Voting site getting sole usage during Covid. They were polite, well staffed, and organized…read more Parking was touch and go but thankfully, I scored a space. In and out in under 40 minutes. Fields surrounding center are vast and normally well maintained; basketball courts can be iffy depending on weather. Oftentimes there's standing water or lots of sand from small playground nearby, both hazards to hoop'n.

The staff are so nice and it may look like a big brown buliding on the outside but on the inside it…read moreis so cool. My child almost did not want to leave. I rate it 5 stars it is so easy to enroll your child. But they have free snacks after school and 2 vending mechines if your child wants food or drink. They give free snacks after school.and they have fun activeties

There is a lunch with Santa held every year. Usually the first Saturday in December. Always a…read moregreat time! This is a well kept recreation center! I had never had a compliant about this center. The staff and facility are always in tact. I visited here last Saturday for their annual Lunch with Santa! The event started promptly at 11am and ended promptly a few minutes before 1pm. The City of Suffolk opens there doors to Northern Shores Recreation for a few hours of free fun for the kids. If adults want to participate (eat lunch) they are asked to pay $5 in advance (registration required). But I found out that the in advance registration is only to get a rough estimate of attendees. As a result, if you do not register prior to the event, there is certainly opportunity to register once you arrive. While adults are responsible to pay $5, children are asked to bring an unwrapped toy for a boy or girl to place under the Christmas tree. Now how awesome is that!! So once the adult pays and the child brings the toy...a day of fun begins. During this event you will experience: bounce houses, cotton candy, popcorn, pictures with Santa and Mrs. Claus, holiday crafts, coloring, face painting, custom balloons, lunch from Chic Fil A and raffles drawn throughout the event. Now I love a great children's event and I must say Northern Shores has it put together very well!! This was my 2nd year attending and I plan to attend until my 7 yr old daughter tells me she's too old to go. Children ranged from toddlers to 11 years old. And even if your child isn't into Santa it's still a great time for a worthy cause!! I would definitely recommend you mark your calendar for the first Saturday in Decemeber 2015 (when the event usually takes place). You will definitely not be disappointed a Saturday of fun well spent... Also...the picture quality is great as well. If you wish to bring your own camera to take the picture that is totally acceptable! Have fun :)

Sandy Bottom Nature Park has always been a go-to when it came to walks. Starting back in 2018,…read moreit's never disappointing during each visit. Last month, I joined a friend of mine for a morning stroll. Let's see how the visit turned out. I met my friend outside of the information center on an early Saturday morning. The weather was cold but not to where walking was impossible. The path we took, Wetlands, was pretty good and mostly dry. It's the main one we take everytime I visit. I was surprised there weren't other people out and about since it had sunshine, but it was cold and breezy. Just the way a nice trail should be on a Saturday morning. Overall, a pretty good time to get some exercise in. This park is one which will continue to be one of my favorites. Till next time :)

The trails are mostly wide and shaded. The dog park also, my Enzo loves it,as do I !!read more

Only because I couldn't give zero stars. This establishment is trash, from the dilapidated exterior…read moreto poor management. My daughter worked here this summer and was never paid her last check, the check they gave the kids bounced and have yet to make good with paying them. They blame their BAD business on a high water bill...who cares!! That has nothing to do with these kids getting paid for their services, sorry but last time I checked slavery was abolished, there's no such thing as free labor!!! DISGUSTING

I was gonna write a good review but the lady(B) who was on the phone around 4pm was very rude today…read moreso forget about it. (Today is 4th of July) I talked on the phone yesterday with some lady(A) asking about the policy to visit and she was very kind and nice so I decided to visit today with my friends. I wanted to make sure if they take cards or cash only so I called a head on the way. The lady(B) said, there's no such a thing as one time visit and it works ONLY IF you're willing to buy a ticket for the summer($300~) with her bad attitude. She was telling me there's rules that I have to learn and have a tour with her before I use the pool. They didn't have all that training/ learning rules last year and I specifically asked the lady(A) from yesterday about that if I can still visit even though I visited once last year and she said "YES". So I asked the lady(B) why are you saying something differently than the lady(A). She said.."ah...cus we're different people?" I asked "is it crowded right now?" "Yes. We're having a party right now" "Would you say more than 30 ppl around?"(I wasn't gonna go if that was the case) "Can't even count" "Ok" That was our conversation on the phone and I already arrived at the pool by then so I wanted to check it out from outside since I'm already there if it's too crowded. There were about 15 people hanging on the chairs. I guess she didn't count how many people have entered. Look..this is definitely a neighborhood business. I live 5 minuets away from the pool. How can you assume that I won't be your future member? It's your choice if you wanna support this local business, go ahead but we aren't coming back. I hope the owner take this as a lesson and train THE employee to serve people with good customer service. She(B) wasn't professional or had any manners.

A very nice relaxing park with amenities to boot. Spent all day outside cooking out and relaxing…read moreunder huge oaks and pine trees! Lots of room for activities and games. The perfect gathering spot for large families!

Lakewood Park offers much more than meets the eye. It may not be the most scenic, but I bet it's…read morethe most functional. This is one park if unfamiliar you should know more about. More over if you reside in Norfolk this should be a recreation area that you frequent. The park is in one word expansive and stretches wide and long. I think you will love hearing more about this Norfolk gem. Although not a new park by any stretch, as a matter of fact it's a petty old park. Located off of Tidewater Dr. a quarter of a mile in a residential area. However, it is well maintained with newer equipment and some extras in the rear that I will elaborate on. I will work myself from front to back of property for this review. Parking is huge! I have never seen it even a quarter full even with events. It is well maintained, but usually has some amount of debris around. The park office is also located up front too. You will find older clean restrooms that are used by not only park goers, but during the week it acts like a rest stop. There are two ball fields to the right. Two all purpose fields to the left used for football and soccer. Both are used for Norfolk Recreation League. Since I am not a resident of Norfolk I am unsure how the sign up process works, however there is info at the park office. All the way to the left is a full court basketball court, however the surface is in horrid condition.. Directly to the rear is the huge tennis center with nine courts, you read correctly NINE and it's lit. There is also league play for adults. The court is kept in great condition. In the center are the playgrounds which have anything but regular equipment. Slides, swings and unique items you will NOT find in any other park. One of my daughters favorite is one that you get on and slide back and forth. Another one twirls you around, so hold on tight. There are also three nice shelters with bbq grills. All of this is in close proximity of each other. Now let's move to the rear of the property close to the water. The Lakewood Dance and Music Studio offers classes, clinics etc. through the Norfolk Parks and Recreation system. If you are not a Norfolk resident there is an up charge. My daughter who is a dancer at a VB studio attends clinics. The Tidewater Rowing Center is at the very rear of the grounds. It's main build is very large and two stories. This is also home to ODU Rowing. Two good size out buildings house rigging and row equipment for the club and ODU. Two drawbacks to this park are debris, it seems like no matter how hard the staff clean up its around. On a visit tonight someone had pushed over a can apparently on purpose. Another issue is an element of homeless/transients. They have never bothered me, but I don't like it. Lakewood has a lot to offer and is a terrific facility in the Norfolk park system. Come see for yourself.

Nike Park (NP) is a 100-acre park, and in addition to many wonderful amenities, it has historical…read moreties. During the Cold War, the United States feared bombings from the Soviets, and created a Nike surface-to-air missile system. Because of that, Nike-Ajax Missile Base was started due to the large military installations in Hampton Roads. "The Carrollton Nike Missile Battery, N-75, was operational by 1954 and was one of eight bases that made up the Norfolk Defense Area. As with all continental bases, it consisted of two areas: a launch area and a control area. These two sites were connected by an underground cable system that enabled them to communicate" (http://www.historicisleofwight.com/nike-park.html). Here are the wonderful amenities at NP: * Restrooms with water fountains * Large playground * Skate/BMX park * Tennis courts * Picnic Tables with grills * Fishing Pier on Jones Creek * Nature trail * Mountain bike trail (the trail is about 2.5-miles but it's not a loop--you have to either turn around or follow the field out) * Softball/soccer fields * Basketball Courts * Senior Center * Recreation hall and multi-purpose room * Beautiful, old trees especially around the playground I had been to NP a couple of times, but I didn't realize the wonderful mountain bike trail, and the historic ties to the park. I will be taking my boys here soon to use the mountain bike trail, and check out the location of the underground missile magazines. NP is a wonderful park to visit, and so many things to do. For More Information: Here is video about the history of Nike-Ajax Missile Base on Nike Park. It's about 14 minutes long: https://goo.gl/appShO http://nikemissile.org/ http://ed-thelen.org/loc.html http://alpha.fdu.edu/~bender/N-view.html

Can I give this place 4 stars for nostalgia? I used to have Cross Country practices here back in…read morehigh school. There are plenty of nice trails, all leading to docks overlooking the muck, mire, and water. There are two kid's playgrounds, a bathroom facility, a skate park, and an outdoor area with exercise equipment. It's a good place to bring the kids to play, or a date for a walk.