The English city of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

has a number of parks and public open spaces.

Large parks

Bristol City Council Bristol City Council is the local authority of Bristol, England. The council is a unitary authority, and is unusual in the United Kingdom in that its executive function is controlled by a directly elected mayor of Bristol. Bristol has 34 wards ...

own or manage four major parks: The Downs,

Blaise Castle Blaise Castle is a folly built in 1766 near Henbury in Bristol, England. The castle sits within the Blaise Castle Estate, which also includes Blaise Castle House, a Grade II* listed 18th-century mansion house. The folly castle is also Grade I ...

Ashton Court Ashton Court is a mansion house and estate to the west of Bristol in England. Although the estate lies mainly in North Somerset, it is owned by the City of Bristol. The mansion and stables are a Grade I listed building. Other structures on th ...

and Stoke Park. The Downs lie 2 miles (3 km) northwest of the city centre and totals . The Downs are divided into

Clifton Down Clifton Down is an area of public open space in Bristol, England, north of the village of Clifton. With its neighbour Durdham Down to the northeast, it constitutes the large area known as The Downs, much used for leisure including walking and t ...

to the south and

Durdham Down Durdham Down is an area of public open space in Bristol, England. With its neighbour Clifton Down to the southwest, it constitutes a area known as The Downs, much used for leisure including walking, jogging and team sports. Its exposed positio ...

to the north, with a main road running between them. At the south end of Clifton Down is the

Clifton Suspension Bridge The Clifton Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Avon Gorge and the River Avon, linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods in North Somerset. Since opening in 1864, it has been a toll bridge, the income from which provides fun ...

, and both look over the

Avon Gorge The Avon Gorge () is a 1.5-mile (2.5-kilometre) long gorge on the River Avon in Bristol, England. The gorge runs south to north through a limestone ridge west of Bristol city centre, and about 3 miles (5 km) from the mouth of the r ...

. The Downs are protected by an 1861

Act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

, and are managed by the Downs Committee, a joint committee of the city council (which owns Durdham Down) and the

Society of Merchant Venturers The Society of Merchant Venturers is a charitable organisation in the English city of Bristol. The society can be traced back to a 13th-century guild which funded the voyage of John Cabot to Canada. In 1552, it gained a monopoly on sea trading ...

(which owns Clifton Down). Blaise Castle estate, situated north west of the city centre, includes a recreation ground and large playing fields, as well as woodland, a mansion, and a small gorge, totalling . The mansion house is now a branch of

Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery Bristol Museum & Art Gallery is a large museum and art gallery in Bristol, England. The museum is situated in Clifton, about from the city centre. As part of Bristol Culture it is run by the Bristol City Council with no entrance fee. It holds ...

. At Ashton Court estate is Bristol's largest park. Though the estate lies largely within the boundaries of

North Somerset North Somerset is a unitary authorities of England, unitary district in Somerset, South West England. Whilst its area covers part of the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Somerset, it is administered independently of the non ...

it is maintained by Bristol City Council, and has been publicly owned since 1959. The park contains

horse riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, Driving (horse), driving, and Equestrian vaulting, vaulting ...

and

mountain biking Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

trails, and is protected as a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

for its ecology. The mansion house is now a conference centre. Stoke Park is Bristol's newest park, acquired by Bristol City Council in 2011 and occupying a prominent position alongside the M32 motorway.

Parks and open spaces in the central area

The Centre Promenade is a paved, largely pedestrianised area built over the culverted River Frome. Known locally as the Centre, many local bus services terminate here. Castle Park is adjacent to the Broadmead and

Cabot Circus Cabot Circus is a covered shopping centre in Bristol, England. It is adjacent to Broadmead, a shopping district in Bristol city centre. The Cabot Circus development area contains shops, offices, a cinema, hotel and 250 apartments. It covers a tot ...

shopping centres and the

Floating Harbour Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of . It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out per ...

. The park was created after wartime bombing damaged much of the pre-war shopping area which stood here. The ruined shells of two churches,

St Peter ) (Simeon, Simon) , birth_date = , birth_place = Bethsaida, Gaulanitis, Syria, Roman Empire , death_date = Between AD 64–68 , death_place = probably Vatican Hill, Rome, Italia, Roman Empire , parents = John (or Jonah; Jona) , occupation ...

and St Mary le Port, still stand in the park (with the aid of concrete reinforcements) and the foundations of

Bristol Castle Bristol Castle was a Norman castle built for the defence of Bristol. Remains can be seen today in Castle Park near the Broadmead Shopping Centre, including the sally port. Built during the reign of William the Conqueror, and later owned by Rob ...

are also a feature. There are small formal gardens around St Peter's church, which is maintained as a war memorial. Bristol City Council has confirmed its intention to redevelop the area around St Mary-le-Port church. The project area includes a part of Castle Park to the west of St Peter's Church. To the west of the city centre lie

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Kent ...

and

Brandon Hill Brandon Hill () is the highest mountain in County Kilkenny, Ireland, with an elevation of and prominence at . The South Leinster Way, a long-distance trail, meandering through the Barrow Valley and traverses Brandon Hill. The village of ...

. At the summit of Brandon Hill, the Cabot Tower commemorates

John Cabot John Cabot ( it, Giovanni Caboto ; 1450 – 1500) was an Italian navigator and explorer. His 1497 voyage to the coast of North America under the commission of Henry VII of England is the earliest-known European exploration of coastal North ...

, a pioneer who sailed in 1497 from Bristol to

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. Brandon Hill is steep and is divided into informal gardens, a small

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

and open grassland. The

Avon Wildlife Trust The Avon Wildlife Trust aims to protect and promote wildlife in the area of the former county of Avon — now Bath and North East Somerset, Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire, in England. It has its headquarters in Bristol and run ...

headquarters are beside the park. Surrounded with high wrought-iron railings to the northwest of Broadmead shopping centre, St James' Park is a small former churchyard divided by a sunken walkway which links Broadmead to St James' Church and

Bristol bus station Bristol Bus and Coach Station serves the city of Bristol in the west of England. It is situated on Marlborough Street, near the Broadmead shopping area. The original bus station and onsite depot were opened in 1958 by the Bristol Omnibus Comp ...

. West of the city centre between

Bristol Cathedral Bristol Cathedral, the Cathedral Church of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, is the Church of England cathedral in the city of Bristol, England. Founded in 1140 and consecrated in 1148, it was originally St Augustine's Abbey but after the Dissolu ...

and the

Council House A council house is a form of British public housing built by local authorities. A council estate is a building complex containing a number of council houses and other amenities like schools and shops. Construction took place mainly from 1919 ...

College Green College Green or The College Green may refer to: * College Green, Adelaide outdoor venue at the University of Adelaide * College Green, Bristol, England * College Green (Dartmouth College), New Hampshire, primarily known as "the Green" * College ...

, a popular meeting place for

street sports A street game or street sport is a sport or game that is played on city streets rather than a prepared field. Street games are usually simply play time activities for children in the most convenient venue. Some street games have risen to the l ...

enthusiasts. Queen Square is a large

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

square south of the city centre. In 1936 the Square was bisected diagonally by Bristol's inner circuit road. Traffic has now been diverted, and the restored Square has received a number of awards including a

Green Flag Award The Green Flag Award is an international accreditation given to publicly accessible parks and open spaces, managed under licence from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, a UK Government department, by Keep Britain Tidy, ...

, the Landscape Institution Landscape and Heritage Award. King Square (restored in 1993), Brunswick Square and Portland Square are also Georgian and lie to the north of the city centre. Work commenced in 2014 to remodel The Bearpit, a sunken space within St James Barton roundabout long seen to be in need of improvement. These works include construction of street-level pedestrian crossings and new wider stairways leading down to the open space. File:Bristol peters church from counterslip.jpg, alt=, St Peter's Church in Castle Park, with the shopping centre behind File:Bristol bh ct from wildlife park.jpg, alt=, Brandon Hill and Cabot Tower File:The Bear Pit (St James Barton) Bristol.jpg, alt=, The Bearpit (St James Barton) Bristol

Other parks

Parks in Bristol's suburbs include: *

Arnos Vale Cemetery Arnos Vale Cemetery () (also written Arno's Vale Cemetery), in Arnos Vale, Bristol, England, was established in 1837. Its first burial was in 1839. The cemetery followed a joint-stock model, funded by shareholders. It was laid out as an Arcadi ...

* Begbrook Green Park *

Bristol & Bath Railway Path The Bristol and Bath Railway Path is a off-road cycleway, part of National Cycle Network National Cycle Route 4. It has a wide tarmacked surface, and was used for 2.4 million trips in 2007, increasing by 10% per year. It was built by the c ...

, a green corridor following the route of a dismantled railway. * Brunswick Cemetery Gardens - disused cemetery, enhanced as a public open space in 2010 * Canford Park * Cotham Gardens * Crox Bottom, which has Pidgeonhouse Stream (a tributary of the River Malago) running through it * Dame Emily Park * Eastville Park * Gores Marsh Park * Greville Smyth Park * Hengrove Park * Lamplighters Marsh *

Leigh Woods Leigh Woods is a area of woodland on the south-west side of the Avon Gorge, close to the Clifton Suspension Bridge, within North Somerset opposite the English city of Bristol and north of the Ashton Court estate, of which it formed a part. S ...

, within

). Owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. * Manor Woods Valley Local Nature Reserve, which has the River Malago running through it * Marksbury Road Open Space, which also has the River Malago running through it * Mina Road Park * Montpelier Park * Northern Slopes, a group of open spaces that includes the Bommie, Glyn Vale open space, Kingswear open space and Novers Common * Oldbury Court Estate (known locally as Vassalls Park) * Page Park * Perrett Park *

Redcatch Park The English city of Bristol has a number of parks and public open spaces. Large parks Bristol City Council own or manage four major parks: The Downs, Blaise Castle, Ashton Court and Stoke Park. The Downs lie 2 miles (3 km) northwe ...

* Redland Green * Ridgeway Playing Fields, Hillfields * Riverside Park *

Royal Fort Gardens The Royal Fort House is a historic house in Tyndalls Park, Bristol. The building currently houses the University of Bristol's Faculty of Science offices, the Brigstow Institute, Elizabeth Blackwell Institute for Health Research, the Cabot Institu ...

* South Purdown *

Snuff Mills Snuff Mills is a park in the Stapleton area of north Bristol, also known as Whitwood Mill. There are pleasant walks along the steep wooded banks of the River Frome, for example to Oldbury Court. The park was purchased in 1926 by the Corporati ...

, owned by the National Trust * Sparke Evans Park * St Agnes Park * St Andrews Park *

St Anne's Park Saint Anne's Park ( ga, Páirc Naomh Áine) is a public park situated between Raheny and Clontarf, suburbs on the northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is owned and managed by Dublin City Council. The park, the second largest municipal park in Dub ...

St George Park St George Park is a park on the eastern edge of the inner city in Bristol, England, in St George Saint George ( Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, ...

Victoria Park Victoria Park may refer to: Places Australia * Victoria Park Nature Reserve, a protected area in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales * Victoria Park, Adelaide, a park and racecourse * Victoria Park, Brisbane, a public park and former golf ...

References

External links

Bristol City Council: Parks and open spaces

Hengrove Park

Parks of Bristol; Instagram
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parks Of Bristol