Tempe Beach Park

Whether you’re looking for the best place to ride your bike, hike a trail, or just a cool place to plop down for a family picnic, this pleasantly landscaped park, originally built in 1931 and completely renovated in 1999 as part of the construction of the city’s Town Lake project, has what you want. With views of the Tempe skyline as a backdrop, Tempe Beach Park looks and feels like a whole lot more than just a widened stretch of the Salt River—which is pretty much what it is. The lake is more than just pretty; it's five miles of paths for bicycling, jogging or in-line skating circling Town Lake provide a great place to get some good exercise with a rented paddle boat or a pair of rented skates, both available there. Tempe city events like the Tour de Fat, New Year's Eve Fete, and Oktoberfest are all the more festive here, thanks to wide expanses of green grass and a new pedestrian bridge linking the “beach” to the park itself.