Well groomed gardens…read more Summer concerts in the park are great with good weather. The band was very good. They played some favorites and some of their own music. Every Monday at 6:30pm is a free concert. Check them out.

This complex includes a series of manicured greenery and waterways as well as some exhibitions…read morefocused on horse racing. Apparently a lot of very fast thoroughbreds came from around here. The grounds were quite pleasant, but I was surprised that many of the water features were not running or seemed not well maintained and rather sludgy. The place is named as a set of gardens, but I didn't see a ton of interesting plant life either. Nonetheless, it was a nice area, and it is free.

This lovely park is located not far from where US-1 makes its 90 degree turn near the historic…read moredistrict. It is a larger park, taking up a full city block in this mostly residential neighborhood. Open from sunrise to sunset, the park features a lighted basketball court, two lighted tennis courts, a large picnic shelter that has grills and a water fountain, a quarter-mile walking track and a playground. The playground is quite large and is on a sand base. Swing set, climbing frame, monkey bars. All the stuff you need for your toddlers to burn off some energy. There is street parking. [Review 14738 overall, 238 of 2021, number 780 in South Carolina.]

Here observing introductory swim lessons! They say the water is cold. It usually is when you're…read morefirst getting in. Once you're in, you'll adjust. First steps include: mouth bubbles, nose bubbles, and whole face dips with bubbles. I appreciate the time they take with the beginners!

Great weather for walking the mile track. The only drawback this time of year is the pollen…read more Love taking the kids to the playground. It is a great way to tire them out.

Great place to run in Aiken! During my most recent visit to Aiken, I was looking for a place to…read morerun. We found the track at Odell Weeks Activity Center, and I was very pleased. It is a 1 mile track around, and they have markers every quarter of a mile. This made for the perfect place to enjoy a quick run! Now, I can't speak for the inside of the activity center, but the outdoor public facilities are really great. The track is well maintained, and I liked that there were emergency call boxes on the track, although I felt that the area was pretty safe. They have a section of the park with some outdoor lifting equipment and there are tennis courts on the backside of the park, which are totally free to use. I really enjoyed running here. We did a quick 2 mile run on a Saturday morning, and there were a few other people, but it wasn't overly crowded. I enjoyed the scenery, and there was plenty of parking. I would definitely recommend!

Coker Springs is the historic center of Aiken, which you would never guess based on its humble…read moreappearance in modern times. Usage of this spring goes back to prehistoric times, and the spring's importance continued up through the 20th century, when personal water sources became more common. Since the Spring is really not one of the hot attractions in Aiken, map apps sometimes have difficulty telling you how to get here, but it is really quite simple in that you just go down Coker Springs Road and it's right after the curve at the bottom of the hill. The road that leads to it is unpaved and is the original road that ran by the spring for centuries, which lay on the route to Columbia and holds a lot of historical significance. While there isn't a whole lot to see beyond a sort of memorial edifice built on top of the spring, this is still worth a visit because the area around the spring is gorgeous and the spring holds so much historical importance. We parked at the Aiken County Historical Museum and had a really pleasant walk to the spring and back, which I would suggest because it allows you to view the gorgeous neighborhood surrounding the spring. Otherwise, you can easily drive right up to the spring!

The very large park is open from sunrise to sunset. Located about two miles north of downtown…read moreAiken, this park features a huge setup of playground equipment. Possibly one of the largest I've seen. The rest of the park is a big passive open space with walking trails and an amphitheater with permanent tiered seating. The parking lot is lighted and there is a non-reservable picnic shelter that offers power by request. [Review 14750 overall, 250 of 2021, number 789 in South Carolina.]

This is a nice park! Plenty of green space. A fitness court looks pretty fun in the morning or late…read moreevening. All of that metal can get hot. The play area is pretty cool with its bathroom and water fountain. The amphitheater allows for movies, concerts, and other outdoor events. It's wide open to allow for social distancing!

Not far from the historic district of Aiken, Eustis Park is a nice 8 acre park that has some…read moreinteresting topology. It gently slopes downhill to the basketball court, pickleball courts, tennis court and playground. Lots of trees and space with a 3/8 mile walking track. The two picnic shelters are reservable. [Review 14743 overall, 243 of 2021, number 783 in South Carolina.]

Basic park with soccer fields…read more There is a nice pond in which you can watch the frogs. The pier needs to be replaced as a lot of the boards are rotting. There is a lot of grass and room for kids to run.

At 24 acres, this is about twice the size of nearby Smith-Hazel Park, Perry Memorial Park is much…read moremore open. This park has a much larger picnic shelter that can be rented and reserved. The picnic shelter has tables, a grill and lights/water upon request. The sand walking track is a quarter mile and that was nice today. 11 soccer goals, 2 backstops for baseball, and nine holes of disc golf. There is a dedicated parking lot and some street parking. [Review 14740 overall, 240 of 2021, number 781 in South Carolina.]

Top notch park with a little bit for everyone. Walking trails, a beach and a fantastic playground.read more

If you have a canoe, boat, kayak, or fishing rod, this is the place to be! They have a small sanded…read morebeach area, several charcoal grills, covered pavilion, restrooms, shower stations, and a large playground area. There's a trail around the lake but not sure how far it goes around! There's a bridge over the dam and it's pretty interesting. If you look closely, you might see some turtles and gators!

These are the buildings (stable and house) that are part of the Hopeland Gardens. Their southern…read morecharm is indisputable. They are available for rental, surrounded by the unmistakable beauty of the gardens it is a hard place to beat. oh! and don't forget the rose garden.

It makes me sad that I had time only for a brief stopover. One has to drive down a dirt road to get…read moreto this, but it seemed quite worthwhile. A visitor center was open, though it was surrounded by what the park ranger called "garden spiders", which are not aggressive towards humans and whose bite, if provoked, is painful but not deadly. I've seen Australia-level spiders and lived to tell the tale, but these were definitely no joke; arachnophobes beware. The site includes a mansion, a cactus garden for some reason, and a variety of other buildings. Notably, the slave quarters housed extensive exhibitions. I'm not sure if this park was always so given the way history is treated in some parts of the south, but at least now it has a thorough historical take. I did not have time for the tour, but one can reasonably hope that whatever tour guide you get it will be worthwhile.

Redcliffe is one of the hidden gems of the CSRA. There are so many different things to enjoy here,…read moreand everyone can find something they love and a reason to keep coming back. There's a museum, house and grounds tour, natural trails, big fields for kids to run around in, and beautiful gardens to enjoy. The house tour was great and our guide was extremely knowledge. They did a fantastic job of striking a good line between not white washing history but also not painting all historical figures as purely evil people - that's a hard balance to achieve but they did it. The house is really a spectacular architectural achievement and you should absolutely do a tour if you come here. The library alone is worth the entry fee. There's also several original outbuildings which are even more unique since many of those are not preserved on other plantations. The nature trails and grounds are also great to just walk around in. Our kid had a great time running around, and we saw several birds of prey and even an owl!