When we think of the playgrounds for toddlers we think of fences, swings, toilets, lots of tiny equipment and, even better, a nice shaded space. These things are not always possible (why can’t ALL playgrounds have fences ALL the way around?!), but check out these playgrounds around Adelaide that we think your kids – and you – will love
If you want a short list of our all time top 10 toddler playgrounds (say that three times quickly) here’s the ones we think are the very best.
Find it at: McFarlane Street, Glenelg North (just off Tapley’s Hill Road) Combine a fantastic playground with all the facilities you will need, with a bit of local history, and you have the Old Gum Tree historic site and playground at Glenelg. With 3 seperate undercover areas to cater for multiple groups at one time, scattered around a spacious area shaded by huge (probably gum) trees, this is the perfect spot for your family...
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Find it at: Lumsden Avenue, Ridgehaven This August 2024 upgraded playground is a fabulous quiet suburban spot, nestled amongst the established mature trees. The park features a variety of play equipment, including swings, 2 slides (allowing the younger age group to also enjoy), climbing wall, balancing bridge, rope ladder and balancing, sensory panels, and a rocker. These facilities are designed to encourage physical activity and imaginative...
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Find it at: The Esplanade, Semaphore Semaphore Foreshore is set for an incredible redevelopment, which will include a brand new playground (which will replace the existing playground below). The revised Master Plan is open for community consultation until 19 May 2024, but check out some of the concept images below. We are loving the proposed new activity hub (new playground to be built next to this), and water play! To read the Master Plan and...
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Find it at: Poltawa Terrace, Broadview Broadview Oval is a fabulous community space, which includes equipment and facilities for the whole family including: Playground Electric BBQ Cycle Track Tennis Clubs Oval Dog Park Kiosk (open Monday to Friday 8am-11am and 4pm-8pm, weekends for football games). This area is only an off-leash area for dogs between 5am and 8am, and 5pm and 9pm. The fenced off dog park is off-leash all of the time. We love...
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Find it at: Main St, Hahndorf Hahndorf is one of the best day trip locations in our fabulous state. Seriously nothing better than a walk along Main Street, popping into the little shops for a treat or an ice cream, then washing it all down with a litre of beer from a stein and a few kilos of meat (Hahndorf Inn you have my heart….but I digress) There has always been a couple of small playgrounds in Hahndorf but the recent...
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Find it at: Main St, Woodside If you’re looking for a nice playground for school aged kids in the Adelaide Hills, with full facilities then this might be it! Woodside Playground is located right on the Main Street next to the Woodside Oval and sports complex. It has all the usual playground equipment – slides, a small ‘flying fox’, climbing frames and swings all within a fully fenced play area. In addition, it’s...
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Find it at: Churchill Ave, Clarence Park Dora Gild Playground is a great little play space hidden at the end of Churchill Ave in Clarence Park. We have been there a few times and really enjoy it – with plenty of options to keep a range of aged kids busy for a while. It is great for those with older and younger kids as there are separate areas suitable for either the toddler age or 5-9 year olds, but they are close enough that parents can...
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Find it at: South Terrace Adelaide Another fully fenced park in the city, this South Terrace playground is located near the Unley/Pulteney Road intersection of the Parklands. Well equipped and better suited for slightly older kids than the one a few blocks West, this playground includes a good sized, seated flying fox, numerous toddler and regular swings, slides for all ages and spring rockers. It also has a sizable climbing net for older kids,...
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Find it at: The Parade & West Terrace, Kensington Gardens Hidden away in the inner Eastern suburbs is this the awesome Burnside Adventure Playground. Despite being a multi-award winning park and just off The Parade, I’ve been surprised to find how many locals don’t even know about this place with things to do for families of all ages and interests! It s a firm fave for us and our two boys under 5, plus our friends with toddlers...
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Find it at: Watahuna Avenue, Hawthorndene This park is a beautiful leafy, shady spot and great for kids of all ages really. Heaps of space to spread out, play ball games and run around AND it’s fully fenced! Yahoo! The playground features areas for the little people, and the bigger kids with swings, slides, firemans pole, monkey bars, flying fox, see saw and a cute little pretend ‘shop’ area where the kids made pretend...
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Find it at: Bowker Street, North Brighton The super popular reserve and oval benefited from a 2022 upgrade to the playground which now includes swings, a couple of slides and a small amount of equipment to suit the under 10s. The reserve also includes a BBQ and toilets, as well as outdoor fitness equipment, 3 on 3 basketball court, tennis courts and a netball ring. The reserve is home to a number of sporting clubs from a variety of sports, and...
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Find it at: Corner of Bundeys Road and MacKinnon Parade, North Adelaide There are two main playground areas within the North Adelaide Playspace both with similar equipment but one lower to the ground and therefore better for 1-4 year olds, while the slightly bigger equipment is well suited to ages 4-10. Each playground section has HEAPS of options for climbing including lots of different wood and rope sections, log balance beams, wooden...
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Find it at: Aldridge Avenue, Plympton Park Located in Plympton Park Aldridge Ave Reserve is a great little local playground and suitable for the nearby community or if you happen to be in the area. The playground suits toddler and early school age kids but also has 2 sports courts to cater for the older ones. The curly slippery dip was certainly our favourite and was definitely the reason our stay was extended just that little bit longer with a...
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Find it at: Protea Cres, Crafers One of our favourite little Adelaide Hills playgrounds has had an upgrade! The Protea Reserve Playground is hidden away at the end of Lesley Crescent in Crafers. It’s by no means the biggest park in Adelaide BUT it’s in such a gorgeous quiet location that it’s well worth a visit. ESPECIALLY in Autumn to see all the gorgeous trees in all their different colours. New equipment includes a new...
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Find it at: Julian Terrace, Gawler The $190k Inclusive playspace at Gawler opened to the public in May 2024, is a fantastic addition to the popular Gawler family hotspot. Chosen by the community, the playspace design derives from the three Rivers that run through Gawler, reflecting upon the importance of water to the area, both past and present. The new accessible walkway represents Para River, connecting the existing two main entrances to four...
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Find it at: Greenhill Road, Hazelwood Park Hazelwood Park Playground is a beauty for families of all ages and abilities. Upgraded in 2010 (and given a bit more TLC in early 2024), this shady park with plenty to do was one of the first (and still one of our fave) parks with a nature play feel. Set in the corner of the huge reserve there is plenty of space, plenty of shade and plenty of play equipment. In the summer the Burnside Outdoor Pool is...
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Find it at: Adelaide Road, Mount Barker Keith Stephenson Park had been upgraded and re-opened in December 2023! Keith Stephenson Park is the premier district reserve for the Council area. It hosts major events such as carols by candlelight and is a meeting place for families across the district. It is located on the Laratinga Trail, a shared use path that is the spine of the open space network and links as far as Newnham Estate and the Summit...
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Marshmallow Park on Glen Osmond Road, in the Adelaide Parklands is a firm favourite with our families from the 2 year old to the 10 year old. With its huge new renovation, there is now heaps more to explore at this site – also known as Pelzer Park or Pityarilla Activity Hub! The renovation includes some brilliant new nature play features, alongside more traditional swings, slides and climbing frames. There is a great water feature hill...
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Find it at: Maldon Avenue, Mitchell Park The Maldon Ave Reserve Playground is a hidden gem! Upgraded in late 2023, we discovered this little beauty when riding along the Sturt River Linear bike path. Located between Marion and Sturt roads (or find it in a car as the Maldon Ave Reserve). It’s a relatively well shaded area with play space for a good range of ages, including a slide, swings (incl birds nest swing), a few climbing options,...
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Find it at: The Parkway, Fulham Garden Located directly behind Target at Fulham Gardens this playground can’t be missed with its bright orange play equipment. With a little something for everyone, the favourite and most obvious piece of equipment is quite a steep tubular slide with the BIG smiley face at the end. Located either side of the tubular slide are 2 more slides with slightly gentler slopes, leaving the kids with a lot of sliding...
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Find it at: Lefevre Street, North Adelaide Better known as Helicopter Park to many, Glover North Playground is located on Lefevre Terrace in North Adelaide. With a large helicopter as its centrepiece, smaller kids can slide out of the chopper’s belly as one of the many pint-sized highlights located at this much loved playground. There are also plenty of swings, see-saws, climbing frames and sand play equipment including the popular...
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Find it at: Marine Parade, Port Vincent Firstly….check out the view! Located right next on the beach front on Marine Parade, the location is sensational. It was a fun playground with many play options to keep the kids busy after a big day exploring Yorkes. It has pebble flooring, 2 public bbq’s, plenty of seating and an incredible beach view. Oh the view! The park boasts fencing on 3 sides and an easy to supervise access point of...
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Find it at: 120 East Terrace, Adelaide Set among the existing trees, along with some new ones, the city council did an amazing job back in 2018 revamping the existing Ityamai Itpina East Terrace Glover Playground also known as Park 15. We love that this playground caters to a variety of ages and has something for everyone. The main stage of the play space are the wooden houses located in the middle of the playground. These are awesome cubby...
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Find it at: Fiveash Drive, Pasadena This upgraded playground situated off of Fiveash Drive just near the Pasadena Shopping Centre is a fantastic new improvement to the area! Beautifully shaded by heavy greenery, this playground has something for everyone. Although not fenced off, yet situated near a main road, the steep sloping beast of a hill heading up towards the busyness of Fiveash Drive will stop anyone in their tracks. With a mega...
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Find it at: Port Rd, Adelaide What a beautiful playground for kids of all ages! Renovated back in late 2012, the Bonython Park Playground has a some very cool features not found in the typical suburban park. Some of the best equipment includes two 25m flying fox lines fun for kids of all ages and an extensive water play area complete with pumps, gates and a watermill. Kids love playing and experimenting with water and this...
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Find it at: The Parade, Magill What a fabulous playground and reserve this one is. Talk about a stunning location, you will find this if you head east on The Parade far enough til you think you are about to drive into the front garden of the fancy houses in the foothills. The playground has had a huge upgrade in December 2022 and is set a little way back from the car park, which is great because you get to walk across a beautiful little stone...
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Find it at: Stirling St, Tusmore Tusmore Park Wading Pool is fast becoming a favourite spot for visitors to cool down. The design features a fully fenced and shaded wading pool, lawned areas for picnics, a new creek style section, tiered seating and water play equipment for plenty of splashing and playing during the summer months. A few points worth mentioning: It’s fully fenced!! Hoorah! It’s unsupervised which means there’s...
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Find it at: Whyatt Street, Glenelg East As I rocked up to this playground my first reaction was WOW. This recently upgraded playground is huge and would appeal to a variety of ages. This playground is fully fenced and has lots of different styles of climbing equipment for the kids. The play equipment has enough to keep the big kids and little ones entertained, with the flying fox a real hit here (at least the kids get a decent ride!) The tower...
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Find it at: L’Estrange Street, Glenunga Glenunga hub playground opened in 2017 and quickly became one of our favourites – if you visit this summer you’ll probably see us there! As you may have noticed, many of our recent favourite playgrounds include those with ‘active’ options for kids – water play, sand play, climbing, nature play etc, not just swings and slides. Glenunga hub playground is one of these...
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Name a better combo than a ripping playground and a strong cup of coffee? There is none. Sitting back with a quality coffee while the kids play at a fabulous playground, allowing you a moment to close your eyes and just recharge, is one of parenting’s great pleasures (That and getting kicked in the ribs at 3am by a restless toddler….isn’t that just so fun!) With that in mind coffee lovers, we have scoured our epic playground...
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