Lafayette LA Sports and Recreation
Lafayette Consolidated Government’s Parks & Recreation Department exists to promote entertainment, pleasure, relaxation and physical development in the city’s green spaces. With 36 parks, 10 recreation centers, four swimming pools, three golf courses, three senior centers, two tennis centers and numerous athletic fields, Lafayette has recreational opportunities for all ages.
Lafayette’s largest park — spanning 222 acres — is J. Otto Broussard Memorial Park, or Southside Regional Park, home to the Fabacher Field Baseball Complex and Les Vieux Chenes 18-hole golf course. This park joins Youngsville Sports Complex — named one of Sports Events Magazine’s “American Ballparks Every Planner Must See” — with seven batting cages, six soccer fields, five baseball fields and four softball fields — in bringing more recreational amenities to the Southside of town. On the Northside, 117-acre Acadiana Park is popular for its campground, disc golf course, hiking, jogging and biking trails and Nature Station.
Cajun BMX Park is an all-dirt bicycle track at Picard Park in Lafayette Parish. This public-use facility hosts weekly races and is open for practice during daylight hours.
Located in the Oil Center, Girard Park has a 1.25-mile walking and jogging trail, tennis courts, covered picnic area, pond and children’s playground. Downtown’s network of parks are more urban and host live music on public stages, along with other community events.
A favorite of children and families is the Zoo of Acadiana, an accredited zoological park filled with more than 750 exotic animals. Located on 45 acres off of Highway 90, the zoo, which calls its experience “Zoosiana,” has a Safari Train Ride, live animal show, petting zoo, Giraffe Feeding Station and more.
Lafayette also has plenty of indoor recreational opportunities, from skating rinks to bowling, rock climbing, paintball and two trampoline parks.