Looking for a big adventure beyond Long Beach? For all day fun, consider checking out the amazing Adventure Playground in Irvine.
Now that I’ve got kids ages 10 months to 9 years, it’s important for me to find places that has something for everyone. It needs to be safe, secure, and most of all fun. Adventure Playground in Irvine checks every single box and is worth the drive for a day of fun the whole family can enjoy.
The big kids love building structures with huge Lego style bricks. I love that it’s fully enclosed. They ALL love the mud! It’s the kind of playground where I get to say YES, which is also great. Yes to getting messy, Yes to running and climbing. YES to finding all kinds of ways to play.
While this is definitely a bigger commitment than one of our great local parks, it’s a commitment we’re happy to make!
Read on to find out why we love Adventure Playground in Irvine so much, for kids of all ages.
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Planning a Visit
Adventure Playground is located in Irvine. It’s a huge sprawling park that’s completely enclosed. With one entrance, and one exit, this park is great for Moms with lots of kids to keep an eye on!
Adventure Playground is open in March – October from 10am to 6pm and in November – February from 10am to dusk.
Here’s the address, for your GPS purposes: 1 Beech Tree Lane, Irvine, CA 92612
What is Parking Like?
We love that Adventure Playground has a dedicated parking lot with plenty of spots. Parking is free, and is generally easy-peasy.
What Facilities are at Adventure Playground?
- Play Structure
- Mud play area
- Giant Lego style bricks
- Ping Pong
- Foosball Table
- Giant Connect 4 game
- Foot washing station
- Shaded picnic tables
Is Adventure Playground gated?
Adventure Playground is a fully enclosed park. It’s fully open inside, in that kids can move between play structure to the mud area to giant Lego style bricks without any barriers. There is one entrance/exit and it’s got a booth where you check-in. So you can be sure that no one is getting out undetected!
How are the bathrooms at Adventure Playground?
Truth be told, seeing as how this was a playground with a ton of amenities in Irvine, we had pretty high hopes for these bathrooms. But they’re still at a park and still used by a LOT of kids. So they were park bathrooms. They had running water and soap and meet all your basic needs. However, if you’re thinking you’ll get an air conditioned break from the playground, you’d be sorely mistaken.
Does Adventure Playground have sand?
Adventure Playground has everything, including sand. There’s sand, dirt, grass, mud – it’s a whole sensory adventure over there! Don’t just expect your kids to get sand in their shoes, but expect them to get a little dirty everywhere. In fact, we recommend bringing a clean set of clothes for the ride home!
Is Adventure Playground accessible for kids of all abilities?
There’s something for everyone to enjoy at Adventure Playground in Irvine, including kids of all abilities. There’s a wheelchair accessible path around the entire park so that you can access all areas, however a lot of the action takes place off the path and on grass, dirt, mud or sand.
Does Adventure Playground have shade?
Adventure Playground does a great job providing shade. There are strategically placed shade sails around the playground, and you can move some of the activities to the shade if you want! Take the giant Lego style bricks and work on your build in the shade of the sails or under one of the large trees.
There is also a covered area that has some picnic tables and games like Foosball.
It should be noted, you cannot bring your own shade structures to Adventure Playground. Pop ups nor in ground umbrellas are allowed inside for safety reasons.
How many swings are at Adventure Playground?
Adventure Playground has EVERYTHING. Well, everything except swings. But our kids were so happy with everything else that Adventure Playground DOES have that they didn’t even notice! (And we were happy to get a day off of pushing swings!)
What is the best age range for Adventure Playground?
Adventure Playground is great for toddlers through older elementary school aged children. It’s very spread out so there’s lots of room to play and explore in an age-appropriate way.
Is it a good place for a picnic?
Adventure Playground is a great place for a picnic. If you get there early, snag one of the shaded picnic tables as your home base. If the tables are full (and they usually fill up quickly!) make your own picnic in any of the open space. We like to bring a picnic blanket and set up a shop on a hill out of the way where we can see most of the playground.
Can you have parties at Adventure Playground?
Unfortunately, birthday parties, celebrations and large groups are not permitted in Adventure Playground. This isn’t to say you can’t attend as a group of Moms visiting the same park. You can! (And we have!) However, you won’t be searching for your kids amongst a group of kids at Summer Camp for instance.
What do we love most about Adventure Playground?
Water Play
Our kids could legit spend hours pumping water here. There are old fashioned pumps that kids love to learn how to work. And they also love standing directly under the spigot! The water is especially refreshing on those hot SoCal summer days.
*Important note: The water pump station is closed for maintenance every Monday*
The water then flows down into the marshy stream area to make our kids next favorite part of this playground!
Mud Play
We weren’t kidding when we said you can play in the mud at Adventure Playground. Kids aren’t just allowed to get messy, it’s encouraged! So if you’re mess averse, this might not be the spot for you. Be prepared for your kids to sit down directly in a big ol’ muddy puddle. And LOVE IT.
Sand toys, buckets, Lego style bricks and construction vehicles are always around to add to the fun. Bring some toys of your own or use what’s on hand. Just be prepared for anything you bring to get muddy!
Somewhere to Clean Up
All that water and mud means our kids get messy. And while we’re basically pros at cleaning our kids up after, say, a day at the beach, mud is a whole different thing. We love letting our kids get the mud between their toes, we’d just prefer it if they didn’t get that mud in our cars.
Thankfully, there’s plenty of space to clean up. Wash off muddy and sandy feet and toes before you leave. Don’t forget to bring a towel and maybe a change of clothes for the ride home.
Something for Everyone
And we really do mean everyone. I have 5 kids with 5 very different needs and interests. Classic slides, things to climb and hang from, giant Lego style bricks, and sensory experiences provide so many different opportunities.
It also means that my kids don’t get bored of being at the park after half an hour. There’s so much to explore that we can stretch this into a full day of play outside (which is SO important for kids) if we have to!
It makes Adventure Playground worth the drive to Irvine. And worth the next drive, because my kids always leave asking when we can come back!