This is by far my favourite park in Bristol. It's got everything you'd want in a park…read more.. Massive open green spaces perfect for football, frisbee, cricket and any other park game. A huge playground suitable for children of all ages. A hut that sells tea/coffee/ice cream and bacon baps. Beautiful meadows that are buzzing with wildlife. The river Frome runs through it and throughout the different seasons a walk along that river offers an array of different colours, wildlife and scenery. I also love the fact you can start in Eastville park and follow the Frome Valley walkway right through Snuff Mills, Oldbury Court, Frenchay, Winterbourne and beyond. If you live in Bristol and haven't visited this park then get on it, you won't be disappointed.

There is a big rolling walkway of green stretching from Eastville to right out under the ringroad…read moreat Hambrook, if you know where the paths are. Some of it is part of Oldbury Court, which is how you will see part of this park on the Google map. Part of that group is Vassell's Park (which used to be called Vassell's Family Estate). It must have been an arboretum at one point as it has a fantastic collection of trees so it looks stunning all year round. Largely split into four fields you have the main entrance and car park on Vassall Park Road (note how the spelling is different!) and a sports field to the left with a very good enclosed childrens' playground, and a larger green space on the right with a concrete path. Most dog walkers during summer and weekends stick to the right side as the left side has footie and cricket. Other times it is a free for all as it is only dog walkers and joggers who come to the park in winter and early mornings! Then there are two fields at the back which are just big green spaces, again only dog walkers and runners seem to get that far into the park. You can also gain entrance to the park at the bottom of the right-hand field near the back fields - at Goffenton Drive - but there is only one car space! And there is a way in by the allotments past Glaisdale Road at the back of the left-hand field. No parking available here. There is a constant coffee truck near the car park all year and an ice cream truck whenever children are likely to be about. There is a limited amount of waste bins in the hope that everyone will take their rubbish home - unfortunately they don't and during summertime I become volunteer litter picker when I walk my dog. It does get filthy when the weather is hot and the picnics come out. Annoying and dangerous for my dog. The park does have numerous dog poo bins and the dog walkers here are very clean - I rarely see any left about in the park. I should say if you don't like dogs then don't come here - even at 6am on a wintery day I will see 5 other dogs, on a Saturday afternoon in summer we're talking 30+. The park connects down to Snuff Mills and the river Frome at various points. The easiest option is to follow the concrete walking path all the way through the back fields and then when you reach the third entrance and car park at Frenchay Road turn back on yourself and go down the steps. Personally I like careering with my dog down through the the woods! Of course Snuff Mills can connect you to Eastville Park and to the Purdown Estate for more green space by just crossing a road. If you want to go on to Downend the woodland path continues opposite the car park but be careful as the path has eroded quite badly and is slippery on a slope. You can also take a short walk through the quiet Frenchay streets and keep going on the Frome Valley Walkway.

Tucked away from the fast Broomhill Road traffic is an amazing river walk. Allow me to walk you…read morethrough it... Start off by turning (slowly - its very narrow) into River View. Notice that number 11 in this street is actually a church! Then there is a large free car park just here. At the entrance to the car park is a handy tea and snack shack which has seats out front but also if you nip behind the hedge you will find seats overlooking the River Frome which catch the morning sun. The shack has a resident scruffy terrier who patrols the car park off leash so please drive slowly here as well - he is very friendly so don't worry about him approaching your dog. You then walk down to the actual mill of its name. You can read a bit more about it with the notices - apparently named after the owner whose nickname was Snuffy Jack. The gardens here are newly planted and tended so you will see signs to keep your dog on lead through these bits but you can let them off when you get to the mill. The water goes over a weir and can look very pretty all year round. The walk then splits to high and low ground following the river until you get to a narrow bridge which connects this to the bottom of Vassell's Park. You can follow the river along right to Downend or you can go up towards Fishponds from here. Very popular on a weekend when the weather is nice, the paved walk is also hot with joggers in the early morning and evening. There will be a lot of dogs here at any time as well. They have waste bins by the car park. There is a very active Action Group looking after the whole of this area worth keeping tabs on http://snuffmills.blogspot.com

We are definitely spoilt for lush green spaces and beautiful walks in Bristol and this is one of my…read morefavourite. There is a large carpark and cafe at the entrance, the cafe is more of hatch selling sandwiches, ice creams and drinks so nothing to get excited about, but serves its purpose for a hot drink on a cold day or ice cream in the summer. You then enter passed the old mill and some gardens tendered by volunteers which are beautiful in the summer. You then come to the beautiful wooded walk along the River Frome. It's one of those walks that changes throughout the seasons and high/low tides but is always lovely. Wellies are definitely recommended during the autumn and winter months as it gets very muddy and I've even know it to flood entirely but that all adds to the fun. You can also take a path up to Oldbury court where you have lovely meadows, sports fields and a huge children's play park. It really does have everything!

One of the larger Parks in Bristol, this is a much needed green expanse to offer the people of…read moreFishponds and eastville a place to come on sunny days and enjoy some fresh air. It is not recomended to go to this park once it starts to get dark as their is a bad reputation that seems to go hand in hand with it. People seem to respect this park which is nice and you don't see much littering, I thinkit is so important to keep park areas in citys clean and safe as it encourages more people to come and use it and enjoy everything that a park can offer.

I feel safe enough mooching around this grand Victorian city park or taking the dog for a walk in…read morebroad daylight. After dark I would skirt around the outside, as the park has a dodgy reputation that I don't want to test out for the purpose of a Yelp review (sorry folks). Eastville is a much needed expanse of green cornering onto Fishponds, Eastville, Stapleton and Easton (all mainly concrete/Victorian stone areas). It also provides a good space for a kick-about and it's one of the city's main community footballing venues. On a geeky nature way, I also enjoy exploring the wildlife areas and lake in the park - last summer I even caught sight of a kingfisher (no kidding) and heron, ducks and moorhen all thrive here. What I didn't expect, late on a Summer's evening, are the bats that flit around the trees - this is Bristol!! OK, so I'm not much of a birdwatcher/bat fanatic really, so back to what I do know - a good walk in the park. You can leave your car in the alloted spaces in Park Avenue and from there wander into the park. The lake, community garden and 100 year old the bowling greens remain. Some months they house a funfair, other times there is an Asian festival in full swing (complete with delicious curries for sale). Original features Victorian drinking fountain and toilets remain, although you probably want to avoid them at all costs!

A square of green, surrounded by terraces on all sides, St. Andrews Park is probably deserving of…read morethe 'green oasis' cliché. Big old conker trees at the top of the hill make lovely shade for reading. As you go further down, there's a bit more open space usually where people play football. As the land isn't flat here it's not perfect for sports, although I have enjoyed a few afternoons of Frisbee here. There's a kids park, which doesn't usually have glowering teenagers sitting on the swings, always a plus. They've also got a bowls green (so a lied, there is at least one small patch of perfectly flat land) tucked away for your granddad. Since its surrounded by housing it's unsurprising how popular it gets when the sun comes out. On a fine day in July or August it can be a challenge to find enough space to set your picnic and you can certainly forget about being able to play Frisbee. I don't blame the people for coming, this park offers a little lung for the surrounding area.

St Andrews park is great, it's a luscious green haven just a short walk from the hustle and bustle…read moreof Gloucester road. The park has lots of green grassy space, and trees to offer shade from the sun. The kids play area is at the top of the hill and hosts your usual park utensils, it also has a paddling pool which is open during the summer. This park offers something for everyone, it has a really chilled feel and during the warm weather has a real festival vibe. With groups of people having BBQs and enjoying a few beers in the sun. There's a small catering can that offers drinks and nibbly treats! The toilets are the only downside to this place, they are a little worse for wear and could do with a bit of TLC. I love this park and would definitely recommend you pay a visit!

Kingswood leisure centre has been around for years, I remember coming here as a child for swimming…read moreand and inflatable pool parties! They are part of the Active scheme which gives you the chance to pay monthly for membership and gives you swimming, classes and gym included. They do have some really good classes here, circuits and abs classes are popular choices. More recently I have been here for a swim, they have a 25 metre pool and offer plenty of lane and casual swimming and it's all clean and tidy. You won't find anything fancy here, but for standard fitness activities you'll find it here.

I come here every week as non member for the fitness classes. Although it looks abit run down they…read morehave had a refurb with the gym and reception area. They have all fitness equipment and have slowly started replacing the old equipment with brand new ones. The pool has been the same for years and the changing rooms could do with a refurb still. Im not a member but i always seem to get into the clases without booking and paying on arrival, unless its in the spin studio then i recommend booking far in advance. The classes are £4.90 and around a hour long. The carpark lets it down alot, its VERY small and always packed. And the roads have double yellows everywhere. Go careful parking i managed to get myself a parking ticket there a while ago! I will still continue to use this centre but does still need some improvements.

How lucky are we to have a handful of expansive and beautiful Victorian parks dotted around the…read morecity? I didn't even know about this one and it's just around the corner from me really. So, I wrapped up warm and stepped through the impressive (and original) wrought iron gates on Church road. It was rather like stepping from the bustle of the modern city with all its traffic and noise into a tranquil Victorian landscape. An avenue of trees, lawns on which to give the dog a good run and a large duckpond/small lake (I can't quite decide which it is - man made whichever!). That's about it, but a refreshing change from walking on concrete. The gates are is open 24 hours (although I wouldn't recommend using it as a cut through to anywhere late at night). There's also a car park nearby. Recent developments to the greenery is that the park is part of the 'TreeBristol project' and 70 new trees were recently planted by people from the local community. Yay!

It's great to find Park's of this size very near to City centre's. Especially considering the area…read moreit is in. As it is not in the best area of Bristol it does give young people an area to not only play a bit of football, bit there is also a skate park. For young families as well there are a couple of playgrounds so you can keep your little angles(brats!) entertained for a few hours as you catch a quick restbite on a bench. You don't hear much traffic when you are in the park which is nice, and it is great to see everyone treats it with repect.

Woodland and parks which used to be the land for the fancy schmansy yellow mansion you can see from…read morethe less fancy M32. Dower House is now just apartments, but the land is public access with well formed paths and tracks and often used by horse riders, hikers, cyclists and dog walkers. The land is linked easily to Pur Down so you can walk for a good few hours across this part of Bristol.

Acres of field and woodland which stretch between two landmarks of east Bristol - the BT Tower and…read morethe big yellow mansion that is Dower House. There is also a section called South Purdown which goes down to Muller Road (the big road heading away from Ikea). There is some debate about the future of this section - follow the action group Friends of Purdown for news about that http://www.purdown.org This is great dog walking country, as you will find muddy paths, hills, woods, rabbits and other dogs (but you can avoid contact if you don't want to see anyone else very easily). You do have to watch out for joggers if your dog likes moving objects and nearer the houses you may catch kids on bikes/quads kicking about in the evening.

If you live in Horfield, Purdown is a vital stretch of greenery running from Muller Road (near…read moreIkea) right the way down to the M32. It's a well-used area but with plenty of space never to feel crowded, and it's a known local haven for wildlife, with wooded areas and fields. It's popular with people walking, jogging and exercising their dogs, but wear your wellies if you go down there after it's been raining because it can get really mashed up and muddy.

One of the many reasons I love Bristol is the abundance of green space. Not only is the city…read moreremarkably close to the South West countryside but it also boasts a plethora of park space within the city. Sandwiched between Brook Road and Shaftesbury Avenue, Albany Green is a hidden beauty. The park provides the local children with a smorgasbord of climbing frames and swings, the local dogs with a nice green expanse to run free and Bristol's local graffiti artists a designated wall to express some of their better styles. In the summer months the park is awash with locals soaking up the sun, a secret slice of green amongst the tarmac and the concrete.

This is a nice little park in the Montpellier area of Bristol. More popular with younger families…read moreand school children. The play area provides some great slides and climbing frames for children to spend hours running up and down as parents look on pleased, knowing that they will have a couple of hours peace as the children will be too tired to annoy them! Bristol does well with it's park spaces, it is so great that communities has so many large and small parks to go to, supplying families with outdoor areas where their children can play safe in the knowledge that it's safe.

I was looking for a park to film a short documentary in a few months back, but it needed to have a…read morebasketball ring and not be too busy on a Saturday morning. I can't remember who found this one, but I wasn't disappointed. I'm too old to appreciate swings and slides in the same way a child can but when I walked into this park I couldn't quite believe what I was seeing. I remember parks when I was a kid and either I'm remembering them incorrectly or this park in Lockleaze is simply a cut above the rest. It has everything you'd expect from a decent park, but simply a million times better. There's a giant wooden tower with labyrinthine gangways and walkways leading in several direction. There's a giant round about type contraption set about 4 feet off the ground. At least I think it's a roundabout, but it's unlike anything I'd seen before. There's also (and this was the best thing) a death slide that is attached to the wooden tower. I was taken aback at how extreme this death slide was. It is quite literally a vertical drop down a five foot wide sheet of polished metal with a gentle curve at the last minute to save you from falling to your death. I was with 6 or 7 kids on the day and none of them had the guts to go on it.