The 17 Best Things To Do In Anaheim (2024) (From A Local)
Want to know all the best things to do in Anaheim? We’ve got you covered with everything you need to know!
Best Things To Do In Anaheim
There are so many fun things to do in Anaheim in that I don’t think it’s possible to fit it all in just this one blog post.
So here are the BEST and must-do things to do in Anaheim.
1. Disneyland’s 100 Years Of Wonder Celebration
Location: 1313 S Disneyland Dr, Anaheim, CA 92802
Disneyland Park just re-opened it’s Mickey’s ToonTown land with an all-new attraction, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway.
Additionally, the Walt Disney Company is celebrating it’s 100th Anniversary by bringing the celebration to it’s theme parks.
Enjoy nightly fireworks (weather permitting), limited time attractions, and special food offerings.
2. Adventure City
Location: 1238 S Beach Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92804
Adventure City is “the little theme park that’s big on family fun”!
It’s geared toward children 12 years old and younger.
Currently they are open on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and select holidays.
Depending on the day of the week, they open as early as 10 am and stay open as late as 8 pm.
There are plenty of kiddie rides and coasters, a petting farm, arcade, and live entertainment.
3. Baseball + Fireworks At Angel Stadium
Location: 2000 E Gene Autry Way, Anaheim, CA 92806
Opening Day at Angel Stadium is on April 7th and what better way to enjoy Anaheim than with a day of baseball!
Most, if not all games include some sort of giveaway or even a post-game fireworks show.
Giveaways include wall calendars, bobble heads, tote bags, shirts, blankets, hoodies, coolers, hats, and more.
Fireworks are generally after the Saturday night games, but you can check the Angel Stadium schedule to confirm what’s being offered at each game.
There are also theme nights like Star Wars Night on Friday, April 21st and Country Weekend during the weekend of May 19th – May 21st.
Additionally, Beach Weekend is May 26th – May 28th.
4. Exit Game OC
Location: 2975 E White Star Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
Exit Game OC is an innovative and immersive escape room experience in Anaheim.
Their escape room is called 13th Basement and it plays off of tropes and parodies of other horror themed escape rooms.
Our escape room experience began before we even got into the room.
The lobby has a Ninja Turtles arcade game and a deck of cards with dad jokes to play with while you wait for your game time.
There’s also an important set of locks in the lobby that you can try to solve.
It’s essential that you know how each one works because you’ll need to use each type of lock in the escape room.
Escape rooms are a great activity for groups of friends or families up to about 8 players.
This one in particular is best played with at least 3 players, but we were able to barely escape with 28 seconds to spare just the two of us.
Without giving too much away, we were split up at the beginning and had to find our way to each other to complete our escape.
The game has some minor jump scares, some loud noises, and is meant to be more creepy than scary.
With that being said, it’s best played by anyone 13 and older, but depending on your child, some younger ones may enjoy it.
You can also take pictures in this escape room, which many don’t let you do at all, so you’ll have opportunities to document your whole experience too!
👉 Click Here To Book Your Exit Game OC Escape Room Experience Today!
5. Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center
Location: 241 S Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92805
Muzeo is located in Downtown Anaheim and has a rotating schedule of exhibits, events, and activities.
This Spring, in the main gallery, you can check out the National Geographic: The Greatest Wildlife Photographs from February 18th – May 14th.
There are 4 other exhibits in the other galleries that you can visit during this time as well.
6. Anaheim Packing District
Location: 440 S Anaheim Blvd, Anaheim, CA 92805
The Anaheim Packing District is also part of Downtown Anaheim and is a must-visit for foodies.
This food hall has pretty much any type of food and dessert you could imagine.
It’s a great place to visit any time of year.
7. Escape Room Era
Location: 3365 E Miraloma Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
Escape Room Era has 3 different escape room experiences that are vastly different.
They have the cutest little Christmas themed room and the scariest, darkest, serial killer, horror room.
➡ Christmas at Franklin’s Escape Room
This is the most kid friendly escape room we’ve ever been to and there are no scary components whatsoever.
It’s a great room for beginners and for anyone that doesn’t like to be scared.
Christmas at Franklin’s is also probably the prettiest escape room we’ve seen.
It feels like you’re in your grandparents at Christmas time or a historic bed and breakfast, complete with a fire place, Christmas tree, and rocking chair.
The premise is that you are trying to acquire Benjamin Franklin’s latest toy invention.
It’s a good room for a larger group because there are multiple puzzles you can be working on at the same time.
➡ The Overgrown: Zombie Edition
This escape room we thought was going to be scary because of the zombies, but it was not at all.
It was actually quite peaceful and calming because the majority of the room is filled with plants and you’re in more of a science lab type of environment.
The anticipation of the zombies and what was going to happen was a lot scarier.
The premise of this room is that we were post-apocalyptic survivors trying to find the cure for zombies.
This room was more linear where you needed to follow sequential steps in a particular order to find the cure.
➡ The Hide
The Hide is not for the faint of heart.
This is absolutely the scariest escape room we’ve ever done, by far.
I do not recommend this for kids at all unless they’re at least high school aged.
Doing this with just 2 people feels even scarier because there are times where you’ll need to be separated and it’s dark the entire time.
I was genuinely worried that this escape room would give me nightmares.
With an escape room like this, I would recommend having the most amount of people as possible.
They recommend 4-7 players.
The premise of this escape room is that you’re private investigators gathering evidence on a suspected serial killer.
This escape room is also 75 minutes as opposed to 60 minutes like most other escape rooms.
👉 Click Here To Book Your Favorite Escape Room Era Experience Today!
8. Anaheim GardenWalk
Location: 400 W Disney Way, Anaheim, CA 92802
This shopping, dining, and entertainment district is right across the street from Disneyland.
The restaurants here regularly have specials for holidays, happy hours, weekends, etc.
Newly opened and coming soon are shops like King Coffee, a popular Vietnamese coffee brand, Artist-Row at Beer Garden, an outdoor art gallery, and La Michoacana, an ice cream shop.
Entertainment includes escape games, a cabaret and magic cafe, flightdeck simulation center, Bowlero, a movie theater, and more.
9. Kip Barry’s Magical Cabaret
Location: 321 W Katella Ave, Unit 141, Anaheim, CA 92802 (GardenWalk)
Kip Barry’s Magical Cabaret is a non-profit variety and magic show at Anaheim’s GardenWalk, just across the street from Disneyland.
Proceeds from tickets benefit the Barry Grateful Performing Arts Center.
Your experience begins in the parlor room, which is also a magic shop if you want to take any tricks or pranks home with you.
You’ll be treated to parlor style magic tricks before being escorted into the main theater through a secret entrance.
If you want, you’re able to add on dinner with your show, which we did, for the full experience.
The menu may change occasionally, but you can pretty much always expect something similar to this.
We had BBQ ribs, chicken skewers, rice, veggies, baked potatoes, croissants, and salad.
Then for dessert we had chocolate chip cookies.
There is also beer and wine available for those 21+ to enjoy before, during, or after the show.
About half the time, Kip Barry is here and is the main performer.
When he has other engagements, like performing on cruise ships, there are guest performers that come and do the show.
You can always check in advance who will be performing, but you’ll have a great show either way.
It’s kid friendly and really customized to the audience, so you’ll have a different experience each time you go.
There’s also a segment with a fire eater.
10. The Foundation Room + House of Blues Anaheim
Location: 400 W Disney Way, Unit 337, Anaheim, CA 92802
Located at GardenWalk is Anaheim’s very own House of Blues concert venue.
The Foundation Room and the restaurant host special event nights and concerts all throughout the year.
11. Anaheim Convention Center
Location: 800 W Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92802
Anaheim Convention Center hosts some of the biggest and most popular events in the US.
It’s located right across the street from Disneyland, so it makes for a fun visit having so many other great activities in the area.
12. Honda Center
Location: 2695 E Katella Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
The Honda Center is a sporting and entertainment venue in Anaheim near Angel Stadium.
They are the home arena for the Anaheim Ducks hockey team and there are great concerts here all throughout the year.
13. Take In The Best Night Views Around Orange County
Did you know you don’t need to be inside Disneyland Park to enjoy their nightly fireworks shows?
There are many hotel rooms with views, plus hotel rooftops and rooftop bars with great views of the whole show.
Other than the fireworks, there are also great sunset views in the area where you can see the ocean and mountains.
14. Explore Orange County’s Best Hidden Gems
One of my personal favorite things to do in Anaheim is explore our hidden gems.
Outdoor spots like Oak Canyon Nature Center are far different than what you’d think you could see or do when visiting Anaheim.
But it’s a great place to get away from the hustle and bustle.
15. Camelot Golfland
Location: 3200 E Carpenter Ave, Anaheim, CA 92806
Camelot Golfland has a little bit of everything.
They have 4 mini golf courses, go-kart racing, bumper boats, lazer tag, bumper cars, and an arcade.
16. Dine in Orange County’s Most Popular Restaurants
Part of the best things to do in Anaheim is exploring all the variety of cuisines.
Anaheim has restaurants for pretty much every occasion.
➡ Best Romantic Restaurants in Orange County
A personal favorite of ours is the Anaheim White House Restaurant on Anaheim Blvd.
This fine dining Italian Steakhouse is where we celebrated our 5th anniversary.
Anaheim is also home to THE RANCH Restaurant & Saloon, which is featured as a California Michelin Guide restaurant.
It has even been named Anaheim’s Restaurant of the Year.
Lastly, Napa Rose at Disney’s Grand Californian Resort & Spa.
They offer an eclectic menu and it is one of Disney’s most top tiered restaurants in the world.
➡ Best Birthday Restaurants in Orange County
The FIFTH Rooftop Restaurant & Bar is a great place for birthday celebrations, especially milestone birthdays like your 21st birthday.
If you’re there in the evening, it’s a great place to view Disneyland’s fireworks.
In the Anaheim Packing District, The Blind Rabbit is a cool birthday spot too for those 21+.
It’s Anaheim’s first speakeasy! There is a dress code and parties must be 6 people or less and reservations are required, so it takes a little bit of planning.
➡ Best Restaurants in Orange County With A View
As mentioned previously, The FIFTH is a great location for fireworks views and to see all of Anaheim.
Top of the V is another restaurant that is located on the 12th floor of the Viv Hotel.
There they have their rooftop pool and firepits, and they serve food well into the night, including midnight on weekends.
➡ Best Italian Restaurants in Orange County
As previously mentioned, The Anaheim White House Restaurant is a fine dining Italian Steakhouse, so of course it would be one of the best Italian restaurants in the area.
Marri’s Pizza & Italian Restaurant is a classic Anaheim favorite that has been around since 1957.
It’s located just down the street from Disney’s California Adventure Park.
Additionally, I recommend trying out Baci de Firenze Trattoria.
This is a family owned, fine dining Italian restaurant that has been around since 2008.
Lastly, I suggest trying the Tocca Ferro Italian Chophouse located on the 2nd floor of the JW Marriott in the Anaheim Resort area.
➡ Best Mexican Restaurants in Orange County
El Torito is a popular Mexican restaurants for company parties, family birthday celebrations, and other milestone events.
If you’re looking for cheap, authentic Mexican food, Alberto’s is a popular chain in Southern California known for their California burritos.
Anaheim Packing District and Downtown Anaheim also have several Mexican restaurants that are popular for locals and visitors.
17. Exodus Escape Room
Location: 5642 E La Palma Ave, Unit 202, Anaheim, CA 92807
Exodus Escape Room has 3 very escape rooms.
On our first visit, we played Olympus which is an immersive Ancient Greece theme.
Aesthetically it’s one of my favorite escape rooms ever.
Their other themed rooms include The Elevator and SUBmerged.
Where To Stay In Anaheim
After you’re done doing all the best things in Anaheim, you’ll want to retreat to a relaxing hotel room.
The Anaheim Resort District has a ton of great hotels, resorts, and inns for a variety of budgets and needs.
✅ Disneyland Hotel
Staying on Disneyland property has lots of perks and benefits, including extra time in the theme parks.
The Disneyland Hotel is a beautiful hotel with a mostly mid-century modern design calling back to Disneyland’s hey-day.
The pool is really nice and Trader Sam’s is right there to enjoy all the tropical drinks all night long.
👉 Click Here To Book Your Stay At The Disneyland Hotel Today!
✅ JW Marriott Anaheim Resort
Another great place to stay in Anaheim close to all the action and with all the amenities you could need is the JW Marriott.
What’s neat at this hotel is their Secret Butterfly Garden and Digital Forest on the 2nd floor.
👉 Click Here To Book Your Stay At The JW Marriott Anaheim Convention Center Today!
✅ DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Anaheim Resort – Convention Center
If you’re looking to save a little bit of money, but still be in relative walking distance to Disneyland, GardenWalk, and the Anaheim Convention Center, then Doubletree is the way to go.
Generally, you can expect rooms to be less than $200 a night, unless a major event or holiday is going on and all the area hotels are near capacity.
Plus, since it’s a DoubleTree you’ll get those amazing cookies when you check in.
Many DoubleTree rooms are suites, so you can also expect a separate living room and bedroom area, feeling a lot more spacious and like you’re getting more for your money.
Conclusion: Best Things To Do In Anaheim
There are so many fun things to do in Anaheim that appeal to just about any audience.
So no matter your interests, this is a great travel destination.
