A great place to spend a beautiful sunny spring day! I'm amazed that I've been living in London for…read more3 years and somehow managed not to find this place until now even though I've driven to Stansted at least half a dozen times. D'oh! Parking costs a £5 for the day and about half that if you're arriving after 5pm. It's free for National Trust members. Don't worry if you've forgotten your sticker, just show them your card at the gate and you'll be issued with a little paper ticket. There are at least 3 car parks I can think of off the top of my head. One right at the entrance, one near the lake and one by the cafe. I'd drive right in and stop by the cafe as it offers the most central location, allowing easy access to all parts of the forest. There are lots of trails, open fields as well as forested areas so a bit of everything. I saw quite a few signs of bushcraft so if you're into that then this is a great place to put in some shelter building practice.

A great day out, couldn't recommend it highly enough…read more Lots for kids of all ages to do here, there's a large lake for fishing, an area for feeding geese and ducks, loads of tree's to climb, plenty of wildlife, and best of all LOADS OF SPACE! Great to ride to and around on a bike, the cafe does a great range of homemade pies that really are worth the trip alone. There's numerous sturdy picnic benches that seat up to 8, and at easter/xmas that do a little treasure hunt for the young uns, which my lot love. Get down there pronto, but if you are going to drive, please have the decency to pay to enter the car park. For years there have been loads of people parking on the road and entering for free, so finally double yello lines have been painted on. Sad but necessary.

Who can falter beautiful countryside. If you like forest lakes fields and farms head here. Parking…read moreis £1 for an hour and £3 for the whole day. I am not sure how much the farm is but you can see a lot of the animals out side of the farm. The park closes at 7:30 and the view of london of beautiful! I would give the cafe a miss thought it is not fantastic.

The animals are well looked after it appears and you can see there has been some money spent there…read moreBUT apart from a run round on the grass or walk around the lake there's nothing for the children. The Meerkat area absolutely run down. The small park areas disappeared or run down. Parking not expensive. Cafe is ok. Nice cuppa and food appears reasonably priced. Been going for years but the hour is enough nowadays.

Nice place to have a walk, see the deer and have a picnic on a summer day. The three car parks are…read morepay and display for £2 (feb 09). There's a cafe for ice creams, cakes, rolls and hot drinks, they also sell deer food to hand feed them if they're interested on the day you go. And with the bread left over from your picnic, feed the birds (and water rats) on the lakes. If you can plan it right and get your some else to drive back and after having a pint in The Tower Arms around the corner.

I have been to quite a few parks in the area, but this is a really lovely one. Loads of different…read moreroutes to walk around - you could visit quite a few times and not take the same walk twice. £2 to park in the car parks, but this is pretty standard in any essex country parks. The deer are lovely, you can buy deer food in the visitor centre, or you can feed them some veggies you have brought along. theres a nice pond with lots of wildlife on it. and a huge space for kids to run around or have picnics on. theres also usually events going on here, like craft fairs, or kite events, but check the website for details.

The Hollow Pond is part of Epping Forest, lying between Upper Leytonstone and Snaresbrook. I first…read morecome across this parkland while cycling around the neighbourhood. It was such a delightful discovery! I was so thrilled by this place and I still am. Very raw and natural, not as artificial as most parks in Central London. The pond covers quite a large area and I usually hire a boat for an hour which only cost £10 during summer time. Around the pond, there is a track for walking and cycling. There are full of animals and it's so nice to be part of this natural environment no words can described my liking for this place! A definite five star-er!

Its a very calming place, love it to the core, not very known so still not that crowded or…read moretouristy. Its nature at its best with lovely little lake, a forest trail and a clear area for picnics and boating can be awesome fun as well

This has to be one of North London's best kept secrets! I can't believe I had never heard of this…read moregarden (even my dad had not heard of it and he grew up near here.) I assume the lucky locals would like to keep this as a secret treasure, but it is too good not to share with yelpers!! The Pergola and Hill Gardens are hidden between Hampstead Heath and Golders Hill Park. The Pergola half of the garden is essentially a long raised walkway, under a long pergola made from wood and stone, covered in gorgeous smelling roses and other climbing plants. The other half of the garden has a large square pond full of lilies, sculptured hills and nice soft grass to sit on and have a picnic. I have a feeling it could be very busy on nice days...but when we visited it all seemed far quieter than Golders Hill Park - even though it is so, so much nicer. Practicalities: - If you don't want to walk, just take the 210 bus and get off at Inverforth House, you can see the signs to the garden. - It's free (!)

This place is beyond beautiful. I'm always surprised when I find places like this in London that is…read moreopen for the general public with no fee. Tucked away on the smaller side of Hampstead Heath, in between Hampstead Heath and Golders Hill Park is this little Gem. Because it's hidden away it's less busy than both the known green spaces. The pergola goes on and on with hidden entrances to the gardens. The gardens all have walk ways for you to meander through them. I can imagine that this place will get used for many photoshoots. You have to be careful you're not walking into someone else's shot. None of the photos or reviews will EVER do this place justice. Trust me and go see for yourself.

Very beautiful woodland area in a very odd place. I joined it just by the M11 and A12 junction…read more Lovely walk with the dogs, but wished it were a bit bigger. Covered the area in 45min at a leisurely pace. Will definitely return. Mike want to have appropriate footwear if you visit shortly after rain. Can be muddy in spots.

Great place for free-running the dog. Lots of different trails to take, meet up with other…read morefriendly dog owners. So glad to have this space so close to home.

This is a lovely park. we brought our four year old granddaughter and we all loved it. Large grassy…read moreareas for running, picnicking, and playing ball. Playground equipment for kids of all ages and it is right next to Spitalfield City Farm, which is free of charge. You could easily spend an entire afternoon here. Highly recommend this for families with young children.

If there is a magical place on Earth (that is not in Florida, USA), Allen Gardens has certainly won…read morethe title! In one of my walks around Shoreditch/Brick Lane area I stumbled upon this park with a playground for grown ups. I mean, SERIOUSLY? Me and my friend couldn't resist ,and we spent about 2h playing in all the games that were there. A lot of people come to have pic-nics, walk their dogs and play (like me!). The view is quite nice, and you can also watch the London Overground running above you. If you walk all the way till the end, you will face the Hackney City Farm's fence, and you can even see some animals hanging out. Something there is also very curious (but I don't have any information about) is the big house in the middle of the lawn - I'm not sure if someone still lives there, but from far away it looks a little haunted. This garden was for residents use only, but not so long ago, considering the development and growth of the area, it became public. I should have won you with "playground for grown ups", but if I still haven't convinced you this is a nice place, go check! :)

Good place for a nice walk on Christmas Eve. Parts of it are quite nice with grass and informative…read moreparts too. It goes on for ages too so you'll never run out of places to walk! It felt cool and relaxing to say the least. Come down over if ye wanna get outside!

A nice place with a lovely open scenery for walking but several including one of my children have…read morealmost drowned in the lake after falling over face first into it.... Going to this location I would suggest keeping your kids well away from the lake Also a while back a murderer used the woodland as a hiding place and wasn't found by the police until six days after he was sleeping there... It's s great place but is it a safe place?

The Five Arches is an area of woodland and open grassland so names because of the five arches that…read moremake up the bridge across the river that runs through it. In the summer, children often paddle in the water and throw stones into the water from the bridge. There's also a park for children to play in which has been modernised to include some exciting looking playground toys. The wooded area provides a fun alternative for youngsters wanting to climb amongst the trees and play hide and seek and a local pub, The White Cross, is a great place for a drink and snack afterwards.