In an area with many squares, this one goes a bit further, and perhaps reaches the status of a…read moresmall park A large oval surrounded by very grand houses. Inside there are formal beds, a small, pretty, landscaped hill and a children's play area. It's overlooked on one side by the nearby church, making for a very scenic whole. I would have given it 5 stars, except there's nothing that makes it a place to travel miles to see. Definitely recommended if you are in the area and need a place to sit a while.

This is a huge square, situated right round the corner from the library. It is big enough to have a…read moreroad going right through the middle separating it from a huge church where my landlord had his funeral. The bit that you want to go to is very similar to Islington Green before th recent remodel, it has little walkways with a central rose garden, new beds along little paths, plenty of grass for the dogs and a small children's playground. At the far end is a wild and woolly hill area where you can walk around feeling as if you might possibly be in Hampstead? Although you aren't. And when you egt hungry you can pop to caledonian road for some beer. I mean sandwiches.

Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park (known locally as Bow Cemetery) is a historic Cemetery located in…read moreLondon's East End. The nearest tube station is Mile End The Cemetery opened in 1841 by an Act of Parliament and is one of London's Magnificent Seven Cemeteries. The Cemetery closed to burials in 1966. It became Tower Hamlets first Local Nature Reserve in 2001. Near-by land was added in the mid-nineties, known as "Scrapyard Meadow" and Ackroyd Drive Green Link. Today it is 33 acres of "managed" mature, broadleaved woodland and meadow. It's a fantastically creepy and wonderful place and it is possible to sign up to tours through the website.

This cemetery park is closed for burials since the sixties, and ever since, the local residents and…read morethe small charity Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park have been fighting to protect it from bulldozing or developers and save this oasis of greenery for the local community. This cemetery is huge and in some places, it is almost like a little forest. The charity is working hard on taking care of the maintaining the diversity of the greenery in the park, and is gradually working on limiting the occurrence of undesirable species and seeding some interesting ones. If you wish to help, contact Friends of Tower Hamlets on their website. I visited and helped culture the site as part of our team-building social responsibility activity, and the charity is happy to welcome larger groups from company's CSR schemes, or individuals. Our guide was very knowledgeable and clearly had a passion for improving this park and turning it into a center point for the community. The park is open 24 hours a day. It is nice for a quiet walk or run, but also watch out for cultural events in it - for example, every year there is a seven day long arts festival.

One of the joys of living in London is that fact that we're blessed with a lot of green space in…read morethe middle of our capital city Some of it, like Hyde Park for example, is there because the monarchs of the time wanted to continue to hunt from Buckingham Palace and therefore kept that area of forest intact At the weekend, I visited Muswell Hill for the Chicken 2.0 UYE and spotted Highgate Wood on the way over from Highgate Tube station and as I was early, decided to take a little detour on that sunny day HIghgate Wood has been bequeathed to the people and is now maintained by the Corporation of London. They're doing a good job with clearly marked paths and with the first tentative shoots of spring coming through, it was a most agreeable walk I spied a board advrtising a series of free events and walks in the park The local citizens are lucky to have this park to enjoy

I love, love, love this park...and Momo, my dog, likes it even more…read more Highgate Wood is what I'd call the perfect urban park: a combination of almost jungle-like areas and a sporting green with an adjacent café (I've been told that the café is run by a Brazilian chef and the food is supposed to be quite tasty.). What else do I like about this park? - Being able to escape the hectic activities of our modern lives for a short while. It allows me to tune out the noises and concentrate on my inner self...for lack of a better word. In fact, when I was writing on my dissertation, this is where I'd find the tranquility and energy needed to sort-of pre-formulate and re-arrange my ideas. A note for dog walkers like myself: what I like about this park is that it's almost impossible for your dog to run away as the park is completely fenced in. This brings down my worry-scale a lot when my dog once again has disappeared in the bushes for a couple minutes...

A hidden gem. It is a small park (super quiet and tranquil) with benches, trees, flowers and a koi…read morepond. The main feature of the park is a memorial wall with decorative tiles which record the heroic deeds of ordinary Londoners who lost their lives to save others. A great place to eat lunch, take a nap or read a book. Shhhhhhhhhhh.

Not a huge park. Not a noticeable park. Blink and you might miss it in passing. Not a lot is…read moreseating in park. But what stands this 'park' apart is the historic plaques and history behind it. That it shows plaques depicting how brave people gave up their lives and died for others is astounding. Humbling. Heart warming. The stories behind it are more than just the words you see, and though we don't know full story the words you read will make you think that in a world that seems bad there was once and to any still is People out there willing to come to your aid.

A few weeks ago I joined my friends for a walk in Waterlow Park with their dalmatian whippet mix…read morepup, MoMo. Fall was quickly turning to winter and autumn hued leaves were all around. While it was too cold for a picnic on this visit, I definitely want to come back for one in the spring. Located near on a hillside near the posh Highgate Village, views of London from this park are very pretty. An ideal place to bring a kid, a dog or a person you fancy.

As a passionate and dutiful dog owner, a trip to Waterlow Park is on my daily to-do list. It's such…read morea lovely park, with loads of old trees, spacious meadows...and best of all, it's all so well-maintained. In fact, the other day we had visitors from South London and they were in awe by how luscious and well-kept this park was...apparently quite a difference to some of the more plain commons. What's also nice about this park is the fact that you have amazing views over the City (on clear days, that is). A good time to come here is around lunch-time, sit on one if the many benches and soak in the beauties surrounding you... The only thing that I would like to change, is the rubbish bins. The thing with them is...they don't have a lid or a cover, which invites the non-human inhabitants of this lovely park (aka squirrels, foxes & crows) to rummage through the bins in the search for edible left-overs. While doing that, they have no shame in littering the floor with tissues, coffee cups and wrapping paper. My concern is not so much the appeal of this, but I'm more concerned about my dog, who namely thinks that this rubbish is the most tasty thing in the world!

Abney Park might be my favorite cemetery. Is it weird to have a favorite cemetery? Do I care? I…read morefirst came here over a decade ago during my study abroad in London, and upon my recent re-visit I found that, unsurprisingly, not much has changed. The space is really quite beautiful. The cemetery isn't quite abandoned, but it is wild and overgrown, with meandering paths and labyrinths of headstones and tombs. Hosts of melancholy angels watch over the wanderers, and the chapel (actually abandoned) gazes out over the land with empty windows for eyes. It's lovely and very peaceful, and after a few steps away from the gates it doesn't even feel as though you're in London anymore, but some mysterious place out of time. If you need a reprieve from the bustle of the city, Abney Park is well worth a visit.

Really great place. It's a cemetery but also a nature preserve…read more And they have a wood working workshop right at the front entrance, I think they are open on wednesdays? Check out the website! And the chapel in the middle has lots of things regularly going on. Like recently there was an art exhibit and soon a puppet opera show is going to take its place. How awesome is that. Everything is covered in green and slightly overcrowded. Love all the little pathways you can discover. Let's get lost shall we?

An idyllic destination a short drive from London, Painshill Park is a great place to spend a day…read moreenjoying the beauty of the English countryside. Created by the eccentric Charles Hamilton, the park was created as a "romantic landscape". Both organized and naturalistic, the park offers many vistas, perspectives and experiences. Created with a variety of follies dotting the landscape, the park offers panoramic views and interesting scenes. Views from the Gothic Temple and the Turkish Tent are breathtaking. While exploring the man-made grotto (which is currently undergoing renovation) you can't help but be in awe of Hamilton's vision while at the same time thinking "This guy must have been totally out there to build stalactites with lathe and plaster and then cover them in pieces of crystal!". Whether walking the grounds, bringing a blanket and a book and enjoying the solitude, Painshill Park is a wonderful place to visit. Be prepared to walk, as the park is large and very hilly. It's a good climb to the top of the Tower as well. Would definitely recommend this if you need a relaxing afternoon away from the hustle and bustle of London.

A grade 1 listed park, much renovated over the last 25 years, by the trust that owns it…read more Created by Charles Hamilton ,in the mid 18th century, after his 2 (obligatory) Grand Tours, he wanted to create an idyllic natural setting, around a lake, with water diverted from the river Mole. He was very succesful in this, and created a number of follies, a Grotto, and the unusual Turkish Tent. Many of the plants are of American origin, and were just becoming fashionable at the time. It's worth remembering it's a park like setting rather than a garden like Wisley. Reasonable cafe near the entrance, and the ever present gift shop. Worth chcking their website for offers, currently free entry on Wednesdays in November, children free at weekends, and A special Santa event. The Grotto is only open at the weekends. A great place for a walk on a sunny day, great views across the lake and Surrey.

Although the Philip Lane entrance isn't the most exciting, there are a couple of things to keep an…read moreeye open for. There's some lovely London Plane trees and see if you can spot the cork tree off to the right. Head down a nice avenue of Lime trees, past the playground, and you'll come out at the flower gardens where, in April, there is some stunning blossom. To the right are the tennis courts or, if you carry on through the rose gardens, you'll find some exotic palm trees in amongst the lavender and rose bushes. Work continues apace, with Froglife, to create the wildlife pond on the other side of the rose garden but if you are feeling hungry and thirsty, choose to head past the tennis courts and pay a visit to the new community cafe. This little building and picnic tables is the result of a 10 year campaign to get a community space in the park. An early design fell through due to funding problems, then a plan to get the old Bowling Club building in use fell through when the building was condemned. Undeterred, the Friends lobbied for funding and finally got the current building on the site of the old bowling green, with a cafe, toilets and baby changing facilities, meeting space and information displays. The organisation running the cafe is HAIL (Haringey Association for Independent Living) who use the cafe as a training project for people with learning disabilities, supplemented by volunteers from the community. We have coffees, sandwiches and cake. The sandwiches are large and delicious, using good quality ingredients including home-made hoummous, reasonably priced at £3.00 with a small expresso being priced at £1.00. Baby chairs are available and there are two large tables outside. The cafe is open Wednesday to Sunday at the moment. It's a welcome addition to the Park and conveniently just around the corner from the playground. Give it a go this Easter and support a true community venture.

This is my local park and I have to say that I was really surprised when I first found about it. It…read moreis so well looked after. There is a few free tennis courts and special areas to play football and basketball. It is all free and very tidy and neat so I hope it will stay this way because it is very nice.