We reserved the Busy Bee space for a 3-year old's birthday party, and it was perfect. The place is…read morevery clean, has a ton of activity options for small kids. There is a separate room to serve snacks, drinks, and cake; bathroom is clean and convenient.

I hosted a birthday party for a toddler at Busy Bee. Would definitely recommend! A couple of things…read morethat stood out: - Booking/ planning/ prepping all went without a hitch - The play area is great, fun, and spacious. The party room where you would have food/ drinks is right nearby, so it's super easy to monitor kids and transition from one are to another (unlike other places where party room is more disconnected from play) - the center is located in a large shopping area. Which meant easy parking for guests and tons of options to order snacks/ food etc nearby so you wouldn't have to lugg stuff from home - I called several similar places in East Bay, and Busy Bee was by far the most uncomplicated wrt managing guest lists, number of attendees etc. Most importantly: kids LOVED it and were super tuckered out after that!

I took the 4-hour stepping stone mosaic class with my 10-year old niece and we both had a lot of…read morefun. First time, taking any class at the Alameda Art Lab but not a newbie to mosaics or the arts. I used to be quite artsy and crafty back in the day and now, it seems like a luxury to find time to do something creative and take a break from adulting! All supplies of cutters, nippers, stepping stone and glass provided with a quick introduction to using the tools with some guidance and instruction to start your art piece. JaYing, the friendly and patient owner/instructor will walk around to assist if needed, check your progress and guide you to ensure you get your item complete. Item is left for grouting and student called when ready. A great class to bond with a friend(s) or family and make a day to get in creative mode and have fun. Personally, it allowed me to take time to enjoy something I really love as I find art very therapeutic along with spending time with my niece. The time flies by... :) The Alameda Art Lab offers a variety of classes from stained glass, mosaics, glass fusing and jewelry making and other fun things. Items are available for purchase for yourself or as a gift. Highly recommend trying out a class!

I absolutely love this place! Both my kids have attended summer camps here and my husband and I are…read moreregulars in her stained glass class on Wednesday eve. JaYing got me my start in stained glass and now I can't get enough! Plus, the community here is wonderful- you can meet some really nice people .

Love this place! I was looking for a camp for my kiddos during Thanksgiving Week and found Kids…read moreElite Club. They had great offerings and were more affordable than other options. When I signed my kids up, I added that I had a few concerns since my kids have special needs, and the staff were very understanding and communicative. My kids had a great time here--they baked, did arts and crafts, baked, etc. The camp is located across the street from a park, so they had plenty of outside time. After the camp ended, I even received a Google photo album with pictures of my kids. Really appreciate the extra touch!

Our daughter has been going to after school at Kids Elite since the start of the school year and…read moreshe has nothing but good things to say about her experience. In fact, she looks forward to going and is most excited for Wednesday's where she has more time here and consistently asks to be picked up late every day. The tech class, cooking class, and more provide such a fun learning environment. Kiki, Caesar, and team provide a great space for curious minds, all while having structure, discipline, and fun.

Our son has been going to the after school program since TK and he loves the STEAM program (STEM +…read moreART)! He enjoys the van ride from Bay Farm to the big island with the other kids and now that he's in K, he spends about 2-3 hours after school there - playing with new and old friends, learning more coding, math, reading, and science and experimenting with art methods. It definitely fills in the gaps of public school with the stronger focus on academics. We are very happy with his progress. And of course, he loves his STEAM teachers, Ms. Yuan and Ms. Jamila, as well as the coding, art and math teachers (Mr. Francisco, Mr. Patrick, Ms. Emily, etc.). That being said, this school isn't for everyone and parents have to be open to finding the right school for their child (which can change over time). For our family, I appreciate that this school respects the learning environment best for kids who are ready and motivated to learn on their own. This means that the kids are ready to learn and appreciate the lessons prepared (not yelling, standing on tables, napping, or other disruptive behavior), responsible/sensible to sit in a van full of kids and listen to the teacher, get along and be respectful to others, etc. To keep the kids on schedule with the van and different subjects requires tremendous patience, planning and care from the teachers, staff (Mr. Long) and Director Sunny - we appreciate you! If your kids can focus and manage at YY, they can sit through movies, dinners, airplane rides, etc. - self-managed discipline is what I appreciate the most. The staff communicates well in advance and also is very responsive and accommodating (e.g. if I have to pick up early, miss school, have another parent pickup, etc.). They also have parent-teacher conferences twice a year with a newsletter about your child's class with photos. Also, when we first signed up for TK when my child was 4, I was worried about the transportation, but that's one of the best part that our kid looks forward to when he goes to YY with his friends - it's safe and the van is there early for pickups (and the fee is very economical for us working parents!). We also have friends in the Mandarin program whose parents are very impressed with their children's language and writing skills and enjoy their class performances! We also have a friend who moved their child here due to allergies. Our kid also has a mild allergy and Yuying is very good about keeping everyone safe with allergies (making sure there's no nuts in anyone's lunchbox, no sharing, educating kids about allergies and keeping everyone safe, etc.) and also keeping up with the parents for updated EpiPens and meds.

Our two boys started in the YuYing Preschool and had an excellent experience with Ms. Pearlie, Du…read moreLao Shi and all of the teachers there. Our boys came home teaching us Chinese. We learned about how to talk about dinosaurs, vehicles, continents, money, plants, photosynthesis, Chinese culture and poetry--it was incredible. Our boys also learned to dance and learned their letters and numbers (in English), thanks to Ms. Pearlie's diligent efforts. It was a wonderful place for our sons to grow and learn. Our sons are older now, one is in TK and the other is in 1st grade and are now in the afterschool program. They both love taking the van from their school to YuYing. I appreciate that the staff is attentive to our kid's needs. My younger son was expressing that he felt bullied by another kid. The staff addressed our concerns by mediating between the boys and making changes in the classroom to build more safety for the kids. Our kids have also been teaching me how to read and write simplified Chinese. My 1st grader came home with his workbook. I was impressed at how proficient he was in doing his assignments--making sentences and word pairings in Chinese. I don't think he would know how to do that with English textbooks! Lastly, we appreciate how thorough they are about making a plan for emergencies and communicating them to us. When Alameda had Tsunami warnings or there were concerns about ICE, we appreciated that YuYing made sure to let us know what their plans are in all of these situations.

Working at Gaia Guides Kids Camp is hands down the best way to spend a summer! During the school…read moreyear, I teach art and yoga, so getting outside and exploring the Bay with a bunch of energetic, curious kids is such a refreshing change of pace. There's nothing like teaching them how to paddle or kayak and seeing their faces light up when they get the hang of it--or when they inevitably start a splash fight! This job is the perfect mix of fun, nature, and getting kids to unplug and just be kids. Whether we're paddling, playing games, or just soaking up the outdoors, it's so cool to watch them connect with the world around them and with each other. If you love working with kids and want to spend your summer outside (seriously, what's better than sunshine and water?), Gaia Guides is the place to be. Every day feels like an adventure, and I wouldn't trade it for anything!

My kids and I went to a Tuesday night family paddle night. All of us had such a fun time. The…read moreinstruction was great, the guides were all so nice and encouraging. We have all paddled before but still learned so much. We will definitely be signing up again.

The founder of Bay Language Academy, Essia Bouzamondo-Bernstein, is an incredible woman in my book!…read moreShe started this business as a way to help others since language is one of the most important ways we connect with one another. My youngest son has been taking Mandarin for about a year now and he just loves it, which amazes me since he's usually so particular, but he adores his teacher (even the new one) and the curriculum is both engaging and interactive, which has helped him retain what he has learned. Now my oldest is also taking the same class, and his review of his first day was "awesome!" This is a high quality program at a very reasonable rate. Your child will benefit so greatly from learning any of the many languages they offer (I know they offer French, Russian, Korean, Spanish, etc.), and even you and other adults would also greatly benefit to learn a new language or refresh an old one. Lastly, their location is just breath-taking as they're situated within the Harbor Bay Business Park that oversees the tranquil ocean and beautiful San Francisco skyline, which is just icing on the cake.

My daughter loves taking French classes there!read more

Summer 2025 the staff seemed unqualified to be working with children as they were mostly children…read morethemselves. I am sure the pay scale is low because it was all teenagers teaching my Johnny. I was nervous leaving him every time because it all seemed unprofessional. We will be looking elsewhere next summer.

This was a pretty disappointing experience. We tried this camp for the first time this summer…read more We're pulling our kids out early and will not be returning. The most minor problem is that "because of COVID" they're asking all kids to register as if they were in last year's grade, not the grade they will be in at the end of the summer. I don't think most parents followed this instruction. Thus, my 10 year old is in a group with absolutely no kids his age. When I brought up my concern, I was told there was no way to fix this. My older kid has been bored out of his mind. My younger kid has spent the week thus far being bullied by another camper. This other camper has kissed a girl without her consent, filmed this same girl on his phone without her consent, kicked my kid in his shins, and in numerous other ways physically assaulted him. This has occurred all week. On Thursday, at 11:53am I had to step out of an incredibly important work meeting to take a call from the camp. They informed me that this problematic camper was getting into it with my son and they wanted me to talk to my son about staying away from him. When I spoke to the camp director, she told me she wasn't aware my son had been hit repeatedly by this other kid. And she didn't feel she had the ability to keep them separate. Needless to say, my husband is on the way to retrieve both of my kids because we're concerned about their health and wellbeing. They will not return for the last day of camp. All and all, this was a total waste of money. I was nervous they weren't safe all week, and today my fears were confirmed. They cannot keep kids safe and healthy, therefore, we will not be returning for the last day of camp.

MY WIFE TAKES 5-10 HOURS TO FINISH…read more Price: $$$ Service: 5/5 Ambiance: 5/5 My wife and I love Color Me Mine for a chill, engaging and somewhat tedious activity. We recently attended a sip and paint event, and the staff was kind enough to offer us free studio time when we couldn't complete our projects that night. My wife often brings friends, and they can spend hours painting without any issues. I'm surprise they haven't gotten kick out. The staff is incredibly friendly and attentive; they're always quick to provide more paint or offer helpful tips. The studio is clean and well-organized, with a vast selection of art pieces to choose from, although the prices can be a bit high. Overall, I highly recommend Color Me Mine and will definitely be returning.

Visit Date: 3/21/2026 This might be my new hobby. First let…read moreme say that Casey was super accommodating. I went with a rather large party and Casey was able to get some tables together for us, seat us even though we were running behind, and work out an extremely awkward pay situation. She was very informative and patient. And is part of the reason I went back a second time alone. Look at my masterpiece!

My son started Just Hoop with zero basketball knowledge and honestly not much natural interest in…read moresports -- but the coaches here have been incredible with him. They're patient, skilled, and genuinely good at working with young kids (K-2nd grade range). He's made visible progress, and more importantly, he actually looks forward to going. Twice a week, he gets a full hour of real physical activity, which, as a parent, is a huge win on its own. Highly recommend for any parent whose kid isn't a "natural" athlete but could benefit from a supportive, well-run program.

We came from Folsom for my 5th grader's AAU boys tournament. The place is like the name suggests -…read morejust basketball courts. Specifically 2 full courts. The area is an industrial zone and seemed reasonably safe. We were able to find parking on site. The bathrooms were clean. There were no concession stands. As the day progressed it became warm and humid inside, so perhaps the management can improve the ventilation.