Staff Picks Things To Do In Berkeley

First, beat the afternoon heat by catching up on some summer reading indoors. Grab your favorite paperback book or pick up your trusty tablet and allow yourself to become immersed in the story.

Once you’ve worked up an appetite, indulge in some of the Theatre District’s finest food without leaving your room. A gourmet meal from ZINO’s Mediterranean is just a phone call away. Opt for one of the decadent main courses or make a meal of sides—grilled octopus, spicy okra, and vegan paella are just a few of our faves.

After dinner (and maybe even dessert) it’s time to get ready for bed. Our Lather bath amenities make the perfect addition to your shower or bath. Once your nighttime routine is complete, wrap yourself in a terry robe, make yourself a hot cup of tea, and find your favorite movie channel. Slipping into a restful night’s sleep is just moments away.

Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive - Many of the best museums around are right on the University of California, Berkeley campus. This venue serves as an art museum, special-screening theater, and film repository. Watch history come to live through film and learn about history in a new, unique way.

University of California Museum of Paleontology - This breath-taking museum features thousands of specimens across all walks of life that are available for your viewing. See fossils and other forms of remains up close and learn a lot about the natural world.

Lawrence Hall of Science - Making science fun for kids is an important part of education. The Lawrence Hall of Science is a center dedicated to showing children just how exciting chemical reactions and quirks of physics can be.

The Botanical Garden at Berkeley is a 34-acre man-made wonder that is available to the general public year-round. With over 10,000 different types of plants that bloom at various times of the year, every visit will truly be a unique experience. You even have the opportunity to view some very rare plants that may otherwise be nearly impossible to see up close.

Besides the self-tours of the gardens, many different events are held in an effort to entertain and educate all ages about the wonders of botany. Your ticket even allows access to a Redwood Groove that features California’s famous redwood trees. The garden is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm with certain holidays and other exceptions. Additionally, every first Wednesday of the month is free admission for all guests.

The 8th Annual Berkeley Restaurant Week will be starting Tuesday, January 21 and running through Friday, January 31, 2020. With more than 35 restaurants across Berkeley will be offering special-value prix fixe menus for $25, $30 or $40. Discover new places, or revisit favorites that share Berkeley's Cali-cuisine legacy. Venues are deliciously distributed across business districts, with around 10 restaurants located downtown. And, true to Berkeley’s diversity, more than 15 international cuisines are highlighted.

Berkeley Restaurant Week is part of California Restaurant Month, designated by Visit California. Now in its ninth year, California Restaurant Month drives business for local restaurants and entices out-of-state travelers to visit California. You can find the complete restaurant list with menus, plan your #BRW20 dining itinerary, and make Open Table reservations here.

Ease in the Christmas spirit with six days of shopping at this festive streetside festival! Haven’t found the perfect gift yet? From jewelry and clothing to pottery and plants, there’s a little something for everyone. On December 14th, 15th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, and 24th from 11 am to 6 pm, over 200 local artisans will be lining the streets with handcrafted delights. Offering an exciting opportunity to spend time with family and friends, this fair is all about having a good time. Think colorful decorations, dazzling holiday lights, and lots of holiday gifts.

This year, Macy's 30th Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony will take place in Union Square Park right across from Macy's. The beautiful tree will be decorated with more than 43,000 twinkling (energy-efficient) LED lights and 700 shining ornaments. Before the tree is lit, enjoy everything this event has to offer. It will be a great day for Christmas shopping, as many sales are geared to this special day, also known as Black Friday. It's the perfect opportunity to take care of your Christmas shopping list and pick up unique gifts for your friends and family. After shopping, make sure to visit Santa and get the perfect picture of your family for this year’s Christmas card. End your day with some fun and take a couple of laps around the ice skating rink as you watch the tree come to life at 6:50 pm. Purchase tickets in advance, as day-of box office tickets are not guaranteed! 

Adventure Playground is a trusted location for kids as it has been written up as the "Best Creative Playspace" in Diablo Magazine. The Adventure Playground is by the Berkeley Marina Bay, only a 10-minute drive from our front doors. The kids will be able to experience a unique outdoor facility where staff encourages children to play and build creative structures like forts, boats, and towers. They also have the chance to hammer, saw, and paint. Not only will they be having fun, but they will also learn cooperation, meet physical challenges, and gain self-confidence. As a parent, you have the option to drop off your children for up to three hours while you tour the rest of the city. You can take that time to sightsee around the marina, explore a museum, or watch a play at the Aurora Theatre. With so much to do and so much to see, Berkeley is yours to discover! 

The city of Berkeley, along with its twin city of Albany, proposed the Solano Avenue Stroll to promote local businesses and the arts in their respective communities.
Today, this free, family-oriented event features over five hundred vendors, fifty entertainers, live music, food booths, non-profit agencies, and over a hundred and fifty handmade goods vendors. Be sure to stop by the carnival section of the festival to watch jugglers, magicians, and stilt walkers. On average, 230,000 guests visit from all over the country. The theme this year is "yellow." Be sure to break out your best yellow garb on September 8th, 2019 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Though you’re more than welcome to call upon your inner child and reserve an artistic space for yourself, be sure to take a look around at the competition. Many of the artists who reserve space for their drawings are professionals, entranced by the scene of thousands of people coming to view, make, and discuss art, just like you. After the chalk drawing contest is judged, move onto the next phase of this tasty summer festival by satisfying your sweet tooth. Chocolate vendors, restaurants, and dessert chefs from all over the city (and beyond) will be there offering samples of their decadent treats. Everything from truffles and pudding to coca lotions and chocolate molé tacos will be available. Tasting tickets can be purchased at the event or in advance online. 

Today, our city proudly welcomes guests to the Berkeley Marina on July 4th from noon to 10:00 p.m. for our annual celebration of Independence Day.

Kids will love the Adventure Playground with ziplining, face painting, photo booth, canoe racing, free dragon boat rides, and building tools so the kids can make their own masterpiece. Adventure Playgrounds, located near a protected beach, makes it easy to jump in for a splash or spend some time building sandcastles during the festivities.

Live music will dominate the evening with several bands performing right up until the massive firework display over the bay at 9:30 p.m. Be sure to bring your appetite. The city’s best restaurants, food trucks, and vendors will be out in fine form, ready to offer you a taste of Berkeley.

The gardens in the area burst into full-bloom, but none are more lush and fragrant than the Berkeley Rose Garden, located across Euclid Avenue from Codornices Park. The Berkeley Rose Garden is considered a historic site, offering 1,500 diverse rose bushes and 250 varieties of rose flowers from all over the globe. The garden overlooks stunning views of the San Francisco Bay and the Golden Gate Bridge. The Rose Garden project began in 1933 as a Civil Works Progress Program benefitting the restoration of key historic features around the city. Today, the work continues with events and programs held at the gardens. Be sure to stop by this summer while the roses are at their very best.

UC Berkeley

Known for its stellar colleges and challenging programs, UC Berkeley boasts fourteen colleges in addition to the Berkeley Extension Program. But did you know that UC Berkeley is the number one public university in the world? Now you do.

Sather Gate

Superstition once reigned supreme in Berkeley. A local legend has it that famous architect John Howard designed the Sather Gate at UC Berkley to keep out vampires! No one really knows how this story started, but it was taken seriously enough to be featured in several university magazines.

Free Speech

Berkeley is the home of the Free Speech Movement. This movement was the very first mass civil protest and organized act of civil disobedience in the 1960s on an American college campus. At the time, political activities, protests, and debates on campus were banned. The protests, that aided in restoring students' speech rights, fanned the flames of the Civil Rights Movement and spotlighted the Anti-Vietnam War sentiments in the country at the time.

This free annual event occurs in Spring with this year’s two-day story-telling extravaganza held on May 4th and 5th.

Writers from all over the world join the best minds in publishing, creative thinking, and art to share ideas, discuss technique, trends, and audience demand in a creative setting.

This event draws in over 100,000 attendees yearly for the hundreds of speakers holding workshops and talks. Stop by the festival’s Outdoor Fair where guests can mix with the acclaimed writers who captured their imaginations and explore over two hundred literary exhibitors showcasing word-craft and performances appropriate for all ages. There’s even a German Pavilion which highlights styles of writing popular in that part of the world. For tickets and line-up information, visit their website.

In this building, some 52 years ago, a Dutch immigrant named Alfred Peet decided he had had enough of America’s substandard coffee culture. He decided to brew his own coffee, to show others what they were missing; and on April 1, 1966, Peet’s Coffee & Tea opened its doors, utilizing custom roasting techniques to coax the flavor out of small-batch beans.

His decision didn’t send ripples throughout the nation — it sent waves. Peet’s coffeebar became the cornerstone of Berkeley’s “Gourmet Ghetto,” a district pinpointed as the birthplace of “California Cuisine.” Later, Peet exported his roasting method to Seattle, where three of his disciples — Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegl, and Gordon Bowker — would go on to found Starbucks.

Nowadays, coffee lovers can purchase Peet’s blends nationwide. Despite its popularity, the company still operates out of its original location — 2124 Vine Street — and maintains a small display of Peet’s memorabilia.

If you love coffee, you’ll love Peet’s; and at just one mile away from the Hotel Shattuck Plaza, it’s undeniably a must-visit.