7 Kid-Friendly Parks In Coquitlam

Metro Vancouver offers an incredible number of amazing parks, and here are the best parks in Coquitlam. Moreover, the best kid-friendly parks in Coquitlam, tried and tested by our family. They usually offer playgrounds, easy, scenic walking trails and water in some form – so mostly everything that kids enjoy.

I love them the best from mid-spring until October when they are lush green. Unlike in North Vancouver, fewer areas are evergreen in Coquitlam, so trees in the parks are mostly bare in the winter months, and you don’t see lots of greenery. But the sight of water is soothing and beautiful any time of the year. (I mean, for me. For my energetic little toddler, I’d use the word “exciting”.) The power of the creeks and rivers is the most spectacular in the winter months and after heavy rains.

In this post I collected Coquitlam parks which are great for spending time outdoors with kids. They might include a playground, but that’s not the point (your child might argue, I know). The point is the network of easy walking trails, creeks or lakes. The point is enjoying nature together.

Other great kid-friendly places in Metro Vancouver:

• 10 Best Playgrounds In Vancouver
• 10 Kid-Friendly Parks In North Vancouver
• 16 Very Short, Toddler-Friendly Hiking Trails Near Vancouver

Without further ado, let’s see the best kid-friendly parks in Coquitlam:

Mundy Park

The best park in Coquitlam – for kids and adults alike. Mundy Park is among the largest ones in Coquitlam, and it offers the experience of walking in a temperate rainforest while you’re in the city. It’s hard to find anything it doesn’t offer, because it has a 16 km trail network, two lakes (Mundy Lake and Lost Lake), sport fields, outdoor swimming pool, picnic shelters, countless benches and one of the most well-equipped and exciting playgrounds in all Metro Vancouver.

Let’s start with the trails, because you find a variety of them. There’s a 5.5 km long paved community pathway around the park, and a network of pebbly trails inside. The 1 km loop around Mundy Lake is among our favorites, the 4 km Perimeter Trail is a wide, lovely and easy forest trail, and the Interlaken Trail connects the two lakes.

Trails are mostly flat, and my enthusiastic 3-year-old biked here a lot, as well. We visited Mundy Park for the first time when he was already into biking with his balance bike, and this park offered endless paths for practice, and most of them shaded, so they were pleasant even on the hottest summer days.

And I have to tell you about the playground. It didn’t only impress Tomi, but me, too (which is not easy, because I visited too many playgrounds with him and spent way too much time there). But the playground at the edge of Mundy Park is a piece of art and a heaven for kids of any age. The toddler playground area has the cutest playhouses, connected by a small tunnel and accompanied by a tiny slide, but you can buy veggies or eat (toy) pizza. The spinners are popular among kids of any age, there’s a multi-person seesaw and a variety of swings.

Mundy Park toddler playground

But the biggest hit, especially for older kids, is the giant wooden climbing structure that consists of several towers, slides and a rope tunnel, and you also find some easier climbing structures for smaller kids at the bottom. Even though there’s no adjoining spray park, the large trees give shade, so it’s enjoyable on hot summer days, too.

And a huge plus for mamas? Free wifi on the playground. No, I’m not on my smartphone all the time, but I spend hours on playgrounds every day, and I’m happy when I can combine that time with a quick call with friends, or just a few messages. (And the reason that I feel I need to defend myself is that I was way too judgemental about mums with phones in hand on the playground before I became one. Oh, how little I understood about motherhood.)

Mundy Park playground

Anyway, this is not only the best Coquitlam playground, but the best in the whole Metro Vancouver area.

• Washrooms: yes
• Parking: free parking lots
• Length of trail: 16 km trail system
• Playground: yes, one of the best playgrounds in Coquitlam

Como Lake Park

It’s a small park, perfect to spend a few hours outdoors in any season. The nice loop trail around Como Lake is only 1 km, and it’s a completely flat, hard packed gravel path, popular among joggers and walkers. It’s ideal for a toddler to practice with his running bike, I might add, and yes, we did this loop quite a couple of times.

Benches are located along the loop trail and throughout the park, so it’s never a problem to sit down for a quick rest (and snack). You can see countless ducks and Canadian geese. Large grassy areas are inviting for any kind of ball game. Two boat docks are located on both sides of the lake, but power boats are not permitted.

A fenced playground on the lakeshore is also an attractive feature to kids, and I was surprised about the variety and cuteness of the play structures. My son was obsessed with the little boat dock and the boat. Basically, they built a miniature Como Lake in the playground. But there’s a tiny house, too, several slides with climbing structures, music features and a selection of swings. It’s particularly enjoyable for smaller kids, but the older ones can find some challenging structures, as well.

Como Lake Park playground

There are two parking lots, one is in the south and one is in the north end of the park, and both is off Gatensbury Street. It’s one of the best parks in Coquitlam to visit with a toddler.

• Washrooms: yes (northern parking lot)
• Parking: free parking lots
• Length of trail: ~1 km loop trail around Como Lake
• Playground: yes

Town Center Park & Lafarge Lake Park

The Town Center and Lafarge Lake Park are right next to each other, so we think of them as one – a large one! You find opportunities for almost any sport here, not to mention spaces for social gathering, an easy walking trail around Lafarge Lake, a playground and a spray park.

The first time we visited this park was in December, and we did so because of the Christmas Lights Display around Lafarge Lake. But the 1.2 km Lafarge Lake Loop trail is pretty in any season, and it’s a completely flat, hard surface path (partly paved), suitable for either strollers or toddlers practicing their walking or biking skills. The lake offers plenty of excitement all the way around.

Coquitlam Town Center Park spray park and playground

The spray park was a huge hit for my son in the summer. It has a large red car with a few smaller sprinklers, several water guns, a kid-sized sink and also a smaller area with a tiny sprinkler that looks like a spring coming under the rocks. While it offers excitement for older kids, even toddlers and babies – who might be afraid of larger sprinklers and big tipping buckets – can enjoy this water park.

The park has several parking lots, so check the park map to locate the most convenient one.

• Washrooms: yes
• Parking: free parking lots
• Length of trail: ~5 km of walking trails
• Playground: yes

Coquitlam River Park

Kids or not, it’s one of the best parks in Coquitlam for those longing for nature and solitude. It offers about 10 km of forest walking trails, mostly flat and along the beautiful Coquitlam River. It’s a gentle river in the summer, suitable for a dip, but rushing and powerful in winter and early spring. Fall brings wonderful colors as the majority of the forest is seasonal, and that’s also the time when salmon travels up the river from the Pacific Ocean.

Walking the Coquitlam River Trail is my soothing therapy. The trail is wide, almost completely flat and never gets crowded. There’s no playground or any other facilities here, but that’s the point. It’s nature and you (and the occasional black bear). There are countless little cascades and river access points. It’s a great park for the first hikes with your kid, and you can make the riverside trail as short or as long as you like.

And if you’re looking for a playground, the one in nearby Lions Park will surely satisfy (scroll down to read more about it).

• Washrooms: pit toilet only
• Parking: small dirt parking lot (at 1190 Shaughnessy Street, Coquitlam)
• Length of trail: ~10 km of forest trails
• Playground: no

Blue Mountain Park

Blue Mountain Park is not nearly as large as Mundy Park, but it’s carefully planned and offers a variety of exciting activities. It has sport fields and forest walking paths (both paved and unpaved), a well-equipped playground, a spray park and a wading pool for summer fun, several picnic shelters and a tiny waterfall. Considering all the cool play equipment for any age group, it’s one of the best parks for kids.

The playground has several areas, and it’s just perfect for any age. There are ping pong tables and challenging rope structures for climbing and balancing for older kids. There are several separate swing areas with 2 baby swings, 4 belt swings, a saucer swing and an accessible swing. Two large horse figures encourage imaginative play. Kids can try a selection of music features. The tiny tunnel and balancing structure, along with the small spinners are particularly for the youngest ones. The slide area has two slides, a small tunnel, a climbing rock and other exciting climbing structures. It’s spread out and offers lots of choices. If your kid is bored on the local playgrounds, this is one that will surprise and impress.

The spray park is located further from the playground, and it’s quite large. The highlight (at least for my boy) is the boat structure. And what’s unusual, Blue Mountain Park has a circular wading pool in addition to the spray park!

The walking paths are short, but they are under magnificent, shady trees and are surely just enough for smaller kids to practice walking or biking.

• Washrooms: yes
• Parking: free parking lots and free street parking
• Length of trail: short walking paths around the park
• Playground: yes

Marguerite Park

Marguerite Park is a real local’s secret, and stumbling upon it on a crispy, sunny October day when trees were golden and red makes me a bit biased. The first thing you’ll notice is the playground. It looks so new and so carefully and creatively designed. It’s likely one of the newest playgrounds in Coquitlam. But there’s also a lovely community space with benches, a large grassy lawn and a trail. Yes, at the back of the park a trail leads into the forest of lush green ferns and conifers.

This is what I love so much about Metro Vancouver, that you can stumble upon forest trails in the city, because the residential areas are connected to mountains and woodlands. This trail that crosses Hyde Creek will connect you to the wilderness if you want, but you can also choose to walk a ~1.5 km loop following the creek, then turning back towards Marguerite Park when you reach Coy Ave. The path is quite wide and relatively flat, with a few steeper sections. My son completed it with his balance bike.

The Marguerite Park playground consists of several well-separated areas: a toddler or baby playground, an area with climbing rocks, a swing area (one belt swing and one baby swing) and a playground area aimed for older kids. The toddler playground area has a cute little twin slide, spring riders and simple climbing structures. Honestly, babies and young toddlers would enjoy it the most, my 3-year-old was more excited about the larger climbing structures and slides, the climbing wall and the rope tunnel. There are several cool spinners and music features, too.

Really, being in such a quiet residential neighborhood and used mostly by local families, this playground is quite fancy. I liked the nature themed elements, like the leaf-shaped spinner or the climbing rocks.

The only thing we missed: toilets! If you spend a few hours on the trail and on the playground, and you don’t live in one of the surrounding houses, you’d need toilets – please.

• Washrooms: no
• Parking: plenty of free street parking
• Length of trail: ~1.5 km loop along Hyde Creek
• Playground: yes

Minnekhada Regional Park

Minnekhada Regional Park is a bit of an exception, because it’s a regional park, but still within city limits. It’s very popular among locals, including local families, and for good reasons. It has dense forest, hills, elevated rocky viewpoints, marshlands and rich bird life. You can find easy trails and more strenuous hikes, so you can choose a suitable one for kids of any age.

The best season to visit? Any. Most trees are evergreen, but it’s certainly the most colorful in summer. However, the frozen marshlands in the winter can be just as magical. The two marshes look like small lakes when they have enough water, and a dyke separates them that has a flat walking path. It’s called the Log Walk, and if you’re looking for an easy, short trail with nice views and by the water, this is the one to start with. Lodge Trail is another easy one that offers close views of the Lower Marsh.

Walking all around the Upper Marsh and Lower Marsh involves some steeper and more rough terrain, as the eastern side of the marshes are hilly. You can complete the trails to Low Knoll and High Knoll viewpoints in this area, to get views of the landscape from above. They will be challenging and fun for kids, especially for those kids who already have some stamina and experience in hiking. I hiked to the Low Knoll with my 2.5-year-old, but it doesn’t depend on age only, you know your kid the best. (And it depends on mood, too, especially when it comes to toddlers.)

Minnekhada Regional Park has two entrances, along with their own parking lots. The smaller one is at Minnekhada Lodge (4455 Oliver Road), and you can access Lodge Trail and Fern Trail from there. The main parking lot is at 4000 Quarry Road, and it gives easy access to the marshland and the lakes (marshes).

Pinecone Burke Provincial Park is the northwestern neighbor of Minnekhada Regional Park, offering even more hiking opportunities and truly wild getaways.

• Washrooms: pit toilets only
• Parking: free parking lots at both entrances
• Length of trail: several trails, 10+ km altogether
• Playground: no

+1: Lions Park, Port Coquitlam

Here’s another exception, because Lions Park is actually in Port Coquitlam, but visiting it can be connected with other adventures along the Coquitlam River in both Coquitlam or Port Coquitlam.

Lions Park is also located along the Coquitlam River, though it doesn’t offer much river views. But it does offer a shaded, hard surface walking path that’s part of the Traboulay PoCo Trail and an adventurous playground with a zipline, several slides – including a huge tunnel slide -, swings, a large sandbox, a small spray park and convenient picnic areas.

a large sandbox and a small water park on Lions Park playground

• Washrooms: yes
• Parking: free parking lot, but with time limit (3 hours)
• Length of trail: a few hundred meters, but it connects to riverside trails in both direction
• Playground: yes

Coquitlam walks on a map

I marked all the walks mentioned in this post on a map for you. Here you are, pick one, pack some snacks and drinks (essential when going for even the shortest hike with a kid!) and just go:

Looking for even more fun activities to do with kids in British Columbia, Metro Vancouver and beyond? Click here to see some other places I explored with my son.

Also, being a full-time mom of a toddler meant quite a large amount of time on playgrounds, and we tested the ones not only in Vancouver, but also in Burnaby, West Vancouver and North Vancouver.