I first discovered Withdean Park at a period of my Brighton life when I was literally thirsting for…read moregreenery. On an aimless walk from the recycling area at the stadium I ventured greedily into the woodland on my right, in the hopes of nothing more than a copse, but was delighted to discover what amounts to a rare plant museum on the other side, bordered by semi-mature trees. Home to one of the largest collections of lilacs in the world, the park also has unobtrusive little information boards dotted about which condense the knowledge of the horticulturalists into fascinating little snippets to muse on as you reel in the heady lilac perfume. Turning the corner at the bottom is an unexpected and picturesque little lily pond, maintained with the help of volunteers, which has a number of other water plants besides and is the habitat for stunning dragonflies. There's also a young arboretum, with a few older trees, all of which are unusual varieties of the English classics. This has to be Brighton's best park for gardening enthusiasts, as it's a bit more unusual than your run of the mill rose garden but just as beautifully set out. It's a beautiful setting to watch the sunset from, and as the light dies way you're left with nothing but the lingering scent of flowers and grasses.

Queen's Park is exquisite in all seasons. It has a bit of everything to suit everyone…read more The play park has loads to offer the kids as far as swings and slides go and lots of patches for parents to set up camp and have a natter. The cafe is in the centre of the play park and sells yummy cakes + sarnies, well earned cups of tea and ice lollies. It boasts a huge duckpond, with an island in the middle - home to some rather large geese. Be wary if you're feeding the ducks! I've been chased by the geese several times and I'm still as frightened as I was when I was 3! I'm a bit of a big girls blouse though... There's a huge bit by the clock tower - perfect for football and picnics. There are tennis courts, a wild herb garden and a dog walking section. Getting onto the dog walking section, there is a huge row going on with the dog walkers of queens park (check out their facebook page!) and the council at the moment about the amount of space there is for the dogs. They want the old bowling green to be handed over to the dog section to make it a larger space. It's getting heated! I enjoy coming here with my pooch every morning, whatever the weather it feels magical. It's an extremely beautiful and peaceful place to be. My sons favourite part of the park is the rockery. He spends hours in there exploring and making houses in the caves, playing hide and seek. I feel very lucky to have this place just on my doorstep.

I had a really weird experience last time I was in Queen's Park. It was New Year's Day 2009 and I…read morehad hopes of walking off my wretched hang over so took myself off to the park for a stroll. What confronted me when I arrived was bizarre. Someone had, in their New Years revelry, filled the pond with shopping carts and rubbish bins! Ok so that alone just sounds like a big old destructive mess, but the pond had frozen over night, creating quite an amazing spectacle! I was torn between self-righteous indignation and 'ugh, the youth of today' thoughts and thinking it actually looked like a pretty cool art installation. Anyway, enough with the storytelling. Queen's Park is a beautiful park bordered by Hanover on one side and Kemp town on the other. It's not massive, but it's perfect for a leisurely Sunday stroll before heading to 'Home' for brunch or the pub for a roast. As well as the aforementioned pond (which is usually quite normal and lovely looking) where you can feed the ducks, there is a wildlife garden, where a local herbologist holds workshops for anyone interested.

This park is a bit of a jack of all trades in the fact that so much is there for such a variety of…read morepeople. As, it isn't that well known it is only really busy in the best of summer days which in my opinion lets it down a bit. The playground area is one of the best around with tonnes of things to keep the kids busy for atleast a couple of hours. The park itself is kept well and surrounded by trees which encloses it slightly. This place is perfect if you want to get out of the office and have a bit of lunch and get into the sunshine which I have done on numerous occasions in the past. The tennis courts offer those who can't stay still, a chance to burn off all that energy.

Blaker's Park is a smaller local park wedged between Preston Drove on the south end and Stanford…read moreAvenue at the north end. It is much more compact park than Preston Park down the road and works perfectly for families and young kids. The whole park is on a slope which makes it a little more difficult for portable barbecues but great for rolling down the hill! As you walk down the grassy slope from Stanford Avenue you reach a lovely red brick clock tower and a small cafe stand (great coffee, GREAT cakes!) and two tennis courts in excellent condition (free before 10am). Next to the tennis courts is a small playground for young kids with a sandpit, slide and various climbing frames- as well as some picnic tables for parents. Grab a coffee and watch your kids burn off their energy!

Visitors more familiar with the densely built up City Centre of Brighton and its Georgian…read morearchitecture will be surprised to learn just how many large parks the city has. One of the nicest, and most historic, is Stanmer Park, on the eastern outskirts of the city and adjacent to the lovely campus of the University of Sussex at Falmer. The park is set around Stanmer House, built in 1720 by the first Earl of Chichester, Thomas Pelham. Set in its own little valley, the estate includes Stanmer Village and church: the former a picturesque private village built for the estate's workers, and the latter rebuilt in 1838 when the earlier mediaeval church burned down. As with many such estates, it was planned on the principles of classic English landscape gardening, and consists of sweeping areas of lawn planted with specimen trees, all edged with woodland. Bought by Brighton Council in 1947, the grounds are now open to the public as parkland. The 'village' includes a cafe ('see separate entry under 'Stanmer Tea Rooms') and public toilets. Part of the old stable block now houses a mildly diverting small museum of rural life (free entry but rather limited opening hours) and a nursery which is open to the public, selling a wide range of plants, in what was the house's walled garden (which closes at 16h). The whole ensemble is maybe not quite as well kept as it could be, but it's nice enough. The House itself has been beautifully restored and is let as a conference and private function venue, and some of the main function rooms can be visited (again, for free) when not hired out. It contains a collection of old photographs, but most of the original contents have long since gone - however, the modern furnishings fit in well enough in a 'Country House Hotel' sort of way. However, the main reason for a visit to the Park is just to get some fresh air, in nice surroundings: it's a great place for a game of cricket or rounders, or picnic, or just a woodland walk, and is very popular with students from the nearby University and families in the summer. The park is a 15 minute walk from Falmer station, and 10 minutes from the University, but on summer Sundays and Bank Holidays there is an hourly bus service (route 78) from the centre of Brighton, via the railway station, during the day, right up to the Village and House. Car-parking is in the process of being reorganised, but is normally not a problem unless there is an event taking place.

Stanmer Park is located just off the A270 between Brighton and Lewes, right next to the University…read moreof Sussex Campus, in the village of Stanmer. It is a lovely place to walk the dog or take the kids for a run around if they need to expel some excess energy! There's a small car park, but be warned this can get packed out pretty quickly, as it seems to serve as an overflow car park for visitors to the village, church and pub! Easily accessible from Falmer village and Sussex campus, Stanmer park provides a really nice, scenic walk- it's not particularly challenging or varied, more of a light stroll around the estate's grounds. I often used to pop over to Stanmer to stretch my legs and get a change of scenery, during my first year at university, it's a really great place to have on your doorstep, which I suspect many students aren't even aware of. If you feel like exploring, you can also wander through the village, where there's a really sweet old church and a pub that do nice food. Stanmer House itself is also quite something to look at and Stanmer Nursery is nestled away at the side and is well worth a visit. This is where the council grow many of the flowers they use in displays all over the city! Oh and if you're interested in Eco living and building, be sure to check out the Earth ship, it's incredible and they do tours!

Preston Park is Brighton's largest and oldest planned city park. Funded by a bequest from a local…read morebookmaker, William Edmund Davies, the park opened on 8 November 1884. The park is located on the main A23 road from London to Brighton, a mile and half north of the city centre, and next to Preston Manor. The main park is over 60 acres in area and includes wide open spaces of parkland with trees, formal beds along the side of the A23 road, and at the south end is a formal rose garden. Next to this is the Rotunda Cafe, which is open Monday-Friday 9.15-16h and weekends 9.30-17h. Moving northwards are 4 bowling greens and 8 tennis courts, mutli-sports areas with basket ball courts, a 500m velodrome, a children's playground, 4 soccer pitches and 2 cricket pitches. In the centre of the park is the Chalet Cafe, open daily 10-17h. Despite the all organised sport provided for, many come here just to walk or for picnics, or for nothing in particular at all. Other items of interest include a clock tower and the Hansel and Gretel-like tiled house (sadly now with its windows protected with wire mesh). As well as general recreation, the park is the location for many events during the year. The largest is the event after the Brighton Pride parade, which finishes at the Park, regarded by many as the premier free Gay Pride event in the UK. It regularly attracts over 120,000. (It takes place on 2nd August in 2008). Other events are held during the year, including concerts and family days.

Very pretty park…read more I didn't see or step in any piles of dog shit. I believe I got talked into taking a BMF class here or I might have been laying around the lawns waiting for a friend to get done with a class. Either way, it's pretty and clean.

On the opposite side of Preston Road from Preston Park proper is Britain's largest municipal rock…read moregarden, built on a steep slope that runs up to the railway line. It's an impressive creation, but is often overlooked by those using the park and I suspect is unknown to most of those driving past, to and from Brighton. Laid out in 1935, it incorporates over 1,350 of imported Cheddar stone, and has lots of winding paths, steps, a cascade, and a large fish pond with stepping stones. The garden overall has a vaguely oriental theme, although the types of plant include more ordinary bedding plants as well as alpines. It's a great place for playing hide and seek, as the paths really do form a warren, but the paths and steps can be both slippery (especially when wet) and are very uneven, so have to be treated with great care. There are lots of benches to sit on, and there are good views from the upper levels - its over 100ft (30m) to the top of the garden from the road. Only very limited areas adjacent to the road are accessible for push-chairs and wheelchair users. The pond has deep water, and some parts are very steep with lots of sheer drops, so small children must be supervised. Unfortunately, some of the public don't treat the park with the respect it deserves, so some parts suffer badly from litter - beer cans especially - which end up in the cascade. Some of the plants are also looking a little forlorn, so it drops a star for this.

This always fascinated me as a kid when I drove into Brighton on the A23. It was only a little…read morewhile ago I actually got to explore it. Imagine 30 odd years of curiosity spilling out in one moment. Needless to say, my mates thought I was getting a little excited over some rocks, benches, flowers and windy paths. It is a really nice walk and kids will get totally immersed in their imaginations. I would agree with Sarah though on the downside of the location. It does ruin what would be a really enchanting spot, but if you catch it on the right time of day you may escape the worst of the traffic.

This park is home for hundreds of kids in the Mile Oak area and is always full of life. In the park…read morethere is all your expected treasures so that the kids are kept busy with football pitches along side for playing and walking dogs. I used to knock about here for as long as I can remember and was never let down. With the Sports Centre across the street this area although out in the suburbs of Brighton there is plenty going on.

Pastel pinks Cloudy pinks…read moreBright pinks Blood reds Bright reds Deep yellows & Custardy creams A must for flower and garden fanatics, the Rose Garden in Preston Park is beautiful in the spring and summer months. Situated at the front end of the park that runs along London Road and the A23, it's a long space with clusters of different colours and scents. Whilst it pales in comparison to the flower gardens I've seen in San Francisco, the garden is undoubtedly pretty and the smell as you walk through is pretty intoxicating.

Sadly this place has seen better days. My son still loves going here but it needs some TLC. It…read morecosts to park, it costs to do most things here apart from the playground. It's not really worth spending the money. It can cost a lot for not much. There is a small train ride around the pond which some may enjoy, I'm​ hoping some one puts some money in to this place as it could be so lovely.

A nice, quite large, park for all the family to visit not far from Worthing town centre (along…read moreBrighton Road and then turn left). I used to come here often when we lived in Worthing. There's a miniature train, a boating lake (with small motorboats to hire), paddling pool, trampolines and bouncy castles. A pleasant, green, place to take a walk.

Dorset Gardens is either a small park or a large garden, depending how you look at it…read more It provides a nice retreat from the business of St James St, especially if you can't be bothered to walk further on to Queens Park! It can be a little dirty and does attract some of the less salubrious members of society, but it's still a pleasant place to while away summer afternoons with friends.