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Summer in St James's Park

Major parks in London

Our guide to the best bits of London’s gloriously green, big-hitting parks

Written by
Time Out London Things To Do
&
Ellie Walker-Arnott
Contributor
Ed Cunningham
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With more than 3,000 parks and open spaces, London is one of the world’s greenest cities – and that means this marvellous city has one for every occasion. And we really, really mean that. Whether you’re looking for a pristine picnic patch, a scruffy footie field, a serene sunbathing spot or an all-action sports park, here are the best parks in London, which is packed with outdoor spaces for every occasion.

For all its amazing local parks and secluded secret gardens, the biggest parks in London are among its very best places to go when the weather hots up. And better yet, they’re completely free – until you fancy an ice cream, at least. Here’s our lowdown on the major parks in London, so you can plan your next session in the sun.

RECOMMENDED: the full guide to outdoor London

Best London parks

  • Things to do
  • Walks and tours
  • Hampstead Heath

Wild and undulating, the 320-hectare grassy sprawl of Hampstead Heath makes a wonderfully untamed contrast to the more manicured parks elsewhere in the capital. A playground for picnickers, dog-walkers and nature-lovers alike, keep an eye out for some very special residents such as muntjac deer and parakeets.

Insider tip Take a dip in the heath’s swimming ponds. The men’s and ladies’ ponds are open all year round, but be warned that even in the summer the water is pretty frosty.

  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Clapham

This oasis of peace amid the clogged traffic of south-west London dates back to the eighteenth century. At its perimeter, it has a number of cafés, a skate park and the largest bandstand in London, which hosts open-air concerts during the summer.

Insider tip Grab your tackle and go fishing at Eagle Pond – the common’s most ‘natural’ lake – with wooden decked fishing platforms perfect for casting off. Just remember to pack your fishing permit.

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  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Regent’s Park

Covering 410 acres in north-west London, Regent’s Park is teeming with attractions, ranging from the animal noises of the ZSL London Zoo to its enchanting Open Air Theatre. Various food and music festivals pitch up there over the summer and rowing boat hire, bandstands, beautiful rose gardens, tennis courts, ice-cream stands and eateries complete the picture.

Insider tip Get a taste of the Far East by heading to the park’s Japanese Garden Island, which is full of winding paths, ornamental shrubs and flowers, a lake framed by overhanging willows and a picturesque wooden footbridge, the latter covered in sweet-smelling wisteria in the spring.

  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Holland Park

One of London’s finest green spaces, the park surrounds a Jacobean mansion, Holland House, named after its second owner, the Earl of Holland, whose wife (fun fact!) was the first person in England to successfully grow dahlias. They’re still grown within its 55 acres, which also houses the Japanese-style Kyoto Gardens with its koi carp and picturesque bridge at the foot of a waterfall. In summer, open-air theatre and opera are staged in the park.

Insider tip Keep your eyes peeled for the many peacocks, which are right at home amid the ornamental scenery.

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  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Herne Hill

Brockwell Park is a much-needed slab of green just south of Brixton. Locals from Herne Hill, Tulse Hill and Brixton flock here in summer to sun-worship, fly kites, swim in the famous lido, play football and parade all kinds of dogs.

Insider tip Make a splash at Brockwell Lido and admire its grade II-listed art deco buildings, which have been at the centre of park life here since the 1930s.

Dulwich Park
  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Dulwich

Situated right in the centre of swanky Dulwich Village, this park is charming and peaceful. Not only do the abundance of flowers mean that this park is easy on the eye, but it has a particularly friendly atmosphere. You’ll find all the usual suspects here, such as playgrounds, football pitches and tennis courts.

If you’re up for something sporty, then there is an outdoor gym complete with recumbent bikes (the chilled-out brother to the bikes in spin class). There’s also table tennis, and if you’re feeling particularly poetic, then you can hire a boat and float around the lake.

Insider tip Take a look at Conrad Shawcross’s giant looping sculpture ‘Three Perpetual Chords’, which was commissioned to replace a Barbara Hepworth sculpture famously stolen from the park in 2011.

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  • Attractions
  • Zoos and aquariums
  • Battersea

Battersea Park has so much going for it that it’s almost unfair. What other green space in the capital can boast Thames views, an art gallery (The Pump House) and a family-run zoo, complete with lemurs, meerkats and wallabys? Oh, and there’s Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, too.

Insider tip Check out the Buddhist London Peace Pagoda, which features four large gilded bronze sculptures of Buddhas overlooking the Thames.

  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Greenwich

Greenwich Park boasts the honour of being the oldest enclosed Royal Park. A 183-acre grassland, it provides an urban sanctuary for deer, foxes and over 70 species of bird. Not only does it pack in a child-friendly boating lake, six tennis courts and the Greenwich Meridian Line, which represents the prime meridian, it’s also home to The Royal Observatory, while the views from the top of the hill across to Canary Wharf and beyond are spectacular, and well worth the trek.

Insider tip: Take a look at Queen Elizabeth’s Oak. It may look like a mossy old lump of wood, but it’s been in the park since the twelfth century. Acording to legend, Henry VIII once danced around it with Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I often had picnics on it.

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  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • London Fields

This vibrant hipster hangout is probably the coolest of London’s green spots. It’s home to a permanent ping-pong table, a wildflower meadow in the spring and summer, and London Fields Lido, while Broadway Market is conveniently located nearby for posh picnic food.

Insider tip Bring a picnic, not a disposable barbecue. This used to be one of the few open spaces in London where you could barbecue legally, but that’s been changed recently due to cleaning costs. Remember, leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures (or should that be selfies?). 

St James’s Park
  • Attractions
  • Sightseeing
  • Westminster

St James’s Park was founded as a deer park for the royal occupants of St James’s Palace, and remodelled by architect John Nash on the orders of George IV. The central lake is home to numerous water-loving birds and its bridge offers some very snappable views of Buckingham Palace.

Insider tip Keep an eye out for wandering pelicans, a species that has lived in the park since the seventeenth century. The big-billed birds are fed between 2.30pm and 3pm daily, though they have been known to supplement their diet at other times of the day with the occasional pigeon.

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  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Victoria Park

Victoria Park started life as a Royal Park but became municipal to benefit the everyday people of the East End in 1887. It’s a bit rougher round the edges than its western counterparts, and has a great green expanse to kick back and let nature revitalise you. Wildlife includes a deer enclosure, moorhens, grey and canada geese, and squirrels, while, by the lake, you’ll find The Pavilion Café serving tasty, locally sourced food from breakfast to teatime. It also plays host to a theatrical fireworks display every November, plus summer festivals All Points East and Field Day. 

Insider tip If a deluge hits, take refuge in nearby People's Park Tavern, which has a vast covered terrace.

  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Hampton

Situated just north of Hampton Court Palace, Bushy Park is one of several vast open spaces that sprawl across the leafy borough of Richmond-upon-Thames. Named after the large number of hawthorn bushes that grow within its boundaries, it’s home to herds of both red and fallow deer.

Insider tip Take a look at the Christopher Wren-designed Chestnut Avenue, where locals gather annually on Chestnut Sunday in May for a festival to celebrate the blooming of the trees.

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Hyde Park
  • Attractions
  • Sightseeing
  • Hyde Park

At 1.5 miles long and about a mile wide, Hyde Park is one of the largest of London’s Royal Parks. Head inside and you’ll find London’s oldest boating lake, The Serpentine, which is home to ducks, coots, swans and tufty-headed grebes, plus a swimming club that famously braves the icy water on Christmas Day morning.

Insider tip Catch a glimpse of the Victorian pet cemetery hidden in the park’s north-west corner, where around 300 furry Londoners from the past are interred.

Crystal Palace Park
  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Crystal Palace

The Crystal Palace, which gave the park its name, may have burnt to a crisp in 1936, but its landscaped grounds, which make up this delightful park in south-east London still house some pretty amazing features, including five massive dinosaur sculptures that lurk among the trees around a lake, the remains of a prehistoric Victorian theme park.

Insider tip The park hides a beautiful, abandoned Victorian subway with a Grade II-listed vaulted walkway supported by intricate Italinate pillars, and patterned orange and white bricks. But before you go strolling over there, it’s only open three times a year – visit cpsubway.org.uk for dates. 

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Richmond Park
  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Richmond Park

Richmond Park is the largest of London’s Royal Parks, occupying 2,500 acres. There are hundreds of red and fallow deer roaming freely across it, presumably much happier without having to listen out for the ‘view halloo!’ cries of one of Henry VIII’s hunting parties. From the park’s highest point, there are famous views of St Paul’s Cathedral, more than 12 miles to the east.

Insider tip Get your floral fix at the Isabella Plantation, a 40-acre woodland garden bursting with the bright blooms of azaleas, rhododendrons and camellias in the spring and summer.

  • Things to do
  • Piccadilly

This green, triangle-shaped expanse just beyond The Ritz to the south of Piccadilly was enclosed by Charles II as a hunting ground in 1668. Thankfully it was opened to the public in 1826 and today you’ll find lunching commuters and tourists lounging in the park’s famous stripy deckchairs. 

Insider tip If you happen to be strolling through on the day of a special royal occasion look out for (although it’ll be pretty hard to miss) the Royal Gun Salute by the King’s Troop Royal Horse Artillery. A basic salute involves 21 rounds of ear-shattering cannon fire, but in Green Park, 20 extra rounds are added – so hang on to your deckchair.  

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Kensington Gardens
  • Attractions
  • Parks and gardens
  • Kensington

At the end of the seventeenth century, William III – fed up with the dank air of Whitehall – relocated to Kensington Palace. Subsequently, a corner of Hyde Park (thereafter called Kensington Gardens) was sectioned off to make grounds for the residence. Princess Diana’s presence in Kensington Gardens is strong: the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Playground is a favourite for children and people flock all year round to her memorial fountain here.

Insider tip Look out for the bronze statue of Peter Pan, erected in 1912; eight years earlier the playwright JM Barrie had met Jack Llewelyn Davies – the boy who was the inspiration for Peter – in the gardens.

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