San Diego, CA, USA
Campers step into the kitchen to explore world cultures through recipes, ingredients, stories, and hands-on culinary skills. Cookin' Around the World combines cooking with cultural learning, giving children chances to measure, mix, bake, prepare dishes, and practice kitchen safety while discovering foods and traditions from different countries. The broader summer program also includes creative and learning activities such as art, movement, games, language experiences, and STEAM projects in selected camp formats.
Programs are designed for children ages 5–14, with activities adjusted for different age groups and camp formats. The San Diego program emphasizes practical kitchen independence: campers follow multi-step recipes, learn safe ways to handle tools, practice measurement, and build familiarity with ingredients and global flavors. Some camps add Spanish or Mandarin language activities, storytelling, music, outdoor games, garden experiences, and collaborative projects, so the exact mix depends on the selected session and venue.
Safety is built into the cooking environment through kitchen briefings, staff screening, and a published 1:6 instructor-to-student ratio. The organization is nut-free and publishes specific limits for several food allergies. For families looking for a day-camp experience centered on cooking, culture, creativity, and practical skills, the program offers a structured way to learn by making, tasting, moving, and exploring together.
| Ages: | 5–14 |
| Type: | Day |
| Gender: | Co-Ed |
| Setting: | City |
| Technology: | Technology, Robotics, STEM |
| Academics: | Academics, Career, Culinary, Learning, International Studies, Language, Spanish Language, Chinese Language |
| Arts: | Arts, Fine Arts, Arts & Crafts |
| Time: |
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| Staff to Сamper Ratio: | 1:6 |
You won’t be charged yet. The camp will contact you to confirm all terms first.
You can still submit a quick request to let the camp know you’re interested.
The core experience centers on hands-on cooking and cultural exploration. Campers learn foundational kitchen habits such as safe tool use, measuring, following step-by-step recipes, food handling, cleanup, and working through a dish from start to finish. Recipes and ingredients are connected to countries and traditions, turning cooking into a practical way to explore geography, culture, and global flavors.
The exact program changes by session and venue. The main summer camp page lists themed cooking weeks, while other camp formats combine culinary projects with Spanish or Mandarin activities, art, storytelling, movement, outdoor games, collaborative projects, music, garden experiences, and interactive STEAM work. Some sessions finish with a cultural celebration. La Jolla Country Day offerings are organized as separate themed cooking camps for older students, while other San Diego programs serve a wider age range.
Instruction is structured around active participation rather than demonstration alone. The Clairemont program describes a system in which students practice kitchen safety, identify spices and traditions connected with featured countries, and follow multi-step recipes. With a published 1:6 instructor-to-student ratio, the format supports supervised, small-group participation in the kitchen.
Food preparation is part of the camp activity, but the published information does not describe a separate lunch or meal-service program. The organization identifies itself as nut-free and says it can accommodate some dietary restrictions. It currently cannot serve children with gluten, soy, egg, or dairy allergies. Select camp formats include cooking, baking, and special treats as part of the program.
Before cooking begins, campers receive safety briefings covering equipment use, safe food handling, and hazards to watch for. The Clairemont program publishes a 1:6 instructor-to-student ratio and requires students to complete a safety check before using kitchen tools. Instructors undergo screening, and educators are required to have CPR, First Aid, Safe Serve, EpiPen training, and Live Scan clearance. The organization also describes itself as nut-free. These practices are tied directly to the cooking environment, where supervision and safe handling of tools and ingredients are part of the program structure.
The organization publishes allergy restrictions for participation. It describes the program as nut-free and says it can accommodate some dietary restrictions, but it cannot currently serve children with gluten, soy, egg, or dairy allergies. Educators are required to have EpiPen, CPR, and First Aid training.
The Clairemont program publishes a 1:6 instructor-to-student ratio. The broader program describes instruction by experienced chefs and requires educators to hold CPR, First Aid, Safe Serve, and EpiPen training and to be Live Scanned. Instructors are also described as screened, and kitchen safety briefings are part of the teaching process before children begin cooking.
Registration is handled online through booking links connected to the camp page. Families select the specific camp theme, venue, and time block offered for that session. A signed participant waiver is required. Published hours differ by program, including afternoon main summer camps and separate morning or midday blocks at other venues, so arrival and pickup timing depends on the selected registration option.
