Find places to walk in London for a spot of fresh air

Mind, the mental health charity, has highlighted that nature and green spaces can have a huge positive impact on our mental health. 

Luckily, there are many beautiful places to walk in London to clear your head; from the parks in East London, to the stunning spots across Stratford – and we’ve named our favourites here. So if you’re fit and healthy, pop out for a walk. 

Victoria Park is a beautiful place to explore, with lots of things to do and see. The first public park in London, Victoria Park has over 4,500 beautiful trees and covers 88 hectares of land. It’s stunning. We recommend the Avenue Perimeter Walk; it’s only three miles long and most of the route is accessible for those who use wheels to get around. 

It would be silly not to mention this stunning park. Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park covers over 220 hectares of land and has something for everyone. There are sports trails, children’s trails, and nature trails. This park is not only a beautiful place to visit… it’s also a great place to live.  There are over 120,000 flowers and 10,000 shrubs, as well as countless animals, insects, birds and bees. Everything in this park has been designed with the seasons in mind, so every time you visit you’ll see something different. 

The Jubilee Greenway Walk is 60km long, so unless you’ve got a lot of time on your hands, it would be wise to take it in sections. The Jubilee Greenway Walk is one of the most stunning places to walk in London, covering parks in East London like Victoria Park, and beautiful sights like Buckingham Palace, the O2 Arena, and the Thames Barrier. The walk itself was designed to commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the London 2012 Olympic Games, but you can commemorate your completion of the walk with a certificate from Transport for London.

Green space and beautiful buildings aren’t the only places to walk in London that will keep you zen, there are also stunning waterways to walk alongside and breathe in the fresh air. The Bow Creek is one of the oldest waterways in England, and the Lea Valley Walk takes you through Tottenham Marshes and lets you check out Waltham Abbey.

Fancy speeding things up a bit? Why not go for a run in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park? They’ve even created a map with a 2k route that takes you past the Olympic Rings, and a 5K route around the Stratford Waterfront and ArcelorMittal Orbit. 

There are also some fantastic cycle routes around London, allowing you to take in nature at a quicker pace.