Whale watching and sea animals with kids around Los Angeles in winter

Every December through April, more than twenty thousand gray whales travel from Alaska to Mexico and back, hugging the Southern California coast the whole way, which makes Los Angeles one of the easiest big cities in the country to show a child a whale. A 2-year-old and a 7-year-old want different things: little kids are happy with wind and dolphins from a bluff, and only bigger kids are worth the $45 boat ticket.

Start with what's free: at the Point Vicente Interpretive Center on the tip of the Palos Verdes Peninsula, volunteers count passing whales from the terrace every day with binoculars they'll lend you, next to a lighthouse and a flat cliff-top path. To get close, sail two or three hours from Rainbow Harbor beside the Long Beach aquarium: dolphins are nearly certain, whales are luck. Don't waste the drive to the South Bay either way: the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium in San Pedro is free with a starfish touch tank, the Marine Mammal Care Center up the hill shows recovering sea lion pups for free, and the Aquarium of the Pacific is right on the dock.

• 5 places
• 3 free
• 4 stroller-friendly
• closest is 40 min away