Most visitors come to Anaheim for the theme parks, but the city has a whole life beyond the park gates: major-league sports, a restored citrus packing house turned food hall, a walkable downtown, museums, parks, and a growing craft beer and cocktail scene. If you are looking for things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland, this guide covers the best of them, whether you have an extra day after the parks or you are visiting Anaheim on its own terms.
At a Glance: Things to Do in Anaheim Besides Disneyland
- Best for sports fans: Angel Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Angels, and Honda Center, home of the Anaheim Ducks
- Best for food lovers: the Anaheim Packing District, a food hall in a restored 1919 citrus packing house
- Best for culture: the Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center in downtown Anaheim
- Best for a relaxing afternoon: Yorba Regional Park, with picnic areas, trails, and a lake
- Best for an evening out: Center Street Promenade and the Packing District bars and restaurants
- Getting around: downtown Anaheim is walkable, while the stadium district and parks are easiest by car or rideshare
Catch a Game: Angel Stadium and Honda Center
The most obvious things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland are also the most fun: catch a professional game. Angel Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Angels since 1966, is one of the older active ballparks in Major League Baseball, with its landmark Big A sign in the parking lot and the rock formation in center field that erupts after home runs. Tickets are often affordable compared with other major-league parks, and summer nights at the stadium, with fireworks after selected games, are a classic Southern California evening.
A short drive away, Honda Center is home to the Anaheim Ducks of the NHL and hosts concerts and major events year-round. Even if hockey is not your sport, the arena’s energy on game night is worth experiencing, and the surrounding district continues to grow with new restaurants and entertainment venues. If you cannot catch a game, both venues offer tours and events at other times, so check current schedules before you go. For sports fans, these two venues alone justify a day of things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland.
Eat Your Way Through the Anaheim Packing District
Downtown Anaheim’s best food stop is the Anaheim Packing District, centered on the Anaheim Packing House, a restored 1919 Sunkist citrus packing house that reopened as a food hall in 2014. Inside, two levels of vendors serve everything from casual bites to craft cocktails, with communal seating and live music on many nights. The surrounding district includes the Packard Building, Farmers Park, and the MAKE building, with more shops and restaurants within a short walk.
The Packing House opens daily for breakfast, and individual vendor hours vary, so check current hours before you go. Below the Packing House, a speakeasy-style bar hides behind a wall of sake barrels, while nearby Center Street Promenade offers chef-driven restaurants, handmade crafts, and local vendors in a pedestrian-friendly stretch. For visitors hunting for things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland, an evening in the Packing District is the single best way to taste the city’s local side.
Downtown Anaheim: Muzeo, Center Street, and Local History
Downtown Anaheim rewards a slow walk. The Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center, at 241 South Anaheim Boulevard, hosts rotating exhibitions on art, culture, and local history, plus a free Carnegie Gallery with a permanent display on Anaheim’s past. Exhibitions have ranged from Chicano art to model trains to the history of the city itself, so check current exhibitions before you go. Exhibition and opening details change over time, so check current days and hours before you go.
Around the museum, Center Street Promenade and the surrounding blocks hold shops, cafes, and restaurants in historic buildings, and a farmers market runs on Thursdays. Anaheim was founded as a wine-making colony in the 1850s, long before the theme parks arrived, and downtown still shows that history in its older buildings and street layout. Founders Park, with its 1857 Mother Colony house and Victorian-era Woelke-Stoffel House, is another good stop for history lovers. These downtown stops give things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland a sense of place that the resort district cannot match.
Parks, Trails, and Outdoor Anaheim
Anaheim also has room to breathe. Yorba Regional Park, on the city’s eastern edge, offers picnic areas, volleyball courts, trails, and a lake with swan-shaped paddle boats, making it a good choice for a relaxed family afternoon. Oak Canyon Nature Center in Anaheim Hills covers 58 acres of woodland and canyon trails, with a small nature center and guided programs. The Santa Ana River Trail, a paved path popular with cyclists and runners, runs through the area and connects to a much longer regional trail system.
For a different kind of outdoor day, consider a trip to nearby Irvine Regional Park in Orange, with its zoo, train rides, and picnic areas, or a drive into the Santa Ana Mountains for hiking. Within Anaheim itself, Pearson Park, the city’s first park, has a sunken amphitheater and shaded lawns that feel like old California. If your list of things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland includes fresh air, these parks are an easy, low-cost way to balance a theme-park trip.
Things to Do in Anaheim Besides Disneyland: Food, Drink, and Nightlife
Anaheim’s food and drink scene goes well beyond the resort district. The La Palma Beer Trail links local breweries, including well-known craft beer gardens where you can taste flights and enjoy outdoor seating. Downtown, cocktail bars range from tiki-style lounges pouring rum drinks to reservation-only speakeasies with 1920s themes. For dinner, options include Michelin-recognized farm-to-table restaurants set in working gardens, halal Texas barbecue with a Mexican twist, and classic Italian ice shops that locals swear by.
If you are staying near the parks but want a local night out, the Packing District and Center Street are the easiest places to start, with most venues within walking distance of each other. Anaheim GardenWalk, near the resort district, adds more restaurants, shops, a bowling alley, and a concert venue for a livelier evening. Whatever your taste, the best things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland after dark are about slowing down: good food, a good drink, and a neighborhood that feels lived-in rather than themed.
Practical Tips
- Getting around: downtown Anaheim is walkable, but the stadium district, parks, and GardenWalk are spread out, so plan on driving or using rideshares between stops.
- Game days: arrive early for Angel Stadium and Honda Center events, since parking lots and nearby roads fill up before first pitch or puck drop.
- Hours vary: museums, food hall vendors, and bars keep different hours, so check current schedules for the exact places you plan to visit.
- Families: Yorba Regional Park, Muzeo’s family programs, and the Packing District’s casual seating all work well with kids.
- Budget: many of the best things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland are low-cost, from parks and farmers markets to museum galleries and casual food hall meals.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the best things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland for adults?
Sports at Angel Stadium or Honda Center, an evening in the Anaheim Packing District, and the La Palma Beer Trail are top picks. The Packing District’s speakeasy bars and downtown cocktail lounges also make a good adults-only night out.
Is downtown Anaheim worth visiting?
Yes. Downtown Anaheim, with the Packing District, Center Street Promenade, and Muzeo Museum, is walkable, historic, and full of local restaurants and shops. It is the best place to see the city beyond the resort district, and it pairs well with a half day of sightseeing.
Can you visit Anaheim without going to Disneyland at all?
Absolutely. A full day of things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland could include a morning at Yorba Regional Park, an afternoon at Muzeo and downtown shops, dinner in the Packing District, and a game at Angel Stadium or Honda Center in the evening.
How far is Anaheim from Los Angeles and the beach?
Anaheim sits in northern Orange County, roughly 25 to 35 miles southeast of downtown Los Angeles depending on traffic, and about 20 miles from the nearest Orange County beaches. It works well as a base for both Los Angeles and the coast, or as a destination on its own.
Conclusion
Anaheim is easy to underestimate if you only know it through the theme parks, but the city has sports, food, history, parks, and nightlife that stand on their own. Start with a game, eat in the Packing District, wander downtown, and spend an afternoon in a park, and you will see a different Anaheim than the one in the guidebooks. These things to do in Anaheim besides Disneyland are not consolation prizes for skipping the parks — they are the reason many locals love the city in the first place.
For more Orange County planning, see our beginner-friendly hikes in Orange County, our best beach camping in Southern California, and our weekend getaways near Los Angeles. For official details, see Visit Anaheim’s only-in-Anaheim guide, the Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center, Visit California’s Disneyland add-ons, the Anaheim Packing District guide, and Enjoy Orange County’s Anaheim guide.
