Waterworks Park

Waterworks Park is in Beaver Dam.  My kiddo was pretty disappointed to discover there was not actually any water to play in...

 but she quickly recovered when she saw the awesome pirate ship playground.

Waterworks Park is an inclusive, handicapped-accessible park.  The playground is also entirely fenced in with only one opening, which makes it a bit more reassuring to give the kids some independence.

There is a picnic shelter with bathrooms.

Waterworks Park
858 Denning Ave ~ Beaver Dam, WI

Lincoln Park

Lincoln Park in Watertown is your typical park.  We had fun playing on the two playsets.  There is also a sandbox and some swings.

The park also has lots of green space and a picnic shelter with bathrooms.

Lincoln Park
Elm Street & Union Street ~ Watertown, WI

South Park

South Park in Oshkosh has a little something for everyone.  There is a beautiful bridge often used for wedding photos, ducks to feed, multiple playgrounds (one of which is an inclusive playground that is handicapped-accessible), and a splash pad.  There are also restrooms.

South Park
West South Park Ave & Georgia Street ~ Oshkosh, WI

Dodge County YMCA

The Dodge County YMCA has plenty to keep your family busy!  There are a couple of playgrounds, athletic facilities...and pools!  Our family has spent our time in the family adventure pool.

This is a great place for little ones.  It has a zero-depth entry with a kiddie slide and some water fountains and features.  There is a lazy river and a tube waterslide as well.


Be sure to check the schedules online because you can only play during designated "open swim" times.

YMCA of Dodge County
220 Corporate Drive ~ Beaver Dam, WI ~ 920-887-8811
Admission: lots of options!  Day passes start at $6/child, $12/adult, $20/family; memberships available

Union Park

Union Park in Watertown is on a dead-end street in an out-of-the-way part of town.  It is home to two blue and white play structures.

We had lots of fun trying both!  There are some unique features, like this fun tv featuring your very own programming.

There is quite a bit of open space as well as a picnic shelter with bathrooms.

Union Park
South Monroe Street & Lafayette Street ~ Watertown, WI

Mary Rose Park

 Mary Rose Park is a small park in a quiet Watertown neighborhood near the hospital.

They have some really unique equipment.  There is a large climber and one a bit smaller.  There is also some green space with a volleyball net and soccer field.  There is a port-a-potty.

Mary Rose Park
Meadowbrook Drive ~ Watertown, WI

Wildwood Wildlife Park

 We had so much fun at Wildwood Wildlife Park in Minocqua!  Our favorite part was the petting zoo area.  They had lots of barnyard animals, but they also had a few exotics the handlers rotated out of the cages to pet as well.

I learned that Wildwood Wildlife Park is actually the second largest zoo in Wisconsin.  They really did have an amazing assortment of animals and offered many ways to interact with them.  That was the best part!

The one major complaint I have is that they have NO diaper changing tables.  One of the workers told me it was because someone ripped the one they had off the wall, so they decided it wasn't worth replacing it.  Excuse me?!  You are an establishment aimed toward families and children.  Every other place we went to on our little mini-vacation had a changing station, including our other stops in Minocqua.  I'm pretty sure if almost every other business can figure out how to provide a changing station for their patrons, you can manage to do the same.  The fact that a place specifically for children doesn't have a place to change diapers is unacceptable to me.  I would probably not pay again to get in until I didn't have to worry about this for the day.

That being said, we really did have a lot of fun.

Wildwood Wildlife Park
10094 State Highway 70 West ~ Minocqua, WI ~ 715-356-5588
Admission: $16.99/adult, $11.99/child, under 2 free, season passes available; lots of extra possibilities for additional cost