I remember lots of merry-go-rounds when I was growing up, mostly flat circles with hand rails. These days I go to many parks, and only one has anything that remotely resembles a merry-go-round in my book - and it's a circular padded bench with a hollow center that's at a slight angle and can be spun. The smaller kids can't ride it without being held by a parent or older sibling (as they could the old-style merry-go-rounds) since it requires you to be able to straddle the bench and cling to it, and their legs simply aren't that big. It's really fun and cool, but....
On the other hand, tall slide? Check. Climbing structure? Check. Integrated play structures and even outdoor musical toys? Check. I think a lot of these are more fun than what they replace. I do miss the old-style merry-go-rounds and wish there were more things at least vaguely like them, however.
My toddler spends a lot of time on play structures for the 5-12 crowd. I used to be terrified. However, he has now learned which parts he can handle and not to dash out the openings where the climbing things he can't use yet are, and honestly he's pretty good at managing them. It's easy enough to parallel him on the ground, so if he dodged out I'd be able to grab/catch - and I can follow him if I must on top, but why bother?
That said, a number of our parks have the toddler play structure just 5-10 feet from the big-kid structure. This would be WHY he plays on those...because there's nowhere to take him where he can only get a toddler structure. (Untrue. Untrue. There is one park, but it is the most pathetic toddler structure ever. The cool ones are all in the generally-better-appointed parks which have stuff for older kids also.)
As far as see-saws, there's one in a park we go to. It's hard to get him time on it, he usually ends up doing it with us. The kids mostly ignore it in favor of the weird merry-go-round, the swings, the climbing structure and sand pit, the incredible slide.
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On the other hand, tall slide? Check. Climbing structure? Check. Integrated play structures and even outdoor musical toys? Check. I think a lot of these are more fun than what they replace. I do miss the old-style merry-go-rounds and wish there were more things at least vaguely like them, however.
My toddler spends a lot of time on play structures for the 5-12 crowd. I used to be terrified. However, he has now learned which parts he can handle and not to dash out the openings where the climbing things he can't use yet are, and honestly he's pretty good at managing them. It's easy enough to parallel him on the ground, so if he dodged out I'd be able to grab/catch - and I can follow him if I must on top, but why bother?
That said, a number of our parks have the toddler play structure just 5-10 feet from the big-kid structure. This would be WHY he plays on those...because there's nowhere to take him where he can only get a toddler structure. (Untrue. Untrue. There is one park, but it is the most pathetic toddler structure ever. The cool ones are all in the generally-better-appointed parks which have stuff for older kids also.)
As far as see-saws, there's one in a park we go to. It's hard to get him time on it, he usually ends up doing it with us. The kids mostly ignore it in favor of the weird merry-go-round, the swings, the climbing structure and sand pit, the incredible slide.