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Virtual Recreation Center

Hello and welcome to the Monterey Recreation Division - Virtual Recreation Center. We created these pages and activities during the COVID-19 pandemic when we were sheltering in place in 2020-2021. We are committed to ensuring that our participants have resources to maintain healthy lives, grow meaningful relationships and have motivating experiences. We realize that Virtual Recreation is a temporary measure until we are able to offer our in-person programs and services again. In these challenging times, our Virtual Recreation Center will bring programs and resources to you and your family in the comfort of your own home with the hope of making it easier for you to prioritize your health and well-being. We will update this page regularly with new resources as they become available. Weekly activities will be posted every Friday.

You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates and ideas to keep you and your loved ones healthy, entertained and informed. Please note that we do not endorse or receive funds to advertise any of the third-party sites or services listed or referenced on this page. Have an idea or resource you'd like to share? Email us! (montereyrecreation@monterey.org)

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We also want you to #showushowyouplayMonterey.  Follow us on Facebook and Instagram and use the #showushowyouplayMonterey hashtag.  Tag us in your photos to share how you are having fun at home.
Virtual Recreation Activities

Having Fun At Home

STAY ACTIVE
As our daily lives are currently filled with more indoor time than we may be used to, there are many ways to stay healthy and active. Take care of yourself; make sure to eat a well balanced diet, get plenty of sleep, and stretch at least twice a day. Try to include some sort of physical activity into your daily schedule. Below are a few ideas for staying active indoors.

Take a Virtual Fitness Class with the Monterey Sports Center. Check out the Monterey Sports Center Facebook page to see new Fitness classes livestreamed each week including Yoga, Cardio Dance, Barre Sculpt, Pilates, Sculpt Express and MORE! They even offer classes for kids and family fitness.

There are also plenty of online fitness options for all interests and abilities.

Fitness for Adults


Fun Fitness for Kids 

STAY CONNECTED
Connecting with Others - Keeping Each Other Safe and Connected Is Everyone's Responsibility

Although we are all socially distancing physically, as humans we need to stay connected emotionally. Try one or two of these every day. 

  • Call or video chat with a friend or relative you haven't spoken to in a while to check-in.
  • Write and send a letter to a loved one. US Postal service is an essential service which means your letters will be delivered!
  • Host a virtual playdate with Skype or Facetime or use Facebook to play games with your friends.
  • Host a Virtual Netflix Party - Watch Netflix with Your Friends and Family

During this stressful time, it's also important to remember to support each other and maintain emotional connections within your immediate family. Try a few of these ideas to stay connected with members of your shared household/family.

  • Plan a family movie night or dance party.
  • Play board games with your family or use facebook to play games with your friends
  • Play hide and go seek, charades and other low contact games
  • Set a day for some spring cleaning or an outdoor gardening project with your family
  • Tackle a puzzle together.
STAY NOURISHED


Family Friendly Recipes

EXERCISE YOUR BRAIN
Take breaks from watching, reading, or listening to news stories, including social media. Hearing about the pandemic repeatedly can be upsetting.

It's easy to get lost in the world of video games and television while at home, but it's just as important to stay physically active as it is to stay mentally active! Try these resources to keep your mind sharp.

Adults: 


Learning for Kids

GET CREATIVE
OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES
Shelter-in-place orders require us to stay in or near our homes... but that doesn't mean you have to skip your daily dose of Vitamin D!  

Take a stroll around the block! You don't have to go far to find cool stuff in nature - try this scavenger hunt.  

Walk/run or bike around your neighborhood and say hi (from a distance) to all of your neighbors who are getting outside too.

Dog Park, Skate Park, Ballparks, Basketball, Volleyball and Tennis Courts: Closed until further notice

Parks, Beaches, Open Space and Trails: Open at this time

Safety Alert!

Important guidelines are in place to keep everyone safe in our parks and open spaces.  Per the Monterey County Health Officer’s statement of April 3, 2020, please heed the following.

1. Stay home as much as possible! 
Exercise and sanity are absolutely important, however, we recommend that everyone stay at home as much as possible until this situation passes. Countries that have figured out how to stop the rapid spread of COVID-19 have all enacted much stricter social distancing measures than we are currently experiencing here in California.

2. If you do go out, act as if everyone you encounter outdoors has the virus (even if they don’t!)

3. Outdoor recreation activity should take place near your individual residence. Do not carpool under any circumstances;
Following California guidelines, only drive across town for the absolute essentials! Car crashes are no joke, and driving to the parks, beaches and recreation trails is unacceptable right now, as automotive transport facilitates virus spread between communities. Get to know your local park and neighborhood streets and sidewalks. 

4. Please, do not ride/hike/gather in groups of any size. Aim for solo or household only activities as much as possible!
Gathering in a group and hitting the trails increases the chance of virus transmission between members of your group as well as transmission to other trail/park users. As a group, you create a bigger obstacle for other users and set a bad example for the outdoor community.     

5. Pick off-hours to ride or hike, and avoid times of heavy trail/park use.

6. Keep rides and hikes short if you do choose to enjoy public trails and parks.

a. Slow down more than usual, and give fellow trail users more room than you may normally give should you need to pass.
b. Now is not the time to train for a marathon or challenge yourself on an extreme ride.  Our healthcare system cannot support additional emergencies right now, and no one wants to be the one to distract medical resources from an ongoing pandemic. 
c. Give others ample opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors!  This isn’t the time to start that marathon training you’ve always meant to do.

7. Use the restroom before come to open space, and avoid spitting while on the trail.

8. Keep your dog on a leash at all times.

9. Speak up if others are not following these recommendations! Share this knowledge. 

10. In the event that parks, open spaces, or play areas are shut down, please respect closures.  These decisions are made for everyone’s safety.

Additional closures may be necessary to protect our community.

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ADULTS & SENIORS
VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS