Come Rain or Shine: Top 10 All-Weather Activities In Brea, CA

things to do in brea california
Katie
Katie 
Updated
| 5 min read

Brea is a city in Orange County, California just 33 miles (53.1 km) South East of Los Angeles, it is surrounded by beautiful landscapes and at the heart of the city is a creative hub in the downtown zone. But what is there to actually do? Well, if it so happens that you have woken up this morning in Brea and thought to yourself ‘what should I do today?’ well, firstly have a look outside your window, take in the funky downtown layout or the green rural view (depending on where you are) then take a quick look at the weather before reading this list. I am about to tell you right now what to do with your day…

1. It's raining so lose your wits at Red Lantern Escape Rooms

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

Take our quick quiz: is it raining outside? Are you with a group of people? Do you like mysteries? If you answered yes to any of these questions then step inside the doors of the Red Lantern Escape Rooms and be transported to a carnival-themed high school reunion, except that something is not quite right. Can you solve the mystery of the escape room before the time runs out?

Red Lantern Escape Rooms

Address: 471 West Lambert Road, Suite 108, Brea, CA 92821

Price: 32 USD

Website: Red Lantern Escape Rooms

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2. If the sun is shining take a picnic in Carbon Canyon Park

Carbon canyon regional park lake
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user MorbidEntree used under CC0

Sometimes there is nothing better than the simple pleasures in life, and for us, one of those pleasures is a picnic in the park. Well luckily for us, and you, there is a Redwood tree park in Brea that covers an epic 124 acres (50 hectares)! That’s plenty of room to follow the sun from morning till late at night. Not only that but there is a 4 acre (1.6 hectare) lake that is perfect for an afternoon stroll, so the only thing left to decide is what to take on your picnic.

Carbon Canyon Park

Address: 4442 Carbon Canyon Road, Brea, CA 92823

Website: Carbon Canyon Park

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3. Brighten up a grey day with Brea Downtown

Downtown Brea
Source: Photo by Flickr user Orange County Arc... used under CC BY 2.0

Woke up this morning to one of those grey days where you just don’t know what to do with yourself. Well let us help you out because hanging out for the day in downtown Brea you are always guaranteed to find something interesting, whether that be one of the many unique shops or even some entertainment to brighten your mood. If all else fails, find one of the bars with a happy hour and buy yourself a drink.

Brea Downtown

Address: 330 W Birch St, Brea, CA 92821

Website: Brea Downtown

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4. If it's lightly showering pop in to the Brea Museum and Heritage Centre

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

This small heritage centre is located in the City Hall Park, so during the sunny parts of the day be sure to get outside and walk along its many trails but when the showers come pop inside and learn. In fact there is so much to learn about that you might just miss a bit of the sun outside. Let’s just say that there is even a dinosaur at the museum, and a somewhat terrifying stuffed cat that appears to be playing rugby. It’s better to not ask and instead go see it for yourselves.

Brea Museum and Heritage Centre

Address: 495 S. Brea Blvd., Brea, CA. 92821

Website: Brea Museum and Heritage Centre

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5. When the trees start to change colour challenge your friends at Lost Worlds Laser Tag

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

Challenging your friends during anytime of the year is always good but for some reason the start of autumn makes people start to feel lethargic and before you know it we’re all sitting in front of our TVs, with the radiators on and a ready made meal. Well this year, just twenty minutes drive from Brea, you can break the cycle and instead get active at Laser Tag. We would describe it in detail to you but we’re pretty sure that you can figure out that its a game of tag, but with lasers. Yep.

Lost Worlds Laser Tag

Address: 17545 Colima Rd, City of Industry, CA 91748

Price: 20 USD

Website: Lost Worlds Laser Tag

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6. As spring rolls in take a stroll through Craig Regional Park

Craig Regional Park
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Davefoc used under CC BY-SA 3.0

This beautiful 124 acre (50 hectare) park is on our list for its lovely rose garden which looks and smells incredible at the start of spring when all of the flowers are coming out and the bees are just starting to buzz around. Take a stroll through the rose garden and around the lake before sitting on a bench and people watching. It might not sound like much but its a perfect Spring activity just on the outskirts of Brea.

Craig Regional Park

Address: 3300 State College Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92835

Website: Craig Regional Park

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7. Welcome in summer by learning a new skill at Pinot's Palette

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

Summer is the perfect time to hone or learn a new skill, particularly one that inspires you! So, it feels right that the awesome folks at Pinot’s Palette have made it onto this list with their fun, and extremely popular art classes. Every day they have a different painting topic to teach you such as ‘Starry Night’, 'Backyard Bouquet’, or even something like 'Where I’d Rather Be…’ These events are popular and sell out so be sure to book in advance. In other news they also have a bar, although we’re not sure if that will make you a better or worse artist.

Pinot's Palette

Address: 110 W Birch St #1, Brea, CA 92821

Price 35 USD

Website: Pinot’s Palette

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8. All weather, all seasons, you know, just whenever you want to head on down to PlayLive Nation

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

We all love gaming, well i do when i get the chance, and so i am super happy that i can add PlayLive Nation onto the list. Let’s be honest a good gaming session can be done during any season and any weather, so excuse the somewhat non-descriptive title this listing has. At PlayLive Nation you can find not only online gaming and tournaments but also board and card games, just incase consoles aren’t your thing. We’re sure that you’ll find something you can enjoy whether it be for two minutes or two hours.

PlayLive Nation

Address: 1065 Brea Mall, 1121A , Brea, CA 92821

Website: PlayLive Nation

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9. On a warm-ish day hike up to Panorama Nature Preserve

Panorama Nature Preserve
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user Coyote783 used under CC0

You have two choices to start you hike, either drive seven minutes to the hill or walk from central Brea which will normally take you about 50 minutes. Either way however you choose to start this is a perfect activity for a warm-ish day; you’ll soon realize when you start hiking why it’s best on a warm-ish day and not a hot day! Taking the Panorama Trail will lead you to fantastic views over Brea and Fullerton.

Panorama Nature Preserve

Address: 1903 St Simons Pl, Fullerton, CA 92831

Website: Panorama Nature Preserve

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10. In a heatwave? Head to SpeedZone Los Angeles.

Editor's Note: There's no photo available at the time of writing

Now you might be wondering why I’m telling you to take an 18minute car journey from Brea during the heatwave, but believe me there is a very good reason and that is called your ‘inner child.’ Do you remember when you were a child and heatwaves meant, playing out all day, eating ice creams, laughing so much that you cried? Well it’s time to get that back and it is exactly what happens at SpeedZone Los Angeles. Mix a group of friends with bumper cars, go karts and dragsters, what do you have? The perfect formula for a hilarious 'act like a big kid’ funny day out!

SpeedZone Los Angeles

Address: 17871 Castleton Street, City of Industry, CA 91748

Price: All day racing from 39.99 USD

Website: SpeedZone Los Angeles

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Through the seasons and all weather conditions

Brea, CA
Source: Photo by Wikimedia Commons user peter boy12qq12 used under CC BY 3.0

We’re come a long way together, we’ve travelled through summer, spring and fall from rain to heatwaves and for each day we’ve found something fun to do in Brea. Ta-da, i feel a little bit like it was magic and i hope that you feel as excited as me to visit Brea whenever you are next in California. Oh, wait, we actually didn’t do an activity for thunderstorm weather. Ah well, we all know that thunderstorm weather means staying in bed andd hiding under the duvet with a hot chocolate…… oh… just me?!

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Any must-sees we missed? Tell us about them in the comments section or write a post here to help out fellow travelers!
Disclosure: Trip101 selects the listings in our articles independently. Some of the listings in this article contain affiliate links.

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Katie is a committed full-time global wanderer and volunteer. She possesses an unerring compass that guides her to the obscure and distant corners of the Earth, where she explores jungles,...Read more

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