Running trails in Livonia, MI
Livonia has 20 trails in the directory — 2 paved and 4 on crushed gravel or dirt, 1 loop that returns to the trailhead, 1 with a stated distance, 5 shaded, and 1 open 24 hours. 13 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 3,823 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Rotary Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 1,888 reviews
Recreational site offering tennis courts, a baseball field, playground, wooded areas & picnic spots.
Bicentennial Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 533 reviews
City recreation area featuring walking trails, athletic fields & playground spaces.
Newburgh Pointe
4.6 ★★★★★ 388 reviews
Scenic lake known for kayaking, canoeing and fishing, plus walking trails.
Mies Park
4.5 ★★★★★ 272 reviews
Recreational park featuring open green spaces, tall trees, a playground & walking paths.
Nankin Lake Park Area
4.6 ★★★★★ 130 reviews
Park with a lake providing opportunities for fishing, walking, kayaking, and biking, plus a waterfall.
Bien Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 132 reviews
City park with a playground, picnic tables, and paved areas suitable for walking.
Rotary Park Hiking Trails
4.8 ★★★★★ 120 reviews
Clean park featuring baseball diamonds, tennis courts and kid-friendly hiking trails.
Rotary Park Trailhead (Main)
4.6 ★★★★★ 94 reviews
Popular hiking area with playground equipment and a baseball field.
Levan Knoll Recreation Area
4.5 ★★★★★ 62 reviews
Nature-heavy space for biking, hiking and dog walking, offering picnic tables, restrooms and shade.
Compton Park
4.2 ★★★★☆ 58 reviews
Small park offering a playground, picnic tables and wide-open spaces for recreation.
Riverview MTB Trailhead (West)
4.9 ★★★★★ 26 reviews
Virginia B. Matley Nature Trail
4.7 ★★★★★ 25 reviews
Harry Tatigian Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 16 reviews
Bluegrass Park and Nature Preserve
3.9 ★★★★☆ 16 reviews
Lakeview Trail
5 ★★★★★ 9 reviews
Rotary Park Nature Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 9 reviews
275 Metro Trail
4.5 ★★★★★ 6 reviews
Trail Map Kiosk
4.5 ★★★★★ 2 reviews
Riverview Ridge Trail (MTB)
5 ★★★★★ 1 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Livonia
- Match the surface to your legs. Livonia gives you a choice: 4 natural surface and 2 paved. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More natural surface trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 1 trail here is a loop, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Livonia is Rotary Park at 6 mi. 1 trail is long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 1 trail in Livonia is open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 13 of the 20 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 5 have trailhead parking, 7 have restrooms, and 2 have a water fountain in Livonia. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 5 shaded, 3 with mile markers, 4 that runners describe as quiet, 5 dog-friendly, and 2 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Livonia trails by type
Running trails near Livonia
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.