went to the park last week with our children and saw the new slide area which is absolutely…read moreterrible. To be able to get up to the slide, you have to crawl through small holes which are very dangerous if you step backwards and forget that it's there.. I'm surprised it's been allowed. Also considering it's near Great Ormond Street Hospital, you would think it was more of an SEN friendly park. Such a shame.

I spent a beautiful Monday at this park with my 2 year old, and I can say -- it was a solid choice!…read more *Only adults with children are allowed in. Seems like a funny rule, but then you realize that if not for it -- this place would be overrun with booze and picnics. So, thanks park people! *It's a privately run park. It's a large expansive square that is entirely closed on each side (comforting for those with toddlers that like to escape). There are multiple play areas for different ages that are fun and have quite a bit to do. My son found his way to the one water portion of the park and sat in it for approximately 3 hours. It was a bit unkept unfortunately, but I blame that more on annoying parents that think leaving their busted pails and spades and water bottles is "helpful." It's not helpful, pick up your shit. The water was kind of gross as it was standing for quite a long time, so while I wasn't thrilled with it for the gross factor, he loved it and they splashed around for hours in the sand and water, so -- there you have it. There's a small cafe within as well -- best for ice cream. I went for a bottle of water and they were "out of water today." I've probably never heard this before. Weird. So, ice cream it is. Overall it could use a bit of a facelift but its a great green space in the city to take the kids!

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 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! :)

Amazing park Great to go to on Saturdays with the food…read moremarket and plenty of things to keep kids entertained (feeding ducks, amazing play park, skate ramps and cafe included)

Lloyd park is an oasis of green in the heart of walthamstow. A great place for families to relax on…read morethe grass, kids to play on the playground and teenagers to enjoy the skate park. There is also the excellent William Morris gallery for a bit of culture

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.

Mile End Park might be London's most underrated park. Completely unbeknownst to tourists who…read moremainly beeline to West End parks, this East London park is a slender 79-acre strip of fabulous modern design, gardens, lakes, and culture/leisure centres along the beautiful Regent's Canal. It's a low-key local gem just across the street from the more popular, sprawling Victoria Park. In my Top 5 Parks along with Regent's and Hampstead Heath

I really love Mile End Park on a quiet day (when the weather is rubbish, hah :)) - there's plenty…read moreof space and I keep discovering new bits I haven't ventured to yet. There is the 'Eco Pavilion' which overlooks a few ponds. Several areas of trees/wildflowers. Close proximity and easy access to Regent's Canal, where one can take a nice walk down to Victoria Park or the Hertford Union Canal. If you're thirsty there's a cafe, and if you fancy a beer the Palm Tree pub is close by. The couple of downsides are that 1) it's never closed and there are sometimes some street drinkers/groups of drunk people inhabiting certain areas and 2) It's next to two very busy roads.

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.

A pretty little local park. It's on the top of a hill, and, though there aren't really viewpoints,…read moreit does feel airy. It also benefits from some nice landscaping and trees. The general grassed area is not huge, as there's quite a lot else going on. There's a huge supervised adventure playground open each afternoon. It was closed due to an electrical problem when I was there, but look quite simply awesome. Acres of wooden climbing and walkways, areas to ride bikes, a model dragon Another large area is turned over to tarmac courts. That seemed less successful. They weren't being used, and dust devils were blowing across them. (I'm not kidding it was a hot dry day and they were dusty!) There's also a second play area with an attendant present when I was there, and toilets. I only noticed the sign saying they were for kids and parents using the play area after I'd used them. Whoops Anyway, worth knowing if you are desperate and need to be sneaky! For a small local park it's definitely way above average. Very nearly earned 5 stars, and I might give it that if they had loos for adults and improved the courts.

A pretty local park in between Angel and Barnsbury. On warmer days you will see people jogging and…read moredog walking and its a pretty well maintained park. In addition there is an adventure playground too for kids to scramble about on.

I loved this beautiful set of lakes, they were absolutely magical. The springs that feed the Silent…read morePool (named so for how still, clear and beautiful it is) sit at the bottom end of the lake, and at the minute, you can't (aren't supposed to) go down to the end due to some subsidence on the path. I'm not saying I went down there anyway, but it's so amazing to see a natural spring. The water is a weird, blue colour and so crystal clear that you just want to dip your feet in, especially on a lovely warm day. It's an ancient, historic and oddly mythical lake. The only downside to me is that it's so small! It doesn't take twenty minutes to walk around it.