Alum Rock Park, San Jose

It is the best shady trail of all San Jose parks. It is called the Penitencia Creek Trail. You can catch it at the main park entrance and walk the whole park on it. You can also bike on it. From this trail, you can do bird watching, visit the youth science institute, visit the sulfur springs, have a picnic etc. There are water fountains and bathrooms that are along the trail - just in case nature comes knocking at you. I would recommend this trail for everyone. Felix

Alum Rock has been a part of my life ever since I was a little boy. I 've had many fond memmories of family and friens and think its a special place that the whole family can enjoy.

Alum Rock Park is a beautiful, relaxing place to spend your afternoons..There are many trails to explore and a walk up to Eagle Rock is steep, but take your time and you will be rewarded with the site and sounds..Sit and look over the valley, listen to the birds singing and watch squirels scamper around...Bring a lunch and enjoy a rest in any one of the many picnic areas, if your lucky you will also see many deer..they are usually around more in the morning when it is cool and quite. Chick Baker

I have been visiting since the park had a zoo, lions, monkeys, birds, and a merry-go-round inside of a arcade and even though it's all gone now, we still enjoy going back. Indoor and outside swiming pools, bird house and nature museum, this park had it all. Even without all of this, the park is a wonderful place to relax and enjoy the day.

This is our absolute FAVORITE place in San Jose, there is so much to do! Since we have kids, we usually walk up and visit the visitors center and check out all the birds (last time they had an owl, and a huge hawk!) and then walk up to where the walkway ends and about 200 yards up is a bridge and instead of crossing that bridge, we walk down a little walkway that leads to a quiet place to sit and have a picnic and let the kids play near the water. It's always so peaceful and nice. We always see wildlife, usually upclose and can teach our kids how to respect nature by "taking pictures and leaving footprints"... There is biking and harder hikes - even a waterfall way back - but since the kids, we keep it simple. If you have kids, I recommend a nice walk with a picnic at the end.

This is San Jose's best park without a doubt. This park has great hiking and mountain biking trails with rewarding views of the bay and Santa Cruz Mountains. Bring some food and beer(alcohol is permitted)and BBQ or just lie under some trees and relax. Very kid friendly with a large playground and a Youth Science Institute with many of the indigenous insect and reptiles in the surrounding area to view.

The scent of the eucalyptus trees fill the park. With the small creek, green lawns to lay on, picnic areas to BBq along witht he playground allows a great day at the park. The Youth Science building is a great visit and you can even take a hike on the trails.

Great place to bring kids for a picnic and playground experience, visit the nature center and learn about the wild animals in the park. Trails provide short and long hike options for family adventures.