What’s your play style? Are you an Explorer or Competitor? A Joker or Storyteller? Research shows that 1) play is important for adults and 2) there are eight inherent play styles. Thanks to Visit California, you can discover your play style and match it to the perfect playful vacay in California, the Ultimate Playground! Plus, 8 lucky agents will win a prize to match their play style.
Are you an Explorer who loves to follow the path less travelled? An Artist seeking adventures to ignite your creative flair? California is a fun-filled destination with so much diversity. No matter your play style, there’s a destination, attraction, natural wonder or oddity to suit.
According to decades of research at the National Institute for Play, there are eight types of play. Whether you’re a Collector, Competitor, Artist, Director, Joker, Explorer, Mover or Storyteller, your play style begins to show from infancy.
We know play is an inherent need for children, but we forget play is healthy for adults, too. Amid bills and burpees and could-have-been-an-email meetings, we forget to make time to play. Doh.
Not anymore, as Visit California has given us the tools to figure out our play style, and they’re telling us where to enjoy California’s Ultimate Playground experiences, too!
TAKE THE QUIZ HERE
Once you know your play style, match it to your perfect California getaway.
The Artist
You’re happiest making something, be it a knick-knack pot, watercolour painting or growing tomatoes. You thrive on being creative, original, and tactile.
When you travel, museums, street art murals, and cooking classes inspire, as does nature’s perfect symmetry.
The Artist at play in California:
- Get hands-on at LEGOLAND California
- Combine discovery and joy at the immersive San Francisco’s Exploratorium
- Stretch your imagination at San Diego’s Comic-Con Museum
- Watch your child’s play style unfold at the Children’s Discovery Museum San Jose
- Be awed by the power of performance at the state’s premium entertainment spaces
- Dive deep into California’s cultural treasures at the top 20 most creative museums
- Then get inspired by curios and quirky creativity at any of these epic 15 museum gift shops
The Collector
Organised and passionate, you love checking iconic landmarks off your travel to-do list. Your determination to squeeze in oh-so-California stops, like the Hollywood Sign, Getty Center, and sampling an In-N-Out Burger is unrivalled!
The Collector at play in California:
- You know a visit to Golden Gate Bridge is a must in San Francisco
- In Los Angeles, you’ll love visiting the icon of the city, the Hollywood Sign
- The Getty Center’s dramatic architecture and sweeping views should be included on any Collector’s itinerary
- Tick off famous TV and movie sights in one go on the Studio Tour around the back lots at Universal Studios
- Tour the 650-mile trail of Spanish-created California missions from San Diego to Sonoma
- The world’s most iconic road – Route 66 is a Collector’s dream road trip!
The Competitor
The Competitor on holiday outdoes themselves every time. Your dynamism and driven personality make you the fastest on a Yosemite hike and Lake Tahoe black run, and you’re the most motivated to bag a ton of celebrity-style restaurant reservations in L.A.!
The Competitor at play in California:
- The Sonoma Raceway offers need-for-speed activities that suit your play style
- Get a runner’s high on vacay with the state’s top running races
- Race on two wheels with idyllic scenery throughout California’s amazing bike routes
- Challenge the fam or your mates to ‘healthy’ competition at California’s top game parlours or at one of the Golden State’s 900 golf courses. These are the most noteworthy
- Ever played pickleball? California’s epic weather makes it a top spot to learn this paddleboard pastime
The Director
Your confidence, focus, and ability to get what you want make you the boss on holiday. You know the winning strategy to get on the rides fastest at Six Flags, navigate the Pacific Coast Highway with ease, and organise any special getaway.
The Director at play in California:
- As the travel guru of your group, you have already downloaded these destination apps to plan your California vacay, and you’ve read up on this handy guide to timing your trip
- Even before you’ve arrived, you’ve studied the Disneyland Resort layout, Universal Studios map and know where the best snacks are at Seaworld San Diego!
- Your friends love leaning on your leadership skills when planning winery visits
The Explorer
Your curious soul, adventurous spirit, and passion for off-the-beaten-path gems are an ideal match for California’s famous vibes. You’re the one meeting the locals in remote corners of the state, sampling new flavours en route, and comfortable winging your Golden State journey.
The Explorer at play in California:
- The 650-mile Lost Coast route is exactly your jam – you love getting lost to discover something new!
- There’s no better blog for an Explorer than one about California’s eight best-kept secrets
- Meet the locals at these six secret Cali bars or when visiting wine country
- Keep the family entertained – Explorer-style – with these California hidden gems or on a farm tour drive
The Mover
Fidget is your middle name, and sitting still is your nemesis. Fortunately, California is one giant playground for your energetic soul, allowing you to be as active as you like.
The Mover at play in California:
- The Golden State’s adrenalin-based activities fuel your Mover energy, including cliff climbing, kiteboarding, and scuba diving shipwrecks
- Zip through the trees in Big Bear for the ultimate Mover activity
- Are you a water-loving Mover? You need to know the 11 best surf spots and top places to go river rafting
- Got a Mover child? Check out this epic list of California’s kid-friendly sports
- There’s no doubt Alex Honnold has a Mover play style! He’s the famous free climber on El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. Check out his interview here
The Storyteller
A Storyteller holiday is about the story you see in everything as you travel. Your imagination will run riot across California, including at its historical sights, intriguing Hollywood, and notorious characters.
The Storyteller at play in California:
- Discover Hollywood’s storytellers at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, then stop by the state’s best TV show locations
- Sleep where the stars have stayed at the hip Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel and enjoy a starstruck moment at the top California bars featured in movies
- If you were a teen in the 80s, you absolutely must take the Lost Boys Santa Cruz tour. Not a Gen X-er? The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is equally exciting
The Joker
Every group needs a funny, carefree joy-seeking Joker play style. You love visiting comedy clubs, quirky attractions, and upbeat oddities on your travels.
The Joker in California:
- You’ll love this list of 58 reasons why California is the Ultimate Playground
- The Joker in you sees the Joker in them when you hit California’s top-rated comedy clubs or hop aboard Dylan’s Comedy Bus Tour in San Francisco
- Relive your childhood chuckles at Mickey’s Toontown where Mickey, Roger Rabbit, and Chip’n’Dale bring the entertainment
- Set your carefree soul alight with 21 unique California events, like Big Foot Days and the Indio International Tamale Festival
- And what about weirdly wonderful California gifts? While an alpaca won’t fit in your luggage, an artisanal fish-shaped flask will!
More ways to play
Keen to plan your California getaway by destination? Find more ways to play in the Ultimate Playground:
- Ways to Play in San Francisco
- Ways to Play in Los Angeles
- Ways to Play in San Diego
- Ways to Play in Palm Springs
- Ways to Play in Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
- Ways to Play in Joshua Tree National Park
- Ways to Play in Temecula Valley
- Ways to Play in Newport Beach
Agents: win Cali-inspired experiential prizes
Yes, Visit California’s eight play styles will help you nail their upcoming itineraries… and they’ll help you, too! How? Because there are eight experiential prizes up for grabs, one for each play style!
Enter your play style (and a few other deets) here to enter. Good luck!
Find out more
To discover more reasons why California is the Ultimate Playground, head here.
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