Splash pads in Bloomfield, New Jersey

Watsessing is Essex County's neighborhood gem and the sprayground is the reliable summer move when the Newark-area pools get too packed. Free, fenced, with a great toddler zone and a bigger playground next door. Set against the park's ball fields and walking paths. Essex County Parks runs spray features Memorial Day through Labor Day, weather dependent. Free parking, restrooms by the playground, and you are minutes from Bloomfield Avenue for post-splash food (the Italian-American classics, taquerias, ice cream). A solid suburban Essex County parenting move that locals know about and out-of-towners do not.