I've been fortunate enough to stroll through this beautifully maintained landscape on multiple…read moreoccasions. There are lots of paths and historical monuments and statues to check out (including the Prince Albert memorial). The Peter Pan statue, Italian Gardens, and Princess Di playground are just some of many attractions worth seeing here. Lovely place to unwind from a day of touristy activities, the hustle and bustle of London, or for taking a lunch work break. The Round Pond is worth seeing as well.

Kensington Gardens is one of London's eight Royal Parks, covering 265 acres just to the west of…read moreHyde Park. We visited a week or so ago after a lunch in Kensington. We walked over to see the exterior of Kensington Palace. Then we took a picture of the Queen Victoria Statue, explored the Diana Princess of Wales Sunken Garden, wandered around the Round Pond, visited the Serpentine South Gallery, and then walked past the Albert Memorial on our way out of the park. And that was just scratching the surface of what the park has to offer! The Sunken Garden was the highlight for me. It was much less crowded than the rest of the park, and it's a beautiful tribute to Diana from her sons. It was also the lushest part of the park we saw - the park was a little brown and beige after the heat of summer when we visited the first week of September. It was a great place to stretch our legs after a wonderful but heavy lunch!

I walked through this park on my first day in London. I was very intrigued with the different flora…read moreand fauna in the area. Pelicans, fowls, colorful birds are native to the park. It is such a serene walk, as there are no cars coming in and out of the area. There are bicyclists in the area but they don't do much to deter walkers. This park is right across from the popular Buckingham palace and offers a great view of the guards.

We walked thru St.James Park on our way to Buckingham Palace. This is the oldest Royal Park in…read moreLondon. Over 57 acres with a small lake,it borders Buckingham Palace and the Clarence House. Many benches through the park as well as a nice kids play area. We loved watching all the various ducks and other waterfowl in the lake.

Hyde Park is a lush park that we strolled through on our way to Buckingham palace. My American…read morecousin and I remarked how green the trees and grass were. Such a culture shock to us since we are from Phoenix, Arizona (the desert). I'd definitely return and hope for better weather next time, though the trees did shield some rain.

On our last full day in London, we spent the day at Hyde Park, one of London's most famous public…read moreparks. We purchased sandwiches at Harrods Food Hall, and ate our lunch in the park (we also purchased some beer and wine at a cafe in the park). It was a beautiful spring day, not too hot, not too cold -- just perfect. While we didn't see the entire park (at 350 acres, that would be impossible), we had a great day -- Hyde Park was one of the highlights of my time in London. We spent the majority of our time in Hyde Park watching the birds at the waterfront. I'm not a bird expert, but I saw at least nine different kinds of birds: swans, geese, Canadian Geese, ducks, seagulls, herons, pigeons, starlings, and crows. And further in the park, we saw parakeets. The diversity was amazing! If you're in London, Hyde Park is a MUST MUST MUST SEE! It also makes for an inexpensive day. Other things to note: you must pay to use the toilet, but it's only 20p. However, you can't pay by cash, only by credit card (which was fine by me, as I hate cash), and unlike Amsterdam, which charged €1, the washroom was CLEAN (there was an attendant). While I'm not a fan of paying to use the washroom, at least it was cheap (unlike Amsterdam), clean (unlike in my city or Amsterdam), and hassle free (unlike Amsterdam). [Yelp collections: Europe 2024; London, England; Parks and Gardens]

As far as local parks close enough to walk in Harlesden, Roundwood is tops on the list…read more A year-round escape from the concrete, you'll enjoy tree-lined strolls of a mile or so, interrupted by fun birdhouse visits, hilltop views, or sportsball courts. Another former-landfill green space, with 100 years to mature, it provides a nice mix of sun and shade depending on the weather. The super-old-school Victorian structure at the entrance adds to the charm, where you'll often find roller-skaters or dancers enjoying their portable speakers. The cafe is lovely for a stop or to-go for your stroll. Keep an eye out for semi-famous local artists who also frequent the space. (If you see a younger William Dafoe, don't get too excited, it it's just his alleged doppelgänger--me). Smaller tikes will love the playground area, offering a safer spot when not riding their trikes around the .7 mile perimeter path. Park open/close times vary with the seasons, but essentially it's dawn-dusk most months. I'll return often.

Lovely park just a bus ride away. The small cafe sometimes has sunday markets that sell handmade…read morethings. Just a nice green space near by neighborhood.

Small and unassuming, King George's Park certainly isn't a destination…read more But that means that there's more park for me and other locals without the rest of London there. The park's main draw for me has been the ten well-maintained and secluded tennis courts that cost £6 per hour during peak times. Although the courts aren't flood-lit, which means no tennis matches through the evening or during after-work hours in the winter are to be had. Also, there's a bowling green at the park, if you're into that sort of thing. The grounds throughout the park are well maintained, and the River Wandle borders it to the East, creating quite a picturesque little area. And so far I've done the adult thing and avoided the playground for big kids, despite its enticing monkey bars and climbing structures, but mostly this is because it's socially unacceptable for me to interact with ten-year-olds during the day and the gangs of teenagers who loiter in the playground after dusk intimidate me. Yes, I'm easily intimidated by packs of 16-year-olds in hoodies. Aren't you?

This park is really simple, there's not much to it compared to other fancier parks in and around…read moreLondon, but you know what? I really think this park rocks. It's usually quite quiet, which is what I value the most as I hate lots of rowdy folk infesting parks in the summer time. I've often sat with friends here, made a little picnic and watched locals fly kites, walk their dogs and play with their kids (not all at once mind you!). The park has a real family feel to it and it's just so serene. It may not be big and fancy but it's definitely the park for me being so calm and unpretentious. One of my favourite places i the summer time...

This park is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!! It's pretty small and walkable in around 30-45 minutes if you…read moretake a slow stroll and look at all the animals that are in the park. There's a small pond that freezes over in the wintertime, and the ducks just hang out and sit over the ice, it's pretty funny and cute :) There's a small section with a deer enclosure, tennis courts, croquet lawn, golf practice nets, zoo and even a butterfly house!!! It's pretty crazy, it's almost like a small zoo! In the spring time, there are yellow and white flowers that bloom all over the lawns and it is absolutely breathtaking! I run through this park 2-3 times a week and am always shocked by how beautiful it is! It's attached to Hampstead Heath, and Hampstead extension is about a 3 minutes jog from it as well, if you are looking for a longer distance. Also if you want something more secluded, there's a whole section with tall trees and dirt trails that you can totally get lost in. Families often take their kids to walk about the park, even in the winter time! The grass freezes over and I had no idea frozen grass could be so beautiful! This park is also perfect in that there's a cafe with delicious food, drinks, cakes, and ICE CREAM you can relax in that overlooks the park with giant windows! It can get quite busy on a nice day around 10am, but if you come a bit earlier, it 's really quiet and quite nice to have the place to yourself. There's no wifi but you can bring a book and settle down with a cup of coffee! There is also an ice cream truck that parks pretty close to the cafe most times during the spring as well. I am so grateful to be living within walking distance to this park! I haven't seen it in the summertime yet, but I can imagine it to be glorious!!!

A lovely little park just off Hampstead Heath. I'm always surprised about how big it is. It's got a…read morebeautiful garden area, a fun playground area for kids, a little cafe and a small zoo to name a few things. I've been about half a dozen times and it's never been that busy compared to other London parks. Well worth the visit

From being a child this has been one of my favourite places on a summers day. Sleeping with…read morefriends, during the Richmond Festival, as a teenager..under the terrace ..we were awoken by police dogs and I hopped in my sleeping bag with a snapping one at my errm rear! On the west, rising above the river are the Terrace Gardens: these gardens were laid out in the 1880s and extended down to the River Thames some 40 years later; the broad gravel walk along the top is earlier and the view west towards Windsor has long been famous. Laid out in the 1700s, the Terrace Walk towards the end of the 20th Century was in need of upgrading. The famous View from Richmond Hill was protected by an Act of Parliament in 1902 and it was this Act which provided the catalyst for the development of the London's Arcadia project. Works carried out during Phase 1 include resurfacing and re-grading of the walk, restoration and repainting (though not repositioning) of the railings on the road side by contractors. The railings along the hedge side were restored over a six week period by prisoners on day release from Latchmere House Prison. Magnificent Lime trees have been planted to 'gap-up' the historic avenue of trees on the Terrace and at the top of Terrace Fields. Richmond Terrace Walk is listed as Grade II* in the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest The Terrace Gardens and adjacent Terrace field, overlooking the River Thames, were formerly brick works. During the 18th century various noble owners had fine houses erected, all now sadly demolished. Some features of the gardens' history remain, including the re-sited statue of the River God and an ice house set in the slope to the rear of the thatched summer house. The Terrace Gardens, Petersham Road, are famous for their seasonal bedding, shrubberies, rockery and rose garden, all set amongst fine trees and sloping lawns. Close to the main entrance in Petersham Road is a conservatory with tropical plants. To get an idea of why the landscape here is considered so special, you should pause at the top of Richmond Hill, above the pretty Terrace Gardens. Below you the Thames curls, serpent-like, amid trees casting long shadows in the silvery water. You can pick out the roof of Ham House through the greenery and, away on the horizon, Box Hill and the Surrey Hills. So celebrated is this view that they passed an act of parliament in 1904 to protect it from development - it's the only protected view in England. The legislation was the first-ever piece of environmental planning, and a plaque on the hill commemorates the passing of the act. JMW Turner painted it, and the poet Alexander Pope waxed lyrical about it, as did Sir Walter Scott, who described it in his great novel The Heart of Midlothian (1918). Petersham Meadows, periodically grazed on by herds of cattle, as they have been for centuries. That willow-fringed island to your right is Glovers Island, one of a series of picturesque islets that dot this stretch of the Thames. On the balustrade seating area (where we slept) on the top terrace is a formal pool with its modern statue of Aphrodite (affectionately known as Bulbous Betty). Take a look at the watchmans hut. Built in 1887, the Terrace Gardens Hut has survived for more than 115 years against all odds. The wooden hut represents a sophisticated and exceptionally rare architectural style Anglo-Japanese. The style was briefly current during the years of the Aesthetic Movement of the 1870s and 1880s the era of the Mikado and Walter Pater's 'Art for Art's Sake'. The modest Terrace Gardens Hut is one of the only surviving structures that can properly be described as 'Anglo-Japanese' Other features of the Terrace Gardens Hut, however, are decidedly not Japanese not surprisingly, since it was the product of an eclectic era. The tiled roof is an interesting feature; the tiles are made of a lightweight metal, possibly zinc, and are likely to have been manufactured according to a long-forgotten patented system. The diagonal tongue-and-groove panels on the door are typical of 'reformed gothic' design of the 1860s and 1870s. Remains of the wrought-iron fixings for a notice possibly enamelled that announced the purpose of the hut, are still visible on the apex of the roof. Go stroll..take a picnic..eat in the cafe..have a pint close by but don't miss it.

Terrace Gardens is an openly accessible, fairly expansive public park area close to Richmond Centre…read moreand separated only by a road from the Thames and the promenade. You will find a small café there, and large flower beds are spread over the whole area. Nice and quiet, ideal for an evening walk or to escape the bustle and noise of the city. Lovely.

A few weeks ago I joined my friends for a walk in Waterlow Park with their dalmatian whippet mix…read morepup, MoMo. Fall was quickly turning to winter and autumn hued leaves were all around. While it was too cold for a picnic on this visit, I definitely want to come back for one in the spring. Located near on a hillside near the posh Highgate Village, views of London from this park are very pretty. An ideal place to bring a kid, a dog or a person you fancy.

As a passionate and dutiful dog owner, a trip to Waterlow Park is on my daily to-do list. It's such…read morea lovely park, with loads of old trees, spacious meadows...and best of all, it's all so well-maintained. In fact, the other day we had visitors from South London and they were in awe by how luscious and well-kept this park was...apparently quite a difference to some of the more plain commons. What's also nice about this park is the fact that you have amazing views over the City (on clear days, that is). A good time to come here is around lunch-time, sit on one if the many benches and soak in the beauties surrounding you... The only thing that I would like to change, is the rubbish bins. The thing with them is...they don't have a lid or a cover, which invites the non-human inhabitants of this lovely park (aka squirrels, foxes & crows) to rummage through the bins in the search for edible left-overs. While doing that, they have no shame in littering the floor with tissues, coffee cups and wrapping paper. My concern is not so much the appeal of this, but I'm more concerned about my dog, who namely thinks that this rubbish is the most tasty thing in the world!