Greenbelt Park

Nice park but family got covered in ticks. Especially our dog. In all of my years of hiking never experienced this. Too bad!

Looking for a place to practice your bird calls, recharge your inner self, get your chi softened, or simply tuck away for a quiet conversation this is the place. Utilize the roads for jogging as to leave a light footprint. The glades by the camping area provide a nice respite from the throngs that criss cross the lower trails. Do pack out your trash and if you see any laying around pick it up. There are waste receptacles and a large dumpster by the ranger’s substation. Do not let this place fool you, it is no Watkins park. Adequate ankle support is needed.

While I wouldn’t exactly call it the equivalent of a bunny slope for long distance hike training, the pleasant hills in this park and the distance of the trails (if you do the entire circumference of the park), make it a great place to test out new gear in an easier setting than an overnight trail trip to the mountains further west.
The first time I hiked in this park, I was actually amazed at how remote it seemed. Even though at times it is possible to hear the Baltimore Washington Parkway through the trees, at others, there is a very dense forest covering the trails (dress accordingly since it will be colder than in the sun). And while the eastern side of Maryland is mostly flat, there are definitely multiple hills that will test the calves of the inexperienced traveler (but which the many trail runners seem to bound over).
Even though I have not camped here (since camping three miles from my apartment seems strange to me), I have hiked through the tenting areas and they seem very well organized and easy to get to with clean fire pits and nice benches.
About the only problem I have with this park, and it is an important one, is that the trails are sometimes not as well marked as they could be. The blazes will occasionally disappear when a trail hits, for example, a closed camping loop. I found myself testing out my new hiking poles in the middle of nowhere in the park in what seemed like a parking lot with no idea where my trail restarted. So I had to turn around and go back. I have a hard enough time following paths sometimes when they are marked well. Still, the next time I buy new gear, this surprisingly large park will be where I test it first.

Feel like this park is underutilized. Great place to go for a quick run or hike just off beltway so convenient location. My favorite feature is that my double jogging stroller easily fits down the hiking trails. Also has facilities open, playgrounds and lots of picnic tables.

Went hiking for the very first time here. Loved the scenery. Got a solid workout going. Headed home and brought a little bit of the park with me… IN THE FORM OF A TICK INFESTATION!!! Haven’t set foot at Greenbelt since.

$ 16 a night for rv camp site. No electric or water hookups but there is a dump site. There are bathrooms with hot shower. Nice and quiet, lots of trees and fresh air. Very dark at night and can get really cold. We didn’t wandered off path, so no tick got to us. Saw a few deers. It’s the closest park to dc but we still have to drive about 10 mins to the metro station.

I like this place. Really nice open fields + campground areas. We brought our puppy here for a day to explore and play around on the open fields. We didn’t see any other dogs or people on the fields (we arrived in the early morning around 8:30), which was great for us because our puppy is still young and wobbly and can’t really play with too many other dogs. The only downside of the field was that it was littered with deer poop, so our puppy kept trying to eat it. Otherwise, it was a nice space, and there are nice trials around the park. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a park that isn’t as crowded as some of the other DC area parks.

I’m staying in a hotel across the street and figured it couldn’t be a bad spot for a run. I was right, the Azalea trail is a touch over a mile long with some little hills and a fairly level surface free of roots and such. I had no ticks after a couple of laps but I stayed on the beaten path. Glad I noticed it on my way in. P. S. got to see 5 deer too.

We spend 7 Days here in July of 2015. Overall it’s a nice park and you really CANNOT beat the $ 16/​night price. The Tick Warning is a bit overrated. We only found 3 ticks on our stuff (none attached) it was not more than normal in heavy tree coverage. Mosquitoes were really non-​existent. The Bathrooms were about a 6 out of 10 and some of the sites needed a little maintenance. They could have been better kept with a few simple things. Also, I ran the roads while I was here and by far the fastest vehicles at the park were the Park Ranger vehicles. A white Ford Flex and white Ford Pick-​up. Slow down boys.
There’s no getting around that this is an urban campground. With the orange glow of DC and the constant hum or traffic/​sirens/​helicopters it’s noisy. You won’t feel like your in the wilds of Montana. Similar to Cherry Creek State Park in Denver. We never felt uncomfortable about leaving our stuff and the camp hosts were super helpful.

My apartment complex is surrounded by Greenbelt Park which makes it beautiful even though my cell service is abysmal– Looking at you Verizon. lol
The Perimeter trail connects to one of the parking lots near the apartments so it’s easy access to the park without having to drive through the entrance and find parking. There are plenty of trails to follow, I’ve also explored the Dogwood and Azalea and Laurel Picnic Area. Those are just the ones I know for sure I’ve been on. I was slightly disappointed to find out that the trails don’t actually have any dogwood trees or azalea bushes on them haha
The bridges are well maintained, trails are usually clear of fallen trees and such. Unless I ignore the signs telling me to stay off that path, then I find fallen trees.
I love going for a short walk here after work or a long walk on a nice weekend.

We reserved online, stayed in Loop B and only camped one night. Everyone was very friendly and the grill worked well. We missed having a firepit but it wasn’t terrible.
The wildlife wasn’t too visible but we did manage to see a toad, snake and some pretty birds. Something was walking around early in the morning — our guess was a raccoon but we were both too sleepy to look. The dog was asleep in my sleeping bag and he didn’t even wake. I’m not sure if that says more about him or the creature…
The tick situation is REAL. We applied and re-​applied OFF spray on both of us and the dog and I still managed to find a tick on me after we left. I was slacking with short sleeves so don’t underestimate the critters!
Overall a great local camp for a quick getaway from the city.

I live near here and run the trails on a regular basis. There are rarely too many people around. It’s really nice to just get a nice trail run in. I have come across snakes, deer, birds, etc. it’s nice to know there are still places to find east coast wildlife so close to a major city!

There are showers in many of the bathrooms. It has RV & tent sites for 16.00 a nite. There is a dump station, water fill and a bus stop at the entrance. No electricity hookups. I will be back.

We stayed here in our RV while exploring Washington, DC. Lucky for us some women walking past our Camp told us about using the Greenbelt Metro. It has a huge parking lot that charges $ 5 a day and cost around $ 10 round trip to Union Station. And it’s only a couple miles from park entrance. Google it !
It’s a nice park but you still hear the city noise including the Trains, it’s not real close but it’s there. We stayed in the. «d» loop as the Bathrooms there have showers. They have a Dump and Fresh water also.
I would stay here again

While this is not the most scenic, large, majestic, or awe inspiring National Park around it does offer a nice escape close to DC. Some of the trails run close to the highway so there is road noise. However, It does have a few nice areas that are secluded and quiet. There are benches here and there along the trails and even a trail with workout stations. I usually do the entire perimeter trail, which is around five miles, with my dog. There isn’t much elevation gain or loss which makes it perfect for people looking for an easy walk in the woods. I have never seen the trails crowded, at least during the week.
The other reviewer mentioned ticks and or chiggers in the park. Well, they are in EVERY park in the north east/​mid-​atlantic and they were especially bad in 2013 and 2014. This is not a Greenbelt National Park specific problem.

Support your National Parks. Get off the freeway and go for a walk. It’s why it’s there and its wonderful.

I live In greenbelt and love this lake and it’s great to watch the fire works on the 4^th of July

I go to this place for Lunch a couple times a week but I sit in my car and eat my Lunch. The location is very serene and I really enjoy eating my Lunch in the Park as it gives me a sense of calm. Driving thru and seeing the deer is cool too. They just stand there and watch you drive by. I’ve never gotten out of my car though but i see people even policeman come there and take a walk thru the woods. When the government was shutdown I really missed it as like I said it gives me a sense of calm to sit there while i’m eating my Lunch.

My spouse and I went on a two hour walk in this park. Unfortunately, when we got home we found that we were covered in small brown bugs (either deer ticks or chiggers). We each pulled off 40+. Three days later, we are still itching like crazy and covered in welts. We’ve never experienced bites this bad in many years of hiking and camping. PLEASE wear long pants and deet bug spray for your safety!

Great walking trails and a nice break from the continual suburban sprawl of DC and its suburbs. You can actually camp here (as other posters noted) and walk the 15 – 30 minutes to the College Park metro station (you won’t find anything cheaper if you REALLY want to stay in the area for almost nothing).
Note: there is a seasonal tick issue here, so do check the National Park Service’s website to make sure it is manageable.

I go to greenbelt park a few times a month to run the trails. They’ve got some great terrain, host bicycle races, and a great open field of play area for kites, kids, training etc. The park is well maintained and most of the locals don’t even know its here or how big it is. The camping area is «quiet» for this area… you’ll still hear smoe of the road traffic from the highways. The only reason i don’t give it 5 stars is due to the fact the trails could be market better and the ticks there are insane. Careful with the pups!

Great park full of hilly trails to get a good run in. Beautiful scenery. Occasionally you see a deer or two, and sometimes you’ll catch an entire family. If you like outdoorsy stuff, you’ll love this park.