The Ultimate Guide to Blandair Regional Park in Columbia

Blandair Regional Park North Playground

Blandair Regional Park in Columbia is a relatively new park in Howard County, MD. They are currently in the middle of a huge expansion. When it’s finished it will have 300 acres of playgrounds, sports fields, and other fun amenities.

But so much of the park is already open, with three amazing playgrounds, multipurpose fields, picnic shelters, and more! And with Blandair Park’s central location, this park would be a great place for a day trip. This really is a destination park with so much to offer families!

Three Playgrounds- An Introduction

Chances are, if you you are a family with kids up to age 12 (or older), you are mostly interested in the playgrounds. Here is a quick overview:

  • West Playground- This is the original playground and is surrounded by sports fields. The playgrounds here are fantastic.
  • East Playground- This is the challenge course. It’s a great obstacle course!
  • North Playground- The new playground on the block! Also, North Playground is the largest playground and is truly a destination!

Related: 100+ FREE Things to Do With Kids in Maryland!

Blandair West Playground Area

Blandair Regional Park West Playground

Pro-Tip with this playground. It’s awesome. It just isn’t the other two areas, which are probably more popular. That means if your kids are getting overwhelmed with the North area playground– or you can’t find parking, just drive on by and head here. Trust me, your kids will still have a blast.

Blandair Regional Park West Playground

Still, on weekends in the spring-fall seasons, it might still be busy because its located next to ball fields. There are tons of slides, swings, play areas for both younger kids and older kids, and more.

Blandair Regional Park West Area

Parts of the playground has shade. My daughter loves all the spinning play features.

There are great climbing structures as well.

Blandair Regional Park West Area

The sports fields are very popular. They all have synthetic turf, press boxes, and nice public restrooms.

Related: Best Easy Hikes in Maryland for Kids!

Blandair East Area

Blandair Regional Park East Area

The second area that is open and great for kids is the super cool Ninja Warrior style obstacle challenge course. You can actually time your kids (or yourself) to see how long it would take to go through the obstacles.

Blandair Regional Park west Area

The website mentions this challenge course is meant for kids age 13 and older. However, my daughter has been challenging herself since she was 7.


This area of the park is near the tennis courts and there is a restroom facility in this part of the park too.

Blandair North Playground- Laura’s Place

Blandair Regional Park North Playground

Oh. My. Goodness! I can’t believe how utterly amazing the Blandair Regional Park North Area Playground is!

Seriously, there are so many features I want to share with you … I couldn’t even share all the photos here!

Map of Blandair North Area Playground

Yes, the playground is so huge there is a map! Look at the map when you arrive because there are dedicated areas for babies and toddlers, preschoolers, and older kids! It’s really like 5-6 playgrounds wrapped into one!

This is one of a number of fully inclusive playgrounds that have opened in recent years. And this playground really is great for kids of all ages!

fenced in playground area for Blandair north area

Ok, first off this entire playground is fenced in and access is controlled by a double lock gate! Wow!!! That is such an amazing safety feature!!!

Space-Themed Area: Age 5-12

Spaceship themed play area Blandair north playground

The massive area right in the middle of the playground is space themed and for 5-12 year olds. It is spaceship-themed and has a bit of everything. The slides in this area are off the hook awesome!

Space themed area of Blandair park north playground

There are climbing structures all over the spaceship, suitable for younger and older kids.

Activity panel in space themed area of blandair regional park north playground

All kids will love the space-themed activity panels.

Dinosaur Area: Ages 2-5

Dino area of blandair regional park north playground

This play area is perfect for toddlers and preschoolers. It’s dinosaur-themed and has a number of super fun flourishes. Kids can climb through tunnels, slide down shorter slides, play on dinosaur bones, and more!


This part of the playground also features an Aero-Glider, which brings play to all as it’s wheelchair accessible.

Related: 30+ Accessible play spaces for kids in Maryland

Blandair Regional Park North Playground is fully accessible

Farm Play Area: Ages newborn-5

Farm area of blandair regional park north playground

Ok, this area says it’s for ages 2-5 but really, this is the area of the North Playground where even babies and toddlers can safely play!

The theming for this part of the playground are so adorable. From animals kids can play on to musical features. There are so many interactive play features in this area!

Swings and Open Play Area: Ages 5-12

Open play area blandair north regional park

Let’s be honest, this play area is definitely for older kids, but younger kids will definitely want to play here as well.

rainbow climbing structure blandair regional park

The centerpiece is this amazing climbing structure that looks like a rainbow wave.

That’s not the only massive climbing area though. There is a double knot climbing structure next to the rainbow wave.

double knot climbing structure blandair regional park

The swings are in the back corner of the playground and there are lots of them!

Along the edge of this open play area is a sound garden that kids of all ages and abilities will have fun with!

There are also numerous fun and unique play features that will test kid’s balance.


And there are numerous unique swings and spinning play features.

swings at blandair regional park playground

One of the best parts about this playground is when they say play for all.. they mean, play for all! In every area of the playground there are play features that are accessible and fun for kids of all abilities!

Tree Walk and Other Amenities

The tree walk is still inside the fence and is right next to the main entrance. There aren’t really play features here, but it’s still fun to walk on the boardwalk.

tree walk blandair

Outside the fenced part of the playground there are super clean bathrooms, and a picnic shelter with a bocce ball field and horseshoe pits.

blandair regional park north area restrooms

In addition to all the playgrounds, tennis courts, and ball fields, there are numerous walking paths. This open space is really one of Howard County’s premier destinations for families!

amenities at blandair park

Know Before You Go:

FAQ

Is Blandair Park free?

Yes! It’s completely free!

When did Blandair Park open?

The park first opened in 2014 but there has been ongoing expansion ever since. The newest North playground area opened in 2020. And currently the expansion near the West Playground area is slated to next.

Are there restrooms or port-a-potties?

There are nice and clean restrooms near each of the three playgrounds.

What age range is Blandair good for?

Blandair regional park has 3 playgrounds with play areas suitable for all kids from infant and toddler through tween and teen!

Is Blandair Regional Park an accessible playground?

The North area playground is an inclusive, ADA-compliant “Play-for-all” playground consisting of six unique play areas with fencing, non-verbal communication boards, sun shades, picnic tables and benches.

blandair regional park

What’s Nearby?

With this park’s location in downtown Columbia, right off of Snowden River Parkway, the better question is what is not nearby?

If you get there and it’s raining, you can easily head to Hyper Kidz or SkyZone Trampoline Park. The Columbia Mall is less than 10 minutes away and the Snowden Area shopping area has oodles of kid friendly restaurants.

Our top picks for lunch are:

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