Reservations can be made at the Lucie Stern Community Center, Mitchell Park Community Center, and Cubberley Community Center. You can also email completed forms to csd@cityofpaloalto.org or fax (650) 321-5612. Picnic reservations are only required at Mitchell Park, Rinconada Park, and Foothills Park. All other parks in Palo Alto are first-come, first-served.

Contact Phone: 650-463-4949 Fax: 650-321-5612 csd@cityofpaloalto.org Reservation Forms Group Picnic Application Individual Picnic Application Parks Alcohol Use Permit Maps Mitchell Park Map Rinconada Park Map FAQ's & Regulations Picnic FAQ's Park Rules & Regulations Zero Waste Picnic Kit             Foothills Park Downloads Foothills Park Reservation Packet Reservation Information Foothills Park 2019 Hours

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Group Picnics

Group picnic areas are available at Rinconada, Mitchell, and Foothills Parks. For Rinconada and Mitchell Parks, group reservations may be made by Palo Alto residents, organizations, and companies up to six months in advance and must be made by the Thursday at 5:30pm of the weekend of use. Reservations for Foothills Park may only be made by Palo Alto residents up to a year in advance.

If you would like to rent the field adjacent to the picnic site, please visit our Fields website.

Reservation Fees

Pine Grove - $139 | Includes 10 barbecues and accommodates up to 110 people.
Redwood - $112 | Includes 6 barbecues and accommodates up to 90 people.
Arbor - $49 | Includes 4 barbecues and accommodates up to 40 people.
East Meadow - $76 | Includes 5 barbecues and accommodates up to 60 people.
Sequoia Group Area - $62 | Includes 5 barbecues and accommodates up to 50 people.

Alcohol Policy

If you plan on serving alcohol, a $1,000,000 insurance certificate must be submitted at least 5 business days prior to the date of your picnic. Certificates may also be purchased through the City of Palo Alto. With insurance, only beer, wine or champagne may be consumed. Hard liquor is prohibited. Alcohol may only be served at group picnic sites. 

If you do not plan on providing your own insurance and wish to purchase insurance through the City of Palo Alto, please be sure to submit a completed Alcohol Use Permit.

Group size 50 or less - $164.16
Group size 51 or more - $184.80

Cancellation Policy

There will be a $15 processing fee charged for all canceled group site reservations. Cancellations must be made at least 5 business days prior to your reservation date in order to receive a refund.

Individual Picnics

Individual picnic areas may be reserved at Rinconada and Mitchell Parks. Reservations for individual sites may be made for weekends and holidays between May 1 and October 31. A maximum of 10 people per table site is permitted and up to two tables maximum may be reserved per customer on the Monday through Thursday from 8:30am to 5:30pm for the upcoming weekend of use. No reservation is needed for use of individual tables Monday through Friday. Tables that are not reserved in advance may be claimed on a first-come, first-served basis, at no cost.

Please note that individual table cancellations will not receive a refund.

Reservation Fees

Resident - $26 per table, maximum of 2
Non-Resident - $31 per table, maximum of 2 tables

Oak Grove Picnic Area (Foothills Park)

Foothills Park is open to Palo Alto residents and their accompanied guests only. The reserving party must be a resident of Palo Alto and must attend the event. There must be one (1) Palo Alto resident for every 15 non-resident guests. Children are included in both resident and non-resident counts. To reserve the Oak Grove area, please fill out the reservation packet.

The Oak Grove picnic area is yours to use for the day. The park is open from 8:00 a.m. and closes at a specific time based on sunset. For specific closing hours, please see our open-hours schedule. Event cleanup must be finished one-half hour before park closing. All members of your party, including guests, caterers, musicians, etc., must exit the park before park closing. Equipment may not be left overnight either before or after your event.

Guest List

Please submit a guest list to the park one (1) week in advance of your event. The guest list must list all residents and all non-residents expected to attend, with one resident per 15 non-residents, children included. The number of guests in Oak Grove cannot exceed 150 persons, children included.

Cancellation Policy

Oak Grove cancellations must be made in writing and received 2 weeks before the event. A cancellation fee (1/3 of total charges) is non-refundable unless the City cancels the permit, wherein a full refund will be made. No refund is given if cancellation is less than two weeks.

For more information on Oak Grove, please contact Foothill Park at 650-329-2423 or on the Oak Grove website.