Best Parks for Outdoor Fun
Explore the best best parks for outdoor fun options for kids and families in Santa Cruz
Ocean View Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Neary Lagoon Park
Wildlife habitat with floating walkways. Wildlife refuge with trails & floating walkways, bird-watching areas, tennis courts & a playground.
Westlake Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
DeLaveaga Park
Picnic, recreational & athletic areas. Grassy space includes picnic areas, playgrounds, sports fields, bocci ball courts, trails & a creek.
Pyramid Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Natural Bridges Tidepools
Rock pools with diverse marine life. Public tide pools in the rocks at Natural Bridges State Beach home to anemones, sea stars & crabs.
LEO’s Haven Accessible Playground
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Chanticleer Ave County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Moran Lake County Park
Waterfront space with sand beach. Spacious lakeside & oceanside park offering beach space for fishing, surfing & picnics.
Wilder Ranch State Park
Picnic areas, trails & horseback riding. Natural landscape with diverse activities including hiking trails, picnic areas & horseback riding.
The Mystery Spot
Iconic gravity hill offering tours. Opened in 1941, this roadside landmark is a tilt-induced visual illusion with tours & a gift shop.
The Hook County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Anna Jean Cummings County Park
Big recreational area with a playground. 95-acre park featuring athletic fields & a modern playground, plus a pavilion for BBQs & picnics.
Esplanade Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
Park with campgrounds & hiking trails. Featuring a variety of forested areas, this park offers camping, fishing, hiking & picnic spots.
Skypark
Basketball court & skate park. Diverse activities are available at this public space with a skate park & basketball court.
Seacliff Village County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Aptos Village County Park
Picnicking, public lawn, gazebo & events. Local recreation area on 10+ acres, with picnic tables, a public lawn, a gazebo & various events.
Highlands County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park
Outdoor destination for hiking & biking. Hiking, biking & jogging trails on varied terrain rising from sea level to steep coastal mountains.
Seascape County Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Loch Lomond Recreation Area
Reservoir park for fishing & boating. Scenic 175-acre reservoir park for fishing, boating & hiking (seasonal & can be closed by drought).
Soquel Demonstration State Forest
Natural area with mountain biking trails. Scenic forested park featuring redwoods, natural springs & a series of cycling trails.
Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve
Hiking trails, wildlife & dramatic views. 18,000-acre wilderness area in mountainous terrain with hiking trails, wildlife & valley views.
Uvas Canyon County Park
Wooded park for camping, picnics & hikes. This sprawling wooded park with waterfalls offers camping, picnicking & 6 miles of hiking trails.
Sanborn County Park
Lush forested park with camping & hiking. Verdant wooded park featuring RV/tent campsites, plus picnic areas & over 15 miles of hiking trails.
Vasona Lake County Park
Site with a sprawling lawn, trail & lake. Public green space with 45 acres of lawn, a multi-use trail & picnic areas plus a lake with fishing.
Houge Park
Playgrounds, barbecues & basketball. Neighborhood park with horseshoe pit, basketball & tennis courts, plus playgrounds & barbecues.
Almaden Lake Park
Spot for fishing, hiking & picnicking. Park with a 32-acre lake offering fishing, bocce courts, trails & a seasonal concession stand.
Fremont Older Open Space Preserve
Year-round hiking & biking with vistas. Scenic spread on 739 acres with rolling views & trails for hiking, biking & horseback riding.
Martial Cottle Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Glorya Jean Tate Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Stevens Creek County Park
Trails, picnic areas & a reservoir. Miles of multi-use trails, shaded picnic areas & a large reservoir for fishing & boating.
Locke-Paddon Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Vince DiMaggio Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Jollyman Park
Quaint place for picnics & sports. This 11.5-acre urban park contains ball fields, a playground & shaded picnic tables.
McClellan Ranch Preserve
Former horse ranch with a nature museum. Former horse ranch from the 1930s featuring a nature museum, community garden & historic buildings.
Willow Street Frank Bramhall Park
Public green space with sports fields. City park offering shady green space, plus softball fields, basketball & unlighted tennis courts.
Portal Park
Picnic facilities & recreation center. Small park offering a large, reservable picnic & barbecue area, playground & recreation building.
Hellyer County Park
Urban park with a multi-use, paved trail. Green space featuring a 15-mile paved trail, plus picnicking, disc golf, a dog park & a velodrome.
Skyline Ridge Open Space Preserve
Lake, scenic vistas & miles of trails. Varied landscape including 11 miles of trails, lake, meadows & ridge views in a 2,143-acre preserve.
Lovers Point Beach
Rocky point for shoreline recreation. Quaint public beach with a rocky point break popular with surfers, swimmers & boaters.
Caledonia Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Berwick Park
Ocean views, picnic spots & wildlife. 1-acre park boasting ocean vistas, picnic spots & a grassy lawn, plus hiking & biking trails.
Rancho San Antonio County Park & Open Space Preserve
Hiking area featuring a working farm. Rural nature preserve with 25 miles of hiking trails, plus a working farm & a model plane launch.
Ortega Park
Recreation spot with a large playground. Park with basketball & tennis courts, a cricket pitch & more, plus lots of kids' play equipment.
Serra Park
Tennis courts, ball fields & open lawns. Nature area with tennis courts, ball fields, playground & picnic areas, plus manicured & open space.
Central Park
Picnicking, a pool & recreational sports. 52-acre park with 2 playgrounds & athletic courts/fields, plus a swimming pool, picnic area & BBQs.
Raynor Park
Play areas, a field & horseshoe pits. Longtime park with dinosaur-themed play areas plus a field, horseshoe pits & picnic areas.
Oak Newton Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Happy Hollow Park & Zoo
Animals, activities & conservation focus. Small zoo with an array of animals & rides, plus an education center, petting zoo & puppet theater.
Kelley Park
172-acre green space with lawn bowling. This park, which contains a zoo & living history museum, offers picnic spots & lawn bowling greens.
San Carlos Beach Park
Tranquil spot with bayside vistas. 2.87-acre city park offering footpaths, benches, landscaped turf & scenic bay views.
Sister City Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Rotary PlayGarden
Accessible children's playground. Interactive & accessible children's playground with slides, climbing equipment & seating areas.
De Anza Park
Spanish Aztec-themed picnic & play area. Picnic grounds & play space with basketball, a sports field, horseshoes, skate area & climbing fun.
Monterey Bay Park
Beachfront park with a volleyball court. Small lawned oceanfront park with a sand volleyball court allowing dogs on leashes.
Braly Park
Retreat with tennis courts & Asian flair. Park featuring Japanese design plus venues for sand volleyball, horseshoes, shuffleboard & tennis.
Las Palmas Park
Tiki-themed playground, dog run & more. 24-acre tiki-themed park with a playground, water features, a dog run, tennis courts & bathrooms.
Quarry Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Dennis The Menace Playground
Sizable kids' playground & park. Spacious kids' playground & park featuring activities such as a maze & a rock climbing wall.
El Estero Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Via Paraiso Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Emma Prusch Farm Park
Community farm with orchards & gardens. Compact community farm features heirloom vegetable gardens, orchards, chickens & a fair.
Laguna Grande Regional Park, Monterey side
Waterfront area with picnic tables. Green space on the water offering a volleyball court, play area, picnic tables & public barbecues.
Montecito Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Cuesta Park
Public green space for active locals. With wide-open spaces & shaded parts, this park has a playground, tennis courts & BBQ facilities.
Casanova Oak Knoll Park Center
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Foothills Nature Preserve
1,400-acre nature preserve with trails. Miles of trails guide visitors through woodlands & fields, past streams & lakes in this vast park.
Redwood Grove Nature Preserve
Redwood forest with a boardwalk. This 6-acre Redwood forest features a boardwalk, observation decks, picnic tables & a rose garden.
Muwékma Park
Visit this great place for kids and families!
Pioneer Memorial Park
Quaint green space with benches & paths. Small, serene park located next to the library featuring ample benches, walkways & shaded areas.
Windy Hill Open Space Preserve
Forested fields for hiking & picnicking. Open grasslands & forest area with 12 miles of trails for hiking, bicycling & horseback-riding.
Mariposa Park
Neighborhood park with a playground. Compact, butterfly-themed park with a playground, seasonal water-play sandbox & picnic tables.
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