VERY pretty park right in the heart of Sioux Falls. It was quite busy on a Saturday morning- a lot…read moreof runners too, but many families enjoying the park. They appear to let you climb amongst the rocks but it has rained recently and I figured that was a dumb idea for me personally. There is alot of wide open grass for a picnic as well as they have a cafe here with a view of the falls. If you come on a Saturday, they do have a farmers market That's pretty close so make sure to check that out too.

One must considering viewing the falls for which a major populated city was named. Unbelievably…read morecreated by volcanic activity millions of years ago, this showcase is domiciled smack in the heart of Downtown Sioux Falls. Although it does have an elevator lookout with a platform for viewing, it does lack a movie detailing the falls creation as well as history of the Cities development.

They've different fun things to different ages of kids, and very nice rest area, my baby boy had…read morelots fun !

I absolutely love love love this park. When you have multiple children of different ages it's a…read morechallenge entertaining all of them. Here, you have many choices and by agree range.

I cannot for the life of me understand why they are calling this a Japanese garden. This is a small…read morestretch of grass and paving stones near some water. If this city wanted to call it a park, that would be passable, but it's actually insulting and frustrating that they are calling this a Japanese garden. I was able to find what I think is a Japanese maple and they had a bridge that looks like they tried to style it in a Japanese style over an empty bed of rocks that was possibly intended as a koi pond once upon a time, but as it stands, there is nothing Japanese about this location. It's really confusing. For anyone who's not clear, putting a stone lantern from Pier One next to a walkway does not make it a Japanese garden. To add insult to injury, they had the sprinklers going full blast at noon with only one pathway in and out. We got soaked, as did many other people who seemed like locals that were just trying to walk on their lunch break. I was hoping to stop here and feel a little more Zen but I left wet and annoyed.

Beautiful! You would never know you're in a big city. It was peaceful and a great spot to have a…read morepicnic and a walk.

This is a beautiful park nestled in a nice neighborhood of homes…read more The park has tons of walking space and is ideal for pets. It also has beautiful, well kept tennis courts and a basketball half-court which is also always clean. One of the highlights of my trips to Sioux Falls includes walking through McKennan park with my dog and playing tennis. The courts are impeccably clean and are never fully occupied. The basketball half-court is also nice, but if someone's using the court, waiting for your turn can be a frequent issue. On a beautiful day, spending time in McKennan park can't be beat.

Great park! Lots of space, covered picnic area, bathrooms, tennis courts, splash pad for kids…read more Covered picnic area is available to rent to guarantee space for parties/events.

This is an access point to the Sioux Falls Greenway and bike trail system. Here you can park your…read morecar and gain access to the loop. There is also bathrooms and covered picnic shelter. The trail is paved so you can ride bike, rollerblade or walk/run on the trail. This is on the Big Sioux River so the trail is scenic providing views of the river, grassland and trees as you enjoy the trail. You can follow the trail around the entire city including loops that go through downtown. Whether you walk a section or take the entire trail, I highly recommend checking this out!

The name of this facility is the Outdoor Campus and it's a joint project of the South Dakota Dept…read moreof Game Fish and Parks and the City of Sioux Falls Parks and Rec Dept. Not only can you get your hunting and fishing licenses here, but you can also learn more about hunting and fishing as well as animals, survival, and more. They have free classes, try it events, walking trails, an aquarium, geo-caching, and more. There's a fantastic playroom for the kids where they can learn while they're playing. After exploring the museum on our own we headed over to a table where Thea (she works there) met us and we made Sunshine in the Clouds. This is usually an activity she does with the kids, but I'm a big kid so it went over really well. We took peaches (sunshine), cool whip (the clouds) and cinnamon graham crackers. We added all the ingredients into a bag and crushed them. It was good, messy, fun! Then you just cut a whole in the bag and squeeze it into your mouth. It tasted like peach pie Outside they have a beautiful walking path. We visited in fall so a lot of the plants were withering. I bet it's gorgeous in the spring and summer! It was gorgeous and I really enjoyed walking around in the beautiful weather. There is so much to see and do here that a family could easily spend all day here. The best part is that it's free!

Free nature escape. The offerings of this facility are impression, and would be especially…read morewonderful if you have young kids (they do free archery training and stuff). Must see in Sioux Falls

Nice clean visitor center. Over 6 miles of scenic trails. Classrooms are available for rent. Neat…read morehistory of the Poncas.

Nice park with plenty to do. The USS South Dakota is a good place to start with kids to check out…read morethe memorial. There are several fields for softball and baseball. Thats good and bad. If you come here just to play in the park it can be difficult to find a place to park!. Its a short walk to the Great Plains Zoo.

Righteous park. Upper section has spread-out meadow with playground equipment and tons of room for…read morepicnicking. Killer view of northern Sioux Falls from ridge/overlook. Native burial mounds dot the upper ridge section, making it clear that humankind has long enjoyed this spot. Lower section spills down toward the zoo, with more picnic spots. In between the two, the adventuresome kid will find some trails along a steep ridge.

When we have been in the past, lines have been short, and very beautiful view especially at sunset…read more But I would not recommend purchasing tickets ahead of time even at a discount, if you live out of town. Their hours are too inconsistent. Two days ago it said tubing open that day and the previous day (both weekdays, and no times listed) - weekend hours TBD, last chance to go tubing. Tonight (Friday) at 9:15 p.m. it said their last day was 2/13 4-9 p.m. and then closed for the season 2/14 (which would be the weekend). Similar inconsistencies with hours when trying to go previous seasons. Last weekend varies drastically. Weekend hours just not consistent enough for out-of-town people to plan around, even throughout the season.

Most people think of Great Bear for only skiing, but they are open in the summer too. They have a…read morenetwork of hiking trails. Some go right to the top of the ski hills which give great views of the city. You can see downtown. We live hiking here on the groomed trails. There are tons of trees so you can enjoy some shade as you hike. Try this place in the summer and you won't be sorry!

7/15/24 - Currently still closed due to the flooding we had! See photos for other options (not sure…read moreof their availability right now though, with the exception of Kirby, downtown). I love this large dog park. One section for small dogs, one for large. Picnic benches a few shade trees and covered benches on large dog side... not so sure about the small side. Water fountains (spring, summer and fall) and dog poop bags provided. The large dog area is perfect for fetchers and you'll often find 'donated' balls on the ground. I've never had any problems with unruly dogs but I do often see people bringing littles into the big dog area. If your dog is reactive our hyper with other dogs there is a nice paved trail (ADA compliant for everyone) or a twisty curvy (up and down as well) dirt trail right along the river ... not it is heavily shaded and not ADA) to walk them on before coming in to off leash area.

Beautiful park. Lots of dominant dogs while we were there with owners who had no social skills or…read morecommon curtesy.