Nice, clean park. My kid is 4 and he loved the slides and the table area that swayed. Ground is a…read moresoft material and not wood chips.

We looked at this park for accessibility for mobility challenged people. Know before you go! Here…read moreis what we found: - No handicap accessible parking spots (street parking only) - One handicap accessible water fountain - Terrain is wood chips, patio brick walkway - About 10 feet from main attraction to street Nice Park!!!

This is a rather large park out of the way from most of the busy traffic along the major streets…read morenearby. Woodland Park straddles the Niles-Park Ridge border and is another hidden gem of a neighborhood playground in the area. While most of the park space is devoted to soccer games, it has a sparkling new playground which was totally rebuilt in the summer of 2006. To get to this park from Dempster, you can take Parkside Ave. all the way to the parking lot near Glenview Ave. From Oakton, it's 2 blocks north on Western Ave. in Park Ridge. Lots of dead-end or cul-de-sac streets keep outsiders from finding this place. You can't get to it easily from Greenwood Ave. Besides soccer, there are tennis courts and a basketball court. The playground is in the middle of the park, next to a big hill, which is great for "wheee moments" riding in a wagon, bicycle or on skates. It's also fun to run up and down the hill, though I have seen many kids falling down while doing that. In the winter, you can sled down this hill - even do it on a flat sheet of cardboard - as I saw some kids improvise last winter. A very large weeping willow nearby gives it the added touch of beauty. The playground has a fancy climbing apparatus that resembles a funnel-shaped spider web of red, braided rope. It connects to a walking bridge and 2 slides. This looks dangerously scary at first but seems like most kids navigate it quite well, including my 3-year old. There is also a steep climbing wall for the kiddies. A smaller playground for little kids is at the other side of the playground, but it is not as exciting. The little sandbox has clean white sand. Early in the day or in the evening after soccer is over, the open fields of grass are great for running around and playing in what looks like a big backyard next to all the residential homes nearby.

I wasn't familiar with Wildwood Nature Center until the last few months but it is a cool spot. I'm…read moredoing an afternoon class at the park district with my daughter, as a way to introduce her to nature and some different animals. During class the kids play indoors at the various stations they have set up for about half an hour, then have a story, and then we wander through the forest preserve to see what we see. This first time we saw geese which she was interested in, and then we wandered through some of the rest of the park. When we went to the building with the animals and my baby got to see a whole bunch wildlife. There were turtles, a bunny, a couple ferrets, some gerbils, a prairie dog... and she even got to touch a snake, which I hope she enjoyed because she's never getting one.

So many animals for the kids to look at and a craft table. The staff is friendly and am def coming…read moreback again to celebrate the kids bdays

Pretty nice neighborhood Chicago park. PLENTY of street parking that leads you right up to the…read morepark. The kids love the equipment here, especially the jungle gym made of ropes. There was one of those swings where you can lay down in (not sure what they are called) and one weekend it was broken, the next weekend it was fixed. Talk about great response time!

Pleasant Park is a nice, quiet playground near Devon and Harlem. It is tucked away in the…read moreneighborhood and has plenty of parking on the one way street. Every time I have visited there were few to no people there, so it is kind of a hidden gem. This park doesn't have a ton of equipment, but the playground they have is pretty nice. The surface is a nice bouncy surface and there are a few slides for the kids. There are 6 different single swings and a big hammock type swing by multiple kids. The park district did a nice job or incorporating some rolling hills into the play area to make it a little more exciting than a flat park. A large rope structure allows kids of all ages to climb and hang from the different lines. The park has a nice open space for kids to run around at. There is also a full size basketball court with lights for nighttime games. This is a pretty chill park to enjoy some time with your young ones at.

Great playground for toddlers and great splash pad! It's $15 for kids over two if you are not a…read moreresident so it can get pricey and I would make a day out of it in such case. We came on a Friday afternoon and not many kids were here.

Located in Lange Park within Rosemont's gated community, this is the most fun outdoor splash pad in…read morethe area as far as I'm concerned! Just a week after our expensive outing to Park Ridge's Centennial Park, this place is a lot more fun for a lot less. First off, there's a multitude of water nozzles, fountains and other creative fun things for kids of all ages or for silly grownups like myself. There's the always popular fill-n-tilt buckets, a run-through "car wash", a sprinkler-arrayed rainbow, a fire hydrant, railroad crossing, and a pair of pivoting long-range water guns with animal heads. We came on the day of the town's annual free picnic, so it was open for everyone. However, on a regular day it costs $4 for residents and $6 for non-residents. However, parents or guardians of the kids get in free, so the $20 overpriced trip to Centennial costs only $12 here, or only $8 if our friend from town comes with us. Not all the fountains are on at the same time. Every few minutes, different ones go on while others turn off. Kids gather around certain favorite ones and wait for them to fire up. The play area is made of a high-traction, padded surface that resembles pressed loops of rubber. A little rough on the feet but I saw nobody slipping and falling (or falling unintentionally). The Stunt Baby had so much fun that he lay down on a towel, lips blue and chattering from the chilly water. Minutes later he was right back in the thick of the action again. My older son "won the bucket game" 11 times - taking a direct hit with the water bucket each of those times. In all, it's a great place to have a safe and fun afternoon. Check out the pictures.

I've been taking a class offered by the Park District here at Maine Park Leisure Center. It's a…read morenice facility with several classrooms. We've been in the Itty Bitty room for the class. They have a preschool that operates out of Maine Park which seems to be pretty popular as well and I'll be looking into that next year. The leisure center almost looks like a school itself, with the lockers and classrooms--I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it once was. Our room is a good size with toys and stuff for the kids to play with. There's some parking along the east side of the building, but when I've been here for class it's been full, so you may be looking for street parking. There is a nice sized playground in the back. There may be three, though one is fenced off for use with the preschool I think; there's one with plain old grass and then another with the rubbery ground cover for smaller children. There's even a zip line here which I'm sure my little one will have lots of fun on when she's old enough. This is my first experience with the Park District and at this field house but since it's only a few blocks away I think we'll definitely be making use of this resource.

I found out about this large, out-of-the-way park only after moving to Park Ridge. Located off of…read moreSibley between Dee and Talcott, this park seems to have everything for nature lovers. There is a big soccer field for games, the usual playground and a school-sized field house with classrooms. It is also home of the PR Park District preschool program. The parking is rather small and often full during games or other events, but there's plenty of street parking... Or just take a bike and avoid the hassle altogether. On the other side of the park, there is a huge prairie and walking trail that spans about 2/3-mile around. You see ducks, geese, frogs, turtles along the way. Come on a spring or summer day and it's like an exotic getaway inside of a residential neighborhood. There is a patio-like overlook to see the prairie. Come in late June and you see a yellow sea of daisies in bloom. Truly spectacular, maintained by park volunteers. You also see kids fishing in the swamp sometimes, which is catch & release. Then there is the Wildwood Nature Center which has live animals native to the midwest, as well as lizards, snakes, and other small critters kids love to see. Admission is free, though operating hours are pretty short. It might be the best kept secret in Park Ridge.

This park is ok. It's not a bad location; it's directly across the street from the Edison Park…read moreMetra station. We met up with some friends for a summer concert here. It's nice that it's a large enough park that had plenty of space for folks to set up their camp chairs to enjoy the concert with the playground a few yards away. Right now I'm in my "fully enclosed park" era, and though Monument Park has fencing around most of it, there are several spots where there's no fence and a child can run away easily (like mine did, though luckily not through the fence; just to try and get on the "stage"). You know I like to add a bit of history for the parks, and Monument is no different. This was the first park created in the former village of Edison Park, shortly after the small village of about 300 people was annexed in order to obtain city services. It was originally established as Ridge Lawn Park, but it was formally changed to Monument Park due to the war memorial that was erected here. The extant monument was to honor local men and boys who died in "the World War"--that is, WW1, as the obelisk has been here since 1918. There's no dedicated parking for the park. However, there is street parking, and the Metra station has a parking area at the station and that extends a few blocks south.

Monument Park is located in Edison Park just across the train tracks from Moretti's and EPI. It is…read morequite spacious and has a large playground, open field and monument to World War I soldiers. The playground area is pretty well maintained and has a number of things for the kids to play on. There are swings, slides, monkey bars and some train related play structures. It is good for kids from newborn to about age 7. The equipment is all in good shape and it looks like they repaired some items for 2018. The main draw here is the location. Since it is right across from downtown Edison Park it is a great place for kids to blow off steam before/after going out to eat. The steady flow of trains on the Metra line also amuse young ones who are in to Choo Choos. Check this park out if your kids want a fun park with some lively scenery.

Absolutely beautiful!!! I needed a place to relax after my…read moreflight into Chicago. While I waited on my daughter's flight to come in (about 5 hours later). Next trip I'll be planning a picnic either when we land or before we fly out. What a beautiful and well maintained space. Filled with so much information and respect for America's heroes. Can't wait to come back!

Built in 1975, this memorial honors the men and women of Des Plaines who have served our country in…read morethe armed forces from the Civil War to the present day. This was a collaborative effort by the city, local VFW and local American Legion Post. The pavilion hosts numerous events including the annual Memorial Day services, the Live at the Lake summer entertainment series, Concert Band performances, the summer Movies in the Park and the annual Fall Fest. They were selling Christmas tress while I was there. The restroom facilities are also co-located here. The Pavilion is well maintained and consist of a bandshell and a walk way that has a plaque detailing every war from the Civil War to the Afghanistan War. Inside the bandshell you will find plaques with the name of the Des Plaines veteran that lost their life and which war it occurred. The center of the bandshell has the seal of all 5 of the US armed forces. There is a flag pole and a brick walkway leading from the bandshell and ends in a small circle. Because the pavilion provides somewhat protection from the elements, homeless people seek refuge here. This is a small, but fitting tribute to the honorable veterans that made the ultimate sacrifice for our country.