Memphis is home to more than 150 parks, each of which offers a unique experience yet a common theme: It’s a place where every kid can be a kid. It’s yours to explore.
Whether a bench for reading, a trail for running, or a swing for flying, Memphis’ park amenities are loaded with opportunities to fill long summer days with fulfilling recreation and exercise for all ages. Memphis Parks’ website (memphisparks.com) invites you to “find your place” and search parks and community centers by amenity or neighborhood. The site’s new interactive map feature (memphisparks.com/map) reveals a bird’s-eye view of our city limits and a click-and-go functionality to land on your next summertime adventure.
Here are a few suggested paths to take advantage of Memphis’ parks this summer. P.S. If you prefer Memphis Parks’ staff to supervise summer play, check out your nearest or preferred community center (there are two dozen to choose from!) for summer camp offerings (memphisparks.com/activity/summer-camps), which may be scheduled directly with each community center team.
Photo by Memphis Parks
Plan a picnic: Pack up a cooler of snacks, sandwiches, and drinks and enjoy a shaded, serene setting for your next meal. If you prefer the grass, stake a spot under a tree — just don’t forget your blanket. All pavilions are available to everyone on a first-come, first-served basis; however, did you know you can pay to reserve one of 50 pavilions in advance for the whole family or a group of friends? Talk about the perfect get-together. Learn more at memphisparks.com/rentals.
Cool off at a splash pad or pool: There is no question that summer in Memphis can be a scorcher. Water play provides both relief from the heat and an opportunity to splash and swim with new friends.
Memphis Parks’ pools are free and open to the public with a swim card, which you can register for on Memphis Parks’ website or at your nearest Memphis Public Libraries location. For children under 12, bring the child’s birth certificate or another ID that shows their birth date. Adults simply need a valid driver’s license or photo ID plus current proof of residency, such as a utility bill, phone bill, or voter ID.
In addition to more than one dozen public pools, splash pads are open this summer at David Carnes Park and Raines-Finley Park in Whitehaven or Peabody Park in Midtown. Hickory Hill and Bickford community centers also offer swim lessons, which may be scheduled based on availability for a fee. Learn more at memphisparks.com/activity/aquatics.
Photo by Memphis Parks
Playgrounds abound: Recess should be an everyday ritual over the summer, too. More than 100 public playgrounds citywide invite kids to climb, jump, swing, and slide at their leisure. From Rainbow Lake to Flowering Peach, Henley to Marquette, each park offers an expanse to explore and let imaginations run wild from sun-up to sundown. Learn more at memphisparks.com/find-a-park/amenity-playground.
Find four-legged friends at the dog park: Bring your pups along for the summer bucket list, too! Leashed trail walks are welcomed at any public park and greenspace, though you can let them run, jump, and fetch for hours in dog parks such as Sea Isle in East Memphis, Central Bark in the South Main Arts District, and Tobey Park in Midtown. Make your visits a routine time of day or week, and you might not only find that your pups will see familiar four-legged faces, but your family will befriend their humans, too! Learn more at memphisparks.com/find-a-park/amenity-dog-park.
Track a new trail: Walking paths around the perimeters of and through neighborhood parks will always lead to a healthy lifestyle and make room for quality time and conversation, bird-watching, and people-watching, too.
If your family is up for a change of scenery with topography you wouldn’t believe is within reach, take a visit to the 22-acre Fletcher Creek Park in Cordova, the Old Forest trails in Overton Park, or the Shelby Farms Greenline and Wolf River Greenway. The tree canopies will cloak you on even the most humid of days, and the deep layers of greenery will give your family a sense of wonder and calm as you traverse the paths together. Learn more at memphisparks.com/find-a-park/amenity-paved-trail.