Beauvoir School Playground
The Equipment
Though it’s part of the private school Beauvoir, this worth-a-trip playground is open to the public when school or camp is not underway. A mom I know describes the playground as looking like a habitat built for a zoo exhibit, and I agree. This is the perfect place for lots of monkeying around. Using a range of materials — from ropes and rocks to wooden beams and metal — the sprawling play area is set on multiple levels (which makes it not so stroller friendly). In addition to a trio of tree-house towers connected by rope bridges, the equipment includes a super long zip line (you sit on a round seat at the bottom of a rope), a basketball court, a turf field, a monkey bars area, two sandboxes, a two-level tunnel slide (a favorite of my kids and many others on our visit), and much more. Two bucket swings are on an upper level, set apart from the main play area, which has four regular swings. The surface under the equipment is wood chips. There are rocky areas to explore, and several cute little animal sculptures are spread throughout.
The Scene
In the shadow of the National Cathedral, the playground is next to a small parking lot. There’s also street parking in the area, but a street spot will make for an uphill hike once on Beauvoir’s campus (entrance is at Woodley and 35th Street). There are shady spots to be found around the playground, but there’s not a ton of shade here. The playground is well fenced off from busy roads, though its expansive setup can make it hard to keep track of kids. This would be an ideal add-on to a visit to the cathedral, or it’s worth an outing all its own. Restaurants, including Cafe Deluxe and 2 Amys, are about four blocks from the playground.
Age Recommendation
It’s geared toward elementary kids (Beauvoir is for preK through third grade), but all ages will find something to do.
Restrooms
Head to the National Cathedral — this is not a place to seek out nature’s bathroom.
Review and photos by Kathleen Seiler Neary.,
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Pre-K to 10,
(4 votes),
