This is quite the peaceful and spacious park. I went on a stroll with my dog here, the wide grassy areas made it perfect to have a picnic or play some sports. It's not busy either, with the greatest commotion being the flower stand on the corner of the street. read more

Las Animas Park - Nice stroll down the park, lots of small bridges - Playgrounds Near Me - Gilroy, California

Very large park for different activities, such as playgrounds, tennis and other. Only downfall was that there was people smoking near the little playground. read more

Such a wonderful park! Lots of field space to run around in, plenty of parking, nice playgrounds, skate park, ballfields, walking trails, peaceful stream with bridges to cross at multiple spots, picnic areas, & well-maintained bathrooms. Watch out for errant baseballs when running around the fields; otherwise, a safe place to enjoy the outdoors and get some physical activity. Highly recommend! read more

I really enjoy going to this park. It's huge. It is located on mantelli in between wren and church street. On the church street side of the park there are several areas for barbecuing. Each have their own personal space for small or large gatherings. I believe there is four. One next to the playground just over the hill along the dirt path. It's easier to park for this area going through Welburn and going north onto Hanna. In this area is also a dried up Creek with a cute little bridge. The playground is sand made and every site has garbage cans provided. They are taken out every morning by gilroy city workers. In between the playground and the (what the park calls )"lakeside" barbecue area is a huge dog park. Gates separate the large breeds from the small ones and have benches. The city provides free clean up bags at every corner of the doggy arenas. The "lakeside" part of the park is located on church and mantelli. Although there is NO Lake people so don't be fooled by the name XD. It's a great area to book for parties or barbecuing events. Many people say this is the worst spot because of the homeless people that accumulate here. But I have to say the Gilroy city workers are hero's because they come around 7am and clear the clutter of people. The relationship between them is respectful so they move along easily. Just make sure u book this area first ;) West of the dog park ( in the middle of the whole park) is an arena area for fun. It also has bathrooms and a bbq pit east of it. It's right next to the decent size parking lot. West of the parking lot is a great giant baseball field which is used often during the summer months. Day and night sometimes. It has benches and is shady along the edges. It's near some bathrooms that are not very appealing at all. On wren and mantelli you will notice a skatepark put in quite a few years ago and has always been filled with kids ever since. Behind the skate park is a fenced barbecuing area with massive pits. A must book area for sure! Since the location is fenced there is lots of privacy. Behind this area is a tennis court and another playground to the left. Along the whole park are dirt paths that take u through the park. It's worth stopping by gilroy. read more

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Beautiful park with awesome skatepark. I enjoyed my time there and will be back soon.

I'll start with the one con: A group of homeless people take over the east area of the park, so you can't really hang out there. We were thinking of reserving the spot for a party, but decided we didn't want to have to deal with the homeless group. Otherwise, this park is great! It has a beautiful, huge grassy area that's perfect for picnics and games. It also has a skate park that's enclosed, which is great for teens and a playground that's great for kids. read more

Definitely the best park in Gilroy. Three play areas for kids, bridges (great walking paths), baseball field, beautify weeping trees that surround the Wren/Mantelli side of the park, off-leash dog park, skate park. Yes, there are some undesirable people at the park like anywhere else. Gilroy has done a lot of clean up in the past year. It's a great fun, safe place for your family. Tip: If you want to rent party area you need to register through the parks department on their website. Plan ahead! read more

Perfect splash area!!!! Perfect playground Perfect for kids Perfect for parents Great excellent read more

It was around seven o'clock when I decided to head out to Las Animas Park that night. I had just left the gym at closing hours; the slightly cooler, refreshing air hit my face, when I noticed the tall trees of the park right across the street, less than a football field away from me. Noticing how dark it was, I decided to do a small trek through the trees and just...embrace the natural wonders around me before heading back home. After crossing the street and walking down the sidewalk for a few minutes, I reached the west entrance to the park. As I continued through the gates ad into the park I took a moment to observe my current surroundings. Under the veil of darkness I could barely see the outlines of dozens of trees in my path, scattered and spread out like mines on a battlefield. I walked carefully and tried my best to avoid them, for while these "landmines" didn't explode they'd still hurt if you ran into one of them. The tall grass crunched under my sneakers, the small amount of dew on them clinging to the surface. I noticed, off in the short distance, the street lights, which looked almost like the stars shining in the heavens, spaced out along the parameter of the area. In the faded glow, I could vaguely see the outline of the backstop of one of the two baseball fields. Deciding to take a small break, I laid myself gently on top of a small barrier of stones. As the area around began to get darker with each passing second, I closed my eyes (which, thinking back, could've been dangerous for me, had someone snuck up on me and attacked me while I was unaware. I now count myself lucky that that wasn't the case.) and listened for any noises or sounds in and around the park. At first, everything was pure silence, which was a surprise given that the park was almost completely surrounded by city streets and buildings, but slowly I began to hear the wind whispering in the branches of the surrounding trees. As I continued to listen, I could also hear the small squeaks of squirrels as they scampered across the leaf-covered grass and climb up into the tall limbs of the trees, the sounds of dogs barking as their owners walked them down the darkened sidewalks, and the occasional frog or cricket announcing their presence through chirps and croaks. It felt as though I could hear almost every sound and noise in the park. It was wonderful. But, alas, such wonders were only temporary and I knew it. So, after what felt like ten minutes--even though it was more like one, one-and-a-half minutes--I opened my eyes again. As I picked myself back up and resume my walk, I noticed that a man had been taking a nap underneath one of the trees near me. "He doesn't look like a homeless man," I thought, "must be another visitor to the park." As I looked at him for a few seconds, I began to wonder how he must've felt lying down underneath the tree. He was obviously comfortable, if his small, almost-silent snores were any indication. "He's lucky." I said to myself. "If that was me, I'd have a hard time sleeping on that ground." That was an absolute fact. I would have trouble lying down on that small patch the man occupied. If I tried to lie down I'm certain the grass would keep me awake. Not because I'm allergic but the sharp points on the grass would be similar to the sharp ends of needles, digging into any unclothed areas (elbows, backs of my legs, etc.). It would've been like trying to sleep on a bed of needles! With that thought I decided it was time to get moving. As I continued to wander through the park, I suddenly heard a sound right above me. As I looked straight up, I noticed a flock of geese where flying overhead. Watching their movements, their wings flapping against the winds above and the pull of gravity, their outlines, almost impossible to see if I hadn't noticed them, highlighted only by the glow from the stars and the moon's natural light. I watched as they continued to fly off in the distance until the flock disappeared into the great sea of darkness. It took another five to ten minutes to finally reach the end of the park. As I looked back on Las Animas one more time, I reflected on what I had just experienced. How refreshing it was to just embrace nature for a little while, almost forgetting the large noisy world around me for a few minutes. As I got into my car and prepared to drive back home, I bid farewell to the old park and began my journey back to the craziness that humanity calls "civilization". Looking back now, the whole experience reminded me of a quote that John Muir once wrote, when describing the mountains of California: "Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn." read more

This park really deserves five stars for being so clean and nice (I've never encountered trash or graffiti) but the increase of homeless that hang out here and drug dealers has really put a damper on going to this park as well as other parks in Gilroy like Miller Park. Something needs to be done about this issue, Gilroy famiies shouldn't have to worry about encountering unsavory and seedy people at a park...one of the few places in this town where kids can go and have fun! read more