Grape Street Dog Park in Balboa Park Brings Nature to the City

Grape Street Dog Park is located in a quiet residential neighborhood of South Park in San Diego. One of three dog parks located in Balboa Park, it’s the largest one, covering a 5-acre lot. This park is at the top ridge of Balboa Canyon and has views of downtown San Diego. Large eucalyptus trees are sprinkled throughout the park giving way to a lot of shady area. There are plenty of benches to sit on, water fountains and complimentary doggie bag stations. Restrooms are also available inside the park.

While the park has a large wooden fence located along the entrance, this park is not completely enclosed, so it’s not a good idea to bring a dog here that you can’t keep under voice control. Towards the back end of the park next to the canyons, there are habitat sensitive areas, which are marked off by signs, asking people and animals to stay out.

The parks off leash hours are 7:30am – 9:00pm Monday through Friday and 9:00am – 9:00pm on the weekends. Wednesday morning the park is closed for regularly scheduled maintenance. Parking is not an issue, as there is ample parking located in the lot at the front of the park.

Nature in the City for You & Your Dog
One of the best things about Grape Street Park is the fact that once you are in it, you no longer feel like you are in the middle of a big city. This is a quick, easy escape to peaceful nature. The off-leash area has a lot of wooded areas that you and your dog can walk through, but there is also plenty of open field space for exercise. These aspects make it a unique experience that you simply won’t find at other dog parks in the city.

Park Entrance & Rules
The entrance to this park is located on the East side of Balboa Park, at the intersections of Grape Street and 28th Street. Once you get here, just look for the parking lot signs to find a place to park your vehicle. You’ll need to use a leash from the parking lot until you reach the off-leash area and when you return to your car, so be sure to bring one. There are also other places in Balboa Park where you can take your canine friend as long as your bring your leash with you.

There are a variety of places here where you’ll find different kinds of rules and other notices posted. Near the water fountain is a bulletin board where you can find community news and events specifically relating to this park. Spread throughout, you’ll also find other signs that provide general rules for the entire dog park, off-leash hours, maintenance hours and more.

Watch out for small green and red signs that designate the boundaries of the off-leash area. You’ll see a green sign when you are entering an off-leash area and a red sign when you are leaving one, so be sure to pay attention to these to figure out what you are expected to do with your dog in specific places of the park. Also keep in mind that you are responsible for cleaning up after any waste your pet leaves behind, even in the wooded areas of the park. There are clean-up stations that are usually stocked with waste bags for your convenience, but you are still required to handle this situation even if those bags are not available.

Fun for Your Pooch & Other Park Features
Grape Street is a really popular dog park and for good reason. As a result, you will often find many other dogs here. They sometimes even play in a small area running around in a circle having fun with each other. If your animal isn’t very social, you can certainly still visit here but just stay away from the larger groups – this is a five-acre area so there is definitely plenty of room for everyone.

Shade is in abundance here, making it a nice destination for hot summer afternoons in California. There are also plenty of picnic tables and other benches spread throughout, many of them in shaded locations, so this is a good place to visit to relax while your pet gets some exercise as long as you can maintain good voice control to keep them from running off.

Nearby Attractions
There is a restroom building here, so you don’t have to worry about dreaded Porta Potties. Beyond that, there are tons of other things that you can do nearby, even with your dog. Morley Field and Nate’s Point dog parks are both located in Balboa Park as well, so you really have three places to choose from here where your dog can be off-leash.

Balboa Park is absolutely massive and truly offers something for everyone. Next to Grape Street Park is the Balboa Park Golf Course. You also have other major attractions like the San Diego Zoo, Museum of Art, Air & Space Museum, and the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center. Be sure to take note of the regulations sign for Balboa Park to learn what you can and can’t do here – on-leash dogs are allowed in most places here!