Long Beach

We only discovered this summer just gone the recently rejuvenated playground down at Long Beach in Sandy Bay, and it's quickly become one of our favourite outdoor haunts. There is a fantastic multi-level play structure, with slides, rope ladders, suspension bridges, tunnels, spinning things, ramps, poles and more. There are plenty of swings, a climbing wall cubby, a balance wheel and it's all surrounded by clean sand and tanbark, tall shady trees, large lushly green grassed areas and flanked along its length by the lovely, and eminently swimmable Long Beach. You can also barbecue your lunch (if you can dibs a spot!) under a large pavilion. The beach itself is clean, gentle and edged with a new cement promenade.



There's an awesome ice-cream shop around the corner, where you can buy a generous single scoop, in a waffle cone, for a measly $2, splash out on a double for $3. They don't have a huge range, but they've got all the basic flavours, and for a two-buck treat, I'm not complaining.

There is a well-paved path running the length of the beach and around to Blinking Billy Point (where you might find an accommodating rock-pool or two) and then to Blinking Billy Beach, another lovely beach, very much quieter than Long Beach (but it's seriously a five minute stroll) but just as nice for swimming and poking around for smooth stones.



Long Beach is a fantastic day out. There is plenty of parking by the playground, always a bunch of kids to muck in with, and it can cost you nothing if that's all you have.

Where: Beach Road, Sandy Bay (left off Sandy Bay Road as you leave the city, just past Lipscombe Larder, but that's another post...!)

Montrose Foreshore All-Abilities Playground

Montrose Foreshore All-Abilities Playground (what a mouthful!) is a pretty cool playground between the Derwent River (good) and the Brooker Highway (less good) in Montrose, north of the city. It's got a cool rope climbing pyramid, crazy mirrors, kid-friendly chimes to play, slide, swings, seesaw... even a fancy wheelchair swing (always swarming with fascinated and non-wheelchair-bound kids). There is lots of space to throw balls, exercise dogs, and a great walking path that runs along the river back up to Glenorchy. Public toilets, plenty of parking, a couple of electric BBQ sites, ducks for feeding along the river's edge, sometimes an enterprising coffee van too! Downside: there isn't any kid-safe fencing + gates so you can't completely veg out...you have to supervise your own children, dammit!

Where: Brooker Highway, Montrose (on the left as you head into the city).

Princess Park

Princess Park, on Hampden Rd in Battery Point, is a favourite city hangout of ours. Nomatter the weather, it is always populated by at least a few kids (more often than not swarming with them), so it's toddler heaven! Three slides, pirate ship, sand, grassy hills, and a stone's throw from the likes of Salamanca, the picturesque streets of Battery Point, Sandy Bay or the CBD...what's not to like? It's a beautiful park with a fabulous view over the water and lots of shaded spots to sit on a warm day and picnic, play and people-watch.