All throughout the world, city parks play an important role in the ecosystem of urban life. They are used as places to retreat from the high tempo, and often intense, lifestyles that come with being in a big city. Urban parks are places to reconnect with friends, family, and nature away from the stress of daily city life. So here are seven of the world's most beautiful urban parks!
1) Balboa Park, San Diego, United States
Balboa Park's area was reserved in 1835, which makes the park site one of the oldest in the United States dedicated exclusively to public recreational use. At 1,200 acres, it plays host to a number of museums, cultural centers, and even the San Diego Zoo. It has a variety of gardens, open space areas, walking paths, and recreational attractions.
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2) Englischer Garten, Munich, Germany
Created in 1789 by Sir Benjamin Thompson, the Englischer Garten is one of Europe's largest urban public parks at 3.7 km^2 (larger than New York's Central Park). The name, meaning "English Garden" in German, refers to a form of informal landscaping popular in Britain at the time of the parks creation. It boasts quite a list of attractions, from a Japanese tea garden, to the Schönfeldwiese (a field designated for nude sunbathing), to the Monopteros (a Greek style temple), to the Eisbach (an artificial stream where locals can surf.) Also, the second largest beer park in Munich. Whats not to like?
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3) Villa Doria Pamphili, Rome, Italy
A 17th-century villa at the heart of a landscaped public park, the Villa Doria Pamphili is certainly a unique park. Founded as a villa for the wealthy Pamphili family, the property was passed to the local government in the 18th century when the family line died out. Now a public park, visitors are treated to 1.8 km^2 of public leisure space.
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4) Keukenhof, Lisse, the Netherlands
Keukenhof is one of the world's largest flower gardens, with over 79 acres and approximately 7 million flowers. The park boasts a variety of garden styles, including those modeled after English and Japanese styles. It also showcases millions of tulips, the unofficial national flower of the Netherlands, with over 800 different kinds on display. Only open from mid-March to mid-May (the only times that the tulips bloom), the best time to visit is mid-April.
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5) Ueno Park, Tokyo, Japan
Ueno Park is another park that focuses strongly on it's flowers, being known for the beautiful Sakura, or cherry blossom although these actually bloom on trees). Established in 1873, it was one of the country's first public parks. It hosts 5 major museums, numerous schools, venues for the arts, and a library. When the cherry blossoms broom in the string, the beauty of thousands of the trees turning the park pink is awe-inspiring.
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6) Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada
Stanley Park is unique in that it is bordered almost entirely by the waters of the Vancouver Bay, as well as far wilder than most of the others mentioned. A large portion of the park remains almost entirely untouched, and it might be more accurate to call Stanley Park an urban forest. There are more than 17 miles of forest trails, as well as a path around the Vancouver Seawall that takes between 2 and 3 hours to go around. It houses the Vancouver aquarium, playgrounds, a theatre, a swimming pool, a golf course, and multiple sports fields.
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7) Park Güell, Barcelona, Spain
Designed by famous architect Antonio Gaudi, Park Guell is almost entirely manmade. The park is characterized by mosaic works integrated into almost all of the structures in the park, including benches, stairs, buildings, and terraces. The main terrace is even surrounded by a bench shaped to look like a sea serpent. The high point of the park offers one of the best views in the city, giving a panorama view of Barcelona.
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Disclaimer: This list is completely based off of my personal preferences, and I make no claim to this being a definitive list of the world's best parks. Also, I tried to limit my selections to one park per country....and as a result have left off a number of undoubtedly fantastic parks (like the Golden Gate Park, Central Park, Hibiya Park, Hyde Park etc.)