Urban parks give city residents and tourists the chance to take advantage of the great outdoors, and Canada is blessed with many. Here are a few of our favourite urban parks across the country.
Stanley Park, Vancouver
Vancouver’s first and largest urban park attracts both locals and tourists all year round – with good reason. There are beaches, kilometres of trails to explore on foot or by bike, Vancouver’s famous seawall to walk along, rain forest, wildlife and great places to stop for a snack or a meal to refuel.
Mount Royal Park, Montreal
Montreal’s Mount Royal Park was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, the same man who designed Central Park in New York. The park includes the highest point in the city, which offers picture-worthy views, as well as many things to do. Head here to have a picnic, walk, bike or jog in the summer, or snowshoe and cross country ski in winter.
High Park, Toronto
High Park is Toronto’s largest public park and is a scenic area in the west end of the city that makes for a welcome escape from busy downtown life. The easily-accessible green space offers hiking and walking trails, an off-leash dog area for dogs to roam free, picnic areas, playgrounds, a children’s garden, a restaurant and picturesque Grenadier Pond.
Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg
Winnipeg’s Assiniboine Park is visited by millions of people each year and is open year-round, 24 hours a day. The park boasts a sculpture garden, art gallery, bike rentals, duck pond, nature playground, toboggan hills, gardens, restaurants and more. There is a double decker bus you can hop on and hop off as a way to see the park and the ride is free.
Pippy Park, St. John’s, Newfoundland
As one of Canada’s largest urban Parks, Pippy Park in St. Johns, Newfoundland is full of opportunities to get active and enjoy nature. The park has the largest serviced campground in the province making it a haven for campers, there is a 27-hole golf course and many kilometres of trails to take in the diverse landscape that covers wetlands, forests and parkland. Winter visitors can rent cross country skis, skate and snowshoe.
Fish Creek Park, Calgary
Calgary is home to Fish Creek Provincial Park, Canada’s largest urban park. The park is open year round and offers plenty to do, but it is a day use only park so there’s no camping. But things you can do include bird watching (more than 200 species have been observed in the park), biking, hiking, swimming and boating in the summer. In the winter visitors can go on winter hikes, snowshoe and cross country ski in areas that have been cleared of snow.
Rockwood Park, St. John, New Brunswick
Visitors or residents of St. John can enjoy nature without leaving the city with a visit to Rockwood Park. Fish, swim or rent a canoe or kayak; hike one of over 55 trails and footpaths; hit the beach; have a picnic; or play a round of golf – and these are just a few of the activities offered in the vast urban playground.
Lead photo: Kyle Pearce used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license
