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Cal Poly Recreation Center

4.5 (22 reviews)
Open 8:00 am - 10:00 pm

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Walk in pool
Daniel C.

The REC center is so nice for Cal Poly students. It's the biggest one on the west coast of the US and has a ton of stuff to do. There are three different areas for working out with all different performance levels, a 1/8 mile track that goes throughout the center, racquetball courts, yoga and workout rooms, basketball and volleyball courts (indoor and outdoor), lap pool, whirl pool, and a walk in rec pool. I'm going to miss this place when I leave.

Pool area with Madonna in the background.

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12 years ago

The staff and facility are the best, be sure to check out the pools!

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Ask the Community - Cal Poly Recreation Center

Is this recreation center open to the public? Will be in town for a few days and looking for a place to get in some cardio, light weights. Is there any cost if it is open to the public? Thanks for any information you can share.

Leonard, sorry for the delay in responding but we are just now utilizing the messaging services on YELP. Unfortunately, the Cal Poly Recreation Center serves the specific Cal Poly community of students, faculty, staff, and alumni. If you fall into… 

Is there a separate checkin for track and field?

The track and field is a separate facility. You don't need a red center membership to access it.

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Review Highlights - Cal Poly Recreation Center

The leisure pool has basketball courts where you can rent water balls from the front desk.

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Emerson Park

Emerson Park

5.0
(5 reviews)
1.6 mi

To celebrate Bastille Day, the French group again chose Emerson Park in San Luis Obispo. There are…read morelush shade trees lining one side of the park and abundant grass beneath them, perfect for a "Dejeuner sur L'Herbe," or luncheon on the grass, inspired by the French Impressionist painter, Manet. We were immediately welcomed by the host and hostess of our group, who had thoughtfully provided the tables and an umbrella. It is a bit hard to park nearby, but we all managed to ensconce our vehicles and find a place close enough to carry our picnic things. There was a long table with a tantalizing spread of French baquettes, cheeses, sausage, salad Nicoise, berries and an onion tarte. The deserts were almost a buffet in themselves, with Palmiers, cupcakes, an almond tart, Madeleines, tea bread, and a Tarte Tatin. A cooler offered iced beverages. We circled our chairs in the shade and enjoyed this tranquil space in the middle of San Luis Obispo, while our host enlightened us as to the history of Bastille Day. It is so enjoyable to share French culture with a group of people who are also interested! The park takes up an entire city block, and has play structures for children and a basketball court that was in use the day we were there. They also have two Petanque courts or lanes for bowling with bocce balls. We engaged in a spirited game after our lavish feast. If you venture online and explore the options for Emerson Park, there is a site sponsored by the city that asks for suggestions for improvements to the park. One of the many items includes parking and a public garden, as well as other ideas that would only make the park better.

Local Take: The first of the "Mondays in the Park" series started here, as well as, our first park…read morebased SLO Public Health Mobile Vaccine Clinic. The Parks department also help arrange alot & they helped with logistics, chairs, music, & invited a whole bunch of Food Trucks [Baguette About It; Cubanisimo, & Plant Ivy]. The event was quite a success from the Food Truck & fun point of view. Both kids & adults had a good time. The trucks had long lines & sold out of most things after awhile. There were some performances, dancing, & music. The park itself is really close to downtown SLO, but unless you know exactly where it is, you can easily confuse it with another nearby park that is a few blocks more toward Cuesta Grade. This park is more suited to Food Trucks being inside, but the parking around here is not so great. Our Vaccine event was more informative & it was to test the waters in a park setting. We did have a bunch of people stop by for information & did one shot, but oddly enough I had more requests for a free beer or Vodka. It seemed that the majority of the people here mostly had their vaccines done already, but it was nice to chat. Since we just finished the second "Monday in the Parks" event in DeVaul Park, which was less packed with a much better turn out for vaccines, this series in these challenging times, seems to be a hit. While there are two more events like this, in two other SLO City Parks, it is probable that if these continue to be a success, it might become a regular thing. People seem to love the Food Trucks, the fun, & do appreciate the health promotion/ disease prevention aspect as well. Of course, we also enjoy these events as we also work. It is a pleasure for us, especially the Medical Reserve Corp Volunteers, to help our neighbors & our community, in these community settings. Every shot that we do can potential save many lives by slowing down, or even stopping an outbreak...especially with the most recent finding that any one Delta case can spread to 8-9 other people. This is now a very transmissible virus that rivals Chickenpox and even exceeds the transmissibility of several other serious infectious diseases including the now extinct Smallpox. Evolution can be amazing, but can also be very deadly when it works against a species. Over the past months were have done dozens of Mobile Clinics in almost all towns & cities in SLO county. We have had Mobile or Pop-up clinics in a wide range of venues, both inside & out. They include Parks, Community Centers, Churches, Schools, Food Banks/Pantries, Low Income Housing Areas, Farmers Markets, Swap Meet, Workplaces, and more. If anyone wants to propose a place for us to do a Pop-up, we are all ears. If anyone wants to get a vaccine [either Pfizer or J&J] please look for either one of our future Mobile Clinic sites, or head to one of 3 SLOPHDs [Grover, SLO, or Paso]. While it is harder to find, some Pharmacies may have Pfizer, but we definitely do. J&J is used for those who prefer a one shot deal. Things are getting more serious as the C-19 Delta spreads & testing is ramping up again....as well as cases. The completed vaccine rate in SLO County is not the best by far, but we are trying our very best to increase awareness & accessibility for everyone. Please get vaccinated if not already & please kindly encourage those who are resistant to please come out to at least chat with us. We keep up with the latest information and can help address people's concerns as well as help correct misinformation or myths. It is great that the Parks Dept. as well as other groups help support us in these community outreach projects. While it may seem odd to get a vaccine in a park, it is hard to think of a safer more pleasant way to get one. People seem to feel much less anxious in this non-clinical environment. Thank you!

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Enjoying the feast
Enjoying the feast
Feast and culture
Feast and culture
One of our hosts

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One of our hosts
Rv Rentals On the Central Coast

Rv Rentals On the Central Coast

4.7
(13 reviews)
3.3 mi

I love the rentals and the prices here in addition to the convenience…read moreI am not much of a camper so this is the only way it works for me! And Jared is so Helpful I trust him to always come thru!

I unfortunately need to share this one star review for not one but two poor experiences. I have…read morerented from James for many years and other then his trailers being out of date we didn't have a ton of issues until recently. In 2025, we rented our trailer and upon arriving there were small gnats all over the bathroom (hundreds of flies) due to flying out of the toilet and they were clearly in the black tank. James refunded us part of our reservation fee and we moved on after bug bombing the bathroom. This year in July 2026 it got even worse!! We showed up to our already delivered trailer and there were ants EVERYWHERE. In the bunk beds, all over the bathroom and kitchen sink counter and it was disgusting. My husband and I spent hours wiping down the trailer with disinfectant thinking we got most of them and James denied knowing they were there. Unfortunately they were already in the pantry and got into our food that had to be thrown out. It got so bad that we left a night early and have not heard from James since regarding a partial refund. Renters beware!! The trailers are outdated, the couches are peeling and there are serious pest issues that need to be addressed. We wont be renting from them again.

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The 2015 Toy Hauler.
The 2015 Toy Hauler.
Rv Rentals On the Central Coast
This is the trailer we rented from RV Rentals on the Central Coast. We had a blast!

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This is the trailer we rented from RV Rentals on the Central Coast. We had a blast!
Sinsheimer Park

Sinsheimer Park

5.0
(55 reviews)
2.2 mi

I can absolutely see why this park is so highly rated within the city. Between the zip line, the…read morecardboard hill you slide down, the huge slides, the smaller toddler play area, wide open grassy spaces, walking trails, tennis courts, a baseball diamond, and clean bathrooms--this is easily one of the best parks I've ever been to. I was anticipating my brother coming into town early Saturday, but he arrived a bit later than planned. That actually worked out because my daughter and I were able to check the park out ahead of time. When we returned on Sunday with my nephew, both kids were completely enamored. My brother and sister-in-law were just as impressed--the park is truly amazing. It's not overly crowded, feels very safe, and there's plenty of parking. We brought our own snacks and enjoyed a little picnic, which made the day even better. The weather was beautiful, and we already can't wait to return. This will definitely be our go-to park whenever we have the time. Absolutely love this place.

Super fun park in SLO and definitely one of the best playgrounds. Located right next to the…read morebaseball field, this park has two different playgrounds, one for the little kids and a separate one of the bigger kids. Several large enclosed slides which are great for hotter days. There's a fun hill you can slide down on cardboard boxes as well as a small zip line. There's a number of benches and tables for adults to sit. Some are in the shade while others are not. There's some beautiful redwood trees on the periphery of the playground to do a nice picnic under. Parking lot is shared with a pool but there's plenty of space as long as there's no baseball game. There's also tennis courts next to the playground. The playground was redone in 2017 but it's held up pretty well. Overall very enjoyable place to bring kids with lots to keep them busy for a few hours of outdoor fun!

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Sinsheimer Park
Sinsheimer Park
Huge park great for all ages

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Huge park great for all ages
Poly Canyon Trail

Poly Canyon Trail

4.6
(15 reviews)
1.5 mi

Visiting SLO and my wife heard about this trail. I checked online on how to access...unfortunately…read morethe article was from 5 years ago and seemed to be outdated. Make sure you have plenty of time as there is quite a bit to see. We had a little over an hour and weren't able to see everything. We parked at the parking village drive parking garage, which was $10. There are 2 trails that head to the entrance arch shown in the picture..the first we ran across connected to the living quarters as was a narrow trail in the grass leading to the woods. This is a tad more challenging as the other trail is a gravel road with a slight incline and this route is a small path through the woods ( incline, decline, over branches and roots, etc). After about 14 mins it connects the gravel travel. To access from the gravel trail start from the parking garage opposite of the parking garage entrance there is a sidewalk path leading to a bridge, cross the bridge and you'll be on your way. Immediately, we saw some horses wandering around and crossing us on the trail. They were calm and a pleasant surprise. I won't post much of our photos, but there are lots of interesting structures that gave me a burning man feel. Lots of graffiti too, not sure if that is welcome or just vandalism. This was a nice change of pace trail and I would recommend.

If you've heard of the Architecture Graveyard, this is the way to get there! Other reviews have…read moregood directions but I highly recommend going on a weekend so you don't have to worry about finding parking. There's also a parking garage that isn't too far, in addition to the nearby staff lots. Trail is a fire road, and occasionally there are cars/trucks on it, so stay aware. You'll eventually come to a route to your right with a bridge for a hidden trail, but keep going to the left to get to the graveyard - plan to spend an hour or two if you really want to wander around and see all the structures. The trail itself is shady, but several of the projects are out in the open - take sunblock and water, and use common sense. For better or worse, most of the architecture displays are run-down, broken, and/or vandalized with graffiti - it lends a cool dystopian vibe to the area but it's a shame that the university let them get so damaged. Still cool to explore, though, stop by to take a look and get in some steps on a nice day!

Photos
Entrance
Entrance
Poly Canyon Trail
Poly Canyon Trail

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Cal Poly Recreation Center - fitness - Updated July 2026

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