London's Parks
For its size London is the greenest city in the world, wherever you are in the capital, there's always a park or garden nearby.
Whether you're looking for some wild space where you can go horse riding, or you just want a deck chair for sunbathing, London is sure to have the 'kind of green' that you need.
Between visits to busy shopping streets and museums, give yourself a break and try rowing a boat in Hyde Park; explore the plants in Kew Gardens or bring the kids to see the pets in Coram Fields.
To get a fresh perspective of this big and bustling city, there's nothing better than admiring the view from one of London's beautiful parks or gardens.
Battersea Park
Albert Bridge Rd, SW11
Tel: 020 8871 7530
There is plenty to do in Battersea Park - bring the kids to the children’s zoo, admire the Festival Gardens or the Peace Pagoda, go boating on the lake, play around, practise sports, or just enjoy your coffee.
Open 8am–dusk
Tube: Sloane Square. Rail: Battersea Park or Queenstown Road
Chelsea Physic Garden
66 Royal Hospital Road, SW3
Tel: 020 7352 5646
London’s first botanical garden is today a research and educational facility, but it has a lot of discoveries to offer even to the amateurish visitor. It contains a Grade 1-listed rockery, and guided tours are available on demand.
Open Sun & Wed afternoons only (in summer).
Admission charge: adults £4.00, 5-16 & concessions £2.00.
Tube: Sloane Square.
Clapham Common
Clapham Common West Side, SW4
Tel: 020 7926 0105
An apparently wild park, most famous for being featured in Graham Greene’s The End of the Affair. Rumours tell it is a popular gay meeting point.
Tube: Clapham Common. Open 24 hrs daily.
Coram Fields
93 Guilford Street, WC1
Tel: 020 7837 6138
This kids’ friendly park is named after Mr Thomas Coram, who once started a hospital and school for foundling children. It boasts a paddling pool, a pets’ corner and a café. Adults are only admitted if accompanied by children and dogs are not allowed.
Open: 08.00–dusk.
Tube: Russel Square.
Green Park
SW1
Green Park is squeezed in between Hyde Park and St James’s Park, close to the Buckingham Palace. It includes the Diana Princess of Wales memorial walk. Stroll around or take a nap in one of the deckchairs.
Open dawn-dusk, daily
Tube: Green Park.
Greenwich Park
Charlton Way, SE10
Tel: 020 8858 2608
This is the spot for a history lesson. Visit the Royal Observatory, the Queen’s House, the Old Royal Naval College and Ranger’s House. When you get tired, sit down and admire the view.
Open 05.00–dusk.
Rail: Blackheath or Maze Hill. DLR: Cutty Sark or Greenwich
Holland Park
W8
Centrally located Holland Park really has something for every spirit. For play, there is an adventure playground, for a bit of entertainment, visit the open-air theatre, for relaxation, admire the Japanese garden or the Jacobean Holland House, and when it is time for refreshments, make haste to the café, or why not the restaurant?
Open 07.00–dusk, daily.
Tube: Holland Park, High Street Kensington
Hyde Park
W2
Tel: 020 7298 2100
London’s most famous central park. Go boating on the Serpentine, ride a horse, rent a pair of inlines or get yourself heard at Speaker’s Corner.
Open 05.00–midnight.
Tube: Hyde Park Corner, Knightsbridge, Lancaster Gate, Marble Arch, Queensway
Jubilee Gardens
South Bank, SE1
A riverside green spot, sometimes the venue for concerts and festivals. A memorial to the International Brigade who fought in the Spanish Civil War is also on display. While you are here, do not forget to take a ride on the London Eye.
Tube: Waterloo
Kensington Gardens
W8
Tel: 020 7298 2117
Just next to Hyde Park lie the beautiful Kensington Gardens. Pop in to the Orangery for your afternoon tea, visit the Serpentine Gallery for the latest art exhibition and watch the model boats in the Round Pond.
Open dawn–dusk, daily.
Tube: Bayswater, High Street Kensington, Queensway, Lancaster Gate
Lincoln’s Inn Fields
WC2
Tel: 020 7278 4444
Once, this was a public execution site. Now it is a welcome green area in central London, popular for tennis. It has also become a refuge for some of the city’s homeless.
Open: 8.00-dusk, daily.
Tube: Holborn
Ranelagh Gardens
Chelsea, SW1
A pavilion reveals that these gardens were once a fashionable Georgian pleasure resort. Today it is most famous for being the site of the annual spring Chelsea Flower Show.
Tube: Sloane Square
Tel: 020 7486 7905
Regents Park, W1
Apart from its main attraction, the London zoo, Regent’s Park also rooms a lake for boating, playgrounds, tennis courts, a café and a popular open-air theatre.
Open 05.00–dusk, daily.
Tube: Baker Street, Camden Town, Great Portland Street or Regent’s Park
St James’s Park
The Mall, SW1
Tel: 020 7930 1793
Popular amongst Londoners, St James’s Park houses a bird sanctuary, a playground and a café. It also offers a stunning view of Buckingham Palace.
Open 05.00–midnight, daily.
Tube: St James’s Park
Victoria Tower Gardens
Abingdon Street, SW1
A small but agreeable area hidden just behind the Houses of Parliament, along the river Thames. This romantic garden also houses a statue of the suffragette Emily Pankhurst.
Tube: Westminster
The Wildlife Garden at The Natural History Museum
Cromwell Road, SW7
Tel: 020 7938 9123
Guided tours are available all year round in this little park, next to the Natural History Museum.
Open Mon–Fri 15.00, Sat, Sun and Bank Holidays and during school holidays 12.00 & 15.00, weather permitting.
Tube: South Kensington