Pullen Park

What it is: We love this park in Raleigh!  It has been closed for renovations for a couple of years and this past weekend it opened back up, complete with fabulous new improvements.  We decided to head on over and see what it was like.  When our family arrived the first thing we noticed was the wooded fields interspersed with picnic shelters, a great place for a midday picnic lunch with space for toddlers to run.  Our destination, however, was the renovated area.  We walked up and saw the new playground.  It was great!  It had two distinct areas, one for toddlers and one for older children.  Both areas were interesting, full of different and fun play structures.  They had rope nets to climb, sandboxes, and even a few see saws!  We wish we had more time to explore the playgrounds because the kids could have spent days exploring it all.

Afterward we went and bought tickets for the train.  That's right, they have a little train who's track encircles the park, similar to the Museum of Life and Science train.  Tickets cost only $1 per person!  In there's addition, the tickets are only $1 for the kiddie boat rides near the train as well as the newly renovated indoor carousel! Very reasonable!  In addition, tickets were only a little more to enjoy the paddleboats on the nearby pond.  In addition, the hours of these attractions were weekdays from 10am-6pm, so there's plenty of time to stop by and enjoy everything.  We only took the train, so we're looking forward to heading back and checking out the other fun.

While we were buying tickets, we noticed the other more practical amenities like the heated restrooms and the new cafe.  We were a little bummed that we had brought our lunch because the cafe looked WAY above and beyond your typical park concession stand.  Everything they had looked well thought out and yummy, 

including their Vietnamese-style Bahn-mi sandwiches and hummus as a healthy snack.  

What we liked:  We loved all of the new renovations and can't wait to head back on a weekday when it's not crowded with grand-reopening visitors!  We especially liked the cost of the tickets.  At $1 per person, it's a reasonable expense on most park outings!  In addition, the playground had so much to do, and the cafe looked like it had a great selection.  Plus, the parking was easy and right next to the park.

What we would change: The only thing we would change is the fact that it is in Raleigh, a little bit of a hike from Durham, but well worth it!

Website and other important information:

Website: http://www.raleighnc.gov/arts/content/PRecRecreation/Articles/PullenPark.html

Address:  520 Ashe Ave, Raleigh, NC 27606

Hours: 10am-6pm Daily

Photos: 

 1. One view of the newly renovated playground

 2. The train

 3. The carousel

 4. A view of the paddle boat lake

4. The toddler playground