This park is like Two-Face and I only got to see the ugly side of it. I came here on a gloomy day to do some field work for my job and it was nothing like I expected. I parked near the model airplane field and walked around for a bit before my co-worker and I got the heebie jeebies and went back to Tewinkle Park instead. There isn't much to see in this part of the park, but it looks like it's a good running trail at least. I looked up the Master Plan the night before and once everything is complete, I know this space will be 100% gorgeous. I shall return Fairview, I shall return. read more

I'm not very familiar with the are and had been wanting to find a close trail/hiking place. This park was gorgeous! The scenery is perfect and exactly what you need if you want to get away. There were restrooms around the trails which saved me today, lol. What I loved most about this park was all the green there was here. Check it out! read more

Fairview Park - Just a little taste of all the green you'll see. - Parks Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

I've lived in HB for over a year and just discovered this park. It has the perfect amount of hills for the training we need for our half marathon. I can't get over how huge it is here. Lovely wildlife to admire as well. Makes you feel like you don't live in a heavily populated area. Looking forward to bringing the kids and exploring more of the park. read more

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I walk my dog thru this park weekly since its so close to me. The park always smells of lavender although sometimes it smells like something else not sure why it changes. There are a couple of ponds with ducks and other birds that come to feed. The trail is best in the morning between 7-9am because the sun isn't out much and there are a lot of little animals around for my dog to sniff out. Really love coming over here. read more

Fairview Park - Jogging thru Fairview Park South West bound to the beach - Parks Near Me - Costa Mesa, California

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I came on a Saturday for the first time. I turned in to park, and was greeted by a nice guy. They were having a fishing event at the park, so the parking was reserved for handicapped. That was a little frustrating considering there were barely any cars parked in there. I had to turn around and find a neighborhood to park in a ways down. Otherwise, the park itself is great! You can expect the usual trails and trees. Great for walking. read more

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The best all-around park for just getting away from it all, but still being near a civilization! Nice little trails with mild terrain. You'll see a little wildlife too. I know parks are for all to enjoy, but I really worry about overcrowding since this place is such a gem and people will discover it soon enough! read more

Fairview Park doesn't look like much on Google Maps, I'll admit...just a spot of brownish-green hugging the Santa Ana "River" as it empties the detritus of OC into the Pacific. But believe me that once you have sneakers on the ground, the place is really quite nice. And having just binged on the first two seasons of Parks & Rec pretty much means I know what I'm talking about. The park is very diverse and can be broken up into four parts: A) Creepy Train Tracks - East side of Placentia Ave and can be reached by crossing a cool arch bridge from the main parking lot. Wandered around here briefly because I like bridges, but it seemed creepy and deserted. Turned around before I got to the old train station, but you can still see the tracks in the dirt. B) Park - The park proper is what you'll see first from the parking lot. Has all the usual amenities such as covered tables, reasonably clean restrooms, grass, trees and ants. I tried flying a Winnie the Pooh kite here and found out I suck at kites. C) Bluffs - This whole area runs west from the park until you get to the dropoff about halfway between the park and the river. At this elevated position, you get some interesting views of the grasslands below and relaxing spots to watch a sunset (complete with benches for your enjoyment). The southern section has an open flat field that people use to fly RC planes and helos, and there's also a dried out basin that is used by bikers. D) Talbert Nature Preserve - West of the bluffs is technically not part of Fairview Park, but is a separately managed nature preserve. It's easily accessible by the multitude of paths leading down though. Along the base of the bluff is a really cool and shady park with plenty of tree cover, picnic tables and another restroom (it was locked on a Sunday afternoon though). Past that are a web of trails through some really tall grass areas and then a link up to the bike paths that parallel the river. If the mood hits you, you could continue walking south through the preserve until you hit PCH and the ocean; it's really really close. I really love the different areas here and the feeling of seclusion you get. The only thing to watch out for are some homeless who set up in the areas under the bluff. One was super talkative past polite pleasantries between strangers and didn't seem dangerous, but who knows. read more

A very clean, well taken care of, green park next to Estancia High School. The City has free concerts in this park during Summer, with activities for children, and food trucks for delicious food and drink here. read more

One of the best parks in orange county. It's large and has fields, trails, forest, hills, good kite flying, tables, basically everything you would want in a park. Just make sure to walk around, the best part (at 33.664050, -117.943661) is a bit of a walk from the parking lot (maybe 0.25 miles) but is well worth it, a forested sanctuary lost from the eager developers. read more

This park is amazing. If you've never been here, you need to check it out. The upper area is full of native plants, etc. There are some cool seating areas made of logs and informative placards throughout. There are winding trails of all sizes. Some are like moguls so you can get a more intense walking or running workout. There are paved bike paths as well. Fairview Park sits on a bluff and below is Talbert Nature Preserve. You get get there via the bike path, or dirt paths or an awesome set of workout stairs. Here you'll find clean restrooms, drinking fountains and picnic tables. This is from wwwOCParks.com "The North Talbert Preserve consists of 91.5 acres and the South Talbert Preserve is approximately 88.5 acres. The park is divided into six separate plant groups, identified as "zones" and based upon the progression of plant groups and changing conditions found along the Santa Ana River Trail. There is no onsite parking at Talbert Nature Preserve." All of the above links up with the Santa Ana River trail. You could literally walk for hours and hours and not cover the same ground twice. read more

This place is huge, with a lot of trails to walk on and off. There's a BMX area full of dirt, where you can watch bikers show off their tricks and bits as you're hiking. The more you explore this park, the more you're able to discover. read more

great find! went to drop off the hubby at the airport so drove here since it is close by. nice trails to walk either on the flat ground or you can pick a trail with hills. my pup and i picked a few hills. we also walked on the bridge and did a loop there before heading back to the car. there was plenty of parking and we came across an employee who greeted us. the bathrooms need a code to use it but i just went in after someone else. will be back. read more

This park is so much nicer than it was when I was a kid. They've cleaned up the bluffs and there are nice trails/hills to hike for people of all fitness levels. People often fly kites or model airplanes here too. There are free train rides (they accept donations) the third weekend of every month. Great for the kids! read more

Don't come here, you won't like it; stay away. On to real review: I chose to live here and the park was a huge reason actually. It is not overly developed to make it look pukishly artificial (like Irvine) nor is it messy or trashed (like I might imagine a Santa Ana park - sorry). There was some minimal graffiti on a sign, but that got removed pretty quickly actually. Whaddya want? Nice sunsets? Walk among trees in the lower section? Run in some pretty nice scenery? Take your bike for a nice ride? The only scenery I don't love is looking at huntington suburbia below. But I love the overall views for sure. I remember seeing July 4 fireworks from my friend's place on the bluff a number of years ago. VERY nice. It was very pretty with the flowers in bloom earlier this year. read more

Love this park! Love how "clean" the paths are and how big and open an area the park sprawls. We used to take our dog to Central Park, however, the amount of goose poop on the walk ways and in the grass was enough for us to finally try to find a better place to walk our dog. Love the hills also for a harder workout/walk. This place is only a couple miles farther from our house also read more

I love walking in Fairview Park, the trees, plants, and below the top where the little lakes are located are just beautiful! The trails are well kept, there are restrooms, hills to climb and so many beautiful plants and shrubs. It is really not very far from the ocean and there can be a nice breeze. Some of the areas look way out into the areas below. All in all it is a lovely place, been hiking there for many years! read more

Awesome parking!! Got my run in with no probs. People were nice and the area was well-kept.

This is a great place for kite flying! I took my 11 year old nephew, 8 year old nephew, my 4 year old daughter, and 3 year old son. Yeah, not easy to bring 4 kids but it's fun for kids who like to fly kites! The wind is good and the weather is beautiful! We had a little picnic too:) read more

I live right by this park and love riding my bike through it!! Very clean and scenic with a wide variety of terrain and sights. If you take the downhill past the stairs, it opens into a huge lush green picnic/sports lawn surrounded by trees. Then take the adjoining bike path to the beach!! read more

This place is off a highway and the rate was great only $3 for parking it was a 5 mile trail . And did that in 2 hrs and it was a great scenery the view was nice and steep it's so worth the drive and the adventure. read more

Love this place. Top side has bike jumps, dirt trails for walking or jogging, even a model airplane airport, bottom side has more trails and a nice grass area surrounded by large beautiful trees and access to the santa ana river trail. read more

they are trying to turn this place around, if you re coming be sure that its when the sun is out and that way you get the most of it. Take lots of pictures, really nice. read more

Very nice, clean, and spacious park. Sure helps you clear your mind! I even got to see bunnies and different kinds of butterflies.

Great place to enjoy the outdoors n still be close to a Starbucks jejejeje. Awesome place to hike, run/walk, throw a party, bike, lay out, have a picnic, fly a kite, n even bring the model planes n toy model cars. Oh n dont forget the model trains that are free on certain Saturdays(check website). read more

Clean parks, amazing trails, and overall a nice quiet area to relax. Dog friendly too!

Love it! It's perfect my for my little furr baby...there's tons of trails to choose from...although I wish there were more hills this is perfect for a quick hike read more

I use this spot to train for my upcoming marathon as I love the combination of pavement & dirt trails that this park offers. As a runner, I get bored easily so I appreciate the wide variety of trails I can take & scenery that comes along with it. read more

I visited this park mostly because I wanted to experience the trails and the lanes next to the Santa Ana river. The description that I read about on the Costa Mesa Website was pretty accurate and it was what I was expecting when I got there. It's not one of those parks with well manicured grass and trees. It's a park consisting of a large open area with scrub brush and lots of trails for walking and biking. There were several people flying remote controlled planes and helicopters there which was kind of cool. Basically, there is the plateau of the park on the top and there are wide runs for biking there and then you can go down the main hill which leads to the Santa Ana river. There are many trails in this area which is great for hikers and walkers. I rode to the lanes next to the Santa Ana river and there are paved biking lanes that run right next to the river for miles and miles. It isn't very picturesque and I found the views to be boring to say the least. In fact, I much preferred to utilize the trails that are actually in the park versus the river lanes. You can get the same experience biking on the street, and it won't be as boring. I did enjoy the park and something worth mentioning is how clean the park is. I didn't see any trash there which speaks well of the community, park caretakers and visitors who don't leave trash there. read more

Awesome park with amazing scenery. A nice challenge for a run with hills and a nature reserve in the lower area. They have free summer concerts. My friend and I attended a Beatles tribute band there. They were awesime. read more

I like this place but it seemed barren; the places I enjoyed are around the lakes - very inspiring. Other than that I felt that some of the mini-airplane men enthusiasts were gawkers - creepy! read more

Runners, hikers, bikers, walkers, dog walkers, crawlers, and feet draggers : The mesa is about 1 mile no shade. If you go down toward the artificial lakes you can find small hills to run up and down on, for some glute and leg action (you can also run up the side of the mesa, there are some steps carved out as well as some wooden stairs). You can also loop the lower level that runs along the Santa Ana river for about 2 miles with a bit more shade. If you decide to keep heading towards the beach for about a 1/2 mile along the bike trail that runs parallel to the Santa Ana river, you turn left soon after the freeway overpass and take that wide trail that goes along the mesa. From there you can either go towards the right to Talbert Regional for a couple more miles, or you can stick left and run to Canyon Park- or you can do both. All in all if you start at Fairview park, loop the top mesa, head to the artificial lake and take the bike trail to the Santa Ana river, run along the Santa Ana river on either the bike path or on the trail next to it (some shade) until you get to the overpass, go under it and turn left, go to Talbert or Canyon for a loop, head back your half way, get past the over pass, go through the park or go back the way you came and boom about 8 miles more or less. Look at a map before going just to feel more comfortable. Use a run tracking app like nike to track your run or jog or bike ride. You can make it longer or shorter by choosing your own trails to follow. The terrain is flat with less than a handful of small hills mostly dirt, some concrete and some outlining grass. Good for when those knees hurt from running or hiking up more inclined terrain. There's water fountains on the upper mesa at fairview park, at the lower level of fairview park next to the shaded park and at canyon park. If your looking to extend your run or warm up or cool down there's also a small section on the other side of the street (there's a bridge to cross) by the main entrance of Fairview park on Placentia. Throw on something cool and enjoy. *i used the word mesa, bluff or bluffs is a better word but idc. Mesa mesa mesa whole messa mesas. read more