How lockdown rekindled a love for our local parks

This year has been brutal, with people forced to isolate and spend months without seeing many of their friends or loved ones. One positive side of the pandemic, however, has been a rekindling of our enjoyment of the UK’s outdoor spaces.

While the beauty of the United Kingdom’s countryside has never been in doubt, restrictions on travel and movement have meant appreciation for our parks and forests has never been higher, particularly if you’re based in a more urban area.

Now Google Maps has revealed the most popular outdoor locations in UK cities, based on what people searched for from February 1 to October 20.

Richmond Park was crowned London’s most popular park, with Hampstead Heath, Battersea Park, Hyde Park and Epping Forest all following closely behind.

In Manchester, Piccadilly Gardens took first place, with Heaton Park as runner-up. Sefton Park was the top choice in Liverpool, followed by Crosby Beach, Delamere Forest and Calderstone Park. Meanwhile, 524-acre Lickey Hills proved most popular in Birmingham, and Jesmond Dene Park in Newcastle.

Unsurprisingly, England’s parks have also been plagued most of the summer with accusations of being overcrowded – and again this month as people have taken full advantage of the current nationwide lockdown’s allowance of unlimited exercise.

“Heaving” and “rammed” are two words that have come up again and again, with even parks outside cities not being exempt. “Knole Park in Sevenoaks is heaving,” said one social media user, while another said that Black Park in Buckinghamshire and Bentley Priory in Harrow were both “rammed at weekends” – though “even my local park is like that as well [now],” they added.

London parks are also supposedly full, with another social media user noting: “Battersea Park and Clapham Common are 10 times busier than normal on the weekends at the moment, full of families, friends and first dates!” Battersea Park was named London’s second most popular park by Google Maps.

While some find themselves put out by the sudden love of England’s parks, especially when left unable to enter themselves, others take a more positive view, noting the cheer these spaces are providing for people.

“Our local nature spot – Newmillerdam Country Park in Wakefield – has been heaving every day,” said one man of the northern space. “Our local authority has kindly made parking across our district free so hundreds of families and walkers are using it.”

They pointed to “kind weather” as a big draw for people heading outdoors, along with takeaway drinks and food offered by “little local” cafes and pubs – “it’s a lovely day out for people.”

While England’s parks have been a large focus for people, due to the country remaining under lockdown, Scotland’s parks appear to also be experiencing a boost.

“Edinburgh Meadows is absolutely heaving always,” said one social media user. “Between the school outdoor gym class, bootcamp, runners and cyclists, it’s the new Butlins.”

Google Maps named Arthur's Seat, an 823ft ancient volcano, as the most popular spot in Edinburgh, but the outdoor space’s size allows it to escape overcrowding. Over in nearby Glasgow, Pollock Country Park is the most searched for bit of greenery.  Glaswegians benefit from being surrounded by a wealth of beautiful nature, meaning many are leaving the city for places like Mugdock Country Park and Loch Lomond, which came second and fourth in the rankings respectively.

Searches for outdoor locations on Google Maps dropped 257 per cent in April compared to February, said Google Maps, due to the strict lockdown rules that came into force last March. However, once lockdown was eased, interest in outdoor locations boomed, with searches spiking 51 per cent in July compared to pre-lockdown days.

The real winner, however, has been local parks and walks, with searches for ‘parks open near me’ up a mammoth 400 per cent, and ‘pretty walks near me’ defined as a breakout term, meaning searches for it are up over 5,000 per cent, according to Google Trends.

Those concerned about the numbers of people converging outside in parks or outdoor areas may be reassured to know that Google Maps has new features “to help people stay safe, up-to-date and connected if they need to travel.” This includes live crowd information, designed to help people more easily social distance.