Such a beautiful place. I would have never thought all that beauty was back there. A really nice…read moreplace to take some photos. And that is what we did. We used this place to take some graduations photos of me. We got some great shots in the different areas they have inside the park. The pergolas. The gazebos. The bridges. They all add a nice background for photos. So many beautiful plants and flowers also. I'm going to take my granddaughter for a walk in there. She will love it too.

Seriously, this park is beautiful! We came out here to take graduation pictures for my aunt, and…read morethere are so many pretty spots for photos. It's only $2 to park, which is super cheap, and the coolest part is that your parking pass actually works at other Hillsborough parks for the rest of the day. The park rangers we talked to were also incredibly nice and welcoming. Plus, the actual walking path is really nice and would be perfect for a casual walk. I'm definitely coming back here, such a great spot!

This is a great park! It is perfect for a festival because there is tons of free parking. I went…read morehere for a plant festival. This park has a playground and a splashpad for kids, a small skateboard/bike area for kids, a dog park pavillions for picnics, restrooms by the play area and dog park and a really nice long walking path around the huge pond. There is also a small stage near the big open field so it would be a good location for concerts. The park is on county land adjacent to a water treatment plant, which supplies the pond with reclaimed water. What a great use of space! I will bet most people wouldn't notice that but I work for another local government so I notice those things. Lots of people were out enjoying the nice weather. People with their kids in the kids area, people with their pets in the pet atea and people like me shopping for plants. They also had some food trucks out and staff/volunteers directing traffic and keeping things nice. Again, great venue for a festival in the heart of Carrollwood Village.

This is the park to end all parks! From a paved storybook path around the "lake" to a fitness…read morecourse, from playgrounds to large, family swings, the views, the play, the comfort and the challenge are all present. The park also maintains facilities and the parking is plentiful.

I enjoy walking a few blocks over to the Riverwalk. It starts right at the Greenwise/Publix right…read moreoff of Water Street and Benchmark International Arena. I usually get on it there, and then walk it all the way over to Armature Works and back. There are always a ton of people either running, walking, roller skating, or hanging out along the riverwalk. I like walking it on both sides and taking in the nature, and getting great pictures. It's probably best to come right at sunset so it isn't so blazing hot. There isn't a ton of shade. My favorite photo spot is walking up one of the bridges and then looking back at the circular Rivergate Tower and the river.

What a pleasant experience!! We are here visiting from out of state and decided to explore the…read moreriverwalk. It just so happened to be the night of the boat parade. There were hundreds of people along the riverwalk watching the spectacular experience. There were boats decked out with Christmas decor, and music playing to ensure the crowd is entertained! Cool experience!

I have loved this place for so long! Great walk or ride up the pier. Take in the beautiful waters…read moreor natural wildlife swimming or flying around. The squirrels are pretty daring and friendly here too. Bait shop and food shack on premises too. They are a bit pricey but certainly delicious and worth they hype. Be mindful of hooks and debris on the pier. Folks haven't been very mindful lately

Ballast Point Park is located South of Bayshore off inter bay and has a fantastic shaded kids…read moreplayground with a younger and older kids area, 3 slides, and even a splash pad play area. There's a fantastic seafood restaurant, fishing pier, and pretty water views too! During the winter months when the sun sets early at 530-6, the park really should have lights for the playground at least until 8pm. There's not enough parking spots for this park and parking on side of road has signs that say no parking which is ridiculous because everyone parks on the side of the road anyways. If you're in the south Tampa area and looking for pretty water views, casual seafood, or a fun kids playground, definitely visit Ballast Point Park!

There's a fee to enter the park, but it's worth it to take a few trails and spend a lot of time…read moreoutdoors. The trails are easy to navigate and are good for people of all levels. The nature center has a bathroom and a bit of information, but all the displays were empty, including the outdoor one that allegedly used to have a tortoise. There are canoes to rent if you're into that. Overall, it was a nice, uncrowded park to spend some time outdoors.

We visited this park as part of the 2020-2021 Hillsborough Hiking Spree. I was very impressed by…read moreit. We arrived and parked in the parking lot nearest the nature center. The center is currently closed due to Covid but the bathrooms are open. From what I could tell, on our mad dash to the bathroom and distance viewing, the displays are informative and well done. I'd love to return when it is safe to and take a look. The park has three trails that are part of the spree. We hiked the Bobcat Trail since it includes the boardwalk. The trail travels for about a half mile through trees and over dusty shells. Then it connects to the boardwalk. This was by far the best part. We walked along the beautiful, tree lined water, getting up close and personal with a bunch of small black crabs. We scanned the water for manatees but were not lucky to find any. The trail ends back at the nature center. We climbed the back steps to the top level and caught a great view of the river and the distant city. After the hike we hit up the playground for a few minutes. This is always my kids' favorite part. We also stopped off at the butterfly garden which was pretty active on this day. The park was in great shape, the bathrooms were clean, there were lots of people around doing various park things. Canoeing, kayaking, hiking, nature hunting and playing on the playground are just some of the things available at your fingertips here. So glad we visited! Can't wait to return to check out the other trails.

Best part in Tampa bay in my opinion I absolutely love coming to this park for many reasons,…read moredifferent variety in age groups, plenty of seating, basketball court, water fountain that kids can run around in etc . My kids love coming here the environment is pleasant and feels safe it's gated around and the area is very visible to see where your kids are.

This is one of the coolest parks I've ever been to in my life to be honest. It's very very elegant…read morealmost a clean well kept and has many fun activities for kids and adults. First when you walk in there are lions statues and they're shooting water all over the place for kids adults to cool down that basketball courts that are blue which I thought was cool and they had really fun walking path and really nice swing sets and things for kids to play on excellent excellent place for sure so the great part of town and if I'm in Tampa I will be going back

I have been visiting this park for years!…read more This is on my "Host Suggestions" list when we have guests in town and is a hit every time! We visited the park recently and were on the hunt for as many bird species we could identify. Found some birds we had never seen before and it was so much fun trying to hunt them down by their calls. I've never not seen a gator when visiting but you had to take your time and look closely. I can't say enough about this park. Just $2 to enter the park. There are picnic areas you can reserve, volleyball courts, playgrounds, trails, restrooms and an onsite nature center. You really cannot ask for much more. Definitely worth the visit!

One of the coolest parks in Tampa. You almost always get to see alligators. Beautiful boardwalk and…read morewalking trails. It costs $2 to park. The playground is also really nice and my son enjoys it. Dogs are allowed in this park as well. One star removed because the tower is now inaccessible.

This is an all ages, all ability, open park and playground…read more The location is great because it is in a neighborhood yet close to the highway. There are plenty of shade trees, and there are a few areas to picnic as well as different playground areas if you feel one is too crowded for your little one. We went to the larger playground area with my grandson, and he loved it. There are swingsets for all ages and abilities, which is very nice for all. The pirate ship has a great musical area as most kids like to bang on things that they can control the sounds. There are plenty of open areas to play ball or just run from tree to tree like the squirrels. My only complaint is that the park could be a little better maintained for trash. There was random garbage that people should have thrown away, but they didn't, so it made the park look a little unkempt. Parking is plentiful but not in abundance in any one area, so be prepared to park and walk to the playground on a busy weekend or after school.

This is a great local park with wide grassy areas for kids to run around…read more My local park was all booked up for my daughter's birthday weekend, but there were picnic shelters available at MacFarlane Park, so we decided to check it out. We rented a "small" shelter that had 24 person capacity. An all day rental was about $27, a bargain. The park is pretty big with multiple areas where you can park, so make sure you look at a park map to get an idea of where you should park to be closest to where you want to go. The playground looked like a lot of fun, but our shelter was closer to the tennis courts, and the kids ended up just running up and down the hill, which was fine with me! The area looked well-maintained, and the shelters were in better shape than the picnic shelters in most of the South Tampa parks.