Visiting Santa Ana, United States: Top Sights on Foot

Looking for things to do in Santa Ana? The Orange County city combines historic civic buildings, museums, churches, a distinctive cinema venue, and attractions for families. Its cultural institutions and long local history make it worth exploring beyond the better-known destinations of Southern California. Neywo also offers a free audio guide for Santa Ana, with 8 narrated places.

What to See in Santa Ana

The following places offer a varied introduction to Santa Ana, from hands-on science and world art to historic buildings and animal conservation.

Discovery Science Center

The Discovery Cube, also known as the Discovery Science Center, is a science museum designed around children’s curiosity. More than one hundred hands-on exhibits encourage visitors to explore scientific ideas through interaction.

The building is itself a landmark. Its ten-story solar array cube rises above Interstate 5, making it difficult to miss. The design was created by the architecture firm Arquitectonica, with structural engineering by Carl Johnson and Svend Nielsen.

Bowers Museum

Bowers Museum is an art museum with a collection of more than 100,000 objects. Its galleries cover a broad geographical and cultural range, including Mesoamerica, Native American cultures, Asia, Africa, Oceania, and California.

The museum also presents temporary exhibitions from institutions around the world, while its own exhibitions travel to audiences in the United States and internationally. Two blocks south, Kidseum forms a second campus dedicated to art and archaeology for children.

Old Orange County Courthouse

In Santa Ana’s Historic Downtown District, the Old Orange County Courthouse is a notable example of Romanesque Revival design. The building opened in September 1901 and was also known as the Santa Ana County Courthouse.

Its civic history and location at Civic Center and Broadway streets make it an important part of the city’s historic center. It offers a different perspective on Santa Ana from its museums: here, the focus is the county’s public and institutional past.

Yost Theater

The Yost Theater has continually adapted to changing audiences and uses. It now operates as a nightclub and concert venue, but its history also includes periods as a movie theater, a hotel, and a home for church organizations.

Under the ownership of the Olivos Family, it became a movie house during the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema. The building later hosted different church organizations and was renovated in 2007. Today, its programme includes concerts and varied events such as TED Talks, school dances, and weddings. The result is a venue where entertainment and community life have met across several generations.

Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park

The Santa Ana Zoo at Prentice Park occupies 20 acres and focuses especially on the animals and plants of Central and South America. It combines recreation, education, and conservation, making it one of the city’s distinctive attractions.

The zoo opened on March 8, 1952, after land donated by Joseph Prentice came with an unusual condition: the city had to keep at least 50 monkeys there at all times. That requirement helped shape the zoo’s identity. Today, it maintains an extensive primate collection with more than a dozen species from around the world.

Heritage Museum of Orange County

The Heritage Museum of Orange County is a historical museum spread across about twelve acres. Its grounds include historic buildings, creating an experience that extends beyond a conventional museum interior.

The institution was previously known as the Exploratory Learning Center and the Discovery Museum of Orange County. Its current name reflects its focus on the heritage of Orange County, and the grounds provide a setting in which that history can be explored through buildings and landscape.

Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa

Near the boundary between Costa Mesa and Santa Ana, Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa is a major Christian church. Although its name comes from its original facilities on the Costa Mesa side, the church is now located in Santa Ana.

This is the original Calvary Chapel. Since 1965, it has grown from a small group led by senior pastor Chuck Smith into what is known as the mother church of more than one thousand congregations around the world.

Calvary Church of Santa Ana

Calvary Church of Santa Ana is a local place of worship whose history reaches back to its founding on October 25, 1931. Seven senior pastors have led the church since its foundation. Eric Wakeling has served as senior pastor since February 2018.

The church adds another layer to Santa Ana’s story, showing how religious institutions have formed part of the city’s community life over time.

Explore More of California

Santa Ana is part of California, in the United States. For more city guides in the state, you can also explore San Juan Capistrano, Santa Barbara, or San Luis Obispo.

Explore Santa Ana with Neywo

Neywo’s Santa Ana self-guided walking tour is a 6.3 km walk lasting 118 minutes, with 5 narrated stops. The route includes the Discovery Science Center, Bowers Museum, Old Orange County Courthouse, Yost Theater, and Santa Ana Zoo.

With the app, each story plays as you reach the place, at your own pace. There is no group and no schedule, so you can explore independently while the audio guide explains the sites around you. Narration is available in 11 languages. Download Neywo and discover Santa Ana on a free walking tour designed for your own rhythm.