Encanto Park
Rating
Family of 4
$0 to walk in, use the playgrounds, picnic, and circle the lagoon, with free parking.
Duration
2-4 hours
Best Ages
2-12 years
About
Encanto Park is the closest thing central Phoenix has to a classic big-city park, and at 4. 6 stars across more than 7,000 reviews, it is one of the highest-rated free things to do in the city with kids. It sits a few minutes northwest of downtown, and the first thing families notice is the trees.
Mature shade canopy, actual lawns, and a lagoon running through the middle of it make this feel less like the desert than anywhere else in town, which is exactly why it stays busy from October through April.
The lagoon is the anchor. Kids walk the path around the water, watch the ducks that come right up to the edge, and on good days there are boats out. Fishing is part of the draw for older kids, though Arizona Game and Fish requires a license for anglers 10 and up and sets its own urban fishing rules, so check azgfd.
com before you pack rods. Boat rental availability at the lagoon runs on a seasonal schedule that shifts year to year, so confirm with Phoenix Parks and Recreation at (602) 261-8991 the week you go.
What makes Encanto unusual is that a small amusement park sits inside it. Enchanted Island, with its carousel, train, and kiddie rides, is a separate paid operation on the grounds, which means a free afternoon at the park can end with rides if you want it to. It keeps its own limited hours and is closed some weekdays, so check enchantedisland.
com before you promise anything. There is also a city pool and a golf course on the property, each with separate schedules and fees.
Plan your parking before you arrive, because the park is genuinely large. The playgrounds, the lagoon, the pool, and the amusement park entrance are each nearest to different lots, and guessing wrong means a long walk in the sun with a stroller and a cooler. Once you are parked, the paved paths and flat lawns make strolling easy.
The practical advice for families is to treat the free half as the plan. Playgrounds, lagoon path, open lawns, and picnic tables cost nothing, parking is free, and two or three hours of that plus a packed lunch is a full outing for most kids. Summer still means mornings before ten, tree cover or not.
Cool-season weekend afternoons are the liveliest and the hardest for parking, packed with birthday parties and family gatherings. Weekday late afternoons in the fall and spring are the quietest, prettiest version of this park.
Age Suitability
Parent Logistics
Stroller-Friendly
Yes
Nursing / Changing
Unknown
Kid Meals
Limited
Setting
Outdoor
Rainy Day
Not ideal
Plan Your Visit
Best Time to Visit
Weekday mornings before 10 AM in summer. October through April, late afternoon into golden hour around the lagoon is the best of it, and weekday visits avoid the weekend party crowds
Wait Times
The park itself has no line. Paid extras inside it, boat rentals and the amusement park rides, run 10 to 30 minutes on busy weekend afternoons in the cool season
Nearby Food
There is concession-style food inside the park near the amusement park area, with hours that follow that operation's schedule. Encanto sits just off the 15th Avenue and Encanto Boulevard corridor a few minutes from downtown Phoenix, so you are close to coffee shops, taquerias, and casual family restaurants along Grand Avenue and McDowell Road. Most families pack a picnic and eat at one of the shaded tables instead.
Why Kids Love It
Encanto has a lagoon in the middle of Phoenix, which by itself is enough for most kids. Ducks come right up to the path, there are boats out on the water on nice days, and the tree cover means it does not feel like the desert for a minute. Then there is the part kids never forget: a small old-fashioned amusement park with a carousel and a train sits inside the park, so a walk around the water can end with rides.
Nowhere else in central Phoenix does a free park come with that ending.
Pro Tips from Parents
- Encanto is huge, so decide where you are parking before you arrive. The playgrounds, the lagoon, the pool, and the amusement park entrance are each closer to different lots, and a wrong guess means a long hot walk with a stroller.
- The tree canopy here is the best shade of any central Phoenix park, which makes it more forgiving in the shoulder seasons than an open park would be. It is still Phoenix in July, so mornings only in summer.
- If you are fishing the lagoon, Arizona Game and Fish requires a license for anglers 10 and older and sets its own urban fishing rules. Check azgfd.com for current license requirements and catch limits before you go.
- Boat rentals at the lagoon and the city pool both run seasonal schedules that change year to year. Call Phoenix Parks and Recreation at (602) 261 to 8991 or check the city page the week you go rather than promising your kids in advance.
- The amusement park inside Encanto keeps its own limited hours and is closed some weekdays. Confirm on enchantedisland.com before you build a day around it.
- Weekend afternoons in the cool season are the park's busiest window, full of birthday parties and quinceanera photos. It is a great atmosphere but a bad time to find parking.
What to Bring
- A packed cooler and a picnic blanket, since shaded lawn space is plentiful
- Water bottles for everyone, refilled before you leave the car
- Sunscreen and hats even under the trees
- Cash or card for boat rentals or amusement park rides if you plan to add them
- A change of clothes for younger kids, since there is water in play
- Bikes or scooters for the paved paths if you have the trunk space
Cost Info
Partially free — some areas or times are free
Estimated Cost (Family of 4)
$0 to walk in, use the playgrounds, picnic, and circle the lagoon, with free parking.
Costs come from the extras inside the park: boat rentals, the amusement park rides, the pool, and the golf course each charge separately, and rates change seasonally, so check the Phoenix Parks page and enchantedisland.
com before you budget.
Tips to Save
- Treat the free half of Encanto as the main event.
- The lagoon path, playgrounds, open lawns, and picnic areas cost nothing, and most families are satisfied with a couple of hours of that plus a packed lunch.
- If you are adding the amusement park, look at whether an unlimited-ride wristband beats individual ride tickets for your kids' ages before you buy at the window.
- Bring your own food, since packing a cooler for a shaded picnic table saves the biggest line item of the day.
- Parking is free, so do not pay for anything in the surrounding streets.
