Community parks provide urban residents with open spaces for daily recreation and physical fitness activities. This study aims to investigate visitor activity patterns in urban parks and the relationship between urban park features and spatial vitality through the field observation of three community parks in the old town area of Zhengzhou City. Spatial vitality refers to the inclusiveness, aggregation density, and use intensity of urban park space, which is quantified by the weighted average of four indicators (diversity of age group, visitor density, space using intensity and richness of activity types). A questionnaire survey was used to determine the key factors associated with park spatial vitality and visitors’ needs in the park space. The results showed that the spatial vitality of each park varies across time and space; in addition, spatial vitality was influenced by the location of and the facilities in the park. The overall number of visitors of the parks was significantly higher on weekends than on weekdays, with the peak times of vitality being 10:00 am and 4:00 pm during the day. The results also revealed that children, middle-aged adults, and the elderly were the primary users of the community parks, and spatial preferences differed by age group. Moreover, certain locations (sandpits, squares, watersides, and kiosks for painting activities) and sites with more service facilities inside the parks had a higher spatial vitality. Furthermore, the spatial vitality of the park was not directly proportional to its size and visitor number. To increase urban park vitality, factors that need to be considered include location and size of park, demographic structure of the surrounding population, the facilities in the park, and open lawn space. In a high-density urban area, smaller parks must be planned to improve the service efficiency of urban parks. The results of this study can provide a reference point for urban park planning and design.

社区公园为城市居民提供日常休闲和健身活动的开放空间。本研究旨在通过对郑州市老城区三个社区公园的实地观察，探讨城市公园游客活动模式以及城市公园特征与空间活力的关系。空间活力是指城市公园空间的包容性、聚集密度和使用强度，用四个指标（年龄组多样性、游客密度、空间使用强度和活动类型丰富度）的加权平均来量化。通过问卷调查确定与公园空间活力和公园空间游客需求相关的关键因素。结果表明，每个公园的空间活力随时间和空间变化；此外，空间活力受到公园位置和设施的影响。周末公园的总体游客人数明显高于平日，活力高峰时间为上午10:00和下午4:00。结果还显示，儿童、中年人和老年人是社区公园的主要使用者，空间偏好因年龄段而异。并且，园区内某些地点（沙坑、广场、水边、画亭等）和服务设施较多的场地具有较高的空间活力。此外，公园的空间活力与其规模和游客人数不成正比。增加城市公园活力，需要考虑的因素包括公园的位置和规模，周边人口的人口结构、公园内的设施和开阔的草坪空间。在高密度城区，必须规划较小的公园，以提高城市公园的服务效率。本研究结果可为城市公园规划设计提供参考。