YE Gurl Says: Franklin Park Lit Up My Night (Literally) Date: September 6, 2025 Place: Franklin Park - Water Lantern Festival (Yelp Contest Winner!) I've been to Franklin Park before for the African Festival, but little did I know there was a gorgeous man-made lake and walking area tucked behind the amphitheatre. Honestly, Columbus needs more events out here--imagine summer concerts lakeside. Come on, Cbus, don't sleep on this! Thanks to a Yelp contest win, I got two tickets to the Water Lantern Festival and was excited to experience it for the first time. I brought the beau, packed a sweater (because yes, sweater-and-jacket weather arrived), and we found a spot to settle in. The experience started with decorating our lanterns--super thoughtful packages that came with a deck of cards and conversation prompts to keep the evening flowing. The event itself was well organized: shuttles helped us avoid the parking madness, there were plenty of food trucks (though I ate beforehand), and the staff kept things moving. The only hiccup was the AV system--it was a little hard to hear, and the lantern launch was delayed due to the chill. But when those lanterns finally floated onto the water, the view was worth it. Beautiful, reflective, and something I can now check off my list as an artistic and soulful evening. YE Gurl checked the box and lit the night! read more

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We love Franklin Park and love doing our family walk time with our doggie Ellie. Absolutely would recommend taking a stroll on a pretty day, or you could even have a picnic. It's a huge park with an amphitheater, cascade waterfalls, a community garden, an Asian-inspired garden, a playground, a picnic shelter, and ponds stocked for fishing. The park is also the home of the annual Columbus Asian Festival, the Franklin Park Adventure Center, and the amazing Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. read more

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Confession: I usually find myself in Franklin Park to visit the conservatory. It is, however, a mistake to think that's all there is to find down here. Franklin Park itself is large and free to visit, and it surrounds the conservatory, which is separated by fencing. There is plenty of green space with picnic tables and benches, a pond, public art, and a cascading waterfall. The playground has a nice collection of activities: baby, traditional, and adaptive swings, a saucer swing, a climbing structure that resembles a spider that has a web type "hammock" on top, and a longer structure that offers a honeycomb style climber, several slides, balancing activities and more. The paved walking paths around the park easily let you explore! read more

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I love how much of this park is freely accessible to the public. Beautifully maintained walking trails, a couple of different areas with ponds or big open areas, some picnic spaces that I usually see people using... It's just great to have Franklin Park in the middle of the city like that. read more

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I was first made aware that this park was totally free to explore after a BLM march ended right at the entrance. That gave me the perfect opportunity to check it out, although not all of it because it's enormous. It's also a great addition when it comes to taking a trip to the conservatory because it surrounds it and has a lot to check out. From a beautiful pond to a children's area and neat exhibits like Chihuli, you really can't go wrong. The gardens are also fantastic! If you're a fan of pretty flowers and mother nature, definitely plan a visit here when the weather is nice. Oh, and if you have the time I definitely suggest getting tickets to the conservatory for even more to explore. read more

Franklin Park is one of the biggest parks in Columbus. It's also one of the most beautiful. There's a lot to see when you go. It features several annual concerts and festivals. The best part is the Conservatory which is great looking even outside. It's a big park and there's benefits to bring as big as this is. It rarely ever gets crowded since there's so much room. There is much more here than the Conservatory. It may be the centerpiece of the park but don't think it's all there is. This in fact has its own entry so go see the reviews for that. As for the rest of the park, there's lots of trees and water of course. One cool thing is the big pond in the middle. Another is the community garden. There's many paths for bicycling and pets. I recommend a visit to Franklin Park. It's so big you should find something to hold your interest. This may not be the best park in the city but it's still great so go there. read more

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This part has always been a favorite of mine. Many many years ago before all the renovations I remember riding my motorcycle through this park watching to see who was watching me lol. read more

Nice park with well maintained trails and a nice playground for kids as well. Many of the homes along the perimeter are also quite beautiful which makes this feel like a cozy and quaint part of town. The water features are also nice (though they attract tons of geese...). read more

This 58-achre plot once held fairs,Ohio State and others,before the city grew around it. Lately it is known for the Franklin Conservatory--a separate experience--and for Ameriflora '92, the 100-million dollar screw-up that once colored its pastures with emblazoned peddles. I find it an average park that is a bit too large for a inner city pleasure-art type, though it has corners of greatness. Behind the conservatory are maze-row hedges and white gazebos--picnicking is the pastime for Franklin residence here. A small rock garden is imbedded in shrubbery and loops into itself a stony path. Behind is a classical amphitheater that fills the northern horizons with Greco-Roman columns and earth-molded seating. I am not sure if this is used much, though it is well maintained. A while wood covered colonnade whines in this area near brick round-a-bouts and scattered benches. Styles of the orient are present in abundance. Bridges and other ornamental fixtures of Far Eastern flavorings reflex the Asian festivities here yearly. A sign celebrating the sacrifice of Asians in the American Civil War is found. Down the road a bit is another marker and memoir of the Civil War--the spot where General Sherman during a speech made his famous quote, "War is Hell." The walkway here is wide, more road than relaxing park stroll; It feels like your car has broken down and you're walking a highway for gas. There is little out here beyond the conservatory but ankle high grass, until you reach the duck pond. A remnant of Ameriflora, the pond pools in several segments connected with a stream. It curves around and leads to a man-made waterfall. The waterfall is pure beauty and a nice getaway for area residence. I came to Ameriflora from out of town on a High School class trip, I do not remember it. It is a nice park. It is just too spacy and empty for a art-park in my opinion. read more

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Columbus and its' army of parks, they are a force to be reckoned with. There are so many and each has its' own super power. Franklin Park possesses the power of serenity. Partnered with the Franklin Conservatory, this place has beautiful picture settings and inspires a calm, leisurely mood. The conservatory (reviewed separately) has a charge to get in but the grounds are free. There is a paved trail with bridges overlooking a couple of ponds, offering a fun place to feed the geese. The trail can be biked or walked. Picnic tables are scattered everywhere. Tucked away on one side is an amphitheater while opposite it is another bridge setting. In between is a botanical garden and a community garden. You will also come across a gazebo hall and an enormous metal sculpture. Franklin Park is worth a visit. Have a picnic. Take a stroll. You will smile. read more

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AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!! the Chihuly exhibit is truly something no one should miss. It is so hard to believe something so beautiful can be made and transported all over the world. I have seen 4 of his exhibits and each one out does the other. There are so many I can't post all the photos read more

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Columbus's largest city park sprawls across 90 beautiful acres on the city's east side near Bexley. The grounds are impeccably landscaped and include a special Japanese garden, duck pond and fishing pond. There are also tennis and basketball courts, as well as all purpose trails which meander along into the neighboring parks. Also located within the park are the Franklin Park Conservatory and David Youth Center. This is one of the more attractive and well-maintained green spaces in Columbus. It is owned by the city and is home to plenty of annual events, including the Asian Festival during Memorial Day weekend. read more

Franklin Park is a wonderful, peaceful green space. I'll list some of its best features: rolling hills, meandering lakes, plenty of benches, a playground, a community garden, winding paths, and namely - the beautiful conservatory building. Franklin Park doesn't reach five stars because it feels under-utilized. Many parts of the park feel too empty, and lack either more trees or other features. The extra wide main path feels more automotive than pedestrian. Despite those shortcomings, this is still an above-average park. There is a good deal of inherent beauty here. The old two and three story homes that border the park create the perfect sense of enclosure, although I'd like to see some taller buildings on the Broad Street side to help mitigate the openness the wide road creates. This is one of my top 5 favorite parks in Columbus. Go check it out! read more

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Children's garden is fantastic. The butterfly atrium is beautiful. The rest of the areas (e.g zen yard, palm atrium, etc) are just Ok but not inspiring. Overall we had a great time but there is potential for a 5th star. read more

This park has truly come a long way. They just recently added the children's garden that's awesome. Membership is kind of pricey but it's free I think the first Sunday of the month. I would call or go to their website. I also heard that the MLK branch library has limited 7 day temporary passes, I would call about how many passes you can check out at one time. You must have a library card. read more

Franklin Park - Parks Near Me - Columbus, Ohio

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Just plain gorgeous. Gorgeous! Twice a month, Sunday Drumz (an African drums facilitated group) meets here rain or shine. Under the giant white gazebo, you can see everything! The Conservatory. Japanese gardens. Raised vegetable beds. Sculptures. Several festivals are held within this park throughout the year. Summer programs for local kids take up the summer days. This urban park the perfect answer for events and city happenings, or just a stroll on a sunny afternoon day! read more

My husband proposed to me here, so it's pretty special to me. :-) We sat right by the Cascades (Had NO clue that was there!!!) and he did the whole get down on one knee thing to propose. The Cascades are tucked away in a corner, but are truly beautiful in the spring . We did our engagement photos in the park in the winter, and even without leaves and greenery, our photos still look beautiful. I get comments like "WHERE were you? Was that Columbus?" I will often run through here, as we live in Bexley and it's not far away at all. read more

Simply put, this park is BEAUTIFUL! Very well manicured and very beautiful flowers. I really want to return to explore the trails a bit more, but I got a good look at the duck pond and that is quite neat. It also so has a bench by the duck pond and when the sun is setting, I'm sure that's a great place to sit. They also have a very neat modern art sculpture in the middle, which, when you look through the spires to a pristine Columbus blue sky is quite entrancing. Check this park out! read more

Love, love, love. I live one mile from here, so the park is ideal for walking my dog to the park, around it and back home. It's well maintained, manicured, trash receptacles are aplenty, and the paths are kept free of debris and nonsense. The playground is cute, the community garden is great, and the pavilion is clean and rentable. You get the occasional random group of local kids being stupid in the park, but FP security is present in the area, so no worries here. I am a big fan :) read more

I love this park!!! Pokemon has provided a great Network a friends. Today I discovered a yoga group and a book club. This park truly connects its neighbors read more

One of my favorite parks in Columbus because of the different options. The other day I found a new spot for my 3 year old to love. We walked over to the small brook and waterfall area. She took her shoes off and walked on the rocks while I sat and relaxed. There are some nice place to let her get her feet wet without getting her whole person soaked. We spent over an hour just hanging by the water. This park has places to ride bikes, get a good walk in, and relax without anyone close by. I also like the nice public restrooms one can use inside the conservatory instead of the usual park restrooms. Their playground isn't too bad either but I wished they had clear signs pointing the way as I walked the wrong way looking for it. I guess I should have looked at a map near the conservatory. They also have food trucks and farmer's markets on Wednesday afternoons. read more

Went last night for the Bruce Munro Light exhibit. Very cool. Made for a nice break from the dinner +/- movie rut my wife and I have been locked in for the past few months. We'll definitely come back in the daytime once spring has fully sprung. read more

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Columbus has many parks. I enjoyed this one and got several good photos. read more

Franklin Park - Flowers - Parks Near Me - Columbus, Ohio

The park is part of the Franklin Park Conservatory but is nice enough to stand alone. You can spend hours just roaming through the gardens and forget that you are only seconds away from downtown. read more

What a lovely park! The focus of it is the Franklin Park Conservatory, but upon visiting a few conservatories, I've realized that few are worth the price they charge, so I just walked around the free park instead. It's full of ponds, little waterfalls, gardens, and shaded benches to hide away in. I thoroughly enjoyed my leisurely stroll as a way to end my weekend in the great city of Columbus. read more

One of the nicest and largest parks in the City. It has so much to offer: a wonderful new playground, a fishing pond, beautiful landscaping, gorgeous sculptures, wonderful walking paths, an amphitheater, and a freaking conservatory, and a community garden!! There is so much to list that I can't even think of right now! read more

Franklin Park Conservatory has something for everyone. They're always events for young children, and even for the elder it is very easy to navigate around the outdoors and also the indoors of the conservatory. There is a lot of beautiful scenery among the park, pets are welcome outdoors. In addition they have very nice water features and areas that you are welcome to ride your bike. read more

I have always been a fan of this park. The grounds are so lovely! There's ample parking and of course the blooms and bitterly exhibit is a must see. read more

I used to go here all the time, it was free!..now I took my wife from Czech Republic to see this and we just wanted to walk through and see...no lengthy stay, they charge!!! I would have walked through in about 10 minutes that's more than a dollar a minute!! NO thanks!! Just like the Zoo...they charge over $25 per person!!! there is a reason we named our screwed up city, 'Co-Lame-bus"...I would rather drive to Cleveland and I find myself driving to Cleveland, Dayton and Cincy than rather waste my time in Co-LAME-bus!!! Mayor coleman is an idiot!. read more

i enjoy taking my dog here for a nice walk. park is rarely crowded, the grounds are kept up, and he enjoys chasing down the numerous geese that take over the park in the summer. read more