Pease Park is one of Austin's most beautiful parks. Full stop! It has been thoughtfully designed…read moreand enjoyable green space to frequent. Stretching along Shoal Creek, the park offers a mix of shaded walking and biking trails, open lawns, and beautifully restored natural areas. It is hard to believe when you are in the park that you are in the heart of central Austin. The park is especially family friendly, with a large playground, splash pad, treehouse style observation area, and plenty of seating. While we were at the park a school was hosting a picnic for its students. The northern portion of the park is even more quiet and scenic, with winding trails, limestone bluffs, and creek views. It's a great area for dog walks, leisurely strolls, picnics, workouts, or just relaxing under the trees. The park is well maintained and welcoming to all ages. This park is very special.

Such a gem of a park. Big, beautiful, and genuinely fun for all ages. The giant troll made from…read morenatural and recycled materials alone is worth the visit -- it's impressive and so unique. The stream nearby adds a peaceful touch, and the overall design of the park feels really intentional and creative. Kids will go crazy for the massive playground and all the interactive installations. The hanging net sphere is a must, you can lie inside and bounce around, and honestly the adults were just as into it as the little ones. There are also food vendors including ice cream, so you can easily spend a whole afternoon here. One of the most well-done parks I've been to. Highly recommend.

This recreational center just recently reopened in 2022 after an extensive remodel. This center is…read moresandwiched between Overton elementary school and Colony Park (see separate review of the park). The center boasts of some very nice amenities such as a workout room, teen room, spacious kitchen, arts and crafts room, and a multipurpose room. This center is open to the general public without fees although you may need to sign a waiver if you use the facilities. On Fridays, they have bingo for seniors, and even a free breakfast. The bathrooms are very clean and modern. They have an indoor basketball court facility, which is very well designed. The elementary school next-door makes good use of this basketball gymnasium area. They even have a covered outdoor basketball court behind the building. They also have an afterschool program for three surrounding schools which involves a hot meal. There is another building next-door, which is another gymnasium with a small kitchen. Behind the smaller building is a wonderfully designed and extensive playground with covered picnic tables, baseball field, and soccer field. It should be pointed out that unlike some other recreational centers, there are no homeless camps within its boundaries. This is definitely one of the nicest recreational centers within the city limits of Austin. Check out the photos below, and read my review of Colony Park, which adds the finishing touches.

This is a really nice recreational center! I go here for zumba classes and everyone working here…read moreseems friendly. I always see tons of kiddos around. They have an outdoor playground, a pool in the back and a basketball court. The restrooms are okay, they need better lighting in my opinion. But everytime I see a happy kid, it makes me happy too! I love that rec centers are available for all ages and everyone is welcome. They have tons of events posted around. Definitely worth stopping by!

From the owner: Community Recreation programs provided year round for all ages. Youth and Adult Sports. After…read moreSchool and Summer Camp care programs. Gymnasium, weight room and lobby games open to the public during open hours unless posted otherwise. Seasonal Special Events for most holidays.

There are a number of reasons why Austin is popular…read more Let's add outdoor activities to the list. This East Austin park runs along the Colorado River between I-35 and Lady Bird Lake, south of the Holly neighborhood. It's a decent-sized trail. I walked about a mile and a half before I decided to turn around. If I would have kept going, the trail would have taken me under I-35 and connected to another trail that would have taken me toward Waller Beach. You'll share the trail(s) with other pedestrians and some bicycles. I added an S because the main trail sometimes branches off for side quests. Those side quests usually take you a little bit closer to the city or towards a basketball court or picnic area. Back on the main trail, benches are strategically placed in case you want to take a break and / or enjoy the view. In fact, some scenic spots allow you to walk down to the river's edge. Besides the walking trail, there's plenty of green space. When the weather is right, this is the perfect place to unroll a blanket and read a book, plan a picnic, throw a frisbee or let the kids run around and burn off some energy.

Downtown park! This park runs along the Colorado River, or…read moreis it Town Lake, or Lady Bird Lake. It's a nice green space that lines up along the banks of the lake with a larger network of bike trails that'll take you all the way from here, to the dam, back over to I-35 bridge, under Congress, all the way to Zilker Park near Lamar. It's a wonderful way to get around Austin without a car, without having to be on the streets. It links up to the Butler Trail. This park has a good number of homeless people who have set up camp along the shores of the lake. They look like they've been here for quite some time. For the most part, the park is just green open spaces with a few picnic tables and benches and good places to walk. There's lots of shade and plenty of grass. Pro tip: This is also a good way to park and get downtown quickly along the walking trail.

This park is very close to downtown and just a stones throw away from I 35, however, it is neatly…read moretucked behind an old Austin neighborhood. It sits on less than an acre or what might be considered a single residential home site. This property supports quite a number of amenities for its size, including a large covered area perfect for a quartet. This park boasts of a covered pavilion, 2 play scapes, a splash pad, two separate picnic areas with grills, and a fountain. I also spotted two sets of swings and a half basketball court. There are also two additional grills at the pavilion, but I did not see any public bathrooms. One thing I noticed that was noticeably absent was that there are no "no parking" signs next to this park unlike the Swede Hill pocket park just a few blocks away. Definitely a nice community park that benefits the residents in the area.

South Austin Park is nestled deep in 78704, right in the heart of my neighborhood - Galindo…read more Perfect for dogs, kids or just a leisurely stroll, this is a great neighborhood park. It may not look like much from the street, but it goes back really far - so stop by and explore. Home to both the South Austin Tennis Center, and the South Austin Rec Center - S.A.P. is a mellow little spot pretty far removed from the busy streets of south Austin. The park could use some improvement, and as a member of the Parks Committee for the Galindo Elementary Neighborhood Association, I'm working hard to get grants for beautification and capitol improvements. If you live in the area, or would just like to volunteer, please let me know! Size: 11.00 Acres Amenities: Barbeque Pits 2 Basketball Courts 2 Multipurpose Fields 1 Picnic Tables 8 Playgrounds 1 Reservable Facilities 1 Tennis Courts 10+

Right in my neighborhood, its a great place to stroll down to with or without the dog. Walk around…read morethe tennis courts, hang out under the trees, watch rain storms rolling in... it's nice to have a green spot I can walk to.

Great park and pool at the start of Southern Walnut Creek Trail. Boggy Creek cuts through the park…read morewhich is on Bolm Road (near Airport Blvd). The pool has recently been refurbished and renovated. There's a wading pool with sprinklers. The main pool has lap swimming options (certain times of day) and it has these really cool and modern shade pavilions. Located in the Govalle neighborhood, just a couple of miles from me. I've walked there and back once or twice but usually park and then go swimming & walk the paved trails. The park has a playground and picnic areas that have also been updated. For some reason, our dog really likes the paved paths. He gets a real prance in his step and he becomes sleek and aerodynamic on walks.

It was a beautiful park but a lot of construction going on right now and the trails led to the…read moreroad. Not really somewhere I wanted to go on a long walk with my baby.

I come here for the kids judo program on Saturday mornings. Sometimes my husband plays basketball…read moreat that time. They are currently fixing up their basketball court, so I am sure that will be a huge plus. I don't really do a whole lot of other stuff here, but they are always advertising community events and hosting community events. If you are near the center, then I am sure you have seen or heard about everything they try to do for local citizens. But definitely try out judo with Kokoro Judo and try out their programs for kids and adults. You won't regret it!

Great park! It's changed a lot over the years. The tennis court use to be my favorite place to…read moreskate. Great times with friends and Fam. I never thought they would upgrade the tennis court. Now it's not the same with a soccer half and textured floor. As if there wasn't enough field around the park to play soccer there. What a waste of park funding.

Staff and Austin recreation center work to help homeless as best they can it provide showers a…read moreplace to cool off in the air conditioning and a place to charge your phone and all the staff are exemplary at being nice and trying to help

Free showers, that's good. Lockers to use while you shower, and a seat/shelf in the shower stall to…read moreset your stuff, and hooks to hang your clothes. All great. But the place STAYS filthy, and cannot be healthy. I talked to four people, including the supervisor, Marco Olivares, about the situation week before last, and nothing has changed. Mr. Olivares seemed to get an attitude with me when I said it had been filthy for a long time. He's like " is this your first time here?" I said no, that's how I know that it's been this way a long time, (just adding another layer of dirt each week). Mr Olivares told me they would take a look and "if" anything needed to be done it would be done. Two weeks later, there is still mold growing up the walls of the showers and the floors are so dirty, when they get wet you're walking through muddy footprints

We love this park! There's a huge play area with swings, slides, climbing rails and a few more fun…read moreactivities for kids. There's also a soccer playing field, a hiking trail that leads to secret beach with views so downtown and a shaded picnic area. The picnic area can be reserved for a day through Austin Parks&Rec and can be used for group gatherings or birthday parties.

Wow... the secret beach.. how beautiful. I came from Houston on a day trip. I won't tell everyone…read morespecifics to try and keep this secret as much as possible, but if you're coming here the first time.. it isnt easy to find. I can see how most times people just drive off.. me being the curious person I am just started walking by myself in the woods on a trail. I fortunately just so happen to see one woman walking her dogs and followed her in that direction but i swear to you she was walking fast as to not give this place away hahah! She actually disappeared onto another trail and couldnt find her.. (like Alice and Wonderland and the white rabbit style).. finally I heard splashing! I looked to my right and saw a weird trail that went down a steep side hill. So I followed the noise.. its pretty steep so be careful! After the brush and trees cleared THERE IT WAS! CLEAR, COOL WATER!! It was shallow when I got there and only about 8 people were there at 1pm during a Saturday. As time goes on it gets deeper and the water rises! Also more people start coming too. It feels sooooo amazing! You can grab a chair and just sit in the middle drinking and cooling off. Dog friendly! I spent a few hours with my boy before heading back. I live for finding places like this!