Lincoln Conventions and Visitors Bureau

23rd and N to 33rd and Sheridan Blvd.

Take time to smell the roses!
Antelope Park is a particularly beautiful park offering extensive facilities, including Rose Gardens, Sunken Gardens, fountains, statues, Lincoln Children's Zoo, a recreation center, a play center, a golf course, trails system, tennis courts, swimming pool and several playground areas and is accessible for all children. This park appears to be several parks as it is bisected by many streets. Antelope Park Playground, at Memorial Drive in Antelope Park, is accessible for all children.

Sunken Gardens, at South 27th Street and D Street, is a beautiful terraced garden featuring thousands of annuals, reflecting ponds, waterfall, paved pathways with donated engraved concrete pavers that memorialize special people and events, restrooms and an ornate gazebo. The gardens are ADA accessible.

Ager Play Center
Large indoor play structure designed for kids at least three years old and under four feet tall (for safety reasons the height restriction is firm.) Playground equipment, indoor track complete with kiddie vehicles and snack area provide a fun environment. Separate toddler area for children who aren't quite three year's old.

Hours: Sessions change seasonally. Call for current times.
Cost: Minimal charge for everyone over 1 year old, including adults.

1300 S. 27th Street
(402) 441-6788

Antelope Park Playground at Memorial Drive off A Street in Antelope Park is accessible for all children.

The man-made lake is the center feature of Holmes Park and is a Lincoln favorite for non-motorized boating, picnicking and fishing. The park also offers ball diamonds, playground, golf course and Hyde Memorial Observatory. In winter, part of the lake is cleared of snow for ice skating and sledders fill the hills.

70th & Normal Blvd. 

The 1,100-acre park includes splendid examples of public art, an outdoor amphitheater, picnic areas, hiker/biker trails, ponds, a sled run and a golf course. Gifted to the city in 1928 by Mr. and Mrs. John F. Harris, it was designed by Lincoln's Ernst Herminghaus and was placed on the National Register of outstanding landscape architecture in 1993. The two entrances to the park are graced by life-size statues of a bison and an elk. The "Smoke Signal," a 14-foot likeness of Chief Red Cloud, was erected in 1935, and stands proudly on a geologically interesting outcrop of Dakota sandstone. During the dedication ceremony, chiefs and members of the Omaha, Winnebago, Sioux and Ponca Indian tribes sat on horseback facing the setting sun. The "Columns," a favorite spot for weddings, are remnants from the 1907 remodeling of the Federal Treasury Building in Washington, D.C. Pinewood Bowl, a natural outdoor amphitheater, is the site of a summer musical and other community events. The park can be reached using the Bison Trail, part of the 99-mile hiker/biker city trail system.

Park Hours: Open daily until sunset.

Pioneers Park Nature Center

At the southwest corner of Pioneers Park stands a 668-acre Nature Center. It features eight miles of walking trails that meander along ponds, through tallgrass prairie, woodlands and wetlands, and across a stream. A herd of bison, elk and deer, wild turkey, hawks and owls are exhibited in their natural Nebraska habitat along the Nature Center trails. Herb, bird and butterfly gardens bloom. Two interpretive buildings contain small animal and hands-on exhibits dedicated to the plants and animals of Nebraska. A variety of public programs for all ages are offered in every season. Admission is free.

Nature Center Hours: 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday
                                 noon-5 p.m. Sunday
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.

3201 S. Coddington
(402) 441-7895

Web Links:
City of Lincoln -Parks & Recreation Department
Pioneers Park Nature Center