Schuth&#x27;s Grove Forest Preserve

(5 reviews)

3.1 mi

Nice walking track while your kids play on tbe playground, skate area, or the splash pad.read more

We love playing in the water, but don't always love paying to play in the water. Gordon Park our…read morehappy place. Free water play! There's a playground and a fenced in splash pad. So glad we stumbled on this park. We'll definitely be frequenting this park for the rest of the summer!

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Proksa Park

4.7

(11 reviews)

1.5 mi

It's a beautiful place to walk to to jist get out on a beautiful day,and enjoy yoire community....read more

This is a sweet park, a good size, with a paved walking trail and plenty of mature shade trees. The…read morelocal school kids came by and had their PE class all around our picnic today, so it was fun to hear all their shouts and laughs. Nice stream with a cute bridge. Interesting space. Clean. Plenty of free street parking.

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Veteran's Park

2.5 mi

I recommend people to go to this park has nice fields w a nice restaurant for people can go while…read morethey are there, is a great place to take your kids and dogs to walk an place to entertain yourself .

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Commons Park

(2 reviews)

0.4 mi

Gone are the teenage days of looking for a local place to hang out with friends, which first led me…read moreto this fine park. Approximately 20 years ago was the last time I stopped at this park as an 18 year old, and since then it has really changed! Nowadays I like to bring my children here. The actual park has been re-built slightly more south, with a toddler mini park as well as a bigger kid area. They have really expanded the rest of the park. There are two beautiful ponds which have fountains in the middle of each. In addition, there is a beautiful gazebo which is perfect to take pictures in as the backdrop of the fountains are perfect. Both times I have visited there have been both wedding and prom pictures being taken. There are also plenty of photogenic ducks just waiting for a photo opportunity!

This park is real nice. Quiet. Peacefull an modern 1st time here. Deffintally not the lastread more

Great neighborhood park, we enjoy all seasons! Goose poop everywhere! All it needs is a dog area!

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Park District of La Grange

3.8

(18 reviews)

3.8 mi

The Park district of La Grange inside playground is amazing! It's great for those really hot days…read moreand you still want to enjoy the day with your little. My son enjoyed the bridge. He was running up and down for a long time. Besides the playground they have a fitness center, basketball court and I'm sure plenty more!

Lots of Equipment, space, and a variety of fitness classes included in the membership. They just…read morerenovated the parking lot so it's nice to finally park my car within a reasonable distance.

The Recreation Center is the hub of the Park District of La Grange's activity.

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Miller Meadow Forest Preserve

4.5

(4 reviews)

0.5 mi

It was a breath of fresh air the evening I decided to run at Miller Meadow Forest Preserve. Being…read morethat I work nearby as well as drive along Roosevelt Ave where I pass by Miller Meadow - North, it was only a matter of time that I would conduct some form of an activity at Miller Meadow. I entered off 1st Ave which is labeled as Miller Meadow - South; and the first feature that immediately caught my eye was its off-leash dog area which was huge. As a fitness enthusiast that has been running for years, I would categorize the difficulty level of Miller Meadow - South as moderate because the terrain is not entirely flat. Distance markings are marked along the path, a loop style path totaling 1.70 miles per loop. I encountered mostly walkers, a few joggers, and a couple of recreational bike riders along the path. At one point during my loop, there was a woman who caught and overtook me as I ran. We went back-and-forth with me overtaking her and her overtaking me which brought competitiveness during my time on the path. I spent no more than forty-minutes during my initial run on the path but could have easily gone longer if I had the time. While well into the path, I felt that sense of being in nature as well as engulfed by tall grass in certain parts. I also felt that feeling of being secluded, but there were always nature's animals within sight that kept me in the moment. I could not help but enjoy the beautiful sounds of birds chirping, glimpses of the red-winged blackbird throughout the entire path, and I even saw a deer from afar in the woods. There are a variety of activities you can conduct within the path of Miller Meadow - South; some of those activities I can certainly see are hiking, running, walking, biking, in-line skating, or even bird watching. The area can also be used to conduct large gatherings, or picnics; and its large field is perfect for many recreational activities you can partake in. The area is well-maintained, consisting of benches with tables located in shaded areas near or underneath trees, but very few picnic shelters which are perfect for large gatherings; and there are even a couple of portable restrooms within the space. Along the path, there are waste and recycling bins, even in some of the secluded spots. And on top of it all, Miller Meadow has a very spacious parking lot. Overall, I had a very pleasant experience at Miller Meadow Forest Preserve, as indicated in this review and would definitely return. As a runner, I can see myself returning just to conduct interval runs around its loop in build-up to long run events I participate in. ~An adventure a day keeps the doctor away. ~ Thomas G

It was good. It went perfectly. I got to ride a tandem bike. There was a lot of stuff to do!read more

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Freedom Park

4.0

(2 reviews)

2.7 mi

Can use some updating but it's nice that it's covered and you can see if someone is lurking…read more Perfect for smaller kids under 8. Not super packed, bring your own chairs Bc they only have a couple and they are mostly all broken

From the owner: Located just south of Historic Route 66, Freedom Park is a vibrant community space that blends…read morerecreation, education, and Park District services all in one place. The park is home to the Berwyn Park District administrative offices, making it a welcoming hub for families year-round. Its standout feature is the state-of-the-art, lighted synthetic turf soccer field, perfect for games, practices, and tournaments well into the evening. Visitors can also enjoy a spacious picnic area for casual gatherings and a thoughtfully designed playground with age-appropriate equipment for active play. Whether you're signing up for a program, cheering from the sidelines, or enjoying a family picnic, Freedom Park is a place where community connections grow.

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Ottawa Trail Woods-North

2.6 mi

Forest Preserve District of Cook County. Very well cared for Ottawa Trails with 2 groves. Nice…read moreprivate area open to the public within the time restrictions. Great place to enjoy for families and pets alike. Nearby off the I-55, near the Des Plaines River and other Historical Sites. Easy to locate on Harlem Avenue. Many places to refuel and relax nearby in a great community environment. Offering many places to dine, shop and enjoy.

Outside Street Sign, Entrance

Park Signs

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Forest View Village of

3.3 mi

What can I say about forest View that I haven't already tried to squeeze into every other review…read moreI've written? I moved here after looking for a place in Berwyn...only to have my real estate agent drive south of Pershing one day...and suddenly the lots were twice the size! Let's only look here I shouted. I found my house the next day. Forest View is pretty dang awesome. The previous owner of my house was the parks commissioner and it shows! The park on 46th street and Wenonah is lovely it has... -tennis courts -sand volley-ball -a running track -a playground -well manicured path -and more In the winter it even had a skating rink! The next best part? The Forest View Police Station faces the park! There will never be shenanigans in that park, that's for sure! Other notes about Forest View: -nice clean quiet neighborhood -free garbage and recycling pick-up -fabulous library -FV Police -FV Fire Dept. ...all this for 700 people, pretty impressive!

Berwyn Gardens

4.0

1.3 mi

This is on the North Side of Cermak Road in a Busy Commercial District and Residential District…read more It's an ongoing continuous park that has been thoughtfully designed to add greenery and recreational space for residents , and visitors. I call it a "hidden gem". Unless you turn down a side street off the Main Street; you would never know it's there! Nice walking paths. Built in table and chairs throughout. Many nice benches. Very well cared for. Nice children's playground with soft ground area. Places to park your bike. There is a Pavilion area that may be accessible soon, its under construction. This is located in a quiet and nice neighborhood, West of Oak Park Ave. 1/2 block North of Cermak Road. It runs several city blocks that lead to Harlem Avenue. Many places to eat, barber shops, salons, Tony's Large Supermarket nearby, Office Depot, Pet Stores. Very large indoor shopping mall nearby West a few Blocks, North Riverside Mall. With a New Cinema with Full Recliners. Bus stop is on Cermak Road as well.

North Berwyn Park District ; Mothers on a Mission Playground

Playground

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Plank seating with flower beds

Cermak Family Aquatic Center

3.5

(39 reviews)

2.3 mi

I don't live in the suburbs, and I don't even wish I did, but every so often you discover one of…read morethese amazing places . . . The Cermak Family Aquatic Center is awesome. A holy-grail destination for summer days with kids. They have a lazy river full of innertubes, and giant 2.5 foot deep pool with a play structure and various splashing items, plus a splash pad, and a junk food concession. It is neither a real swimming pool nor a water park. Not a real swimming pool because the deepest part of the pool is 2.5 feet deep. Not a water park because there's no actual waterslide, though there is a slide ... into the water -- if you grasp the distinction I'm making. But as a consequence this means that you can feel much more comfortable giving even young kids a decent amount of freedom (obviously not too much! be safe!) and generating the kind of wet, chlorinated, hot, happy, exhausted summer day that you may have grown up with as a kid. Chicago is a big city of rich amenities, so there are not a ton of things that I say are clearly worth a 45 minute drive from my house, but this is one of them.

Located inside Forest Preserve District of Cook County; Cermak Woods. Free parking for customers…read more Wonderful recreational area to enjoy with your family and friends. This is a well designed water recreational area. It has been changed, upgraded and redesigned throughout the years, but still here providing a great relaxing service to this community and visitors. You can grab a towel at the nearby Marshalls, and sunscreen as well. Plenty of grocery stores and restaurants nearby if you would like to enjoy a picnic with your family as well. Enjoy this wonderful experience.

Summer fun with my grandson!

Outdoor Signage

Outdoor Street Sign

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Kayak Starved Rock

4.3

(111 reviews)

68.2 mi

I have mixed feelings about this kayak tour company. I signed up because although I'm a very…read morecapable and seasoned kayaker, I didn't know this river and I like learning about the ecosystems and local wildlife. For this reason I like having tour guides. Going up the river was fine. Coming back went a bit sour. I went as slow as I was capable of paddling or not paddling, but apparently it was too fast for the preference of our tour guide. I was barely touching the water with my paddle. I have no idea how I could have gone any slower. It wasn't humanly possible. After shouting at me several times, he took to chasing me down and ramming my kayak so it'd spin in circles. Would I rent a kayak here and kayak the river alone? Yes. Would I personally use a tour guide here? No I wouldn't. Would I recommend? If you're a family with little kids or a drunk sorority house, absolutely. If you know what you're doing, just go it alone. You'll probably enjoy it more. Edit: If the tour guide had concerns for group safety, he could have said so. Although ramming my kayak with his seems to be a bit of a conflict as far as my safety goes. It was an unprofessional approach when he could have simply explained why he needed me to slow down

It almost seemed like a dream. From the very start, cruising through a large patch of lotus plants,…read moreit felt otherworldly. Very peaceful, going at our own pace. Enjoyed the cliff walls of Buffalo Rock and the shallow waters of some side passages. We paddled for 5 hours, covering 8 miles total. After we were done we headed to charming, historic downtown Utica for drinks and dinner at Skoog's Pub & Grill in North Utica, IL. I was impressed with the logistics and operation of the kayaking experience, from the guide* to the equipment and online booking process. *Full disclosure, the guide was my twin sister, but I am being objective...seriously.

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Max Aquatics

3.6

(13 reviews)

3.7 mi

My 3 children took swim lessons…read more Pros: the teachers and staff are all very nice and relate to kids well. They have a nice area where the kids can play/relax after class for a few minutes. They use the whole lane of the pool to teach which maximizes swim time. The teachers sometimes have them "group swim" instead of ONLY individual swim which maximizes swim time. They also are very prompt with starting and ending on time. Cons: the teachers they have are not consistent, and so they don't know your child's swim level, and the skills worked on that week is random (whatever the teacher wants to do), so there is a lack on consistency. I also wish there was an option for parents to sit inside the pool area instead of only the option to sit outside of the glass. Overall, I would go for another lesson, but wish for more consistency in skills learned each week.

Been taking my daughter to swim classes here for a couple of years. We were excited to graduate…read morefrom the baby classes, which is 30 minutes of just getting the kids used to being in water and most of the instructors we had did not seem too engaged in the class. Once we got to the 3-5 classes, the instructors were great and my kids loved it. However, we had 2 weeks in a row where, first, my 3-year-old fell in the water and was picked up by another instructor who was walking around the pool. Then the next week, during the last 5 minutes of "play time," my 4-year-old slipped off the wall and was fully submerged and flailing in the water. The teacher (who is great) was with another child. I don't know how long my daughter was under water (it felt like forever), but it was long enough for all five parents watching to bang repeatedly on the class and yell for someone's attention, since the door to the pool is locked and we couldn't get in. Finally, an instructor walking around the pool noticed and grabbed my daughter. During both incidents, the "lifeguard" did not notice either girl and made no move to help either time. After the second incident, we removed my daughter's from the class. I spoke with the manager, Jackie, who was great, discussed how there is no way that should be happening, and offered a full refund. Then she had the supervisor, Marty, call me. He made the situation much worse by repeatedly discussing how young children don't listen by the pool and it causes unsafe situations. I agreed with him, acknowledging that my 3-year-old fell in due to not listening. But my 4-year-old is very nervous by the water and tends to be a very good listener. Despite mentioning this, Marty again discussed how children don't listen and cause an unsafe situation by continually jumping in the pool on the own. Even if my daughter was not listening, there should be no reason a child is fully submerged under the water with no one (especially the lifeguard) noticing until parents finally get their attention by banging on windows and yelling. Marty made the whole experience worse by his attempts to explain why the situation occurred and helped me feel more confident in my decision to transfer the girls to the new Foss swim school (which is also much bigger and cleaner).

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Cypress Cove Family Aquatic Center

3.3

(35 reviews)

13.8 mi

First time here, my daughter & I enjoyed ourselves. We got there 25 mins before they opened, glad…read morewe did because 10 mins after we got there, a long line was forming. You're allowed to bring your own food & drinks (no alcohol) I recommend getting there 20 mins before or get there at 2:00 when all the summer camps start leaving. I'll definitely go back!

I'm not a Karen, but today I was forced to be. Today, me and my church group went to get some food…read moreduring the adult swim. A good time to have a snack break. I ordered 3 things. A pizza, a smoothie, and a frozen strawberry lemonade. Classic mistake. I just get my pizza, and I go, "Huh, maybe it's just busy." I couldn't be more wrong. I stand there, for 20 more minutes. At this point, I'm a little confused. I start seeing the people behind me get their food and walk away. BEFORE I GOT MY SMOOTHIE AND LEMONADE. My church friends at this point had gotten their food already and finished eating, and i'm still waiting. I decided to ask the lady about it. She nods, and I assume she is grabbing my drinks. She brings back a pretzel. I ask one more time, just to be sure she heard me. She has the AUDACITY to come back and ask me what I ordered. AND ROLLS HER EYES WHEN I TOLD HER I GOT A STRAWBERRY SMOOTHIE AND A STRAWBERRY LEMONADE. Eventually, 10 minutes later, she gives me my strawberry smoothie. But the strawberry lemonade is nowhere to be seen. Ten more minutes later, she comes back with a NORMAL lemonade. I ask anyone if they ordered this, they all say no. So I assume the lady messed up my order and gave me a normal lemonade. At this point, I'm tired and want to get back to my church friends. So, I take the lemonade and walk away, enraged with my experience.

Alligator Alley at Cypress Cove

Bullfrog Bayou at Cypress Cove

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Aerial view of Cypress Cove Family Aquatic Park.

Rehm Park and Pool

3.2

(24 reviews)

2.4 mi

This pool is horrendous, the locker rooms are dirty (as well as the pool) very crowded with…read morechildren from day care, loud obnoxious raunchy explicit rap music being play on the speakers! and on top of that it is break the bank expensive!! the Forest Park aqautic center is a much better bet, it is far more clean quiet and cheap

I love this park. 2 different playgrounds that my son can play in. Very clean and people are always…read morefriendly there. Location is perfect for us also