Best Magic Camp in Southern California

Ta-da, Alakazam, bibiddity bobbity boo, whatever your choice of magic words was – we all tried to do some magic tricks as a child. Most of us never got past that one very obvious card trick we learned.  But would we have, if we had the right magic and sleight of hand instructors? Could you, reading this now, have been the next Houdini?  Maybe. But you have other things on your plate now. But what does your child have on their plate this summer? A long stretch of nothing?  Help them believe in magic and send them to the best magic camp in Southern California. Here’s why your own Penn & Teller, Copperfield or Criss Angel should make the trip. 

Learn Close Up Magic 

Being a magician means a few different things. You have self-working or close-up magic, where you use some sort of tool or item to perform the magic trick. Think of it as the impenetrable rings that suddenly join together.  Most closeup magic uses trick props – like physical objects that the magician learns to use. You can see some good examples in our “Magic Specialty” video,  which features actual Pali campers! 

a boy showing off a magic trick

Learn Sleight of Hand Magic 

Sleight of hand tricks are, well, tricky. They can take years to perfect. Why so long? The faster and smoother you go through the illusion as the magician, the more believable the trick is.  If you watch a beginning magician do a sleight of hand closely, you should be able to figure out the illusion. But if you watch someone with years of experience (or even one week) that same trick looks almost impossible to explain.  Thankfully for the campers, our instructors are at the how-did-they-do-that good level. But they’re not so advanced that they can’t slow the trick down to help kids learn it.  You’ll be impressed at what their magic looks like before they go to camp (if they’ve dabbled) and the strides they’ve made in just a week or two after. 

They’ll Learn Card Tricks 

Card tricks are like a marriage between sleight of hand magic and close-up magic. You need to know how to work the prop, but you also need to have quick hands to make everything work together.  Is this your card? Yes, How did you do that?! Prepare to be amazed at what your magician will come home and be able to do with a pack of regular cards.  Since magic is participatory when it comes to card tricks, be ready to help your kiddo practice for next summer! 

a boy showing off a magic card trick

Learn Balloon Animals 

While making balloon animals isn’t a profitable forever career choice, you can make a respectable amount of money doing it at parties and festivals. If your child wants to practice until they’re old enough to make their own business – they could use the basics of what they learned to send themselves to college.  Or maybe back to Pali, for an extra (second) week next year! 

Regardless of if they charge for these balloon animals or not, they’ll come home knowing a new skill. If they have younger siblings or cousins, they’ll be the talk of every birthday party. 

They Get to Bring Tricks Home

What fun would it be if they learned all these tricks at camp and didn’t get to bring them home? Your camper will come home with a literal bag of tricks that they can show off their new skills with.  Get ready for a magic show the moment they get in the car!  

The Benefits of Magic 

If your child chooses magic as their camp specialty and their hobby, it’s not a one-time choice. They’re going to benefit from what they learn for the rest of their lives.  And if they continue to do magic after camp, those benefits will continue to develop and aid them in life. 

Learning magic boosts your self-confidence. This isn’t just a claim. A study done by a psychologist found that learning magic tricks was more effective for raising self-esteem than confidence-centered classes were. Being able to do something no one else can do makes kids feel empowered and that’s a powerful feeling. 

It Promotes Self Discipline 

One of the hardest things to get children to do is practice a skill. Whatever it is – piano, their dance routine, or their spelling words. With magic, there’s a sense of accomplishment when a child masters a skill.  They’re more willing to practice since the outcome is something they’ve earned. That willingness to stick it out and practice teaches commitment.  Repeatedly practicing sleight of hand tricks helps your child develop patience and tenacity. That’s something we all want for our children – magic or not. 

It Builds Critical Thinking Skills 

When you’re learning a new magic trick, you have to think through what you’re doing at every step. If you’re having trouble with something, you have to figure out what’s going wrong and how you can fix it. Those skills are directly applicable to school and life in general. All that from one session at Pali Adventures! 

They’ll Do More Than Magic

As much fun as balloon animals and up-close magic are, our goal at Pali Adventures is to provide every camper with a diverse camp experience that is exactly what they want it to be. To that end, each camper has the opportunity to choose several of our popular electives.  We offer over 70 elective opportunities that many of our campers wouldn’t be able to experience in any other settings. Your child can experiment with watersports.  Learn to make fly on the zip line or fly through the air on the trapeze. Make music and sing in a band. Create dishes from Down Under.  Each day of their camping experience is a new adventure.

a girl showing off a magic card trick

Why Choose Pali Adventures Magic Camp 

If you haven’t figured it out already, Pali does things differently. We offer specialties with experts who take kids from novice to impressive in a matter of days.  Our cabins are all climate controlled and kids love our food – when’s the last time you heard that about a summer camp?  Click the chat button to talk to someone about enrolling your child today!

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