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Tourism in Fresno

Fresno offers a wide array of activities to satisfy a wide array of tastes. The area offers an almost endless amount of fun and sightseeing that will keep you busy, whether you are looking for something that pertains to singles, or are looking for a more family-oriented outing, there is something for everyone to enjoy!

The Forestiere Underground Gardens is truly a one of a kind experience. In 1906, Baldasare Forestiere, looking for a way to beat the extreme heat of the Central Valley summer, started digging by hand an underground oasis that to this day has no rival. Forty years after he started, this underground retreat contained two bedrooms, a kitchen, a library, numerous patios, grottos, a fish pond and a walk-under aquarium that has to be seen to be believed. A dance hall was the final touch, as this became the place to be in the pre-air conditioned early 20th century.

If animals are your kind of thing, a day at the zoo should be just the thing you are looking for. Fresno’s Chaffee Zoological Gardens is home to nearly 700 mammals, birds, and reptiles, some of which are the rarest of their breed. The Tropical Rainforest Exhibit is a lush planted walkway through an aviary, with a suspension bridge over a tumbling waterfall. Special bird and animal shows take place throughout the year to make for a wonderful experience for the whole family.

If it is fun and games that make you smile, visit Blackbeards’ Family Fun Center. Located in the heart of Fresno, this family entertainment center has been a Fresno tradition for generations of Fresnans. It opens every day of the year at 10 a.m. and there is no admission charge. Some of the attractions include 18-hole miniature golf courses, a waterslide complex, bumper boats and cars, and a mini speedway that is sure to get your pulse racing.

For those dog days of summer, cool off at the Island Waterpark, boasting family fun year-round with 16 water slides, amusement rides, miniature golf, a video arcade and much more.

The Fresno Diamond Group formed in 1991 with the purpose of luring a Triple-A baseball team to the area. Part of its goal was to build a new stadium in Downtown Fresno. In May 1996, the organization signed an agreement to buy the Phoenix Firebirds of the PCL. The league would allow the ownership group to relocate the team to Fresno under the condition a new stadium would be built. Appropriately, the team was dubbed the Grizzlies after the California Bear, marking the return of Triple-A baseball to the Golden State.

Feeling lucky? Try your hand at luck at one of the community’s nearby casinos. Choose between the Tachi Palace Casino in Lemoore, Table Mountain Casino in Friant and the Chukchansi Gold Casino in Coarsegold.

Dining
With hundreds of dining and entertainment options, Fresno is literally loaded with things to do and places to eat. Virtually every ethnic food, from Japanese to Mexican, from Italian to Indian is represented at any one of the hundreds of eating establishments in and around the city. You will have a hard time just deciding on one place to go, with the options seeming endless in this growing city.

World Sports Café, in the city’s River Park section, is a full-service restaurant, centering around the theme of sports. San Francisco 49er Tim McDonald is the owner of this well-frequented and well-received café. Serving waffles that have been labeled as the best around, The Waffle Shop on Blackstone Avenue just south of Shaw is a breakfast heaven for those who like to get up early enough to beat the crowds. Offering a full assortment of traditional breakfast options, their homemade waffles are the talk of the town.

Located in the nationally historic Sante Fe Hotel, the Santa Fe Basque Restaurant has been serving family-style dinners in a casual atmosphere since 1927. Come hungry though, because at this restaurant the plates come big and the food comes hot, all at a price that seems too good to be true.