River Legacy Park

River Legacy is the largest park in Arlington.  It has every park feature you could possibly imagine, but since we focus on playgrounds, that is the only thing I am writing about.  And, the playground alone is worth the trip!

There is a children's wonderland treehouse fort for bigger kids.  There isn't much missing - slides, climbing, tunnels and bridges, hiding places, and imagination booster galore!

Tree fort

Tree fort tunnels and bridges

Inside the trees, there are fun things to look at and do.  There are tables, store front windows, animals carved into the walls, and even an interactive animal sounds tracker (kids press a button and it tells all about the animals as well as it's sound).

There is a smaller tree for the younger kids.  It has a fun cave inside, several ways to climb up into it, a spyglass to view the surroundings, and a double slide.

This one's for the little kids

There is also a free standing hollowed out log, a dinosaur skeleton to crawl inside and on top of, spider-shaped climbing web, a small bee to climb on, and plenty of swings - two regular, two baby swings, and two special needs swings with harnesses (one small and one large).

paleontology climbing fun

Spider and bee

Swings for everyone!

One big bonus to the bigger parks is access to a (clean!) restroom.  It is a little walk, so warn your little ones not to wait until too late.

See the building back there?   The restrooms are there... just a little walk

There is also a large, shaded picnic area and pavilion right next to the playground (along with bike and hiking trails).

River Legacy is located on NW Green Oaks (where Cooper dead ends into Green Oaks).  You have to pass up the Nature school entrance and take the big gated entrance to the west.  Once in the gates, you can follow the signs to the playground (it will be off to the left) - there is plenty of parking right on the playground.
703 NW Green Oaks Blvd
Arlington, Texas 76006

Meadowbrook Park

Meadowbrook Park - this is the FIRST park ever built in Arlington!  We stumbled upon it driving home from somewhere else, and were pleasantly surprised.  The history of the park is noted on a placard at the entrance to the playground, and it was actually quite fascinating.

There are two playgrounds, aged 2-5 and 5-12.  Both play structures are shaded by a large umbrella, but the younger one is truly shaded by trees.  It has two slides, plenty of lower climbing opportunities, and two baby swings.

 The larger structure was enormous, with spiral and bumpy slides, a super tall slide, tons of climbing and levels, a monkey bar roundabout, some spinners, and two regular swings.  There is also a two-seater car that bounces when rocked.

 This park has a recreation center (with clean restrooms inside), basketball courts, shaded pavilions, plenty of benches, and a 9-hole public golf course (apparently Arlington's oldest course) in case dad needs a break from the park.

 And, we were lured into walk in the heat by the promise of a sculpture garden.  While the walk was pretty (and shaded), and the sculptures were lovely, we could only spot two sculptures.  Still, pretty cool, but not sure it makes an entire sculpture garden.

Meadowbrook Park is right off of Abram Street.
1400 Dugan Street
Arlington, Texas 76010

Dixon W. Holman Park

Dixon W. Holman Park is gorgeous park located in North Arlington.  While the Arlington Parks Department does list this as having a playground, I think it may be a bit of a stretch.  Luckily, there were lots of fun things to do besides play on a playground.

Holman Park is tucked back in a neighborhood at a dead end.  It is a beautiful combination of manicured flowers and wild, natural environment.  There are winding trails to explore and wildlife, plant life, and insects to find.  The signs along the trail help you identify (or learn) the flora and fauna found in the park.  This park is also a monarch waystation (like the butterfly park at Wimbledon) where butterflies can stop and rest during their migration.  All along the trail, there are shaded nooks to sit and rest.  

Look at all of the things you can see here!  Perfect for a nature hunt!

Beautiful walking trails

The playground does have two baby swings and two regular ones, a large stack of logs with handles to climb up on, and a crescent shaped climbing structure.  The playground alone won't hold children's attention for long, but the park itself is worth a trip.

Playground

While Dixon Holman park doesn't have the most amazing playground in the city, it is a little oasis of natural beauty with plenty of room to run and stretch your legs.

Dixon W. Holman Park
2409 Burney Place
Arlington, Texas, 76011

The closest large streets are 360 and NE Green Oaks.

Woodland West Park

This is such a beautiful, shaded park, sharing a parking lot with the Dottie Lynn Rec Center.  This park has the feeling of a neighborhood park, but has a basketball court, a swimming pool (open during the summers), tennis courts, and a picnic area shaded by huge oak trees.  The best part is the awesome playground (with areas for big and little kids).

The play area for the bigger kids has a climbing wall attached to a rope wall, plenty of climbing bars, slides, a spinning chair, bridges, and a little store front.  There is also a free standing spinner, which I couldn't keep my kids off of.

The play area for the under-five set is smaller, but it has two slides, a bridge, and some bells to bang on.  There are also two baby swings and two regular ones.  The ground covering is wood chips.  There are lots of shaded benches all around the playground, and the tennis courts, pool, and rec center are all within walking distance.  

Woodland West is located on Norwood Drive near Park Row.  It is directly behind Duff Elementary.
Woodland West Park
3200 Norwood Drive
Arlington, Texas 76013

Clarence Thompson Park

Clarence Thompson is a fairly small, older park.  It has lots of large shade trees, a small practice field/open space, an interesting play area, and a few picnic tables.

The play space for bigger children is fairly unique.  It is almost all climbing apparatus - lots of ropes, bars, and futuristic looking spinning devices.

Futuristic for big kids!

The playground for little ones is fairly modern in style, with slides, tunnels, periscopes that the kids can't help but look into (they work!), and a tiny little store front for pretend play.  There is also a spinning chair low enough to the ground for my preschoolers to climb into on their own.

For littler kids

Between the two there is the only merry-go-round I've seen since I was a child.  It is net-roped for safety, but one of my girls managed to fall out the entry 'hole' while a parent was spinning it around, so tell your kiddos to sit down and hold tight.  The playground features two baby swings and two regular ones.

Spinning seat and merry-go-round!

Thompson Park is on Brown Blvd, between Ascension and Collins.
1600 Brown Blvd
Arlington, Texas 76011