perfect for adults and children!!! nice to have a walk round…read moreor to settle with a picnic and have famil;y time. beautiful to look at all year round and lots of wildlife!

By far the my favourite green space in the whole Midlands! A huge park to be explored walking,…read morecycling or even sailing! There is so much to be seen at Kingsbury Water Park that it is worth more than one visit, especially now with the summer knocking on our door! The main entrance, on Bodymoor Heath Rd, takes you straight to the car park (£ 3.50 - minimum price) and Visitor Centre. Better to start your journey getting the map guide (for only 50 pence) at the Information centre. Believe me, this walking & cycling version is very useful! Walking through the area is the best way to experience the nature reserves, from bird species to its several pools, everything is so inviting there. As I don't have a bike yet it was really nice to know there is a "bikes for hire" point inside the park. No excuses for not exercising!

Kingsbury Water Park is a huge landscape that has so much to explore. There are large pools…read moresurrounding the area, which allow you to go water skiing or hire a small boat, depending on your own personal thrill for adrenalin. The area is also great to take children to over the summer holiday, and the car park usually ends up jam packed full of families during this time of the year. There's also a cute little train ride that goes through one side of the park. This train is perfect for kids who want to see a great deal of the nature reserve very quickly, especially if you are short for time. But if you aren't short for time, the walks are very insightful for curious explorers, whether you're an adult or a child. There are specific pathways to try and find certain woodland creatures, and I've even come across a water vowl eating a fish while searching the the lakes for other critters.

Hartshill Hayes is set in a wonderful woodland area. It has been for many years our family's…read morefavourite walking area around Nuneaton. The woods are very well managed and retain the right balance of managed and wild areas. This is a mature forest,with a large variety of native trees, woodland plants and wildlife. We never fail to go when the bluebells are flowering as they cover the undergrowth in a rich deep carpet. It truly is a superb sight. It is a wonderful place to go and unwind, sit quietly on a bench, watch and listen to the birds. Children of all ages love exploring and will also like the play area. Adults are sometimes spotted on the rope and tyre swings. The terrain is hilly in most places, but nothing too challenging. There are several options of walks and paths to follow, including the easy path, which is handy for weelchairs and pushchairs. This path in particular will take you on the more scenic part of the park. On a clear day you can see the steam rising from the power station in Burton-on-Trent. There are a few picnic tables and it makes for a lovely day out when the weather is nice. Few people realise how beautiful the woods can be when it is raining, as long as you are well covered! Parking is cheap £1.50 a day, we buy the season ticket and come on the drop of a hat.

We love taking our dog here, it's great to walk through the woods and admire the scenery and we…read moreeven bought a 12 month parking permit.

Coombe Country Park in Coventry is a beautiful, historical spot that isn't crowded or touristy…read more There's plenty of parking, and the scenery makes it perfect for romantic rainy-day strolls or sunny picnic dates. The park feels peaceful and well-kept, and it's a lovely place to relax and enjoy nature without the crowds.

My husband and I went for a very enjoyable walk around the Coombe Abbey wildlife grounds with some…read morefriends. She had a pram and found a lot of the trails easily accessible! We were there for almost 2-hours and even sat afterwards at the local cafe near the children's play area and enjoyed a sandwich and tea. It was very busy on a winters Sunday with loads of families, but once we made it towards the back side of the park it was less crowded. We will definitely go again and allow more time to meander around the grounds. The inside of the Coombe Abbey Hotel is just beautiful. Recommend popping inside for a quick look around. I hear the afternoon tea is exquisite in the hotel but i think we should book ahead!

Rebuilt or renovated a few years ago, the Leisure Centre has two clean swimming pools, one full…read moresize and a smaller for children, large clean changing rooms, good showers and welcoming staff. There are various aquatic events going on during daytime in the week, a raft and floating toys session at the week-end and swimming lessons. Ther is also a gym on site, and I have to say after having tried most in North Warwickshire at one point or another, that this one is by far one of the less intimidating and the best value for money. The gym has all the equipment you find everywhere, rovers, steppers, treadmills and weightlifting stations. They are all accessed through the fitlinx which allows you to chart your progress lesson after lesson. You can get e-mails sent home when you have reached milestones and the staff will give you motivational advice. They also offer body fat and muscle etc analysis and will keep a track of your records. The gym can get a bit busy in the evening, less so during the day, and you fast get to know the regulars who are a pretty friendly bunch. The changing rooms are fairly new, big and clean, the showers rather powerful. Did I mention the staff and their friendliness? I have to admit that I am not an all year round regular, but I do come back again and again. One last thing I like about the centre are the evening classes. They are held in the community centre just on the other side of the car park. You pay your ticket at the Leisure Centre and take it across. Fees are ridiculously low, my favourite class is the circuit training. That's really fun, I come out panting, tired, but exhilarated. Recommended.

Plantasia and Mazeworld was fantastic. I went because I'd got a BOGOF voucher but I would…read moredefinitely pay full price to go again! There are six different mazes, wild walks including a shirt Tree Top walk where you can read information about different trees grown on the site. There are also animals including goats, chickens, deer, sheep, alpaca, pigs and guinea pigs in the animal pens as well as a carp lake and lily pond where you can see ducks and swans. The mazes and walks are a lot of fun and you get cards on which you have to collect stamps from various points in the mazes and on the wild walks. It's suitable for all ages and there is a small interactive room inside the gift shop. I would recommend going in the summer or taking wellies if you're going in the winter as it was very very muddy when we went. I would also recommend taking a picnic, especially if you have young children as, although there is a restaurant at Dobbies on the same site, it's a good walk backwards and forwards and I would not recommend that cafe because it's ridiculously overpriced and not of a quality that justifies it.

A cute little iddy biddy, easily-accessible area of green tucked in the middle of Coventry's…read morechaotic centre. Not sure if it's quite big enough to be classed as a 'park', but it's trying! There's a great area for kids of all ages with a slide, see-saw, climbing net, magical spinny thing etc and a fair amount of benches if you need some R&R. It is SO SWEET here in summer afternoons - there's always little family picnics occurring, bbqs, and local sports societies seem to practice football/cricket/rounders here a lot which is great to watch! In a non-creepy way

I have lived in Highams Park for the last ten years and known this area for the last 40 so write…read morewith a bias which comes from growing up in this neck of the woods. The entrance to the park is in Woodford Green but the park itself is in London E4. If you find yourself searching for a peaceful meander there can be not better place than to take a stroll over Highams Park. There are few facilities (a small childrens play area) just the remains of the grounds of an old manor house including the lake which is and excellent place to take the kids to feed the ducks and climb the trees. The house has long gone but the forest at Highams Park contains a boating lake formed by Humphry Repton after damming the River Ching. During WWII the grounds were converted to prefab housing and still upon close examination the remains of paths and roads can be seen. The park and lake sit on the endge of some woods which are a pleasure to stroll through. Situated around the lake are some stones said to have been salvaged from the stones left over from the dismantaling of the original London Bridge. Anybody looking to find a peaceful part of our great capital city should pack up some bread for the swans, geese and ducks and head to Highams Park.

Burbage Common held their annual Countryside Open Day today and it was really good. My DH and I…read more(well him mostly) were really enthralled by the Willow Falconry exhibit. I was there for their demo and got to hold an old tame barn owl on my wrist for a moment. He came later in the day and spent hours talking bird stuff. Meanwhile I went to walk in the bluebell wood and it was so gorgeous. Other attractions of the day were a brass band, the Anker Morris Men from Nuneaton, spinning demonstrations, live alpacas (SO CUTE!) and loads of country-ish and wildlife-ish things to see and do and taste.