in all shapes and designs.)
For more serious snow-related activities, take the short drive over to Ski Hill (and be sure to notice the funky, painted houses along the way), where you can go tubing or skiing on a slope that has a rope tow. Ski Hill also offers Nordic skiing and snowshoeing, as does the Fish Hatchery, which has two courses; the shorter one is well suited for young beginners.
Where to Eat:
For eats, there are all sorts of offerings in the Front Street Park Strausse, and you’d be remiss if you didn’t try the brats at the Munchen Haus, which only has outdoor seating (with heat lamps!) and a dazzling array of mustards (and darn good beer, too). For a warmer setting, there’s a good kid’s menu at Gustav’s, which just might have the best fries in town.
Where to Stay:
Given that Leavenworth’s a tourist town, you’ve got your pick of hotels. But you really can’t beat the Enzian Inn, which has indoor facilities – pool, hot tub, basketball court, ping pong room – that are great for burning off some pre-bedtime energy. The kiddos will need to get some rest, though. A delicious hot breakfast awaits in the hotel’s top floor, along with special daily entertainment. Every morning at 8:15 and 9:15, Enzian founder Bob Johnson, decked out in authentic Lederhosen, climbs atop the balcony railing and plays the Alphorn, a super-long wooden horn. His backdrop is a stunning view of the mountains, and the whole scene…well, it makes you feel as if you’re actually inside the snow globe.
If the idea of a full-on ballet performance with little ones in tow sounds daunting, fret not. The Nutcracker is the best introduction to ballet and while the Bay Area is replete with various interpretations, the San Francisco Ballet’s production has ravished San Francisco audiences for years. With stunning sets and costumes- including an over-sized Nutcracker- a fully-decorated opera house façade, snowflake light shows, and an opportunity to dress up for a special event, it’s easy to understand why so many families make the San Francisco Ballet’s Nutcracker a holiday tradition. Add to that a transit-accessible War Memorial Opera House, kid-friendly dining spots within walking distance, matinees and evening performances on any given day between December 9 and 27th and suddenly a ballet outing seems easy.
Before buying tickets, it’s important to realize that the San Francisco Ballet performs a full-length ballet – not a child-size Nutcracker version. The entire performance, including intermission, is almost two hours long and breaks down as follows: Act I is 44 minutes, intermission is 20 minutes, and Act II is 43 minutes. If your children are able to sit through a two-hour long movie without getting up, eating or kicking the seat in front of them, then they are ready for the big day. If not, look for other fantastic but shorter Nutcracker ballets around the Bay Area.
How to select the best seats for your family
Orchestra or Dress Circle? Here are a few pointers. The War Memorial House provides booster seats at orchestra level only, a mostly flat section closer to the stage and the orchestra pit. However, because it is flat, the Orchestra section might not provide the best stage view for little kids. Some parents prefer the higher sections because of the slanted sitting, and often buy aisle seats to enable a quick getaway. To see the seat layout, view the Nutcracker seating chart here.
Prepping for Nutcracker day
In order to prepare your child for the performance, San Francisco Ballet created a resource guide filled with word games, pictures, and easy-to-digest information that helps explain the Nutcracker plot – and Theater Etiquette 101. The guide is also a great way to entertain and engage children on your way to the performance. You can download the guide here.
Parents recommend Susan Jeffer’s book The Nutcracker as the illustrations incorporate dance scenes, making it a great pre-ballet read. The movie Barbie in the Nutcracker is also a good choice as it uses Tchaikovsky’s music and follows the traditional plot with a “girl power” twist. If you want to expose your children to the music or the performance before you go, you can watch the beautifully produced San Francisco Ballet Nutcracker on DVD, or check out a classic version staring a young Baryshnikov.
What to know on performance day
Most children like to dress up for the Nutcracker performance, even if it’s a matinee, to make the day extra special. After you find the perfect outfit, consider trying to get tickets to one of the family performances. If those shows are not convenient for you, here are a few additional tips to make your experience a fail-proof success.
– There are only 6 family performances: book early to avoid disappointment.
– The first 500 guests receive complimentary plush toys: arrive an hour early to be part of the lucky few.
– Everybody gets free juice and cookies at the intermission: find the closest juice and cookies tables right after the curtain falls on the first act.
– Children can take a picture with their favorite ballerina or Nutcracker character before the show: get in line right away as the characters have to leave 15 minutes before the show starts. If there is a long line waiting to take photos with a character, try the other side of the lobby. There are always two sets of characters and one line is usually shorter.
– You can enjoy a festive holiday buffet two hours prior to show time for dinner Tuesday through Saturday, and brunch on Sunday: featuring favorites such as winter squash purée, seared salmon or holiday cakes, the buffet costs $34.95/adult and $15/child, or you can buy the family package at $80 for two adults and two children.
Insiders tips for the evening performances:
– Bring a special friend/blanket in case your child falls asleep.
– Bring pajamas to change into in the car.
For some performances, an upgrade to VIP tickets gets you the royal treatment with great seats and complementary refreshments at the intermission, and your kids will receive toy Opera glasses to enjoy the show.
Facilities:
– Restrooms: when nature calls, you will find restrooms on all levels except the orchestra level. For minimal lines, find the two staircases inside the theater just behind the orchestra seats that lead up to the box level. If you dart up those stairs after the curtain falls at intermission, then walk down the halls, past the boxes toward the stage, you will find lovely bathrooms that won’t be crowded. The women’s bathroom is on the south side of the house.
– Dining: The War Memorial Opera House offers pre-show buffets and light refreshments during the shows. For other family-friendly local dining venues consider: Café Delle Stelle, Arlequin Café (outdoors patio with heat lamps), or Absinthe Brasserie and Bar (the chocolate pot de crème is a must) for a more formal experience.
The Nutcracker ballet only happens once a year but kids will remember it for a long time. You knew that, right?
Sure you can take the kids to Twin Peaks to snap photos of the sweeping Bay Area vistas or to check out native birds and plants. But you’ll be doing so with tourists unloading from buses in the parking lot which, let’s face it, can take some of the charm away from the experience. Instead, why don’t you bundle up, brave the winds, and get ready for an urban hike up the Pemberton Steps to Twin Peaks’ less famous cousin, Tank Hill Park, which offers—dare we say it—even better views than Twin Peaks.
Go: Year-round, on a sunny day so you can enjoy the view.
Approximate travel time: About 15 minutes from Downtown San Francisco.
What to do: The Pemberton Place Steps will please the P.E. teacher in you and get the whole family huffing and puffing. This destination is not for the faint of heart—put on your sneakers and start climbing! The stairs begin at the bend of Clayton Street north of Corbett Avenue. Look for the pink wall and the “Pemberton Steps” sign. The first set of stairs up to Villa Terrace has been refurbished within the last decade, but the rest of the steps take you back to the Victorian era. Watch your step on those moss-covered cobblestones! If you need to take a breather, the gorgeous gardens surrounding you will help and so will the amazing views.
Once you’ve reached the top of the steps that end at Crown Terrace, take a right and head down to the junction of Clarendon Avenue and Twin Peaks Boulevard. Cross the street to the much shorter wooden staircase to Tank Hill Park. Some argue that the view from Tank Hill is even better than Twin Peaks because its lower elevation makes the topography and urban details of San Francisco come alive! Just be sure to mind the kids carefully as there are some steep drop-offs that help create the unobstructed view. And for future reference, it’s a great place to watch next year’s Fourth of July fireworks and October’s Blue Angels (as long as it’s not foggy). There’s no playground, but who needs to play after that hike!? It is, however, the perfect spot for a picnic and family portrait. Pack some hot cider in a thermos to share, and you’ll be all warmed up for the trek home.
San Francisco Recreation and Parks, http://www.sfgov.org/site/recpark_index.asp
We’ve found the perfect bike ride with your little one in tow. It’s just long enough to provide a bit of exercise for you but short enough to keep the little one happy while hangin’ in the trailer or bike seat. Park the car at Redmond’s Marymoor Park – we suggest parking by the playground to let them get the wiggles out prior to the ride. (There are also restrooms, a small Subway and picnic tables in this area). Parking is $1. Then, load ’em up and hit the Sammamish River Trail heading North. If you keep up a good pace you can be in Woodinville in about 1/2 hour – 45 mins. If a shorter ride is in order, consider parking at 60 acres soccer fields instead (from Willows Road, turn down 116th) and hop on the trail from there, which will be a shorter ride; probably 20 mins – 1/2 hour. Then, either pull over near the wineries for a lunch stop at Redhook Brewery (which has a kids menu and outdoor dining on nice days, might be packed at the lunch hour) or continue North just a few more minutes to Woodinville’s Wilmot Gateway Park which has a playground with swings, picnic tables, and restrooms. (The trail runs right through the park so you can’t miss it!).
Of course, you can also do this ride in reverse by parking in Woodinville and riding to Marymoor!
Maybe Junior will even catch a zzzz in the trailer on the way home.
