Awesome Michigan Splash Pads
As summer begins to heat up, your family may be looking for a Michigan splash pad to cool off.
Water parks, pools and splash pads mean summer fun from Memorial Day to Labor Day, and that’s exactly what you and the kids are looking for after a long winter!
Lucky for you, Michigan is home to many splash pads perfect for cooling off and running off excess energy while having fun outside. From the Upper Peninsula to the southernmost point of the state, Michigan splash pads are a staple for any Michigan family’s summer vacation. If you’re looking to beat the summer heat, there’s no better place than your local splash pad.
Read on for our list of 35 BEST Splash Pads in Michigan and start planning your getaway to a Michigan splash pad now!
ABOUT MICHIGAN SPLASH PADS
Splash pads are outdoor recreational play areas with sprinklers, fountains, nozzles and other devices that spray water. While smaller than waterparks, Michigan splash pads are a great way to get the kids in the water during the hot summer months. It’s the perfect spot for outdoor play, many of these splash pad parks are located within local parks, community recreation areas, and some are part of a larger outdoor water park.
Best Splash Pads in Southeast Michigan and Metro Detroit
Wayne and Joan Webber Splash Park – Chesterfield
50050 Jefferson Avenue, Chesterfield, MI 48047
The Metro Detroit area has no shortage of Michigan splash pads for families to enjoy. The Wayne and Joan Webber Splash Park is 17 acres of park on the shoreline of Anchor Bay. Open daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day 11 a.m.- 7 p.m., this Michigan splash pad offers a nice stretch of sprayers, sprinklers and obstacles for water fun.
Outside of the splash pad, Brandenburg Park has basketball, tennis and sand volleyball courts, horseshoe pits, picnic area, an ADA accessible playground and even a 500-foot pier into Lake St. Clair.
Dodge Park – Sterling Heights
40620 Utica Road Sterling Heights, MI 48310
Last on our list is the recently upgraded Dodge Park. This park now features a Michigan splash pad, with rain sprinklers and sprayers decorated in oranges, blues and greens. Around the water fun is a larger park along the Clinton River with a walking path, in-line skate park, playground and volleyball court.
The Michigan splash pad is free to Sterling Heights Residents and $5 for nonresidents, cash only. It opens on May 27, and its hours of operation are Mondays 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. and Tuesdays through Sundays 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Troy Family Aquatic Center
3425 Civic Center Dr, Troy, MI 48083
In addition to the splash pad, you’ll find a lot to do at the Oakland County Park, including a main pool with a zero-depth edge, sand volleyball, a sand play area and a kiddie slide, too.
Heritage Park Splash Pad
24915 Farmington Rd., Farmington Hills, MI 48336
Free to the public, you’ll find a series of fountains and sprayers that are fun for kids of all ages. Be sure to stop in at the Snack Shack located adjacent to the Splash Pad for treats and refreshments, and explore the Nature Discovery Trail, which connects the Splash Pad to the Nature Center.
Riverside Park Auburn Hills
3311 Squirrel Ct, Auburn Hills, MI 48326
This free splash pad in Rochester Hills is smaller, but there’s tons of fun to be had here. This is a unique riverfront park: you’ll also find play equipment, a footpath, picnic shelter, barbecue facilities and a canoe launch.
Spray ‘n’ Play – Clarkston
6000 Clarkston Road, Clarkston, MI 48346
Clarkston’s Spray’n’Play splash park offers a whopping 3200 square feet of super-soaker fun in Clintonwood Park. Bright-colored nozzles and fountains are spread around this Michigan splash pad, allowing families to run around and beat the heat.
What are the other pros of this Michigan splash pad? First, it’s very safe, with no standing water. It only costs $2 for resident children and $4 for non-resident children, but adults can monitor their kids free of charge. The Michigan splash pad also heats the water to 74 degrees so children don’t have to run through a freezing cold sprinkler!
Splash-N-Blast at Kensington Park in Milford
4570 Huron River Pkwy, Milford, MI 48380
Last on the Mid-Michigan section is Milford’s Splash-N-Blast. With two 250-foot twisted waterslides and a spray ground of palm trees, serpents and cannons, this Michigan splash pad has many fun water features.
Splash-N-Blast is part of Kensington Metropark, meaning family fun doesn’t just stop at the splash park! Enjoy 18-hole regulation golf, 27-hole disc course, a nature center, a farm center, beautiful picnic area, two beaches, scenic hiking and bike trails to round out your family fun day in the sun. Entry into the park is $10 daily.
Lily Pad Springs – Oakland County Parks
6200 Farmington Rd, West Bloomfield, MI, 48322
You’ll find more than 50 play features along with a giant splash bucket and four water slides! Part of the Oakland County Parks system, this is a popular spot with families in southeast Michigan.
Seymour Lake Township Park – Oxford
2795 Seymour Lake Rd, Oxford, MI 48371
Mid-Michigan is stacked with splash pads for family fun. One of the larger Michigan splash pads on the list, the KLR Splash pad in Seymour Lake Township Park features winding blue and green sprouts, sprinklers and rain umbrellas for a well-rounded water-filled experience.
This splash pad is free to the public and open 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day. It also boasts a family-friendly environment, with explicit rules on no rough play, profanity, smoking/vaping and alcohol.
Waterford Oaks Waterpark – Temporarily Closed
One of the top pools and splash pads in Michigan, this spot is temporarily closed
Heritage Park Splash Playground – Canton
46000 Summit Parkway, Canton, MI, 48188
Looking for a green retreat splash pad that’s free with a lot of features? Look no further than Heritage Park Splash Park, which also contains an amphitheater, pavilions, sports fields and a volleyball court.
This Michigan splash pad is the perfect way to cool off this summer with its various sprinkler-style water features. With hours of operation between 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., this splash pad offers daylong fun out of the sun. Please note that when the Heritage Park Splash Pad, Catnton’s Flodin Park Splash Pad closed.
H20 Zone Spray Ground Park – Westland
36601 Ford Rd, Westland, MI 48185
Have you ever gotten wet by a helicopter’s rotors?! This Michigan splash pad features an 18-foot helicopter built 10-feet above the ground that sprays water from its rotors. Also, kids can get water dumped on them by the huge water bucket, sprinkled on them by ground jets or sprayed on them by the sea serpent.
Need more incentive to visit this Michigan splash pad? The area offers free WiFi, so you can binge watch Netflix while your kids run off their energy. Best of both worlds.
Lyle C. VanHouten Spray Park – Dearborn Heights
6000 N Silvery Ln, Dearborn Heights, MI 48127
With 2295 square feet of water fun, the Lyle C. VanHouten Spray Park allows kids to get drenched on the bright blue patio featuring sprayers and sprinklers.
This Michigan splash pad also integrates several different VORTEX splashpad product lines, including Watergarden, Plux, Toons and Aqualiens. Surrounded by actual playgrounds, kids can run and jump around on the wooden structure before cooling off at this Michigan splash pad for a complete outdoor day of fun.
Palmer Park Waterpark – Detroit
910 Merrill Plaisance, Detroit, MI, 48203
Palmer Park was chosen as the second splash pad citywide by the City of Detroit Recreation Department. This Michigan splash pad is motion-censored, working only between the hours of 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. throughout the summer.
The splash pad features brightly colored nozzles, water buckets and fountains for kids to get their water fill. Lined by a mural wall, this is the perfect place for families to spend the hottest days of summer. Palmer Park Waterpark opens Memorial Day weekend.
Turtle Cove Family Aquatic Center
40151 East Huron River Drive, Belleville, MI 48111
Get soaked under the 300-gallon dumping bucket at the Turtle Cove Family Aquatic Center as you spend some time cooling off under the summer heat. This amazing splash pad and water park in the Lower Huron Metropark is also home to a lazy river and two giant water slides!
Allmendinger Park – Ann Arbor
655 Pauline Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Located southwest of downtown Ann Arbor, Allmendinger Park is an eight-acre park featuring softball fields, restroom and water fountain, play area, picnic tables, a tennis court and a basketball court in addition to the splash pad.
The park is free and is open from 6 a.m. to midnight daily.
Top Splash Pads in Michigan’s Thumb Area
Lakeside Park
3870 Gratiot Ave, Port Huron, 48060
Located on the shores of beautiful blue Lake Huron, the cool splash pad is just one of the features at this beautiful park. You’ll also find two pavilions, a playground, volleyball court and much more.
Port Austin Splash Pad at Bird Creek Park
8746-8774, Lake St, Port Austin, MI 48467
Bird Creek Park is a seven-acre day use park located in Port Austin located on the shores of Lake Huron’s Saginaw Bay. The park features a large picnic Pavilion adjacent to the playground and a new splash pad.
Best West Michigan Splash Pads
Frederik Meijer Gardens & Sculpture Splash Pad – Grand Rapids
1000 E. Beltline Ave. NE, Grand Rapids, MI 49525
West Michigan has a key selection of Michigan splash pads for families’ delight. The Meijer Gardens are already family-friendly with their 158 acres of exhibits, sculptures, gardens and attractions. Inside the Lena Meijer Children’s Garden, this Michigan splash pad features a vast water table shaped like the Great Lakes.
This Michigan splash pad has three distinct heights for the smallest and biggest kids to enjoy the cool water.
This attraction costs $14.50 for adults aged 14-64. Children under 3 are free, while those aged 3-4 are $4 and those aged 5-13 are $7. The garden is open Mondays and Wednesdays-Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Millennium Park – Walker
1415 Maynard Ave. SW, Walker, MI 49534
Open daily from June 4th to Labor Day when the weather is above 74 degrees, the Millennium Park splash pad is perfect for kids under 54 inches in height.
This splash pad in Grand Rapids is accented by a playground with a picnic shelter, a walking path and a memorial garden for a complete outdoor excursion. Plus, it’s free for H-F Park District residents and only $5 for non-residents, cash only.
Maplewood Park – Jenison
8000 12th Ave., Jenison, MI 49428
Maplewood’s splash pad is the main feature of the park, accented with bright sprouts shooting water in various directions for lots of water fun.
At $5 for non-resident adults and $3 for non-resident children, this Michigan splash pad is only improved by its trail, volleyball courts, grill and picnic areas, tennis courts and basketball courts. Perfect place to make sure your family gets their exercise!
Veterans Memorial Park – Kentwood
355 48th St. SE, Kentwood, MI 49508
This hexagonal splash pad close to SE Grand Rapids features small obstacles for children to explore while drenched in the water from various sprinklers, sprouts and mini fountains.
This Michigan splash park also offers a changing area for programming, storage and concessions, adding convenience to this fun Michigan splash pad location. Add a small pavilion to get out of the sun, and Veterans Memorial Park’s splash pad thought of everything for a water-filled family experience.
Whirlpool Centennial Park Compass Fountain – St. Joseph
200 Broad St, St Joseph, MI 4908
You’ll find one of the coolest (pun intended) Michigan splash pads in Southwest Michigan’s St. Joseph.
Adjacent to famous Silver Beach, this amazing splash pad was designed with fun in mind, and you’ll see kids (and even some adults) having lots of it at this giant Splash Pad.
With fountains spraying water and water cannons blasting it, you’ll have no trouble cooling off here on a hot sunny day. The best part? It’s free, although you will have to pay for parking in the Silver Beach parking lot, it’s around $8 per day.
Perrigo Splash Pad in Allegan
401 Hubbard St, Allegan, MI 49010
Located in southwest Michigan, the Perrigo Splash Pad is an interactive water feature, activated at the touch of a button, that holds 100 people and features multi-colored LED lights that display at night. The best part? A complementary sunscreen dispenser is on-site!
Beach Park at Michigans Adventure
4750 Whitehall Rd, Muskegon, MI 49445
This amazing splash pad at Wildwater Adventure is one of the best splash pads in Michigan. Included in your admission ticket to Michigan’s Adventure Waterpark, you’ll find super-soaker spray guns and slippery water slides, along with lots of landings and rope bridges for adventurous climbers.
The lighthouse at the very top is outfitted with a giant geyser that shoots water an astronomical 90 feet from the deck into the air and then onto gleeful guests below. Don’t miss the lazy river at this outdoor water park, it’s amazing!
Zeeland Splash Pad Park
S Elm St, Zeeland, MI 49464
The city of Zeeland Splash Pad Park is an inclusive playground with fun water elements and sprayers for kids of all ages. It features restrooms, a sheltered eating area, and a covered lookout point for watching the action without getting wet. The whole space is enclosed with a fence, too.
Highland Park
523 Grand Ave NE, Grand Rapids 49503
Richmond Park
963 Richmond St NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504
Amazing Mid-Michigan Splash Pads
Frank N. Andersen Celebration Park – Saginaw
1830 Fordney St., Saginaw, MI 48601
The Frank N. Andersen splash pad is located within the larger, four-acre Frank N. Andersen Celebration Park near other Saginaw attractions such as YMCA, the Garber Tennis courts, Crayola Park, Ojibway Island and the Children’s Zoo. This Michigan splash pad is just one of many attractions for a family fun day!
The splash pad itself has three sections tailored to different ages: Discovery Bay for infants and toddlers featuring low pressure fountains, Adventure Bay for young children with larger water fountains, showers and dumping buckets, and Action Bay for older children with adjustable water soakers and large water features like Spray Cannons.
Easily a family favorite Michigan splash pad!
Spray by the Bay Splash Park – Bay City
3582 State Park Drive, Bay City, Michigan 48706
Located inside Bay City State Park, this large spraypark in downtown Bay City is a favorite spot for kids of all ages in mid-Michigan. Bay City is home to some beautiful parks.
Zenhder’s Splash Village – Frankenmuth
1365 S Main St, Frankenmuth, MI 48734
This sprawling indoor water park in Frankenmuth, Michigan features multiple splash pads, water slides, and pools, too. This is a perfect destination for year-round water fun and relaxation, with lots of options for fun for all ages.
Island Park – Mount Pleasant
200 North Main Street, Mount Pleasant, MI 48858
This Michigan splash pad is designed for kids 12 and younger and gives families more control of their water fun with two activation buttons. When pressed, these buttons set off 12 water features out of 100 sprayers and nozzles across 2,095 square feet.
The Island Park splash pad is open daily from 9:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m. Before and after these times, the water will be unavailable if the activation buttons are pressed.
Sandusky Splash Pad – Sandusky
95-169 S. Custer St., Sandusky, MI 48471
Not to be confused with Sandusky, Ohio, this Sandusky, Michigan splash pad is a small but mighty place with one tall rain umbrella and a few water-filled buckets for the kids to enjoy. Only a six-year-old addition to the city, the Sandusky Splash Pad is surrounded by green space for families to dry off and play catch or tag in the summer heat.
Hawk Island- Lansing
1601 E Cavanaugh Rd, Lansing, MI 48910
St Johns Spray Park
805 W Park St, St Johns, MI 48879
Best Splash Pads in Northern Michigan
Starlite Beach Splash Pad – Alpena
208 N. First Avenue, Alpena, MI 49707
Alpena’s picture-perfect splash pad is located right on the shores of Lake Huron, and it doesn’t get much better than that. The Splash Pad at Alpena’s Starlite Beach is part of a large park featuring three large children’s play structures, two children’s play areas, public restrooms, pavilion, picnic area, and a pretty beach.
The Kaliseum – Kalkaska
1900 Fairgrounds Rd, Kalkaska, MI 49646
Kaliseum’s splash pad features spa jets, a rain umbrella, a water slide and play fountains for families to swim together.
Free for all looking to enjoy this Michigan splash pad, the Kaliseum only reaches a maximum of three feet, perfect for the little ones’ first water outing. The Kaliseum is also open all day from 5:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., making it an ideal option for busy families looking for a last-minute way to beat the heat.
William G. Milliken Waterscape – Traverse City
111 E. Grandview Pkwy, Traverse City, MI 49684
Within Clinch Park in Traverse City is our next Michigan splash pad, which features multiple water features and even a rope climb area for the bold children in the family. Shaded with trees, this splash pad is a perfect Michigan splash pad getaway.
When weather permits, the splash pad is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily through Labor Day.
Oscoda Beach Park Splash Pad
201 E River Rd, Oscoda, MI 48750
The small and brightly-colored splash pad at Oscoda Beach Park is just part of the draw to this beautiful beachfront park in downtown Oscoda. You’ll find the boardwalk from the parking lot to the splash pad extends across hundreds of feet of beach, providing great ADA access.
This park is a true northern Michigan gem, and you’ll find it easy to spend a while day here. In addition to the beach and spray pad, you’ll find picnic tables, a pavilion, volleyball courts, a giant kids playground, a skate park, basketball court and much more.
Blair Township Park – Grawn
2121 County Road 633, Grawn, MI 49637
The newly constructed northern Michigan splash pad within Blair Township Park is a large fountain, adding to the 75-mile walking path and small play area that decorate the park.
Families can spend the earlier part of the day playing softball and sliding down slides before cooling off on the large water structure open to the public. Talk about convenience!
Amazing Upper Peninsula Splash Pads
Wawatam Lighthouse – St. Ignace
13 S. State St. Saint Ignace, MI 49781
The normally-cold Upper Peninsula and Northern Michigan turns into a splash pad area as summer turns the corner. A small Michigan splash pad for families to enjoy is on the St. Ignace waterfront next to the Wawatam Lighthouse.
Located in Chief Wawatam Park, the splash pad is only part of the attractions at the lighthouse, including the lighthouse itself and a fantastic human sundial for a full day of fun!
Soo Splash Pad – Sault Ste. Marie
COMING SOON
More Kid-Friendly Things to Do in Michigan in the Summer
About the Author-
SaMya Overall is a Content Writer at mymichiganbeach.com. She is a graduate of Michigan State University. She currently works as Editor-in-Chief of The State News, Michigan State’s award-winning student media company. Prior to becoming EIC, she worked as a campus reporter and copy chief at The State News. She’s passionate about Detroit and its surrounding area, and is a low-key collegiate sports lover on her free time.