To wish parks had a baby crawling/cruising area

[Wholeboxoftissues]

I've got a crawling baby and I'm finding it so hard that nothing in the world is set up for them except soft play and stuff that's only on in term time like playgroup. We take our older one to lots of places but the baby always ends up being carried or in the pram because there's never a safe area to crawl around in. And he's very energetic! Even at playgrounds it isn't great. He'll go on the swing for a bit, sits on my lap on the roundabout, then we sit on the grass and he doesn't go anywhere because it's full of spiky straw due to the dry weather and he doesn't like the feel of it. He usually stands up at the pram and plays with the attachments until we go home.
What I would love:
A nice floor maybe rubbery so it's soft for crawling but light colour so it stays cool and doesn't leave black stains on the knees
Shade
Really low bars to pull up on and dangling ropes with handles
Something that looks like a climbing wall only with tiny little close together hand holds
Little tunnel at ground level
Slow roundabout with the same restraint as a baby swing
The tiniest slide you can imagine
A really comprehensive busy board

I would love that, I'd be there every day.

I do sympathise, one of mine didn't walk until he was 21 months 🫠 A really really long time to be stuck with this situation!! I actually just let him crawl in some pretty minging spots in the end, poor thing

DS1 was a crawler from 10-16m... mainly over the winter. I put him in a puddle suit and let him crack on, although our park/ playground is well looked after.

His favourite place to crawl was in church. The church community was very accommodating of him... even when he crawled over the pedals of the organ during prayers 🙈
A nun said he brightened up a dull sermon

Mine crawled on the grass, sand, wherever they were. I would take them on swings on my lap (obviously not going too high). They loved it and I liked the excuse to go on the swing. Same with seesaws.

I had 2 late walkers so I get it but I agree with others it’s a limited target audience and park planners need to get maximum ROI from the equipment.
I used extra large picnic blankets with toys and a good tip at the beach which could also apply at a park is I used an empty paddling pool or beach tent with toys to keep them more contained

In your dream world, but in the real world it wouldn’t work.