Alvaston Park
BEST FOR
Ages 0-99
ENTRY
Free
SETTING
Outdoors
WHERE
Derby
What it’s like
Free 85-acre riverside park with a PlayZone, BMX track, science garden and a lake to walk round, with a café for when everyone flags.
There's no entry fee here, which makes it an easy one to say yes to on a random Tuesday. The PlayZone is the obvious pull for younger kids, and there's a BMX area and open space for football if yours are the sort who need to be moving. Older ones might get more out of the science garden, and the fishing spot along the historic lake is a nice change of pace if you've got a patient kid rather than an energetic one.
The lake walk ties the whole park together, and at 85 acres you're not going to do it all in half an hour. Picnics are allowed across the park, so you can bring your own if the Waterside Cafe queue looks long, though it's there if you'd rather not carry sandwiches. Parking's free too, in the car park by the Community Centre off Meadow Lane, which takes the sting out of a spontaneous visit.
Opening hours shift a bit through the week, shorter on weekdays and a bit longer at weekends, and everything's weather permitting, so a proper downpour might see things cut short or the café shut. It's flagged as wheelchair accessible with accessible toilets on site, which matters more here than at most parks given the size of the ground you're covering.
Christmas bank holidays are the one time the café shuts, so don't plan a festive picnic around a hot drink from there. Beyond that it's the kind of open, free park you can turn up to without much planning, which after enough £15-a-head soft play trips is honestly a relief.
Facilities
Need to know
- Parking
- Free car park located by the Community Centre, accessed via Meadow Lane off A6 London Road
- Food
- Waterside Cafe
- Picnics
- Picnicking allowed in the 85-acre riverside park
- Everything runs weather permitting, so a wet day could shorten your visit or shut the café
- Weekday hours are shorter than weekends, worth timing your trip around that
- Picnics are allowed across the 85 acres if you'd rather skip the café queue
- The park is big enough that the lake walk alone will take a proper chunk of your visit
Plan your visit
How much does it cost?
Nothing to get in, it's a free park.
Do we need to book?
No booking mentioned, you just turn up.
Is there parking?
A free car park by the Community Centre, accessed via Meadow Lane off the A6 London Road.
What is there for kids to actually do?
BMX riding, football, the PlayZone, a science garden, fishing and a walk round the historic lake.
What about food?
The Waterside Cafe is on site, though it's shut over the Christmas bank holidays. Picnics are allowed across the park if you'd rather bring your own.
Is it accessible for wheelchairs and buggies?
It's listed as wheelchair accessible with an accessible toilet on site.
What are the opening hours?
9:30am to 3:30pm on weekdays, 9am to 4pm at weekends, though all times are weather permitting.
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