The Knap Gardens are one of the most popular parks in Barry…read more It's an attractive triangular garden of lawns and borders, with a small stream running into a large boating lake, which is built in the shape of a Welsh Harp. The lake is home to a colony of swans and ducks, as well as the odd seabird. On sunny week-end afternoons, it's busy with families, including those with remote controlled boats. There's also a sheltered sunken garden with a small pond and fountain, with high hedges to keep off the stiff breezes that blow in from the Bristol Channel. The park backs onto Cold Knap beach, and at the other end are shops and cafes providing teas and ice-creams. There is ample parking at the nearby car park adjacent to the beach.

Other reviews are great but I just wanted to add that there are now parking restrictions on the car…read morepark in the evening. It closes at 5.30pm -- you can get out if you've parked up before then but you cant get in to park - there are only a few spaces available (disabled parking etc). I was chased by a swan when I last went so I now leave the bread at home - and I have also noticed some 'do not feed the ducks' signs! The skate park is popular with the youngsters and there's some fantastic talent over there! It's great to go over and watch them.

The Amelia Trust Farm - located on a 160-acre lowland site in the middle of the Vale of Glamorgan -…read moreis a fantastic place for everyone to learn about animals, rural life and conservation. It is a charity that aims to make the countryside and the farm park as accessible as possible for everyone - and as a result it's open very day from sunrise to sunset and there's no entry charge (donations are welcomed). With more than 300 animals (including donkeys, pigs, goats, sheep, rabbits, hens, ducks, horses and cows) and a cosy visitor centre and café, it's a great day out not only for families with young children but also for any animal lovers, young or old. If you're really keen, they are also always looking for volunteers to help out there with the animals. For groups the farm also has accommodation for up to 30 people, and some on-site sports and music facilities. In addition, the charity works with disadvantaged people including adults with learning difficulties, and young people who are struggling with conventional schooling.

Hidden away, near Cardiff and Barry; it is roughly around fifteen minutes from the area in Penylan,…read morebut it is not really on a bus route. This makes it all the more worth an afternoon or a day out to, depending on which day of the week you attend the place. The place is surrounded by countryside; you could say that without the countryside ever existing, that this place would never exist. For it depends on its surroundings to survive... It is free to enter and they have a cafe to sit outside in or inside and to get hot and cold drinks and food. The people are wonderfully welcoming and chirpy. The whole area is made up of peace and tranquillity scattering through the lands atmosphere. You can park your car on sight. They do have plants and herbs that you can buy to take away with you to your house, for reasonable prices. There are many animals that are located they're such as; pigs, rabbits, chip monks, sheep, a goat, chickens, and plenty of ducks. Sometimes they have baby lambs; donkeys, horses and bulls there. They also have many workshop classes there also, such as; Pottery, Screen-printing, wood work, IT skills are taught, and even some community projects. These events are only take place on certain days of the week. They also have a small outdoor theatre that they also only use very rarely, gardens you can go round and a small play ground. I recommend for all to visit, but particularly it is a brilliant visit for parents with children.

Just a few miles from the M4, this Park has 113 acres of woodlands and lakes to wander around, and…read morepaths beside the River Garw. There are also formal, ornamental gardens and a Japanese style Tea Garden Pavilion. Refreshments, available in season, can be found next to the car park. For a more formal meal, there's the Harlequin Restaurant at the house. A nice place to walk.

Was married at bryngarw house 24th oct 2009. Also held our…read morereception there and the weather appart,bryngarw proved tobe the perfect wedding venue. Would highly recomend everything associated with country house and there staff.

As others have said, this is a lovely, almost hidden park, with a small area of formal gardens with…read morea pond and fountain, complete with a statue of Peter Pan, wild woodland areas and a large playing-field area. It has wonderful views from the top across the lower Ely valley towards Llandough, as well as some amazing mature trees. It is one of the city's oldest parks, given to the city by Charles Thompson in 1911. Perfect for a short walk or a lazy summer afternoon picnic.

Although there are a whole lot of parks in and around the Cardiff area, Thompson's Park in Canton…read morein somewhat unique. Most others offer wide stretches of grass, the odd flowered border and playgrounds. Thompson's Park is smaller than most, and has a particularly quaint feeling. This park is landscaped well, and combined areas of woodland in the heart of the city, with fountains (including the famous Peter Pan statue), duck ponds, winding stairs and a wide grassy area on its higher level. On this field I took part in many school sports days in my time. Never won anything though. Thompson's Park is small and compact, but large enough to take you away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It's like a lost garden in a city wilderness.

This attractive and steeply sloping park has large areas of lawn, formal borders, a small…read morearboretum, bowling green and tennis courts. The gardens were laid out at the end of the 19th century, and my grandfather played football here before going on to become a professional soccer player, so it has a close family connection for me. The park is busy with families, children and students on sunny days - a great place for kicking a ball about, or maybe flying a kite (so long as you stay away from the trees!). It's just a stone's throw from the Knap Gardens and beach at Cold Knap, but tends to be more sheltered.

It is a pleasant spot and definitely a nice place to walk all year round. We often used to go there…read morewhen we lived nearby.

Victoria Park is, apparently, one of the most popular parks in the UK. I can understand why. This…read morepark is full of flowers (beware, hay-fever sufferers), trees, winding paths and grassy areas. This is a fantastic place to bring children on a sunny summer day. Victoria Park is probably most famous for its spectacular playground and massive shallow paddling pool (in the summer). Imagine ice creams and picnics and children splashing water everywhere. Good times. There are also a number of summer events that go on in this park. Summer Fetes and Scout/Guide events, face painting and throwing wet sponges at teachers. There is also a bandstand and a cafe. The only thing wrong with this park is its popularity, as it does manage to get heavingly busy on hot days. You've been warned. I have lovely memories from Victoria Park, so could you!

A lovely traditional park, covering nearly 20 acres, situated just west of Canton, on Cowbridge…read moreRoad. It has been awarded a prestigious 'Green Flag' award and attracts over 600,000 visitors a year. It was founded in 1897 and contains a mixture of traditional flower beds, mature trees, a paddling pool, bandstand, children's playground, tennis courts, a 5-a-side football pitch, and open lawns. There's a cafe, toilets and a park-keeper's lodge - one of the few left in the UK where the keeper lives on site. The park used to have animals in a small zoo (my mother used to visit them in the early 1930s), most famously Billy the Seal; caught accidentally by a local fishing boat in 1912, he was donated to the park, living there until 1939. After he died, he was found to be female! She is commemorated by a life-size statue in the park. A great place for families and children, as well as for a quiet stroll.

Let me just say, I like deserted parks…read more Not for any perverted reason, I just enjoy wandering without being privy to passers-by (if I do happen upon a few, ones without thirty cans of cider would be preferred). That said, Alexandra Park is probably my favourite park in the Cardiff-ish area. With gardens, topiaries, and hideaway benches peppered throughout, the park offers a stunning views of Penarth once you manage to climb to the top of its commanding hill. But it's a definitely a hike worth making. Right smack in the middle is a cockatiel aviary, which I find both mesmerising and kinda sad - I'm not really a crazy-hippie-tree-hugger, but I do feel strangely compelled to rip the caging off and let the poor things out. If you tire of the wooded landscape, Alexandra Park is right across the street from the Penarth Pier, where you can grab a slice of pizza and an ice cream cone before heading to the rocky beach for a stroll.

I've living with my back garden backing onto this park for quite a while now, and in all of 600+…read morereviews, I've never before thought to review it! It's kind of like reviewing your own garden... weird. This is a lovely little park with a tangels mess of pathways amoung the wood and flowers, with excellent clear views of the Bristol Channel and beyond (if the weather prevails).

A large Country park to the south west of Barry, and a great favourite with families in summer…read more Essentially, it's a large expanse of grass, with woods all around, a stream and a pebbly beach. It's perfect for picnics, playing soccer, cricket, kite-flying or frisbee, or just walking (or running, if you are a jogger or a child under ten). There are lots of paths in the surrounding woods to explore, too, and plenty of woodland wildlife - mostly birds, squirrels and insects - and marine life in the rock pools nearby on the beach. The park is dominated by the impressive viaduct of the Barry -Bridgend railway line, used by the heavy coal trains to nearby Aberthaw power station and the hourly passenger service to Cardiff Airport and Bridgend. If the arches looked skewed, it's because they are: shortly after it was opened in 1896 one of the arches subsided and then collapsed, causing it to be rebuilt. Facilities include a small cafe and a pitch-and-putt golf course, and there's a small car-park. Road access is via Park Road, but there are footpaths from Marine Drive (via the 'Golden Steps', a leafy glade with steps down the hillside), or along the beach from Cold Knap. (Beware - it's very pebbly, and not easy to walk on).

Once, my Dad and I convinced my (then) little brother that the planes coming into land at Rhoose…read moreairport caused big waves to crash against the shore at Porthkerry Country Park. He believed easily, and spent an hour or so throwing pebbles into the ocean and whooping when a big plane-wave rushed in. Porthkerry Park is a wonderful place to visit in the evenings as the valley catches the last of the light and everything tends to go all golden and rosy. This park has it all, too. There are lovely peaceful woodlands to walk through, wide areas of grass to picnic/frisbee/football in, a number of gold holes (separately, I might add), and even a sea front. This is a suitable space for dogs and cycling. There's even a little cafe that's open during the day, and a children's play area and golfing equipment hire. I rate this place 5 stars because it's a gloriously pretty space (it even have a rail viaduct) and is never too busy. The entrance to the park is off a terraced street and seems absurdly tiny for what lies beyond it, but please don't let that fool you!

Not this is a country park not just a little patch of grass in the city and its a really…read moreinteresting place. Its in the Taff gorge and encompasses a site of scientific interest with a conservation site, a canal and part of the Taff Trial. There's bird watching hide outs, water features and picnic areas too. Its a really good day out and they do lots of education stuff there do so especially good for the kids.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…read more Then a little bit more zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz Go watch the water flow past in the river taff for a bit then head back for some more zzzzzzzzzz Still not worked out what is there to do and see ....