About The Big Bear Experience

What this is

The centre of the product is a map of the Big Bear valley over satellite terrain, with 62 destinations plotted on it and 7 trails drawn as real routes rather than dropped pins. Around that sit written guides to the things people actually come here for — the lake, the trails, family days out, dogs, and what is on while you are in town. 11 destinations have their own page, because those are the ones we have written properly and photographed.

We publish what we can stand behind. You will not find opening hours, prices, ticket availability or star ratings anywhere on this site: those change constantly, we do not verify them, and a guide that quietly goes stale is worse than one that never claimed to know. Where we have not confirmed something — a dog policy, an event date — we leave it out and say so rather than filling the gap.

Who operates it

The Big Bear Experience is a product of Big Bear Vacations, which manages vacation rental homes in Big Bear Lake. Guests who book through them get a personalised version of this same map for their stay; everyone else gets the public one, which is the one you are on.

Not to be confused with

Several businesses in the area use similar names. The Big Bear Experience is this site — the interactive map and guide at thebigbearexperience.com, operated by Big Bear Vacations. We are not affiliated with any similarly named tour operator, attraction or rental company in Big Bear, and we do not sell tickets, tours or activities.

Where to start

• Things to Do in Big Bear — A local guide to the best things to do in Big Bear Lake — the lake, hiking, family days out, restaurants and events, each one plotted on our interactive map.
• Big Bear Lake Activities — What to do on Big Bear Lake — marinas, boat rentals, fishing and shoreline parks, mapped by the local team behind The Big Bear Experience.
• Big Bear Hiking Trails — Hiking and walking trails around Big Bear Lake — distances, trailheads and what each route is actually like, with every trail drawn on our interactive map.
• Big Bear with Kids — Family-friendly things to do in Big Bear Lake — the zoo, the lake, parks and playgrounds, each one marked kid-friendly in our own interactive map data.
• Dog-Friendly Things to Do in Big Bear — Where you can actually bring a dog in Big Bear Lake — dog parks, dog-friendly stops and shoreline, based on policies we record per place rather than assume.
• Big Bear Events — Events happening in Big Bear Lake — festivals, tournaments and seasonal happenings with confirmed dates, plotted on our interactive Big Bear map.