I came here for the Hayward Zucchini Festival and the location itself was alright. They have a petting zoo, which smells....like a petting zoo. The surrounding area is pretty ghetto. I'm sorry. It's just not a place I would just go for a nice day at the park. read more

One of the few Hayward parks with something to offer, anyone could easily fill a day of activities without ending up bored or broke. The mini zoo has a small but decent amount of animals to observe, pet and even feed for less than a few dollars. The odor wasn't as prominent as I would expect, and the young staff is friendly and enthusiastic to be working there. A brief train or carousel ride is also entertaining for the little ones and a few bucks each. Not many public parks have these attractions anymore. The horse rides were a tad depressing, as the horses seems utterly tired to be walking in circles with rowdy, dirty kids on their backs. They do switch the horses every few hours but they definitely have limited mobility. Parking has become significantly easier with target being across the street. Sectional tables provide enough room for parties and there isn't much regulation on what is brought into the park. Though it gets a bit chaotic on summer weekends, a person can feel like they have left the not-so-appealing parts of Hayward for a classic day trip away. read more

i can't even began to count the number of times i spent on hot sunny days at this classic park. as a young child i attended hayward christian school so kennedy park would become a huge fixture with my youth. this place has it all! a great snack bar, petting zoo, pony rides, merry go round and a train ride that travels around the entire park. to think this place is still going strong amazes me and to think i have been going to kennedy park for almost 30 years is simply stunning. like most things these days that have been around for so long have seen better times especially for the area but if you decide to go keep an eye on your kids and everyone will have a great time. read more

Kennedy Park - Parks Near Me - Hayward, California

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Sunshine, my little girl running towards the carousel...and not a gangbanger in sight. It was a lovely afternoon at my childhood park, just a few blocks from my momma's, and I was relieved that it was neither crowded nor ghetto. Hayward and this park get a bad rap, sometimes with good reason, but for sheer affordable fun for your little one, it's worth stopping by. Prices are a little steep: for $5.50, we both rode the merry-go-round and hung with the billy goats at the barn. I loved seeing my little one clamber up the play structures. Bonus: we ran into two of my wonderful high school students and their families. Just another day in my hometown read more

Great gathering place for parties with lots of fun activities for kids to enjoy. From trains, jumpers and a mini petting zoo this park is the staple for Hayward. Park had changed over the years and has had its fair share of ups and downs m, but through it all it has maintained its part in the community. BBQ can be fun and this park has an abundance of picnic areas to reserve or the first come first serve tables. The food is t great, but on weekends you can grab a quick snack or have an ice cream. Once a year this park holds haywards it's annual zucchini festival where you can enjoy great food, arts and crafts, and mingle with the locals. Prices have gone up over the years but the food itself is what keeps me interested. As for the playground, this park has made fm drastic changes since I was a kid and boasts two huge okay areas and a couple of swings and tire sets. The fields are huge and the local kids soccer kids soccer practices are held here. Overall great spot to have your kids play and socialize with others or have a BBQ with family either way you can't go wrong. read more

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I had high hopes for this park after reading the yelp reviews. A petting zoo, a carousel and a train!? Sounds awesome in theory, but its pretty bleak in person. The petting zoo smells yards away, the train was broken and the carousel was old and dingy. The staff at the concession stand were all high school kids and when I asked about the train they said its broken, it just doesnt work. Instead they had a inflatable bouncy house that they were charging for. I feel like this park had a lot of potential and maybe was great in its prime, but now just kinda feels old and run down. read more

This is a medium size park and has a small town feel. It has a petting zoo so there is likewise goose poop in the grass so not the place for a big play in the grass game if ya know what I mean. Lots of free play structure to play on. Lots of bbqs and tables. Many families celebrating b-days, etc. Carousel, petting zoo, bounce house, choo-choo train, at a small cost. I liked that it was accessible to many with the small costs for the paying activities. read more

My husband suggested we take our almost 1 year old her last Saturday for the petting zoo. The price was a whopping $1.50 for my husband and I, plus another $0.50 for a small ice cream cone filled with feed for the animals. There were a few bunnies, a chinchilla, a few birds in a cage. A black pig and some sheep in a pen. Then there were the goats in the petting area. These goats are aggressive. So agressive that they bombarded me when the saw the cone in my hand. One stepped on my foot (dummy, me wore filp flops) and I dropped the cone and ran off. . .all while my husband watched and laughed. After I settled in, my daughter had a gas watching the goats and checking out the lamb, the chickens and roosters. Not bad for $3 entertainment on a Saturday afternoon. Before we left we paid another $1.50 so I could take "Stinky" on the Merry Go-Round. They have mini horses for the little one and she had a blast! Its old, but hey, the kid doesn't care as long as she gets to go around, and around, and around. . . I knocked a star off because its in a shady part of hayward and the people at the park were a bit sketchy. . .And, another star off for the bastard goats! Nice way to spend a little family time with out loosing my shirt. read more

Good time and memories have been had here. My daddy use to take us here when we were little and riding the train was the ultimate treat. I love animals though, so I always insisted on going inside the stench-filled barn regardless of the stankiness. I also use to be small at one point, so I was allowed to ride the circle of ponies. Ponies that would fart and make their bodies vibrate while you were on them. It was fun when the movie theater use to be next to it so you could have somewhere to go after or before. They also got a set of tennis courts nearby. That's it. read more

My favorite place to take the kids on a nice sunny day. Weekends this park comes equipped with a train, carousel, petting zoo and bounce house. On top of the actual park. Grounds are well kept and they offer party reservations. The playground is modern with fun new things I wish I could play with again. You get your usual bratty kid in there that wont share or get out of the way but its to be expected anywhere. This is a nice way to get out of the house. read more

I grew up going to Kennedy Park and I loved coming here with my girlfriends when we were young and played on the playground They have a cool train, a jumper, a petting zoo (my cousin's ex girlfriend used to work there) with a couple of chickens ducks a horse 6 or 7 goats and a pig and some sheep They also have pony rides and a carousel merry go round It's a great place for a party and then even have the zucchini festival here, Target's right across from the park too. Over all I'm a fan read more

What makes this park unique is that it is sort of a public amusement park for toddlers. Very unique and rare - and very cool given that you don't have to break the bank to take your kids on a train ride, carousel, jumpy house or feed some animals. My 4 year old son loved it, and I only spent $9! Rides are $1.50 each and cheaper if you buy tickets in bulk. This park is straight throwback - it has a vintage vibe to it and I imagine it had it's hey day in the 70s/80s. It's a little tired now, but still has charm and is great for a few cheap thrills for the kids. Play structure: Quite good and fairly large. Plenty of slides, swings, bridges, etc. Ground material: Tan Bark. I hate tan bark. I wish it was the rubber tot turf material found in new parks. Restrooms: Yes Grass: Plenty! Great for running around, playing a game, lying on grass for a picnic. The grass isn't lush like those found in new parks... some splotchy parts of grass/dirt. Picnic Tables: SEVERAL. Great for bbq's, picnics. Shade: Very good! Parking: The parking lot is huge and I didn't have a problem finding a spot. Safety: Hmm... no issues when I went, but a handful of ghetto people roaming around. It looks like the park has a security guard as well keeping an eye out. No one looked 'dangerous', just some ghetto folk smoking weed in plain sight. Final Comment: We like this park for what it's worth! Sure it's a bit tired and sometimes has a ghetto crowd, but go in the day time and enjoy a few rides. The kids will love it! read more

A good spot to bring the kids - both a playground and a mini-amusement park. Very mini, but if you have a train fan or a merry-go-round-head at your house, this will scratch their itch! It is a lot busier during summer than, for instance, today. read more

Good place to take your 2-7 year old kids to

You can always be yourself here. Bring the family. On the weekend the tables are taken pretty darn quick. Great little mini train ride fun for the kids (adults too) and there is plenty of playground areas for all to share. read more

OK, so first off I give this place kudos from the get go just b/c this is where I had my very first birthday party and from what I remember It was crackiin....I lie...I really don't remember my first birthday....anyways.... I blame this place for filling up my childhood memories with goats attacking me for a cone of food and their employees offering me a free ride on their pony's but going way too fast. I came here around 8:00pm last weekend to play a game of tennis with a cousin of mine and when we finally got our court and was ready to play the lights turned off. What kind of BS is that?? So my cousin, being the thief he is, picked up the guys tennis balls in the court next to us just when the lights went out then left. Ended up going to the tennis courts at the Hayward Plunge with 10 brand new/ stolen tennis balls. read more

This is a super fun park to take the kids. Love the train that goes around. Only downfall is we would like to play catch with our kids out on the huge lawn but there are so many pot holes that you fall into that we won't do that anymore. But if you are just going for the playground and a barbecue its a great place! read more

"Are you *sure* you want to ride on this train facing backwards?" I asked cautiously leaning towards my 6-year-old wild child. "Yes!" he replied gleefully as he bounced around looking around at the park surroundings and other families seated in other tiny park train car bench seats. "Okay." I said as I sat back across from him trying not to go down Memory Lane. Even though we were just taking the kiddy train ride that goes around the periphery of Kennedy Park, I can still feel queasy just thinking about traveling on any vehicle when I can't sit facing in the direction it's heading. Back when I was a kid, as the youngest of four for some reason, I was always forced to sit in the way back of our family station wagon when I got too big to sit in front between the two front seat passengers. By the "back" of the station wagon, I'm referring to a particular Ford wagon that was very long and slate blue with Formica table-top ("Faux Woody") panels on its sides. There were no mini-vans back in those days and my folks associated Scooby-Doo vans with swingers and passenger vans with the Sheriff's department. Those vans would have worked out so much better for my siblings and I then that beastly wagon! The "back" of the station wagon here was actually the part of the trunk space that could fold out into a seating area where two more passengers could sit gazing out the rear window and make faces at drivers of the cars behind them. The two passengers seated back there were usually me and the family dog who smelled like he'd just jumped into a swamp prior to jumping into that unventilated part of the car. The usual expression on my blue face was one of pained misery since not only was I feeling seasick, but also the dog was panting heavily in my face. I think many cars passed us just in order to avoid looking at me. In any case, I only suffered that lowly seating arrangement for about a year. My parents had a "learn to suffer through it or else" approach with all four children and weren't ever going to bend that for a blue-in-the-face me. My father also thought that my sister and my brothers and I could travel an easy six hours without ever having to go to the bathroom so my developing motion sickness seemed minor compared to the fact when we all were ready to explode at the arrival of our destination. We all raced as fast as we could completely ignoring our surprised relatives who were greeting us four with open arms when all we wanted to do was get to the nearest bathroom first. Finally one day, in the middle of a long six-hour drive, my mom and my siblings stopped at a roadside Howard Johnson's to get lunch and some gas. There, we all ate clam rolls stuffed with deep fried clams, French fries, coleslaw, milk shakes and chocolate pudding. A good hour during the drive after we left, I started feeling very queasy. And I mean *really* queasy. "Mom, I don't feel very good." I said. This prompted my two older brothers sitting behind me to start to tease and aggravate me. "Oh, such a SICKIE!" they taunted. Within a few seconds of that taunt, I promptly turned around in order to belt out an angry retort, but instead threw up uncontrollably all over them for several minutes. From that day on, my brother Steve was relegated to that seat instead of me. I got to sit facing forward in his old seat with a precautionary barf bag next to me just in case I developed forward-facing motion sickness, which never happened. Kennedy Park was a surprising public park gem today. I thought we were just going over to take my little guy to a park with a bunch of nice climbing structures. It turns out that they had: a petting barn, pony rides, an old merry-go-round, train ride, snack bars, and a bouncy castle play structure. The park is a little warn down, but it's a public park and parks and rec departments are running on next to nothing in terms of budgets these days. Yes, the goats were acting like goats, but fairly sedate if you didn't proffer a feeding cone for more then three seconds in their hungry little faces. I would imagine the majority of the animals, save maybe the goats and sheep were donated through Hayward City Animal Services. The bunnies, chickens, ducks, geese, guinea pigs, and even Jenny, the gynormous pot-bellied pig are fairly typical pets. The stables and farm smell just like stables and farms typically do. A friend told me the park formerly had a reputation for crack and assorted drug deals going down as well as "cleanup" trash pickup for convicted criminals. I did notice a security person from the Sheriff's department carefully observing everything. It looks like families with small children have taken back a park that truly belongs to them for now. The park IMHO, was not crowded for a Sunday. However, public parks are for the public, isn't that the point? As long as I'm allowed to travel facing forward, you won't hear me complaining about Kennedy P. Kudos! read more

This park locates in a very convenient location. It has Target and many restaurants nearby. I love to bring my son to the park on Sunday after lunch. The train is his favorite part. Carousel and the petting zoo are nice too. Tickets and snacks are very inexpensive. Remember they accept cash only. read more

What a great park to spend a day with family! A carousel, pony rides, jumper and petting zoo. All rides are a buck fifty! Plenty of benches to sit on and people-watch or have a picnic while kids are hanging out at the huge playground. The concession stands have plenty of snacks and drinks if you have hungry kids like we did. It was a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon, so if you have a slow day.. Take it easy and enjoy a day in the park! read more

A small lemonade is only a buck. 3 for one ticket is $3.50. The park itself is fun for the little ones. We can spend quite an amount of time spinning round on the carousel & taking a very short train trip. The petting zoo....smells, so we usually pass on that. ;-) And we haven't reached the height requirements yet for the pony ride.... read more

Had a great time here with my son, until two large young women ganged up on an older, much smaller woman who was carrying a small child (probably her granddaughter), yelling obscenities at her, pushing her, and pulling her hair in what looked like an attempt to take her down. As I was with my disabled son, I found it best to get out there and fast. Fortunately, someone notified the park authorities, and they were talking to the victim as I left. If you're at a park geared towards kids, and they have to call the cops on the grownups...it's time to look for another venue. read more

I love this pet free park. Nice big open fields, plenty of playground for my little one, and fun rides that my toddler can enjoy. Great place for parties and kids events. Come feed the goats... BUT, sadly, they don't seem very happy in their captivity. Just as healthy as I've ever seen, but I feel bad for them. (One star deduction for sad working conditions for the animals and birds.) read more

Pros : (1)Good variety in play structures, ranging from slides to different types of swings. I'd never seen a Tyre swing elsewhere. (3) Merry-go-round ride goes on for pretty long. (4) Fulfilling train ride, that lasts for a good 5 minutes. (5) Almost like "Happy Hollow" sans the zoo. Let's see. There is a carousel, there is a petting farm, and then there are play-structures. This means, if you put aside the ambiance, this place almost makes up for the missing zoo, with the train ride. Cons : (1) I somehow dint like the crowd there.It felt like I was in Oakland. (2) Terrible smell. Yuck. I don't know if it was because of the petting zoo alone, since I've been to other places that have petting zoos, but none smelt nearly as bad. Wonder if it had to do anything with what was being cooked. (I saw almost half a dozen families barbequing, for what looked like a party) (3) This place is so crowded that you will feel like running away from there as soon as you get there, which is of-course subject to the condition, that you manage to get a parking lot, in the first place. (4) The train ride is fulfilling, but not nearly comparable to Tilden park's train ride. We most likely wont return. Sorry! read more

A park with a petting zoo, train ride and a carousel, can't go wrong with that! I've been here since I was little, but this time I took my niece. The rides aren't free, but the ticket price is reasonable. $5.00 for 3 rides of your choice. 1st we went in the petting zoo, feed the goats and walked around to see the rest of the animals. Then we went on the train ride which took us around the park. Lastly we went on the carousel, which this ride seemed like it went on forever. But over all my niece had a blast and that's all it matters. They also have a little building were you can purchase the tickets and food. The staff are all friendly there. The only thing was missing was the pony ride that they used to have, I'm not sure if they still have it or not. This is good park for kids of all ages. read more

On a warm night, Kennedy park is a fantastic place for an illicit rendevouz with a beautiful woman. The field is big and you can be far enough back from the road for anonymity and privacy. Many great makeout opportunities with nobody to catch you except for the animals. read more

I had a few acquaintances tell me about this park. Drove from Danville to check it out. Walked in & walked out. Didn't even spend 5 minutes there. There were about 5 goats, 1 pig, 1 chicken and 2 ducks. It has a decent sized playground. The playground was extremely packed and to get close to the animals, you have to pay $2/pp. Not a big deal, but there's not much to look at - yes, not even for $2 per person. Such a disappointment! read more

This park has been around forever! I don't frequent here much unless I have a party of some sort to attend, or just a casual bbq gathering with friends or family. The times that I have been here, no complaints! Park is kept clean, and I've always felt safe! Great area for kids to run around at and play. Plenty of space to BBQ with the family! The plus side is if there is no parking spaces at the actual park, the Target parking lot is a great alternative with plenty of spaces to park and your car will be safe!! read more

Once in a while I bring my kids here. I love seeing others with their family. Seeing everyone happy at Kennedy Park makes her happy. It gets really busy on weekends. Buts it's worth the wait for the small petting zoo, train rides even the Mary go round. read more

Actually went next door to play tennis. The light stay on until 10 pm. Had soooo much fun!

I threw my son's first birthday here and the kids had a good time. There are countless things to do like the petting zoo, carousel, and train ride. However, at a closer glance - this place needs major work. The animal stalls smell like DEATH!!!!! The carousel looks like its going to break down any moment now. The bathrooms are pretty wretch. However, my kids still loves the train ride. Parking can be a challenge especially on a sunny weekend. People are sometimes rude and spend all day pushing their child in the limited infant swings as others wait. Geez, teach your kids to share! ASSHOLES!!!. Oh well, this place is still nearby. I still come here but not on weekends. read more

I would give this place more stars if they opened the rides and food earlier!! they don't open that stuff til 1130 am, its like cmon now the day almost halfway done, nah but seriously tho it would b nice if they opened them up aleast by 10, I'm prolly up too early , my daughter b up by 7 so we be there by 8ish sometimes, but nah its a coo ass park for kids and families. read more

I grew up in SLZ and even went to this park when I was a kid but never had I realized my appreciation for this park! I feel so lucky to live close to this gem! As a fairly new-ish parent looking for fun things to do on the weekends with my toddler, I seriously feel so blessed to have this in my hometown! It's a little retreat for kids.... I took my 20month old son out for a day at the park and we had a great time. Choo choo ride, petting zoo & merry go round... plus swings, slides and fields to run in. We weren't hungry but it was nice that there was a snack bar option available. I will certainly come back here again with my little guy. read more

I was here all the time in my younger days. Now? Not so much. I was here last month for the first time in years to attend the annual Zucchini Festival. It hadn't changed much. The park and the festival. The only difference was boy, food prices sure have gone up at the Zucchini Fest! Geez Hayward.... read more

I enjoy taking my kids here. It offers train rides, merry go round and a petting farm for an affordable price on the weekends. It has a great variety play area, a big green grass area and lots of picnic tables with some good shady area. There's a lot of bathrooms and a lot of parkings. read more

This is a very good park to take the kids and perfect for birthday parties. The park consists of a huge field. Good to play soccer. Around the field you will find many activities to do with the kids. There is a choo choo train thats goes around the entire park. My son love to get on. The price is three tickets which is a dollar fifty total. Its a pretty big train and the line is not so long due to it being able to take a large group. They also have a jumper which cost two tickets wich equal a dollar. They also have a merry go round that cost three tickets. Its pretty big and the ride lasts a long time. They also have a pony rides. Parents are not allowed to walk alongside the pony during the ride. The pony ride is three tickets. They also have a petting zoo which cost one ticket and fifty cents to buy the food. They have rabits, chickens and goats. They have a snack bar ghat has the usual junk food such as burgers ..fries..etc Ou can reserve tables right in front ahead of time for parties. What we do is we bring our portable bbq pit and blanket and set up shop near the trees and play ground. Oh ..they have two big playgrounds side by side...after we do all activities once ...we eat..then throw the ball around. Then the kids go and spend about an hour at the play ground. Its usually sunny in hayward but if you are not local you have to be out by three pm maybe even two to avoid traffic. The park opens at ten am. We come here often and will continue. There is also a shopping center right across the st with many restaurants. My only complaint is that the bathrooms are horrible! I try not to use the bathroom when i go there. read more

Came to Kennedy Park for a birthday party and it was alright. I been here several times before for the zucchini festival and it was okay. I think there should be more for the kids to do and see, but my kids still liked it, so I guess as long as they had fun, that's all that matter. I don't take my kids here, it' just not enough things to do and can be too crowed sometimes. read more

This park has everything you need for a good afternoon out with the kid. My grandson loves the Carousel, Train ride, Petting zoo and Jump house :) We will be having his Birthday party here so that all of the kids can come out and enjoy the day and rides. The snack bar could use some improvement on the food quality but you can always bring food and have a BBQ on the grills in the park. Oh and it is a little crowded on weekends so you will want to keep an eye on your little ones. read more

This review and 5 stars is for the 1990's Kennedy park. A park on pretty big land. A train that goes around said land. A playground. A carousel. A small petting and feeding zoo. A pony ride. A concession stand. A good time in the 90's. All in the San Lorenzo/Hayward area. What a gift. read more

good for weekdays, weekends gets too crowded. There is a petting zoo, train ride and a merry-go-'round, also a playground.