Where Do You Take Guests From Out-of-Town?

To show off the East Bay to your friends from back home, where do you go? We asked our friends, family, and yes, definitely our insanely helpful 510families parent community on Facebook, “Where do you take out-of-town guests?” and this is what you guys told us:

• Oakland mega visit: Lake Merritt, Uptown, Lakeshore, Oakland Museum, Oakland Zoo, Farmer Joe’s, Joaquin Miller Park, Bakesale Betty, Ramen Shop, and one of these kid-friendly outdoor spots (Kiera)
• Alameda’s greatest hits: Crown Beach, Park Street shops, USS Hornet tour, and wineries on Alameda Point (Katie)

• Berkeley Marina: Stop for drinks at Skate’s before a walk around the marina green. Or fly kites and enjoy the Bay view (Britt)
• A fun day at Cal: Our own UC Berkeley is a lovely place for a stroll. Head up the Campanile on a clear day. If you have kids with you, here are 5 other things to keep them busy on campus, or if you have sports fans, here’s the inside info you need (Becky)

• Speaking of Scenic views: Head to the hills and check out the scenery from Inspiration Point and Grizzly Peak vistas, or sip drinks on the patio at the Claremont Hotel to get above it all (Britt)
• Or combine pizza with a view: Grab Zachary’s Pizza, then visit Indian Rock (Rose) or go down Moeser from Arlington (El Cerrito) for the sweeping view of the Bay, then to Cheese Board (Hadley)
• Best visit for children: For little ones, we always visit Fairyland and the Tilden Steam Trains (Beth)

• Nature lovers: Hike around Redwood Regional Park, Lake Chabot, or wherever! So many trails, so little time. Plenty of kid-friendly ones as well (Paul)
• Playing pinball: Grandma always wants to go to the Pacific Pinball Museum in Alameda (Amalia)
• Our park beats your park: Save a day for all the gems of Tilden Park, from the farm to the carousel (Elizabeth)
• Visit the Fairies: Little ones love the fairy village in Point Richmond — it includes a short, steep urban walk. Adults can grab coffee before or after. (Andrew)

• Get on your horse: We love Skyline Ranch for horseback riding (David)
• More Oaklandish: We time our tour to hit the Grand Lake Farmers Market, followed by Fentons (Carolyn)
• Food Food Food: Even our grocery stores are special to visitors. Bring your friends to Berkeley Bowl (Angel) or Tokyo Fish Market (Leonieke)

• Geek out: Our two science museums come with hands-on fun for mixed ages and either redwoods or Bay views at Chabot Space and Science Center or the Lawrence Hall of Science (Elizabeth)
• Eat out: The perfect restaurant for visitors depends on your taste; we got votes for A16 Rockridge (Lisa), Headlands Beer Garden (Ashley), Rose Pizzeria (Julie) or Vik’s Chaat & Market (Jenny)
• Beach Day: Bay beaches are mellow and have more stunning views. Keller, Albany Bulb, Point Molate, and Crown Memorial are fab (Ari)
• Go Sports!: Sure, we’ve lost a few teams, but gained a bunch too. Ballers, Roots, Soul. And always Cal (Rose)

What’d we miss? Tell us some of your favorites in the comments!