Lower Phoenix Park Fenced Dog Park

Lower Phoenix Park is a fully fenced off-leash dog park at 47 Shoreline Drive in Rhodes, tucked into the foreshore near the 5 Senses Garden. In an apartment-dense pocket of Sydney, a secure fenced run with a double-gated entry is exactly what most local owners are after, and this one comes with a busy, social crowd to match.

The dog setup

The enclosure runs off-leash on a secure perimeter fence with a double-gated airlock entry, so dogs can run freely once you are through the inner gate. Reported hours run daily from 6am to 10pm, though it is a City of Canada Bay park, so check the council listing for the current rules before relying on them. Owners stay with their dogs and keep them under voice control, and clean-up is the usual legal obligation, with a bin and bag dispenser on site.

Worth knowing

There is a water station with bowls, basic seating for owners and night lighting for evening use. The surface is a mix of grass and dirt that turns muddy after rain, so pack a towel in wet weather. Weekdays stay calmer; weekends and weekday evenings draw a crowd. If your dog is anxious, aim for midweek or later in the evening, and if they are social, this is one of the better-mixed crowds on the Parramatta River.

Pepsi: double gates only work if you close one before opening the next. Pause in the airlock, check the inner space, then let me go.

Getting there and parking

The park sits along the foreshore on Shoreline Drive. Parking is the real catch in this high-density pocket: street parking nearby is tight at peak times, and weekend mornings fill early. It is a short walk from Rhodes station, which is how many locals arrive anyway.

While you're out there

The Rhodes waterfront is highly walkable, and both Bare Witness and Left of Field take dogs at their outdoor tables for a coffee after the run. The King George V Park Fenced Dog Park is the suburb's other enclosure.

More fenced runs are in the New South Wales dog parks guide, and the suburb's other entries are on the Rhodes destination page.