Tips for Visiting Sequoia National Park with Little Kids

If you're planning a trip to Central California and you dream of walking among the giant sequoia trees, plan to spend a day exploring Sequoia National Park!

Ever since becoming a mom, I’ve had a dream that our family would visit as many National Parks in the United States as we could. Before our trip to California this fall we had only crossed one off of our list - Great Smoky Mountains National Park on our trip to Gatlinburg. I knew visiting California meant we would be able to check off at least one more since California is brimming with National Parks.

We went to watch my younger sister play college volleyball at a tournament in Bakersfield, so we decided to add Sequoia National Park to our itinerary. It was an excellent National Park to visit with little kids. I was with my 5-, 3-, and 1-year-old whose legs get tired after even short hikes. When I read that there were lots of short flat paths in the park, I knew we had chosen well.

We arrived around 10 and stayed until about 4:30 in the afternoon. I felt like that was plenty of time to fit in everything we wanted to do.

Of course, if you stay in or near the park, you can add a few things to your itinerary and spread it out over two days. We were heading to Santa Barbara next so we kept it to just one day.

Here are my tips on how to do Sequoia National Park with little kids from the moment you enter the park, including the top things to do and see with kids.

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Getting to Sequoia National Park

Sequoia National Park is located in Central California and is not easily accessible from any major airports. The closest airports are Fresno Yosemite International Airport (1 hour and 15 minutes away) and Visalia Municipal Airport (1 hour away).

We flew into LAX since it was the cheapest flight option for us. We spent a few hours exploring Santa Monica Pier, TCL Chinese Theater, and seeing the Hollywood sign before making our way to Bakersfield for my sister's volleyball tournament.

Bakersfield was 1 hour 50 minutes away from Sequoia, which is why we chose this National Park to visit.

Understandably, most people who are planning to visit Sequoia National Park won't be coming from Bakersfield, so I would recommend combining Sequoia with other national parks or major cities in California.

One option would be a Yosemite National Park and Sequoia National Park road trip. Another option would be visiting Sequoia before driving down to southern California and experiencing the Pacific Coast Highway (check out my Southern California Road Trip Itinerary with Kids!)

Things to Know Before You Go

There are a few things you need to know about Sequoia National Park to have the best experience possible with young children.

Best Time to Visit

The summer months are the best time to visit Sequoia and Kings Canyon, as many of the roads close during the winter months. It's also the most crowded with fellow tourists from June to August.

We visited in mid-September, and the weather was still warm with plenty of sunshine, though the mornings were a bit brisk. I thought it was the perfect time of year to go before the weather gets bad, rendering some roads impassable.

Late spring would also be a good time to visit, though there would be much more melting snow.

Where to Stay

There are 4 lodging options inside the national park:

Wuksachi Lodge - located in the Giant Forest area of Sequoia National Park. There are 102 guest rooms, a restaurant, a cocktail lounge, and a gift shop.
John Muir Lodge - located in Grant Grove Village in King's Canyon National Park. There are 36 guest rooms and a restaurant.
Grant Grove Cabins - located in the Grant Grove area of King's Canyon. There are 6 types of cabins to choose from.
Cedar Grove Lodge - located in the Cedar Grove area of King's Canyon with 21 hotel rooms, a snack bar, a market, and a gift shop.

You can also plan to stay in the town of Three Rivers, a gateway town to Sequoia National Park.

Shuttles

If you don’t want to deal with mountain driving, take the shuttle service. It’s $15 round trip per person which includes your entry fee into the park. There is also a free in-park shuttle if you don’t want to worry about parking. They stop at Lodgepole, General Sherman, and the Giant Forest Museum.

Get an Early Start

You will have a full day of driving and hiking, and the earlier you start, the more you can fit into your day. You'll also be able to enjoy more popular areas of the park without the crowds.

Junior Rangers

Remember you can pick up a Junior Ranger booklet for your kids ages 5 and older to complete during your time in the park for a Junior Ranger Badge. Stop at one of the Visitor Centers to get the Junior Ranger book!

Gas Up

There are no gas stations within the park. It may seem obvious, but make sure your car is filled up before entering the park as you’ll be doing a lot of mountain driving. It hardly seems like an ideal place to run out of gas.

Layer Up

Dress in layers. The weather can be sunny and warm at the park entrance and get progressively colder as you increase altitude. You can always shed sweatshirts, hats, and gloves as you go if it warms up.

Bring Snacks

There are plenty of picnic areas around the park, so feel free to bring food and water. Just make sure to read up on Food Storage Regulations to prevent bears from ransacking your car if they see or smell food.

Be Prepared for Altitude Sickness or Motion Sickness

I’m unsure if it was the altitude sickness or motion sickness from trying to read as we drove down the mountain, but I ended up feeling pretty sick as we made our way out of the park. (I’m not usually prone to motion sickness so I wasn’t prepared!) If you are prone to motion sickness, come prepared with the necessary medication or gear!

Stay Hydrated

Drink tons of water the day before you go. Keep sipping water throughout your day at the park. It’s easy to get dehydrated at that altitude. You can even bring a hydration powder like LMNT or DripDrop - I've used both for travel and hiking and love them for different reasons! LMNT is a little salty if you've never tried it before, but it definitely works!

Plan Ahead

Be sure to check out the Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park website for all the information you need about planning your visit! The National Park Service has so many great resources for planning a trip to any of the national parks!

Sequoia National Park One Day Itinerary

Sequoia National Park is a great place to visit with kids of all ages. Kids will be in awe of the towering trees, and there are beautiful views everywhere you turn against the Sierra Nevada mountain range in the background.

There are scenic drives, easy hikes on paved trails, and challenging hikes with more elevation gain. You may see wildlife, including bears!

There is so much to see and do, but with young children in tow, you might be more limited in what you want to include in your day. Here is what we fit into one day at Sequoia National Park with kids.

Park Entrance

We came to the park through the Ash Mountain Entrance. The gateway town is Three Rivers, and as you’re driving through you’ll already start to get some stunning views.

The cost per vehicle is $35. You can buy passes online here. Or you can just pay at the entrance.

Visitor Center

Start your day at the Foothills Visitor Center which opens at 8 a.m. You’ll arrive just a short drive after entering the park, and it’s a great spot to stop and get your bearings. There are restrooms, so if you have older kids this is the time to have them go one more time before the long drives begin.

My parents showed the kids the displays around the small Visitor Center while I spoke to one of the incredibly helpful Park Rangers to plan out which spots would be best to see with little kids. She walked me through her recommendations and how to get there which took a lot of the stress out of our day.

We decided on a few key spots we knew we could manage with the kids, and drove off.

Be sure to get a map from the visitor center, as reception can be spotty, and you want to make sure you can find your way around the park if you can't access the map on your phone.

Stop at Tunnel Rock

After driving a few minutes away from the Visitor Center, you will come up to Tunnel Rock. We hadn’t planned on making a long stop here, as the Park Ranger only mentioned it in passing in a very offhand way. But once we got there we saw a few people posing for pictures in front of it and even on top of it.

We decided to take turns getting out of the car with the big kids while one adult stayed in the car with the one-year-old. Tunnel Rock is right on the side of the road with no barrier. Our 17-month-old would have attempted to run away, and we didn’t want to deal with that.

I’m so glad we got out! Pippa, our 5-year-old, and Teddy, our 3-year-old, had a blast running through the tunnel and pretending they were in a cave. My mom and I both decided to be brave and took turns climbing on top of the rock. (Do so at your own risk, and DON’T let little kids climb up there!)

Anyway, it’s a really cool rock that cars used to be able to drive through. Nowadays, vehicles are too large to fit, but people are still welcome to walk through!

Hospital Rock

Hop back in the car for some more driving and you’ll reach Hospital Rock next. We read that this is a great spot for a picnic and an interesting place to see some petroglyphs, or paintings on rocks done by Native Americans.

We didn’t end up stopping here, but I included it because it’s a very kid-friendly spot. It’s also the last stop before you hit some real mountain driving.

Scenic Drive to Giant Forest Museum

As you make your way to the Giant Forest Museum, you’ll experience your first few switchbacks. My dad was driving and commented that they weren’t quite as harrowing as some they had previously encountered in Colorado.

I was relieved to hear this, as I had originally planned to do Sequoia by myself with the 3 kids. I’m very glad my parents decided to join me (man-to-man defense on the kids instead of zone defense) but it was good to know that I would have been ok by myself.

Anyway, the drive from Tunnel Rock to the Giant Forest Museum took about an hour. It's not that far in distance, but the drive is quite slow, though scenic.

Once we arrived, we were ready to get out and stretch our legs. We parked across the road from the museum and decided to get out our stroller and picnic lunch since one of the hikes we wanted to do was just a short walk from the museum.

The Museum has a lot of very interesting displays, but since only 1/3 of our kids can read, it didn’t hold their attention for very long. I was kind of disappointed since I wanted to read all of the placards and information, but that’s life with little kids.

Big Trees Trail

You can follow the paved path on either side of the highway to get to Big Trees Trail. If you head out from the parking lot you won’t have to cross the road. If you follow the paved path north from the Giant Forest Museum, you’ll just have to cross Generals Highway. Both paths lead you to the trail.

Once we got to the trailhead we were distracted with taking pictures by some of the giant sequoias when a man leaving the trail mentioned to us that you could see a family of black bears in the meadow at the center of the trail loop. You can imagine how quickly we stopped taking pictures and started our short hike!

As I mentioned earlier, we had the baby in the stroller for this one, and it was no problem as the paths are wide and flat. It’s about a 1-mile loop around a meadow with some interesting trees along the way.

One giant tree is fallen so you can see the twisted and tangled roots. Another tree seems to have grown out of a giant bolder which we naturally climbed because who doesn’t love a challenge? (I think my 5-year-old was braver about climbing up than I was, but to be fair, I was worried about both her and my safety. She was worried about no one’s safety).

Anyway, about halfway around the loop we saw people taking pictures and whispering to each other so we looked in the direction their cameras were pointing. Sure enough, a mama bear and a few of her cubs were climbing a tree in the distance. I’ve never been more devastated to not have my zoom lens with me! Can you spot the bears in these pictures?

I could have stayed there all day watching this mama bear wrangling her unruly cubs because she felt like a kindred spirit. My own Teddy Bear brought me back down to earth with his cries that he wanted to ride in the stroller because he was tired and didn’t want the bears to come over by us. We decided that was a good time to move on and finish the trail.

General Sherman Tree

The General Sherman Tree is bound to be the highlight of your trip to Sequoia. It is the largest tree in the world and people line up to take their picture in front of the sign and tree. Follow the signs to park in the main parking lot for the Main Trail to the General Sherman Tree.

You will have a half-mile hike descending into the forest. It’s mostly paved with quite a few stairs, so I wouldn’t bother bringing the stroller (although I did see people along the way using their strollers, so it definitely can be done. You’ll just be lifting a stroller up and down stairs for a half mile, so…keep that in mind).

When you get closer to the bottom there is a lookout point where you can see the world's largest tree from a distance so you can take in its spectacular height. The tree’s “footprint” is outlined on the ground so you can stand in the middle to get a sense of how big this tree is.

From there, it’s just a short walk to the base of the tree where you can stand in line for a few minutes for pictures. People seemed to be pretty helpful about snapping photos for the group in front of them in line.

Picture with General Sherman Tree at Sequoia

Once you are done admiring the tree (and trust me, you’ll want to do this for a few minutes) and taking your picture, there are several trails through the giant sequoia groves, l like the Congress Trail which is a gentle 3-mile trail. If your kids are up for it, you won’t regret taking a walk through the peaceful forest.

We wandered around for a bit but didn’t stray too far because we knew we had a long drive to Santa Barbara ahead of us.

Side note: we did stop and take pictures between these two giant trees and it was a fun spot to give some perspective about the size of the trees vs. the kids.

The walk back to the car is only a half mile, remember that you’ll have to climb back up all those stairs you descended, and probably with a baby or toddler in your arms. It’s not so bad, but you will probably be a bit out of breath at the end due to a combination of the altitude and the uphill climb.

More Things to Do with Kids in Sequoia and Kings Canyon

As I mentioned, this is where we ended our day at Sequoia National Park. There’s so much more to see and do at this amazing National Park and I know my kids and I haven’t even scratched the surface. Talk to the Rangers at one of the Visitor Centers and inquire about other family-friendly trails or make your way over to Kings Canyon National Park since you’ve already paid the entrance fee anyway!

Here are a few stops I would add to our itinerary if we returned to Sequoia National Park:

Kid-Friendly Hikes

Moro Rock

Moro Rock is another great spot I kept reading about, but when I looked at pictures of both the hike up and the guard rail situation at the top, I imagined my strong-willed toddler and preschool trying to run away from me and decided to save that one for another time.

Moro Rock is a granite dome with a 300-foot staircase to get to the summit with steep dropoffs on each side. This is a fairly simple hike to do with kids if they can handle the stair climb. The views are supposed to be gorgeous from the top of Moro Rock.

This is probably the thing I'm saddest about missing at Sequoia Nationa Park, but is a great reason for me to go back for another visit!

Tokopah Falls

This is an easy 1.7-mile walk along the Kaweah River to see the 1,200-foot waterfall in Tokopah Canyon.

Congress Trail

This easy paved 2-mile loop near the General Sherman tree will have you surrounded by giants in a sequoia grove. Easy enough to do with toddlers in a carrier or even a stroller.

Crystal Cave

Crystal Cave Tours are supposed to be really cool. You must go on a guided tour, and the website says all ages are welcome. I think if we had more time I might have added this to our itinerary.

We enjoyed visiting Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota, so from that experience, I would recommend avoiding the toddler years. It was really tough to keep our curious 1-year-old away from the fragile cave walls.

Buy tickets online at least 36 hours in advance, but the website recommends that you purchase two months in advance of your visit.

General Grant Tree

General Grant Tree is located in Grant Grove in Kings Canyon National Park. It's an easy 1/3-mile hike to see the giant tree! Like the General Sherman tree, you can find easy hiking trails around this area.

Cedar Grove Trails

Cedar Grove is also located in Kings Canyon National Park, and there are several easy hiking trails to choose from along the Kings River.

Tunnel Log

I would love to drive through the Tunnel Log on Crescent Meadow Road located in Giant's Grove!I think the kids would get a kick out of the fallen tree that's large enough to drive through!

I hope this guide helped you navigate your way through the basics of Sequoia National Park. As I said, what we experienced was only the tip of the iceberg, and I would love to go back someday when the kids are older and spend a bit more time camping and exploring.

More California Adventures to Have with Kids

California is one of the most exciting and family-friendly travel destinations not only in the United States but in the world, too!

There are beautiful beaches and big cities, a diversity of landscapes like deserts, mountains, and forests, plus world-class theme parks, state parks, and national parks! Our family has had several amazing visits to the state of California, so I'll share a few of our favorite spots:

Death Valley National Park is one of the most underrated National Parks in the United States! We flew into Las Vegas and road-tripped 2 hours to get to this California National Park. It contains the lowest point in North America, plus sand dunes, mountains, salt flats, and pastel-colored rocks. Read all about our trip here: What to Do in Death Valley National Park with Kids
San Diego is one of the most family-friendly cities to visit. Of course, they have a world-renowned zoo, but there are so many other outdoor activities, museums, and theme parks within driving distance of San Diego. Here are 39 Fun Things to Do in San Diego with Kids!
If you want to visit San Diego, but also add on a trip to LEGOLAND California plus some desert fun in Palm Springs, you have to read my Southern California Road Trip Itinerary!
Santa Barbara has been one of my all-time favorite cities to visit with mild weather year-round, whitewashed adobe walls and red roof tiles, dramatic mountains in the distance and perfect beaches. Plus we really enjoyed the children's museum and the trolley ride! Read What to Do in Santa Barbara with Kids

More Travel Destination Ideas for Families

If you're looking for spring break getaways to escape the dreary cold weather, be sure to read my top Spring Break Destination Ideas for Families in the United States.

If you want some summer vacation ideas for epic adventures in the United States, try Best Summer Vacations in the USA for Families.

Finally, if you're looking for National Park inspiration, I've got guides to several family-friendly national parks to visit with young children - and a few of these might not be on your radar yet!

There are so many fun things to do in the United States with kids, so start mapping out your next big family vacation, whether you decided to fly or road trip!