Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Outdoor Places to Visit Around Northern VA

Now that the weather is getting nicer, I've started a list of some of our favorite outdoor venues around Northern VA:


Clemyjontri Playground (McLean)
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/clemyjontri/
Talk about a kid's paradise. This is the largest playground we've ever been to, and it has a carousel.

Frying Pan Farm Park (Herndon)
http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/fryingpanpark/
Animals to visit, a carousel to ride, 2 playgrounds, tractors to sit on... love this place!

Claude Moore Playground (Warrenton)
 http://www.warrentonva.gov/ParksRec/WARF/AbouttheWARF.aspx
Adjacent to the Warrenton Aquatic & Recreation Facility, this playground is very large with many slides, ramps, swings, rock walls, and unique play structures. It is surrounded by beautiful hills and a lake, and sits on top of rubber flooring.

Ellanor C. Lawrence Playground (Chantilly)
 http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/ecl/

Ashburn (Dinosaur) Park (Ashburn) 
 http://ashburn.patch.com/articles/discover-dinosaur-park
Very large playground (well, multiple playgrounds) with a dinosaur theme. Lots of swings, trails, nicely shaded.

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens (Vienna)
http://www.nvrpa.org/park/meadowlark_botanical_gardens
A great spot to take pictures of your children... lakes, bridges, beautiful flowers, fish & turtles (just beware of the geese... not so friendly). 

Ticonderoga Farms (Chantilly)
http://www.ticonderoga.com/
Large outdoor jumping pillow, hillside slides, tractor rides, playgrounds, animals, tractors, tons of fun!

Cox Farms (Centreville)
http://www.coxfarms.com/
Awesome fall festival every year, but they are also open year round so your little ones can see the animals, play on their fun boat play structure and wooden train, and sit on old tractors.

Burnside Farms (Haymarket)
https://www.facebook.com/BurnsideFarms
Gorgeous tulip festival in the spring... great for photos and you can actually pick the flowers for $1/each. 

Victory Lakes Elementary School Playground (Bristow)

Victory Lakes Community Playground (Bristow) 

Bristow Run Elementary School Playground (Bristow)

Reston Zoo (Reston)
 http://www.restonzoo.com/

Leesburg Animal Park (Leesburg)
http://www.leesburganimalpark.com/

Fantasy Playground (Woodbridge)
http://www.our-kids.com/static/?f=fantasyplayground
Wooden castles, bridges, metal slides, a small sandbox, swings, a tire swing, large and very fun!

Great Country Farms (Bluemont)
http://www.greatcountryfarms.com/
Jumping pillow, animals, toddler play area with sandbox, swings, play houses, farm animals to visit, playgrounds, etc.

Manassas Battlefield (Manassas)
Large open fields in which to go exploring, see wildflowers, bugs, and civil war cannons. Wear bug spray. Great for photos in the spring :)

Fairfax Corner Fountains & Train 

Lake Fairfax Park (Reston) 

Burke Lake Park (Fairfax Station)

The National Zoo (DC)

Here is a great tool for finding playgrounds in Fairfax County:
playgroundfinder.blogspot.com

And a website that reviews NOVA parks:
novaoutdoors.com