Washington & Hyde Mini Park

San Francisco has the lowest percentage of children of any major U.S. city – we even have more dogs than we do kids – and there’s no better place to witness this sad reality than in Washington & Hyde Mini Park.
This cute little spot is more playground than park. Tucked between two apartment buildings, it’s filled with lots of fun-​looking play structures, and is designed to resemble a city, with colorful cutouts of child-​size walls and windows.
The only problem is that there don’t seem to be any kids around to enjoy it. We were there on a warm and sunny Saturday at 10am, and it was completely desolate for over half an hour. Not a single person entered the park. When we swung by an hour and a half later after brunch, there was a single child and her parents. In a playground that can comfortably fit dozens and dozens.
There’s a cable car stop a half block away. If only some tourists and their kids would discover this hidden gem, then this miniature city might stop feeling like such a ghost town.