Strawberry Creek Park Playground

This little park got a solid renovation not too long ago, and it shows — the climbing structure is genuinely impressive, with enough going on to keep kids busy well past the point where parents are ready to leave. There’s sand, swings, slides, and a water feature, plus a walking bridge right over Strawberry Creek that kids inevitably make a beeline for. The surrounding neighborhood keeps things pretty calm, which is a nice change from the more chaotic Berkeley playgrounds. Fair warning though: parking is genuinely annoying here, so plan to circle a few times or just walk if you’re coming from nearby. Grab a coffee from the shop close by and you’ve got yourself a pretty decent afternoon.