Jurupa Valley lies in Riverside County and is a locality of San Bernardino in California.
The suburb has an area of 44 square miles enclosing the communities of Belltown, Mira Loma, Crestmore Heights, Jurupa Hills, Indian Hills, Rubidoux, Glen Avon, Sunnyslope, and Pedley.
The territory is rich in history from centuries ago, wherein the territory got its name from the word “Jurupa” from the Native Americans (first inhabitants) who called the area their home.
As the years passed, Jurupa garnered different interpretations, such as “peace and friendship” or pertaining to the Califonia sagebrush, which is common in the area.
Before its incorporation on July 1, 2011, Jurupa Valley is known as an equestrian city where horseback riding remains a popular pastime.
Its current population is 106,646 based on the data of World Population Review.
The region has much more to offer aside from trekking and horseback riding.
Check out these 15 free things to do in Jurupa Valley, California.
The Jurupa Mountains Discovery Center is a huge family-friendly outdoor facility that provides diverse activities the entire family will enjoy.
Nature-focused activities involve families, groups, or individuals at an Earth Science Museum and interactive learning with rocks and fossils.
See different fossils up close, such as the Columbian mammoth, T-Rex, sabertooth cat, Therizinosaurus claws, velociraptor, tarbosaurus, and more.
It’s where you’ll also find the Ruth and Sam Earth Science Museum and Granite Hills Nursery.
The nursery features lovely cacti and succulents for sale and, at the same time, provides some gardening tips for succulent care and fool-proof repotting instructions.
Located on Granite Hill Drive, the nine-acre botanical gardens has more than 10 dinosaur sculptures and has no admission or parking fee.
Established in the early 1870s by retired sea-captain Cornelius Jensen together with his wife, Mercedes Alvarado, the Jensen Alvarado Historic Ranch and Museum is a historic ranch in Jurupa Valley.
It’s open to the public, and visitors can roam through the orchards, feed the resident animals, or just stroll across the ranch house.
It allows you to get an insight into the past, portraying Southern California life in the 1880s.
The Jensen Alvarado Historic Ranch and Museum was the first kiln-fired brick structure and the oldest non-adobe building in the Inland Empire.
Situated on Crestmore Road, the Riverside County Regional Park and Open-Space District is commonly known as the Riverside County Parks.
It offers high-quality recreational opportunities and preserves significant features of the county’s cultural, historical, and natural heritage.
It provides various trails for the whole family, camping sites, and other exciting activities.
The Riverside County Regional Park and Open-Space District also offers a variety of nature education programs and events.
Get a chance to enjoy a free airplane ride at Flabob Airport, located on Mennes Avenue.
It is open to the youth, veterans, disadvantaged, or challenged.
Founded by Tom Wathen, Flabob Airport is home to the Tom Wathen Center, a non-profit corporation committed to education through aviation.
It offers programs for kids, such as Young Eagles Flights and Red Barn Aviation.
Vernola Park is a public park with a 0.8-mile route on Wineville Avenue.
It has a course with an elevation gain of about 3.3 feet, which is perfect to stroll around with your dog.
Your kids will love spending time on the playground sliding and trying other playground equipment or playing soccer and baseball.
The park provides a wheelchair-accessible car park and entrance so that people with disabilities can still enjoy the park.
Vernola Park is a great place to relax and exercise both for residents and visitors.
Young people are always energetic and on the move, and what better place to take them than at Rancho Jurupa Regional Sports Park?
The park comprises 32 stunning, green, natural, and synthetic turf fields.
There are four huge turf fields that are marked and lighted, two large natural turf fields, and nine smaller natural turf fields.
You’ll find a beautifully landscaped plaza with two playgrounds, restrooms, picnic shelters, and a snack bar between the synthetic and natural fields.
Rancho Jurupa Regional Sports Park utilizes green lighting to efficiently light the park as upward lighting reduces light spill and sky glow.
The Louis Robidoux Library is a public library located on Mission Boulevard and is associated with Riverside County Library System.
If you’re a resident, you can take advantage of a free library card by showing either a legitimate California Driver’s License with a present address.
In case you don’t have one, you may show two forms of identification: one that proves who you are and another that proves your existing California mailing address.
Louis Robidoux Library allows free and equal access to knowledge, cultural enrichment, and independent lifelong learning.
Looking for a good place to bring your dog for a walk or allow it to play and mingle with other dogs?
Then bring your fur baby to Country Village Dog Park on Country Club Drive.
It’s a small but wonderful place offering an outdoor space used as a recreation area for dogs.
Country Village Dog Park allows dogs off-leash so they can be free to move around and enjoy the park.
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Dedicated as a landmark and city park, Mount Rubidoux Park is a well-known Southern California destination and the site of the oldest outdoor non-denominational Easter Sunrise service in the U.S.
You’ll find historic markers and memorials on the mountain, including a cross at the summit dedicated to Father Junípero Serra on April 26, 1907.
The park is a significant landmark where Riverside locales marked the 100th anniversary of the Eastern Sunrise service on April 12, 2009.
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Mount Rubidoux Park covers 161 acres of land and features 3.5 miles of paved roads and many different dirt hiking trails.
Typically considered an easy route, it takes about one hour and 26 minutes to complete.
You can use your bike on the trail or simply go bird-watching, so don’t forget your binoculars.
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Even if you’re not a botanist, you might want to be one once you visit this lovely garden on Botanic Gardens Drive in Riverside.
The University of California Riverside (UCR) Botanic Gardens is a 40-acre living plant museum with over 3,500 plant varieties and thousands of specimens worldwide.
It focuses on plants from the Mediterranean climate and dry lands, like California and the southwestern desert of America.
Almost a third of the gardens stay unplanted for native plants, including annual grassland and coastal sage scrub.
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You’ll also see native plants like deer weed, California buckwheat, brittlebush, and California sagebrush.
Admission is free to the University of California Riverside Botanic Gardens, but they would appreciate donations.
Don’t forget to visit the Butterfly Garden, Herb Garden, Iris Garden, Lilac Lane, lush Rose Gardens, Native American Plants Garden, and the lush Subtropical Fruit Orchard.
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No children could resist playing in the Universal Playground at Fairmont Park.
The improvements made to the park generate interactive play among all children.
The special features of the playground integrate Fairmont Park’s history in the original carousel and roller coaster site.
Children will love to walk on the boardwalk-patterned pavement encircling the playground with two play areas: one for 2 to 5 years old and the other for 5 to 12 years old.
There’s also a sensory play area, a sand play area, and a splash pad water play area for your kids to enjoy.
Kids will have a good time climbing the wall and slide, beating the drums, ringing the bells, and playing music with their feet at the Century Wall.
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The Heritage House features fundamental, special, and online exhibitions.
The Riverside Museum Associates restores and maintains this 1891 Victorian home on Magnolia Avenue.
There are more than a hundred thousand artifacts in the museum’s collections and 2,000 linear feet of archives.
You can visit Heritage House for free; however, they would appreciate donations from visitors for the museum’s maintenance.
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Established in 1976, the Riverside National Cemetery is the biggest and most preoccupied cemetery managed by the National Cemetery Administration.
The March Air Force Base transferred 740 acres of land, called the U.S. Army’s Camp William G. Haan, during World War II to serve as a resting place.
Dedicated and opened for burials on November 11, 1978, this historic cemetery received additional 181 acres transferred by the Air Force in 2003.
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You’ll be amazed by the impressive winding landscape that features a central foyer with indigenous-styled committal shelters, memorial circles, a memorial amphitheater, and lakes.
Located on Van Buren Boulevard in Riverside, the memorials at the Riverside National Cemetery commemorate the heroism, service, and sacrifices of the fallen soldiers, veterans, and prisoners of war.
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If you love outdoor recreation, head to Washington Park.
It provides large open spaces for your kids to run around, while large trees that dot the beautiful park provide a lot of shade.
Washington Park is along Mary Street in Riverside and is generally maintained by the Riverside Parks Department.
You can park your car in the street parking or in the small lot inside the park.
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In 1993, the California Citrus State Historic Park opened its doors to the public, aiming to become a living outdoor historical museum that conveys the importance of the citrus industry.
It showcases its significant impact on people, businesses, the economy, and the culture that revolutionized California in its early years and constantly plays a key role in agriculture, including local, national, and global industries.
You can walk to the museum and learn how citrus groves sprouted in Southern California.
The park allows visitors to explore different paths through the Citrus Varietal Grove, enabling them to get a spectacular view of the entire 247-acre park and enjoy a picnic in the park’s lower area.
You’ll find California Citrus State Historic Park along Dufferin Avenue in Riverside.
Who says you cannot enjoy fun activities even if you don’t have enough money to spend?
Jurupa Valley offers various free attractions for a budget-friendly trip.
Plan your visit with these free things to do in Jurupa Valley, California!
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