Greenwood’s park system does most of the work in this guide. Downtown has a playground built around a stacked cube climbing tower, a $5 city-run indoor play space and a library with a makerspace, and a few miles out are a playground Johnson County Parks calls Indiana’s first all-accessible playground, the city’s sledding hill and its only skatepark. The picks below cover the south side’s parks, indoor play and the go-kart stop down U.S. 31, with the city’s upcoming events at the end. Hours and prices come from each venue’s own website.
Planning beyond the south side? Our list of things to do in Indianapolis with kids covers the rest of the metro.
1) Old City Park
The stacked cube tower with a tube slide is the centerpiece of downtown Greenwood’s oldest park, with a rope climber, a climbing wall and swings around it. The park runs along Pleasant Creek from Meridian Street to Madison Avenue and connects to Craig Park, so it’s an easy start to a downtown walk. Our Old City Park guide has more photos.
- Address: 304 S. Meridian St., Greenwood
- Hours: Greenwood parks are open 8 a.m. to dusk Nov. 1 to April 30 and 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. May 1 to Oct. 31
Know before you go: The Greenwood Public Library is next door, which makes it the bathroom and rainy-backup stop. The park and its rentable shelter are on the Greenwood Parks page.
2) KiD CiTY at the Greenwood Community Center
KiD CiTY is a two-story indoor play space inside the city’s community center, and at $5 a kid for residents it’s one of the best deals on the south side. A two-story Luckey Climber climbing sculpture anchors the room. The Imagination Zone has a pint-sized grocery store and kitchen, an art area, a giant Lite Brite wall and a LEGO table, and the Active Zone has foam building blocks and a pirate ship. An outdoor Musical Garden is open only to KiD CiTY visitors. Our KiD CiTY guide has photos.
- Address: 100 Surina Way, Greenwood; 317-881-4545
- Hours: Mondays through Thursdays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve
- Cost: $5 for Greenwood residents and $7 for nonresidents, ages 1 to 15; under 1 free; the adult with them gets in free
- Ages: 1 to 15; kids 10 and up can stay on their own but must remain in KiD CiTY or on the courts
Know before you go: Photo ID is checked for every day pass, and residents need proof of address for the lower rate. Food is allowed in designated areas, and a hand stamp gets you back in the same day. Rates are on the Community Center user fees page.
3) Craig Park
Craig Park is the big Old Town park, with playgrounds, tennis courts, a volleyball court, paths and three nature-themed play pockets. The Early Learning Trail runs through it from Main Street to Smith Valley Road, with signs along the way that turn a walk into a game for preschoolers. It’s also where the Freedom Festival sets up each June.
- Address: 10 E. Smith Valley Road, Greenwood
- Rentals: Two shelters and a gazebo
Know before you go: Craig Park links to Old City Park, so you can park once and walk to both. Details are on the Greenwood Trails page.
4) Firefighter Play Pocket Park and the Play Pocket Trail
The Play Pocket Trail runs along Main Street from Craig Park to Fire Station 91 and strings together four small themed playgrounds: bees, trees, butterflies and firefighters. The firefighter pocket sits behind the working fire station and has fire department themed play features. Our Firefighter Play Pocket Park guide has photos.
- Location: Main Street between Craig Park and Fire Station 91, Greenwood
- Ages: Preschoolers and early elementary kids
Know before you go: The four pockets are small, so they work best as stops on a walk rather than a destination by themselves.
5) Greenwood Public Library
The library sits directly south of Old City Park, and its kids department has interactive play spaces, toys to check out during set hours and a regular lineup of story times and programs. Anyone with a Greenwood Public Library card can use The Studio, a makerspace with craft and STEM kits, a 3D printer, a laser cutter, a Cricut and a recording studio.
- Address: 310 S. Meridian St., Greenwood; 317-881-1953
- Hours: Mondays through Thursdays 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; closed Sundays. It closes at 5 p.m. Nov. 25, 2026, is closed Nov. 26 and 27 and Dec. 24 and 25, 2026, and closes at 5 p.m. Dec. 31, 2026.
- The Studio kit checkout: Weekday afternoons from noon and the first Saturday of each month; a GPL card is required
Know before you go: The library is renovating in phases. The Kids Department is scheduled to close from Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2026, to Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2027, with a selection of kids books in the lobby, and The Studio is scheduled to close Feb. 10 to March 31, 2027. Dates are estimates, so check the library’s construction page before you go. On Sundays, the Johnson County Public Library’s White River Branch, 1664 Library Blvd., is open 1 to 5 p.m.
6) Independence Park
Independence Park opened in 2000, and Johnson County Parks calls its playground Indiana’s first all-accessible playground. It’s set up so kids of different abilities can play together: the playground is built for ages 2 to 12 with rubber surfacing under every piece, a sensory-friendly music area and an interactive Yalp Sona Arch. There’s a zero-grade, quarter-mile accessible trail, a three-quarter-mile asphalt trail with a Johnson County Public Library StoryWalk, eight pickleball courts and a low accessible basketball court small kids can use too. See our Independence Park guide.
- Address: 2100 S. Morgantown Road, Greenwood (Johnson County Parks, White River Township)
- Hours: Dawn to dusk
Know before you go: The road and trails aren’t maintained in winter, and the park closes during heavy snow and ice. The farm animals next door belong to a neighbor, so skip the fence. Rules are on the Johnson County Parks Independence Park page.
7) Greenwood Fieldhouse
The city turned the old Greenwood Middle School gym into a downtown fieldhouse with indoor turf, hardwood courts, an elevated walking track and golf simulators. For little kids, Tots on the Turf is open sports time with toddler-size basketball, soccer, golf and baseball gear. Older kids can play skee-ball or mini golf on the simulator screens.
- Address: 411 S. Madison Ave., Greenwood; 317-883-8066
- Hours: Mondays through Fridays 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Tots on the Turf: Tuesdays through Thursdays 9 a.m. to noon; $5 per child 5 and under; caregivers free
- Day passes: $5 youth 3 to 17 for residents, $7 for nonresidents; adults $6 for residents or $15 for nonresidents
Know before you go: Day-pass users under 15 need an adult with them, and cleats aren’t allowed. The track has stroller times weekdays 9 a.m. to noon. Details are on the Fieldhouse user fees page.
8) City Center Park
The site of Greenwood’s old public pool now holds what the city calls Johnson County’s first splash pad, open 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the summer months. The rest of the year, the accessible playgrounds carry it, with expression swings for kids of all abilities, plus walking paths and a basketball court.
- Address: 415 Lincoln St., Greenwood
- Rentals: One shelter with a charcoal grill
9) Freedom Park and Freedom Springs Aquatic Park
Freedom Park, on the southwest side, has a large playground, a 1.5-mile walking trail, a disc golf course and tennis and basketball courts. When it snows, the big hill is the city’s sledding spot, one of the Johnson County hills in our guide to sledding hills in Indianapolis. Freedom Springs Aquatic Park, the city water park inside the park, is closed until Memorial Day weekend; its 2026 season ran May 23 to Sept. 7 with day passes at $10 for resident adults, $8 for resident kids and $18 for nonresidents (2026 rates). Our Freedom Springs guide covers the slides, the lazy river and the rules for when it reopens.
- Address: 850 W. Stop 18 Road, Greenwood; 317-884-2078
- Rentals: One shelter house
10) Westside Park and the Greenwood Trails
Greenwood has more than 50 miles of trails and walkways. Westside Park is the pick for a nature walk with kids: Pleasant Creek runs through the park, and the trails follow the creek through the woods. The park also has playgrounds, tennis courts and a softball diamond. For a longer outing, try the Tracy Trail, the Grassy Creek Trail off Worthsville Road or the Polk Hill Trail, where the city installs new sculptures every two years through Art on the Trail.
- Westside Park: 820 W. Main St., Greenwood
- Grassy Creek Park trailhead: 602 E. Worthsville Road, Greenwood
Know before you go: The city’s trail map is on the Greenwood Trails page.
11) Northeast Skatepark
The city rebuilt the skatepark in Northeast Park with community input, adding mini quarter pipes, bowl pockets with jumps, stair sets and a China bank with a manual pad. Greenwood Parks calls it the area’s only skatepark, and it’s free, which makes it a good place to send a tween with a board. The rest of the park has a playground, a basketball court and soccer fields for siblings.
- Address: 100 Crestview Drive, Greenwood
12) Kids Empire (Indianapolis)
Just north of Greenwood near County Line Road, Kids Empire is a padded indoor playground with a multi-level maze, slides, a ball pit, a light-up dance floor, ride-on vehicles and a separate tot area. Admission is good all day, which matters if you need to leave for lunch.
- Address: 8707 Hardegan St., Indianapolis; 317-883-7885
- Hours: Mondays through Thursdays 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Fridays through Sundays 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
- Cost: $19.90 per child, with two adults free per child; $5 for each additional adult; babies under 1 free with a paying sibling
- Ages: 1 to 12
Know before you go: Everyone signs a waiver and wears non-grip socks, adults included, and outside food isn’t allowed. Check in with staff and keep your receipt if you plan to leave and come back. Details are on the Kids Empire Hardegan page.
Related Article: Indoor playgrounds near Indianapolis
13) Rascal’s Fun Zone (Whiteland)
Rascal’s, about 8 miles south of Greenwood Park Mall in Whiteland, is the south side’s go-kart stop. There are four kart tracks, including an indoor Family Gran Prix and a Rookie track for small drivers, plus mini golf, Spin Zone bumper cars, duckpin bowling and an arcade. There’s no admission fee, so a parent can watch for free.
- Address: 629 U.S. 31 N., Whiteland; 317-535-7600
- Hours: Mondays through Thursdays 3 to 9 p.m.; Fridays 3 to 10 p.m.; Saturdays 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sundays 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
- Cost: $8 per attraction, or wristbands from $22 for one hour to $43 all day; duckpin bowling is $20 to $25 an hour per lane
Know before you go: Rain and cold close the outdoor tracks, and there are no refunds when they close, so buy single attraction passes on an iffy day. Kart height rules and prices are on the Rascal’s pricing page.
14) Greenwood Amphitheater
Behind the Community Center, Pleasant Creek forms the back edge of the Greenwood Amphitheater, and the natural slope gives everyone a view of the stage. It’s home to the city’s free Summer Concert Series, and in December the park around it becomes the Lighted Trail, a free walk-through display of more than 42,000 lights that’s on our list of free places to see Christmas lights near Indianapolis.
- Location: Behind the Greenwood Community Center, 100 Surina Way
Know before you go: Pair it with KiD CiTY in the same building and the downtown parks a short walk away.
Greenwood Parks & Recreation runs most of the city’s family calendar, from the Halloween parade and trick-or-treating to KiD CiTY Christmas, Breakfast with Santa and the Lighted Trail, and the dates below come from our events calendar.
Coming Up in Greenwood
Family events in and near Greenwood, updated daily
The city’s signature traditions are the Freedom Festival at Craig Park each June, with a parade, a drone show and fireworks, and the free Summer Concert Series at the amphitheater on summer Saturdays.
How to Plan Your Greenwood Day
- Downtown loop: Old City Park, the Play Pocket Trail and Craig Park on foot, then the library if anyone needs a bathroom or a book.
- Rainy day: KiD CiTY in the morning, Tots on the Turf at the Fieldhouse for the little ones or Kids Empire if you need all day.
- Every ability: Independence Park’s accessible playground and StoryWalk, then the expression swings at City Center Park.
- Big kids and tweens: Go-karts and duckpin bowling at Rascal’s or the skatepark at Northeast Park.
- December evening: KiD CiTY until it closes, then the Lighted Trail after dusk, all from one parking spot.
Heading north? Our guides to things to do in Carmel with kids and things to do in Fishers with kids pick up where this one ends.
