Parks and Recreation

With over 12 miles to explore, the Barton Creek Greenbelt offers a variety of recreational activities and stunning natural beauty. Visitors can hike through scenic trails, wade in refreshing swimming holes, and bike along the rugged terrain renowned for its limestone cliffs. A trail map, trailhead listing, and hiking tips can be found below!

Within Zilker Park's 358 acres lies one of the crown jewels of Austin: Barton Springs Pool. The pool itself measures three acres in size, and is fed from underground springs with an average temperature of 68-70 degrees, ideal for year-round swimming.

Get information on how to visit, including hours, ticket prices, and what to bring:

Visit Barton Springs Pool

Alamo Recreation Center offers year-round inclusive Therapeutic Recreation programming for adults and seniors with differing abilities. The park includes a playscape, multi-use field, Gaga pit, and a covered, lighted basketball court.

Located at 1000 Barton Springs Rd, Austin, TX 78704, the Alliance Children's Garden is a two-acre recreational environment within Butler Park, representing the fulfillment of a multiyear planning effort to provide Austin residents with a multi-purpose cultural park. The garden design is tailored for children while providing a variety of play and recreational experiences, including promotion of wellness and education for families and visitors of all ages and abilities.

The Austin Fire Museum is being relocated. This page will be updated as soon as it is available to visit again. We hope to welcome you to a new location soon!

Previously located in historic Central Fire Station No. 1, the Austin Fire Museum features 19^th to 21^st Century uniforms, photographs, and memorabilia from the firefighters of Austin. Operated by the Austin Fire Museum Hook & Ladder Society.

Disc golf may not have started in Austin, but it sometimes feels that way. The City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department is proud to host 6 disc golf courses, including Bartholomew Park, the oldest course in Texas still open. Other courses can be found at Zilker Metropolitan Park, Mary Moore Searight Park, Circle C Ranch Metropolitan Park, Roy G. Guerrero Colorado Park and the newest course at Davis Spring Special Park. Click here to learn more about disc golf in Austin (PDF, 2011).

On March 23, 2022, Austin became a Bee City USA affiliate. Bee City USA’s mission is to galvanize communities to sustain and support pollinators, specifically the approximately 3,600 species of bees native to the U.S. Such support involves increasing native plant abundance, providing nest sites, and reducing pesticide usage. Bee City USA is an initiative of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Temporary Closure 

Date of closure: February 15, 2024–Spring 2025

The George Washington Carver Museum, Genealogy and Cultural Center offers the Boyd Vance Theatre and one indoor atrium space for rental. Events can be either private or public.

Commons Ford Ranch Metropolitan Park is located at 614 Commons Ford Ranch in Austin.

The Parks and Recreation Department offers a wide variety of programs for youth and teens, adults and 50+ seniors at our Community Recreation Centers. Youth programs include camps, sports, art clubs, teen events, toddler sports, and youth sports hosted year round.  Adult and senior classes include anything from arts and crafts and aerobics to pickleball, citywide events, and field trips. Recreation Centers provide a comprehensive menu of activities and events for all ages and abilities to come together, connect with each other and create community through various experiences.

Danny G. McBeth Recreation Center and Annex provides social opportunities through quality programs that challenge, support and teach leisure skills for the citizens of Austin with differing abilities. The center offers year-round programs for youth, teens, and adults.

Dittmar Recreation center promotes individual and community wellness that enhances the quality of life by unleashing the human potential through services and programs that meet the emotional, social and physical needs of the far South Austin community.

The Dottie Jordan Recreation Center offers activities for youth, teens, and senior citizens,including Therapeutic Recreation programs for teens and adults with disabilities. The park consists of a multi-use field, a playscape, two-lighted tennis courts, a lighted basketball court, a walking trail, one multi-purpose room, kitchen/computer lab area, a community garden, and a swimming pool.

3001 Harris Park Blvd., Austin, TX. 78705

Phone Numbers:  (512) 974-9332

Status:  Closed

The Elisabet Ney Museum is the historic home and studio of Elisabet Ney, a wildly iconoclastic German sculptor who moved to Austin in 1882. The museum enthusiastically celebrates her art, her history and her legacy through exhibitions and events for the whole family.

The museum enjoys numerous historic designations and is a cornerstone of the Hyde Park National Register Historic Neighborhood. Admission is free.

Emma Long Metropolitan Park (City Park) is open year-round from 7:00am to 10:00pm.  The park features open space, camp sites, boat ramps, reservation based large picnic table sites and a designated beach entry swimming area.

PEAK SEASON PARK DAY PASSES - Pre-purchased day entry passes required March -September for all Friday - Sundays & holidays. See the Park Day Pass section below for details and links!

The Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center (ESB-MACC) is dedicated to the preservation, creation, presentation, and promotion of the cultural arts of Mexican Americans and Latino cultures.

NOTICE: The ESB-MACC will be closed for its Phase 2 expansion and renovation project starting in January 2023. Programs and events will be held at other sites. Check ESB-MACC website for locations of our 2023 programs. The ESB-MACC main office will be at the Dougherty Arts Center and the number will remain the same: 512-974-3772.

The George Morales Dove Springs Recreation Center opened its doors on March 28, 1998 to provide citizens of the Dove Springs community recreational and educational resources.

UPDATE 10/16/2024: 

The Lamar Senior Activity Center (also called "The Senior Activity Center - Lamar") offers instructed classes, health and wellness programs, educational seminars, workshops, trips, dances, volunteer opportunities, support groups, special events, meeting space and private rental space.

Liz Carpenter Splash Pad

201 Dawson Rd. Austin, TX. 78704

The Lorraine "Grandma" Camacho Activity Center is dedicated to offering quality outdoor recreation, nature-based education, and cultural art programs for youth, teens, and adults. We specialize in adventure activities such as mountain biking, kayaking, rock climbing, hiking, fishing, archery, and more, including adaptive recreation for people of all abilities. Additionally, we provide filmmaking camps for youth and teens, featuring an online catalog of over 100 films created by our participants! Click on the banner below to view our full slate of available programs.

NOTICE:  The Montopolis Recreation & Community Center will be closed for maintenance this week, from November 18 to 22, 2024. 

Montopolis Recreation and Community Center and Park contains a gymnasium, kitchen, boxing room, two meeting rooms, shower and dressing room facilities, playscape, swimming pool, and a lighted softball/football field.

Northwest Recreation Center offers year-round activities and programs for youth and adults as well as sports leagues and special events. The beautifully remodeled center contains: full court gymnasium, fitness studio, arts and crafts room, meeting room, multi-purpose room, teen room and a lobby with free WiFi, ping pong, chess and foosball. Located on the grounds are: play scape, large grassy field, sand volleyball court, five disc golf baskets, horseshoe pit, and picnic tables.

The Chapel is a visitor center where we can, as an act of remembrance, learn about our cultural heritage through the people who were buried in the surrounding cemetery. Genealogy reveals our forebears' influence on the past and future. We share and collect individual narratives to create a framework for the collective human story. 

The Old Bakery & Artisan Emporium is a historic landmark located in downtown Austin. Local artists and craftspeople keep our artisan shop full of unique, handmade items.

Our Art Gallery features the work of local artists who are 50+ years old. We provide Visitor Center information and have a history exhibit that explores Austin's immigrant history through the Lundberg-Maerki Historical Collection.

Pickfair Community Center hosts a variety of recreational and leisure activities for the far Northwest Austin community, utilizing the old fire department building as a "micro-gym" and an additional room as an activity and meeting space.

The Austin Parks and Recreation Department currently operates two skate parks - one in Mabel Davis District Park and the Heath Eiland and Morgan Moss BMX Skate Park at 1213 Shoal Creek Boulevard next to Austin Recreation Center.

The South Austin Senior Activity Center (SASAC) functions as a special use resource facility for persons 50 years of age and older. 

Southern Walnut Creek Trail is a nature lover’s delight.  Located in East Austin, this beautiful twisting and turning maze of trees and foliage is the city’s newest recreation resource for hikers, joggers and bicyclists.

Exhibits  |  Events/Tours  |  Education  |  Get Involved  |  About

The Parks and Recreation Department maintains several types of trails for hiking, biking, skating and other activities. View the trail directory to see the location and usage types of all City-maintained trails. Use the Parks GIS Viewer to find a trail near your location.

Walsh Boat Landing is a concrete boat ramp on Lake Austin, operated by the Parks and Recreation Department. Boat launch fee: $10, payable by card/credit at the kiosks located in the parking lot.

Zilker Metropolitan Park, located 2100 Barton Springs Road, is Austin’s oldest metropolitan park. The park is located at the juncture of Barton Creek and Lady Bird Lake and comprises more than 350 acres of publicly owned land.