11 Public Parks You Must Visit Before You Die
The best public parks in the world combine beautiful landscaping with architectural and cultural attractions, such as concert venues, open-air theaters, fountains, pavilions, gardens, and more. Historically speaking, public parks are a relatively new phenomenon, as the most elaborate and extraordinary gardens were long reserved for the aristocracy. In the early 1880s, some urban planners began to put forth the democratic idea that cities should have parks that were free and open to everyone, not just high society. AD surveyed 11 public parks worthy of any bucket list, some of which were born as public parks and some that were originally private gardens later opened to the public.
Photo: Paris Tourist Office1/11Jardin du Luxembourg, Paris
Nostalgic for the Boboli Gardens in her hometown of Florence, Queen Marie de Médicis had the Jardin du Luxembourg created in 1612, and it’s now one of the most beloved public parks in Paris. Bordering the Latin Quarter, Saint Germain-des-Près, and Montparnasse, the park is divided into French and English gardens, with a large circular basin, where children often play with toy sailboats, in between. There are more than 100 statues within the park, which comes alive in the spring, when tulips and daffodils bloom.
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Photo: NYC & Company2/11Central Park, New York City
It goes without saying that any trip to New York City would be incomplete without a visit to Central Park. Spanning 59th to 110th Streets and stretching from Fifth to Eighth Avenues in Manhattan, the 843-acre park was planned in 1853, making it the first landscaped public park in the United States. Designed by Frederick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux, it has manicured lawns, ponds, a boathouse, fountains, sculptures, a castle, an open-air theater, and a nature sanctuary.
Photo: Barcelona de Servicios Municipales3/11Park Güell, Barcelona
One of the world’s most iconic parks, Park Güell in Barcelona was designed by Antoni Gaudí and built between 1900 and 1914. It was originally meant to be a gated community commissioned by Count Eusebi Güell, but only two of the houses were ever built, and the Güell family instead turned it over to the city. The huge park covers more than 42 acres, but the monumental part, with the mosaic tile-covered benches, the famous lizard fountain, and other highlights, requires a timed ticket.
Photo: Getty Images/Rafael Paulucci4/11Parque Ibirapuera, São Paulo
Created in 1954 to commemorate the 400th anniversary of São Paulo’s founding, Parque Ibirapuera is a masterpiece of Brazilian modernist design by Roberto Burle Marx and Oscar Niemeyer. For the landscaping, Burle Marx broke with conventional garden design and instead created asymmetrical plans with free-flowing water bodies, colorful pavements, and the cultivation of indigenous plants that thrive in Brazil’s tropical environment. Within the park, you can still admire Niemeyer’s auditorium.
Photo: London & Partners5/11Hyde Park, London
One of London’s most beloved public parks, Hyde Park was once part of the hunting grounds of King Henry VIII, along with Green Park and St. James’s Park. Housed within it are the Hyde Park Barracks, which houses the Household Cavalry—if you’re there at the right time, you might be able to see the guards in their full regalia on horseback going to or from Buckingham Palace. Covering 350 acres, the park is home to the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain and the Serpentine Lido, where you can relax waterside with a snack and a drink at the Lido Café Bar.
Photo: Getty Images6/11Bosque de Chapultepec, Mexico City
Mexico City’s green heart, this 1,600-acre park was considered a sacred place by the indigenous tribes that inhabited it for centuries. Today it’s one of the city’s most beloved spaces, with some of the finest museums in Mexico, three small lakes, a botanical garden, a cultural center, monuments, fountains, a zoo, a national cemetery, and the Mexican presidential palace. Of the park’s three sections, the first is the most popular, thanks to the presence of the Modern Art Museum, the National Anthropology Museum, and the Tamayo Museum.
Photo: Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board7/11Griffith Park, Los Angeles
Rugged and wild, Griffith Park measures a whopping 4,310 acres, making it the largest municipal park in the United States. It’s named for mining tycoon Colonel Griffith J. Griffith, who donated 3,000 acres of land to the city in 1896. Unless you’re ready for an ambitious hike, take an Uber up to Griffith Observatory, which offers panoramic views of the city as well as the Hollywood sign. The park also contains the Los Angeles Zoo, the Greek Theater, two golf courses, a swimming pool, hiking and bridle trails, a carousel, an outdoor train museum, and Bronson Canyon, where the Batcave from the 1960s Batman TV show was located.
Photo: Laura Itzkowitz8/11Villa Borghese, Rome
Once part of the vast estate owned by Cardinal Scipione Borghese, who created the stunning Galleria Borghese museum within the park, this heart-shaped park just north of Rome’s Piazza del Popolo is now free and open to all. In addition to the must-visit Galleria Borghese, it’s also home to the Museo Nazionale di Arte Moderna and the Villa Giulia National Etruscan Museum, as well as a zoo, a replica of Shakespeare’s Globe Theater, a botanical garden, and a little lake where you can rent a rowboat. Contemporary art installations sometimes pop up in the area near the Galleria Borghese.
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Photo: Getty Images/John Seaton Callahan9/11Yoyogi Park, Tokyo
One of Tokyo’s largest parks, Yoyogi Park in Shibuya is known for cherry blossoms in spring and a large gingko forest, which blooms with golden leaves in the fall. It was the site of the Olympic Village for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and is located next to the Meiji Jingu Shrine, whose entrance is marked by a massive torii gate. The park is a favorite spot for people-watching, as it serves as a gathering place for dance crews, punk rockers, and cosplayers.
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Jay Rumph10/11Singapore Botanic Gardens
The supertrees in Singapore’s Gardens by the Bay may be more famous, but the Botanic Gardens are the country’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site. Established in 1859, the 60-acre garden is heaven for horticulturists and attracts botanic scholars from around the world. The main highlight is the National Orchid Garden—the largest of its kind in the world—which displays more than 60,000 plants. There’s also a 10-acre natural remnant rainforest, as well as Victorian-era elements, like gazebos, pavilions, and ornate bandstands.
Photo: Getty Images/Siegfried Layda11/11Table Mountain National Park, Cape Town
There are few places in the world where you can explore the natural beauty of a national park within city limits, and Table Mountain National Park is one of them. This 85-square-mile park extends out into the Cape Peninsula, but much of it—including the eponymous Table Mountain and the Cape of Good Hope—is within Cape Town. A large swath of the park is free and open to all, but if you want to see the penguins at Boulders Beach, you’ll have to pay an entrance fee.
