Kids Free San Diego In October – Free Kids Tickets To Attractions, Kids Eat Free & More!
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Kids Free San Diego In October – Free Kids Tickets To Attractions, Kids Eat Free & More!
So many free things for kids to do in San Diego in October, including Legoland, Sea World, San Diego Zoo and much more. We share everything you need to know to plan the perfect family getaway during the Kids Free San Diego promotion this October.
The Kids Free October San Diego promotion is back this year! This is one of the best ways to save on a family vacation, that we run across this time of the year. Kids can get free tickets to so many local attractions, plus there are special promotions for San Diego area hotels, kids eat free at restaurants, and more. And the best part is that some deals at participating locations are available now and last all October long.
My family loves San Diego as a getaway destination year-round. There are so many things that are already free to enjoy there for families, like the beautiful beaches, and strolling through spots like Coronado Island, Old Town San Diego, or Balboa Park, as just a few ideas. Add in ALL of these FREE Admission opportunities for the kids, and you could plan a pretty spectacular vacation on a budget.
You can check out our guide of things to do in San Diego, to help plan more things to do on top of all of the freebies for the month of October
If you are considering a family vacation, seriously consider the Kids Free San Diego in October promotion, to help you save big. It is a lot of bang for your buck if you are traveling with kids. Many of the local hotels offer kids eat-free options for the month of October too, as another way to help you save, so be sure to ask about those.
When my kids were elementary age, we took them to San Diego for a week and had so much fun. It was a vacation I look forward to going back to. We visited the San Diego Zoo, Legoland, Sea World, Coronado Island, and Old Town San Diego. We loved every minute of that trip, and hope to get back soon. It is such a wonderful city to visit for a family getaway. You could make a trip up to Disneyland from there too, but the San Diego area is a great visit all in its own right, and here are some super savings to make that happen!
Highlights of this year’s annual Kids Free San Diego / Kids Free October month for your family to enjoy:
There are three big expenses you will often incur once you are onsite at your vacation destination: Hotel stay, food & attractions. The really cool thing about this promotion is that it helps you save on all three of those areas! We have broken down some highlights of what you will find available for free for kids in all three categories below. If you want a full listing of free offerings, find those here.
Kids FREE Tickets for Theme Parks & Other Area Attractions –
These are the bigger ticket items you might want to enjoy during your visit. The kid’s free tickets will save you a ton at these attractions!
Get San Diego Zoo Kids free tickets in October –
They are offering free admission to kids 11 years old and younger when accompanied by a paying adult, providing the perfect opportunity for families to experience the zoo’s recently opened Denny Sanford Wildlife Explorers Basecamp. Guests can interact, climb, scramble, and jump in four innovative nature play areas and visit habitats from around the world, from desert dunes and wild woods to marsh meadows and rainforests.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
Check out our review of visiting the San Diego Zoo here, plus more ways to get San Diego Zoo Discount tickets year-round.
The same offer is also valid at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, a 1,800-acre wildlife sanctuary and home to more than 300 species. Families can get up close and personal with lions lounging in the grasslands, antelope, and giraffes mingling, rhinos wallowing in waterholes, and storks and cranes on the march.
We visited the zoo when our kids were elementary age, and we just loved it. It is a beautiful walking zoo, and there is an air tram and buses as well. If your kids like animals, this makes for a wonderful day, especially when kid’s tickets are free!
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
SeaWorld Kids Free Tickets for San Diego
- One free child admission with one adult single-day admission
- Valid through October 31st
This is also SeaWorld Spooktacular time, so enjoy some of the holiday theming with your free tickets too.
My girls really enjoyed SeaWorld too. We loved the shows and the learning exhibits. I loved that it was a lot more than just theme park rides, and we learned a lot about the sea life there.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
LEGOLAND® California Resort
Get a FREE child ticket with a paid adult Hopper Ticket. AWESOME AWAITS at LEGOLAND® for kids ages 2-12, plus enjoy your choice of SEA LIFE® Aquarium or LEGOLAND Water Park.
We also share more ways to get Legoland Discount Tickets, including Free Kids Tickets all year long!
Legoland is great for younger kids. It does have a waterpark onsite (that is an add-on feature) but we recommend adding that if you are going on a hot day.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
Sesame Place Kids Free Tickets
Children, ages 4 to 9, receive free admission to the all-new Sesame Place San Diego with one full-paid adult ticket from now until the end of October. Kids should pack their costumes so they can participate in the festivities.
The Count’s Halloween Spooktacular happens this time of the year too. The park will be transformed into a family-friendly Halloween haven. Guests can enjoy trick-or-treating around the park, Halloween-themed shows and parades, participating in the interactive Sesame Scarecrow Scavenger Hunt, and unique photo opportunities with everyone’s favorite furry friends dressed up in costume.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
Belmont Park
Get free admission for kids 12 and under and/or under the height of 48″ when buying 1 Belmont Park Combo Wristband (48″ and taller).
The combo wristband includes all-day access to over 20 different rides and attractions. Guests can also enjoy Belmont Park’s Fall Festival, with iconic amusement park rides, a Pumpkin Pop-Up, live music, specialty Fall treats, and seasonal beer on tap for the adults.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
Balboa Park
Families can spend hours exploring Balboa Park, the largest urban cultural park in North America, home to 18 museums, beautiful botanical gardens, and exciting performing arts venues.
Kids receive free admission at participating park museums, including the Japanese Friendship Garden of San Diego, a living work of Japanese art and culture, and the Museum of Us, where everyone can discover a variety of interactive exhibits highlighting human stories that span time and cultures.
Find Kids Free October tickets here.
The New Children’s Museum stimulates imagination, creativity, and critical thinking in children and families through engaging encounters with contemporary art.
Kids Free Tickets for Local Museums & Other Fun & Family Friendly Activities in San Diego –
Kids have endless options to learn while having fun at a plethora of museums offering free admission to all kids, ages 12 and under, in October. Below are just a few of San Diego’s many kid-friendly museums to discover.
Heart of SoCal City Tour and La Jolla & Torrey Pines Tour
• 2 kids FREE with paid Adult ticket
Flagship Cruises and Events
- 6 free children per paid adult on all 1 and 2-hour San Diego Harbor Tours
Japanese Friendship Garden
• 2 kids FREE with paid Adult general admission
Old Town Trolley Tours
Kids can discover “America’s Finest City” on a two-hour, fully narrated, historic city tour of San Diego and Coronado aboard a uniquely themed trolley. Old Town Trolley Tours covers approximately 25 miles and over 100 points of interest in a fast-paced two-hour narrative. Guests can hop on and off at several stops and tour at their own pace throughout the day while listening to colorful anecdotes, humorous stories, and well-researched historical information.
Old Town San Diego was a highlight for us. You cannot beat the homemade tortillas you get at some of the restaurants. It was one of our favorite meals from our vacation and we cannot wait to go back!
San Diego Speedboat Adventures
• 1 kid FREE with 2 paid Adults
USS Midway
Downtown’s kid-friendly museums include the Maritime Museum of San Diego, a collection of historic sailing ships, steam-powered boats, and deep-diving submarines, and the USS Midway Museum, a historic aircraft carrier that features exciting flight stimulators and real fighter jets
Seal Amphibious Tour
- One free child per paid adult on the Seal Tour
And some more ideas include –
- Head up to North County San Diego, where kids can learn about the history of surfboards and wave riding at the California Surf Museum. The museum features permanent and revolving exhibits, such as Bethany Hamilton’s shark-bitten board. Kids can also explore interactive exhibits and come face to face with exciting creatures, including a rescued Loggerhead Sea Turtle, a Giant Pacific Octopus, and Leopard Sharks at the Birch Aquarium at Scripps in La Jolla. Meet the world’s smallest penguins in a brand-new exhibit at Birch Aquarium. Beyster Family Little Blue Penguins follows these pint-sized penguins on their journey from hatchlings to adults, highlighting the challenges they face in a changing climate while celebrating the features that make them so unique.
- Families can explore Mission Bay from a kayak with Ocean Connectors. Kids under 12 can observe coastal wildlife for free while learning about conservation and marine biology from local experts.
- One kid under 17 years old rides free with a paid adult on a San Diego Whale Watch adventure. The on-staff Marine Biologists will have endless wildlife facts to share with passengers of all ages about the beautiful marine ecosystem San Diego has to offer. Each whale-watching trip is a two-and-a-half-hour journey, with a chance to spot wildlife from the very beginning. Guests can expect to see Blue, Humpback, Minke, and Finback Whales.
Hotel Deals for Kids Free San Diego & Kids Eat Free San Diego Promotions –
Hotels throughout San Diego, ranging from budget options to luxury escapes, are also offering free meals, special experiences, and welcome gifts for kids this October.
- One of my favorite local spots, the Sheraton on the Marina, is offering a kid’s stay and eat-free promotion. This spot has multiple pools, and water views all around. There are restaurants on-site, lawn games, and more. We loved staying here on one of our visits.
- Located on the shores of Mission Bay and steps from San Diego’s famous Mission Beach, Bahia Resort Hotel offers families an exciting getaway where parents can start off their trip with 25% off their stay, and kids, ages 12 and under, get a free meal for each paid adult entrée at Dockside 1953, which offers up creative coastal cuisine and comfort food. After a delicious meal, kids can enjoy free admission aboard the Bahia Belle sightseeing cruise to explore the 4,200-acre aquatic park. Families can also experience an exciting paddleboard or kayak adventure with a complimentary rental from Bahia’s on-site partner, Action Sport Rentals.
- At the family-friendly Paradise Point Resort & Spa on Mission Bay, kids ages 12 and under can play, shop or eat for free with a special “island allowance” worth $50. The credit can be applied toward ice cream, a toy from the gift shop, a bike rental, and more.
- The all-new Kimpton Alma San Diego, neighboring the historic Gaslamp District and Little Italy, is offering kids 12 and under a free house-made ice cream sandwich with the purchase of an entree at Leave of Absence– Kimpton Alma’s new family-friendly rooftop restaurant featuring wood-fired pizza and globally inspired beverages. After a delicious meal, guests can enjoy an afternoon of family fun with patio games like Giant Jenga, Connect 4, foosball, and cornhole.
You can find a full list of Kids Free Hotel Deals for San Diego here too.
KIDS EAT FREE San Diego at these spots in October –
Kids Can Dig in with the Deals at San Diego’s Restaurants:
Note – the best way to find the Kids eat free restaurants is to go here and then put “Kids Eat Free” in the search field and it should give you a big list of participating restaurants.
Some highlights include –
- Featuring world-renowned celebrity chef Akira Back, Lumi is an energetic and upscale rooftop experience serving innovative Japanese fare and sushi accompanied by handcrafted libations in a vividly unique atmosphere. For the entire month of October, from Sunday to Thursday, kids under 12 and under eat free with an adult purchase. Kids Menu choices available for kids under 12, served with a soft drink include sushi rolls, shrimp and sweet potato tempura, and chicken katsu with French fries.
- Located inside the popular Little Italy Food Hall, at the much-buzzed Piazza della Famiglia, Samburgers offers families the opportunity to savor food-celebrity Sam the Cooking Guy’s fan-favorite burgers. Kids 12 and under can enjoy one free kid’s meal with the purchase of one adult meal.
- After exploring the historical sites of Old Town San Diego, parents can unwind with a margarita and some traditional Mexican food at Casa Guadalajara, while up to three kids receive a free meal from the kid’s menu per one paid adult entrée.
