East Terrace Glover Playground Review

East Terrace & Wakefield Road, Adelaide | Ityamai-itpina Park 15

Our little playground testers were delighted to have a chance to try out the cool new playground equipment at Park 15 Glover Playground East Terrace. It’s officially open to the public now.

We think the City of Adelaide has done a great job in reinvigorating this playground and providing a playground with fun challenges for all ages. If you’ve got kids who love climbing we think they’ll love this playground.

Please Note: Christian Brothers College is next door and the boys use the playground during recess and lunchtimes. You may want to avoid the playground during those times as there may be a lot of kids there at once.

As the playground is a shared community space, please be aware that there may be artwork on display, made by the students from the school. There have been reports that some of these were damaged in the first week of opening. Please look out and take care of any student work there.

What we like about the East Terrace Glover Playground upgrade

The established trees are very beautiful, and while the newly planted trees have some growing to do, they should provide some shade in summer. The cubby houses are enticing and feature lots of challenges for kids, while being big enough for adults to climb inside and rescue a toddler if need be. One of the cubby houses is a bit higher than the other with slightly more advanced equipment, though both are connected by a rope swing net.

Our toddler made a beeline for the in-ground trampolines and had a great time bouncing from one trampoline to another. The bigger kids loved the basket swing, monkey bars and climbing nets. They were also massive fans of the hand ball courts, and rubberised soft-fall ‘mountains’ which were fun to run up and down (these were too tricky for the toddler to climb as you needed a bit of a run-up).

Parents of babies and toddlers will be pleased to know that there is a soft-fall rubberised surface around some of the play equipment. Seating and water fountains are other big pluses, as is the proximity to good cafes along Hutt Street.

Playground features:

• hand ball courts
• open space
• beautiful established trees
• nature play areas which incorporate stepping stones and rock formations
• new play equipment
• inclusive play elements
• bbq facilities
• planting including some quite pretty olive groves
• half basketball court
• soft-fall mounds
• cubby houses with slides, steps, and ropes
• monkey bars
• stepping poles
• climbing nets
• toilets (4)

Editor’s note 25 July 2018: At the time of writing the amenities block was in the final stages of being upgraded to include four toilets, while preserving heritage character. Toilets should be completed by the end of the week.

Please Note: Christian Brothers College is next door and the boys use the playground during recess and lunchtimes. You may want to avoid the playground during those times as there may be a lot of kids there at once.

The taller of the two cubby houses features a chain ladder which was a bit too challenging for the toddler to navigate.

Our kids loved that there are so many opportunities for climbing.

As well as the other, more challenging climbing options, there’s a nice sturdy little staircase with a handrail.

Swings

There’s a basket swing which will be fun for all ages – including the bigger kids, plus the usual regular and toddler swings.

Soft-fall mounds

It was difficult to drag our kids away from these. We thought they were great fun for open-ended play.

Climbing nets

In-ground trampolines and rubberised soft-fall surface

Handball courts

Be sure to bring along handballs with these great courts adjacent to the playground.

Monkey bars

Half basketball court

Bring a basketball and practise some cool moves.

BBQ area with tables and drinking fountains

Coffee and food options nearby

The playspace is very close to the skate park that is just down on Wakefield Rd, with Rymill Park just over the parklands and Victoria Park across the road. At Victoria Park there are three cafes you can grab coffee and a bite to eat: Kiosk on 16, Velo Precinct and The Stables of Victoria Park. Rymill Park also has the kiosk there (although it is closed during Winter) and of course the playground and boat rides.

Some of our favourites nearby  include:

• Bai Long Store | 80 Hutt Street | about a three minute walk – amazing food including some counter food options (their pies are amazing), or grab a takeaway coffee
• The Flinders Street Project | 276 Flinders Street|  about a five minute walk
• Bocelli | 81/83 Hutt Street | towards the city about a five minute walk

Things to consider

• In addition to the soft-fall surface you will also find bark chips which may be an issue if you have a baby or toddler who likes to put everything in their mouth.
• On the day we visited it was in the middle of winter so shade wasn’t a concern, however if you were to visit in summer we recommend hats and sunblock as the trees within the playground are yet to grow up.
• Parking is on the street along East Terrace or Wakefield Street, and you may find it harder to park around school drop and pick up times as the playground is just next to Christian Brothers College.
• Remember to bring a handball and/or basketball if your kids love ball games.

Location

Corner of Wakefield Road & East Terrace, Adelaide

Click here for all the best playgrounds for toddlers

See our top parks and playgrounds around Adelaide here.

About Susannah: I’m a mum to three boys and a little girl and I am learning to embrace the chaos. I love my morning coffee, exercise, cranking up some good tunes on the stereo, and heading away to new places on holiday. Originally from New Zealand, I now call Adelaide home and I love getting out and about and exploring all the fabulous things for families to do in Adelaide.

At Play & Go Adelaide we make every effort to provide accurate information to the best of our knowledge at the time of publication. We recommend confirming times, dates and details directly before making any plans as details may be subject to change.

As per all our Play & Go reviews, this is not a sponsored post and our review is done completely independently. All photos are by Susannah Marks for Play & Go.

Want to get all the latest events and activities straight to your inbox?

Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter below to keep up to date with our latest posts and find out what’s on, where to go and what to do with the kids in and around Adelaide. Newsletters are only sent once a week, and you may even get the odd ‘special offer’ exclusively sent to our newsletter subscribers only!