Ah, San Francisco. Home of the 49ers, the Giants, and a wonderful selection of summer camps. These San Francisco summer camps give young campers the ability to socialize with others, learn new skills or subjects and explore the outdoors all while spending a productive summer.
Combined with San Francisco’s outdoors and coastal and mountain regions, it’s no wonder you can find some quality programs here. No matter your child’s age, interests, or skills, the following camps offer a wide variety of educational and adventuresome activities.
Whether your child loves the water, the stage, or the sciences, the Bay area offers camps that cater to every interest. Here are the best summer camps in San Francisco, California.
Dogpatch Paddle Camps
These day camps are held at Crane Cove Park in the Mission District–right on the Bay. If your kids love spending time in the water, this is the camp for them. Each day, small groups head out into the Bay area for summer camp activities.
Dogpatch offers four different options: Beginner and Intermediate SUP, Kayak, and Explorers camps. The Beginner SUP camp is for ages 7-12, and all other camps are for ages 9-14.
Activities include learning the basics of boarding and kayaking, venturing out into the water each morning and afternoon, and exploring wildlife in this part of California.
If the water is rough or bad weather threatens, kids participate in alternate activities on land. Other times, depending on the interests of the group, camp instructors can substitute the water activities with fun camp games and watersports.
Dogpatch Paddle Camps offer numerous five-day sessions throughout the summer. Spring break camps are also available. Activities last from 9 am to 3 pm each day.
Camp Galileo
Camp Galileo is a large camp encompassing five metropolises. There are about two dozen locations throughout the San Francisco Bay area, so it’s easy to find one close by.
The day camps are generally held at elementary schools. They combine traditional camp activities with unique and innovative classroom experiences.
Activities include designing and building inventions and working on various STEAM projects, from dino digs to castle-building. You can also participate in games and outdoor activities, perform in skits, and learn to sing camp songs. Camp Galileo is for students in K-10th grade and everything is age-appropriate. You can attend camp from one to six weeks each summer.
Camp Galileo teaches children to be brave, confident, innovative and to push through challenges in a fun and exciting environment. This summer camp appeals to your child’s academic side and exercises both the body and the mind. They also have other programs in Southern California.
KidzToPros
Looking for a wonderful camp experience in California? KidzToPros can give your future innovator, artist, or promising athlete the summer they’ve been dreaming of! From arts, stem and sports summer camps, KidzToPros gives your 4- to 14-year-old enriching curricula in a fun and engaging atmosphere!
This summer, you can let your children explore and discover new activities. They offer a variety of tech-savvy courses for the 21st century, like LEGO Robotics and Scratch Coding. Meanwhile, their art activities let your children explore their imaginations with performing, creative, and digital arts. Sports camps keep their bodies in shape while teaching them skills in teamwork and leadership.
Check out their website to find a camp near you. To show you KidzToPros is passionate about helping every child in America, take an extra $50 off at checkout using promo code SCH-50.
Circus Summer Camp
The Circus Center summer camp is held across the street from Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. It’s a unique specialty camp for kids interested in circus activities or who enjoy athletic challenges.
The Circus Summer Camp offers a wide range of activities, from juggling and walking on stilts to trapeze flying and various acrobatics. In addition, typical camp activities like songs and games are also part of the fun.
This camp is for children ages 7 to 13. Classes are led by real circus performers and last from 9 am to 3 pm each weekday, with before- and aftercare available.
Different sessions are offered weekly. You can sign your child up for as many weeks as they want throughout the summer. There is also a summer intensive program for experienced children who have completed the first two levels.
This circus school keeps kids entertained and active as they learn new skills and overcome challenges. Apart from summer, they also have fall and spring programs.
Kid Stock
Kid Stock has performing arts summer camps for children interested in singing and performing. It’s offered at several locations in the SF area. Children learn about performing arts through several workshops each day. Workshops focus on everything from drama, song, dance, and artwork.
Daily rehearsals are broken up with opportunities to play games, eat lunch and snacks, and enjoy recess. Kids are divided by age into family pods, allowing them to easily meet new friends. At the end of each three-week session, kids put on a play to show off what they have learned.
Each camp location offers three sessions. Activities take place from 9 am to 3 pm each day, with aftercare available. The Kid Stock Theater Camps are for children ages 5 to 17. Older kids have opportunities to volunteer at the camps, mentor the younger children, and gain valuable work experience.
This is a great opportunity for kids to have fun and build interpersonal skills through performing arts.
CDS Summer Camp
Located in the heart of San Francisco, CA, this day camp is geared for preschool children up to elementary students in 5th grade. As part of Children’s Day School, the summer camps are open to all children.
There are several sessions to choose from depending on the age of your children. They include Preschool Summer Camp, Kickstart (CDS students only), Elementary Rising for 1st and 2nd graders, and Elementary Rising for 3rd through 5th graders.
Depending on the age group, there are several learning pathways within each one. Their art focus includes art activism, nature, poetry, and even a Maker’s Lab to make jewelry. Other programs include culinary science for the young ones, music camp, and even lessons revolving around the city of San Francisco itself.
Most sessions are three weeks long with 3 different ones to select from. The day camps have extensions as add-ons if you need to pick up the kids later in the day. They take campers on field trips to head out into the world and expand upon the lessons taught in the classroom.
Peekadoodle
Peekadoodle is a preschool that provides summer camps for students and toddlers three through five years of age. Using the same ideals of Montessori practices and play-based learning, their camps provide a great learning environment.
Peekadoodle offers four two-week choices with different focuses. Each session runs during the week until 12:45 pm with optional extended day options until 3 pm. Each of their programs (Art, Cooking, Science, and Imagination) offer something different, and you can enroll them in more than one if you’d like.
All activities occur at the Peekadoodle school, where your child can access some of the best play areas in the city.
Classrooms and outdoor spaces are equipped with toys meant to foster learning. And teachers are skilled at giving your children the space they need to create, think, and play with others.
Garden Camp
The Garden Camp is held at the San Francisco Botanical Gardens. Housed within Golden Gate Park, the Botanical Gardens has 55 acres to explore, highlighting manicured gardens, vast spaces, and over 8,000 plants from across the globe.
And your child can experience this magical place at its summer camp. Garden Camp is a place to explore the plant world with organized and unstructured activities centered around the natural world.
You’ll find sessions here for kids from five years old up to 14 years old. The camp includes ecology, art, health, and wellness, all while promoting a love for the outdoors. The day camp has four two-week sessions throughout the school break. The majority of the time at camp is spent outside amidst the beauty of the plants and the natural world.
Parents, bring your kids to summer camp but keep that fun going all year round. The San Francisco Botanical Gardens is open year-round, every day of the week.
It’s Yoga Kids
Movement, meditation, and mindfulness are the key components of this summer camp. It’s Yoga Kids creates an environment that is all about yoga and how to find the fun in yoga.
Each session with a 6:1 student to teacher ratio focuses on getting kids to move and stretch not only their bodies but also their minds. While yoga is the main component, your child will also have ample opportunity to explore the outdoors while reflecting on their day.
Half-day and full-day camps are available throughout the session, and each one is one week long. You can choose from nine sessions, with much of the camp taking place outdoors.
Your child will also explore the nearby Lucas Arts Center, Palace of Fine Arts, and a few more other places. And if you want your child to experience yoga outside of just the summer, It’s Yoga Kids offers classes throughout the year for all age groups, adults included.
SF Zoo Camp
Does your child love animals? If you answered yes, then the San Francisco Zoo & Gardens camp is a wonderful option. You can choose from week-long sessions for students in preschool through middle school.
Adventures involve lessons about animals and their habitats, conservation efforts, STEM activities, and more. Best of all, students even get to see the animals up close and personal under the safety of their staff.
With a camp located within the zoo itself, your child can learn about the many ecosystems across the globe from Monday to Friday. And when done with the program, be sure to find time to get to the zoo. It’s open all year round, every day of the week. A Spanish bilingual camp runs during the spring so consider that as well.