Park Sights
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Ashton Court Estate
Two miles from the city centre, this huge estate is Bristol's 'green lung', with 850 sprawling acres of oak woodland, trails and public park. It hosts many of Bristol's key events, including the Balloon and Kite festivals. There are also 6.5km of bike trails, two 18-hole golf courses and a miniature railway – and if you're really lucky, you might even spot a roe or fallow deer.
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Brick Bay Sculpture Trail
After taking an hour-long artistic ramble through the beautiful grounds of Brick Bay Wines, recuperate with a wine tasting at the architecturally impressive cafe.
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Fort Adams State Park
Site of the largest coastal fortification (c 1824) in the USA, Fort Adams borders Newport Harbor with expansive lawns ideal for picnicking. Swimming is OK at Fort Adams, but Easton's Beach, also known as 'First Beach,' and Sachuest (Second) Beach are better.
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Grant's Farm
A small-time theme park on the beer-brewing Busch family's rural retreat, Grant's Farm thrills kids with its Clydesdale horses and 1000 other animals from six continents; a tram takes you through the preserve where the beasts roam free. Parking costs $11.
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Mt Trashmore
Off I-64 exit 17B, Virginia Beach's only verticality was the creative solution to a landfill problem. Today the 165-acre park serves as a prime picnicking and kite-flying venue, with two lakes, playgrounds, a skate park and other recreational areas.
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Sun Island Park
Across the river from Stalin Park is Sun Island Park, a 38-sq-km recreational zone with landscaped gardens, miniforests, a 'water world', a Russian Style Town, and various small galleries and museums. It's a pleasant place to walk around, though as usual you need to pay extra to get into many areas.
You can boat across (Y10 return) from the dock directly north of the Flood Control Monument or catch the nearby cable car.
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Bushy Park
Out in London’s southwestern outskirts, the wonderful Hampton Court Palace is pressed up against 445-hectare Bushy Park, a semiwild expanse with herds of red and fallow deer.
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Jǐngshān Park
A feng shui barrier shielding the Forbidden City from evil spirits (or dust storms), Jǐngshān Park was formed from the earth excavated to create the palace moat. Come here for classic panoramas over the Forbidden City's russet roofing to the south. On the eastern side of the park a locust tree stands in the place where the last of the Ming emperors, Chongzhen, hanged himself as rebels swarmed at the city walls.
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St Andrews State Recreation Area
A haven from the hurdy-gurdy of activity, this peaceful park spans 1260 acres graced with nature trails, swimming beaches and wildlife, including foxes, coyotes, snakes, alligators and seabirds. One of the best places to swim with children is the kiddie pool's 4ft-deep water near the jetties area (parents, no need to fear: gators live in freshwater; swimming areas are in the ocean). There's also excellent year-round waterfront camping, for both tents and RVs, which costs $28 a night. You can still see the circular cannon platforms from when this area was used as a military reservation during WWII; look for them on the beach near the jetties.
The Camp Store (the first store…
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Yarra Bend Park
Escape the city without leaving town. About 5km northeast of the city centre, the Yarra River flows through bushland, an area cherished by runners, rowers, cyclists, picnickers and strollers.
Yarra Bend Park has huge tracts of densely tree-covered land (not to mention two golf courses and numerous sports grounds) that are great for walking. Cockatoos screech by the banks and grey-headed flying foxes roost in the trees: it's hard to believe you're 10 minutes from office towers and industry. At the end of Boathouse Rd is the 1860s Studley Park Boathouse, which has a kiosk and restaurant, BBQ facilities, flocks of ducks, and boats and canoes for hire. Kanes suspension…
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Pípá Mountain Park
For views of the city skyline, climb 345m Pípá Mountain Park, the highest point on the Chóngqìng peninsula. During the day, residents bring their songbirds to the park for air and group warbling.
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Jardins de Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer
Located near the Estació Parc Montjuïc (funicular station) are the ornamental Jardins de Mossèn Cinto Verdaguer, full of beautiful bulbs and aquatic plants.
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Summer Garden
Perhaps St Petersburg’s loveliest park, the Summer Garden is between the Mars Field and the Fontanka River. You can enter at either the north or south end.
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Horsham Botanic Gardens
Horsham’s Botanic Gardens were established in the 1870s and designed by the curator of Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens, William Guilfoyle.
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Sunset Park
Off the beaten path, Sunset Park has a replica of an Easter Island moai (statue head) standing on an island in the middle of an artificial lake.
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Parque Yatana Park
Part art project, part urban refuge, a city block of lenga forest preserved from encroaching development by one determined family.
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Leif Erikson Park
This is a lakefront sweet spot with a rose garden, replica of Leif's Viking ship and free outdoor movies each Friday night in summer. Take the Lakewalk from Canal Park (about 1½ miles) and you can say you hiked the Superior Trail , which traverses this stretch.
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Solitary Beauty Peak
A peaceful, leafy retreat from the city centre, the entrance fee for this famous pinnacle includes admission to Wáng Chéng (王城), a 14th-century Ming prince's mansion, now home to Guǎngxī Normal University (lucky students!). The 152m peak is a steep climb, but affords fine views of Guìlín. Buses 1 and 2 both stop nearby.
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Parque Alameda
At the foot of this Tivoli quarter, this narrow park embellishes a dockside promenade that opened in 1840 and was redesigned in 1893. At the north end you'll see the old clock tower, aduana (customs house) and cigar factory.
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Villa Doria Pamphilj
Rome’s largest park is a great place to escape the relentless city noise. Once a vast private estate, it was laid out around 1650 for Prince Camillo Pamphilj, nephew of Pope Innocent X. At its centre is the prince’s summer residence, the Casino del Belrespiro, and its manicured gardens and citrus trees. It’s now used for official government functions.
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Karaalioğlu Parkı
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Fjärilshuset
The steamy Fjärilshuset recreates a tropical environment, complete with free-flying birds and butterflies, and some very friendly fish.
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Parque de la Vida
If all the concrete is getting too much, stop by this tranquil park located in a valley in the middle of the city. It features both gardens and forested areas, as well as several small lakes and a fast-flowing stream. Keep an eye out for the guatin (a kind of large rodent) or they may nick your picnic lunch.
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Hóngshān Park
More of an amusement park, with better views than People's Park. Also has north and south entrances.
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Parque Nacional Fuentes Brotantes
A national park built around natural springs. At the top of the trail, about 1km southwest of Av Insurgentes, is a large reservoir inhabited by ducks.
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