San Francisco has some of the best playgrounds in the nation, and the city’s children have over 229 playgrounds, parks, and open spaces to enjoy. San Francisco Recreation and Parks, in collaboration with SF Parks Alliance, has poured millions of dollars into overhauling parks and playground equipment. Many of these renovations were funded by the Let’s Play SF! initiative and 2012’s Clean And Safe Neighborhood Parks General Obligation Bond.
If you haven’t seen these incredible playgrounds post-renovation, there’s a handy map at the bottom of this article to help you plan your next kid outing!
1. Presidio Tunnel Tops
Presidio Tunnel Tops opened to great excitement in the summer of 2022, housing a kids’ paradise with all sorts of fun areas to explore. The whole park covers about 14 acres, but families will beeline to the Outpost, a 2-acre play area outfitted with fallen tree trunks, boulders, and more natural elements. Stop by the Presidio Field Station for some fun drop-in nature and history presentations.
📍 Location: Presidio – 210 Lincoln Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94129
2. George Christopher Playground
The George Christopher Playground in Diamond Heights underwent a $5.2M renovation and opened its doors at the end of April 2021. The new play area is designed with both younger and older kids in mind, including swings, a whirl, and several exploration areas. Kids can play in a garden meant to spark their imaginations, complete with stepping stones, a bridge, a playhouse, and a dry riverbed.
📍 Location: Diamond Heights – 5210 Diamond Heights Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94131
3. Willie “Woo Woo” Wong Playground
The Willie “Woo Woo” Wong Playground opened its doors in February 2021 after a $14.5M renovation. It’s named after University of San Francisco basketball star Willie Wong, who played there from 1948-1950. The brand new custom play equipment features a huge climbable water dragon sculpture and a beautiful phoenix. There are also cohesive bridges, pathways, a two-level tower, several slides, and courts to accommodate basketball, volleyball, badminton and pickleball.
📍 Location: Chinatown – 830 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA 94108
4. Redwood Grove Playground
The city revealed this beautiful playground in October 2020, situated on top of a hill between two picnic areas in McLaren Park. It incorporates native plantings and other natural elements such as boulders and timbers. A large tunnel slide descends from a towering structure in the center of the park, and there are plenty of climbing nets for kids who love to explore.
📍 Location: McLaren Park – 200 John F Shelley Dr, San Francisco, CA 94134
5. Sergeant John Macaulay Park
Sergeant John McAulay Park was revealed in October 2020 after a $2.9M renovation. Visitors can enjoy a ship-themed play structure, new swings, and plenty of nice seating, landscaping and public art.
📍 Location: O’Farrell and Larkin St., San Francisco, CA 94109
6. Margaret Hayward Playground
This playground in the Western Addition was revealed in October 2020 after a whopping $28M renovation. The 6-acre park features an exciting children’s play area with plenty of nets for climbing, as well as a brand-new clubhouse and kitchen, improved basketball courts, sports fields, and more.
📍 Location: Western Addition – 1016 Laguna St, San Francisco, CA 94102
7. West Portal Playground
Here’s an extra imaginative playground that opened in October 2020 after a $3.4M renovation. Its crowning moment is the enormous purple dragon head with a big red slide as its tongue. Its inclusive play equipment comes in exciting colors and is surrounded by new landscaping, seating, and rubberizing paving.
📍 Location: West Portal – 131 Lenox Way, San Francisco, CA 94127
8. Alice Chalmers Park
Alice Chalmers Park has a brand new, $3.7M playground as of October 2020. The unique design features 3 stacked boxes that children can climb inside of to reach an enormous metal tunnel slide. The architectural elements make for a memorable playground experience, not to mention new and improved landscaping and seating areas.
📍 Location: 670 Brunswick St, San Francisco, CA 94112
9. South Park
This exciting park was revealed to the public after a $1M renovation back in March 2017, but it’s so beautiful we had to add it to our list. South Park is the oldest park in San Francisco, but it fell into disrepair years ago until the city made major repairs to park infrastructure and added an awesome new climbing structure.
📍 Location: SoMa – 64 S Park St, San Francisco, CA 94107
10. Merced Heights Playground
This massive playground features brand new equipment including a timber play structure, climbers, a spinner, and a bowl swing. It was revealed in October 2020 after a $5.3M renovation.
📍 Location: Ingleside – 801 Shields St, San Francisco, CA 94132
11. Panhandle Playground
This fun playground opened in November 2019. It features a sandbox to dig for sea creatures, climbing structures, new swing sets, and a giant slide built into natural boulders. The surrounding landscaping showcases 80 species of trees!
📍 Location: Panhandle Park – near Oak St and Ashbury, San Francisco, CA 94117