10 Best Skate Parks in Texas
There was a time when skateboarders looking for a bit of rail to grind, a smooth pool to carve, or a ramp to launch from were restrained by the concrete they found in their own towns and cities. But as skateboarding has taken off in popularity and moved from the pastime of renegade ne’er-do-wells to mainstream athletics, cities and towns around the world have invested in skate parks.
These concrete playgrounds are ideal settings for testing and showing off every kind of trick and flip, and Texas is home to some of the country’s best. It shouldn’t be surprising that, Texas being Texas, the Lone Star State is home to one of the largest skate parks in the United States. But in smaller towns and communities around the state, you can find fantastic skate parks that will challenge every level of skater. Here are 10 of the best skate parks in Texas:
Vandergriff Park’s Skate Park, Arlington
Diversity of styles is the name of the game at this North Texas park that was designed for both street and transition skaters. Street skaters will have a blast on its spacious plaza with plenty of banks, hips, and rails, while transition skaters will lose hours to a massive bowl and a long snake run.2800 S. Center St.
Heath Eiland and Morgan Moss BMX Skate Park, Austin
Lots of ledges, creatively designed ramps, quarter pipes, and a multi-depth bowl make this park an Austin favorite. Adding to the allure are the late hours: Lights allow the park to stay open until 10 p.m. every night. 1213 Shoal Creek Blvd.
G. Hysmith Skate Park, College Station
Although this Texas skate park offers plenty of ledges, stairs, handrails, hubbas, banks, pumps, and pads for street skaters, its real centerpiece is a massive flow bowl that ranges from 4 to 10 feet in depth and features a bank wall, spin, and 14-foot tombstone section. If that isn’t enough to occupy transition skaters, G. Hysmith also has a replica swimming pool that will make you feel like the pioneering Dogtown boys scouting for empty pools during low swell season in SoCal.1520 Rock Prairie Rd.
Chisholm Trail Skate Park, Fort Worth
There are a handful of features that set this Cowtown hot spot above much of the rest of the field, including a three-level bowl with pool coping and a large street plaza area with every kind of obstacle you look for in a good park—plus a sweet “London gap.” 4680 McPherson Blvd.
Northeast Community Skate Park, Frisco
Known to most local skaters simply as “Frisco,” the skate park is one of the largest on our list at 47,000 square feet—the second biggest in Texas. As you might expect from a park of this size, Frisco has a little bit of everything. The street plaza highlights include granite ledges, a bank to barrier, and volcano obstacle. The pool is massive with flocculating depths, multiple extensions, and pool cooping that make it one of Texas’ few pro-level, contest-ready features that everyday skaters can shred as they please. 12895 Honey Grove Dr.
North Houston Skate Park, Houston
At 78,000 square feet, this skate park is largest in the state. The name of the game here is scale. North Houston boasts a 20-foot full pipe, a 10-foot bowl, and pretty much every other kind of ledge, rail, stair, ramp, and bank that a skater would ever want to shred. 12351 Kuykendahl Rd.
John Valls Skatepark, Laredo
Way out west, this relatively new entry on the list (opened in 2020) focuses on recreating street conditions with features such as a brick bank, A-frame ledge, and a flat wedge. Designed to offer something for every level of skater, visitors will be grateful for the large pavilion overhang that offers protection from the hot West Texas sun. International Boulevard and Woodridge Drive
Northeast Metro Skatepark, Pflugerville
Though it isn’t as big as North Houston, this Pflugerville favorite is still huge at 42,500 square feet. Located just north of Austin, in addition to ample features, what makes this popular spot so great is that it is big enough to thin out the crowds even on those packed Saturday afternoons. 15500 Sun Light Near Way
Carpenter Park Skate Park, Plano
Carpenter has been called the “perfect all-round skate park.” If you’re looking for a well-designed street plaza with plenty of obstacles, Carpenter has it. If you want to carve a large bowl, Carpenter boasts the largest and deepest pool in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. That has made this one of North Texas’ favorite spots since it opened in mid-2018. The cherry on top: It is well-lit and open until 11 p.m. every night. 6701 Coit Rd.
Faulkner Skate Park, Tyler
Tyler has big plans for its expanding skate park. First opening in 2019, the first phase features a 3,5000 skate plaza with plenty of ledges, rails, stairs, pads, banks, and quarter pipes. In 2021, the next phase opened, expanding the park to 14,000 square feet. When complete, the goal is to provide East Texas skaters with a 20,000 square-foot playland. 410 W. Cumberland Rd.
If you’re looking for another outdoor adventure, dive into Texas’ best wakeboarding spots.
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