{Edinburgh} Pilrig Park Play Areas
In our quest to scout out a few more new playgrounds this year, my 8 yr old and I decided to head to Pilrig Park, which lies to the north-east of Edinburgh’s city centre between Leith Walk and Bonnington Road, and was shown on the map to have two play areas.
The park itself is just over 7 hectares in size, and as well as the two play areas has a large grassed area, interspersed with trees, which is well suited for running around and informal games as well as being used by the local community for football practice.
The two play areas are situated on either side of the park, one on the west side and one on the east side. We took the bus to the east side first, which turned out to be the smaller of the two. The majority of this play area seemed to be aimed at younger children, with a toddler play unit and crawl tunnel, baby/toddler swings, and a medium height slide with fireman’s pole, as well as a simple matching pairs game. But there was also one climbing unit with net, ladder and poles that was definitely more suitable for older children.
We didn’t stay in this area for very long, as it didn’t hold my 8 yr old’s attention for long, and walked over to the play area on the other side of the park, which was bigger. The second play area had a climbing net and slide, toddler swings, balancing beam, wobble boards, a spinning unit, and a zip line. We played there for a little bit, but ultimately it also didn’t hold his attention, possibly because a group of boys was hogging the zipline. It was a nice enough playground, but we probably wouldn’t hike out here again especially, so it gets a neutral rating from us. We ended up walking up the road a bit to Victoria Park, which received a double thumbs up rating from my youngster, but more on that in a separate review!
Gallery: Area 1
Gallery: Area 2
Playground Stats
Name: Pilrig Park Play Areas
Location: West of Leith Walk, Edinburgh
Map coordinates: 55.9691181,-3.1791165 (Area 1); 55.9682677,-3.183121 (Area 2)
Best for: Toddlers & Juniors
Ground cover: Rubber (Area 1); Wood chips (Area 2)
Rating: Neutral
Last visited: 4 March 2023
Play Equipment
Area 1
- Toddler swings
- Toddler play unit with crawl tunnel
- Play unit with slide and fireman’s pole
- Play unit for older children with climbing features and nets
- Matching pairs game
Area 2
- Wobble boards
- Toddler swings
- Regular swings
- Play unit with climbing net and slide
- Rotating play unit
- Rotating balance beam
- Zip line
Facilities
- Benches
- Large grassed area for playing
How to get there
The closest bus stops to the east side of the park (Play Area 1) are Stanwell Street or Anderson Place on Bonnigton Road (Lothian Buses 10 & 36), or Balfour Street on Leith Walk (various Lothian Buses). All are less than 10 minutes walk from the play area.
The closest bus stops to the west side of the park (Play Area 2) are on Pilrig Street (Lothian Bus 11) and Bonnigton Road (Lothian Bus 10 & 36), right next to the play area. Both bus stops are called Bonnigton Toll.
Edit (July 2023): The tram now also runs to Leith, so you can also get the tram to the Balfour Street stop.
Check out our A to Z map of public playgrounds in Edinburgh to plan your next playground visit, and let us know your favourites that you think we should check out in the comments below!
