Victoria Park
the original people's park
The People's Park, free in East London, with a boating lake, old drinking fountains, weekend stalls and a canal towpath that walks you all the way into the city.
Free to visit · Hackney · Hackney Wick · E9 7DE
Opening: Daily · roughly 7am to dusk
Victoria Park was the first public park built specifically for ordinary Londoners, opened in the 1840s after locals petitioned for somewhere green to breathe. East London has loved it fiercely ever since, which is why everyone still calls it the People's Park or just Vicky Park.
It is a proper all-rounder, free and open to all, with a boating lake, ornate Victorian fountains, wide tree-lined avenues, a good cafe in the Pavilion and a Saturday market by the gates. In summer it hosts festivals, but most days it is just dog walkers, runners and families enjoying a beautifully kept stretch of green.
Its best trick is the canal that runs along the western edge. Drop onto the towpath and you can walk or cycle, entirely for free, all the way down through Hackney and Bethnal Green to the canalside bars and eventually the river.
Getting there: A short walk from Hackney Wick or Bethnal Green, wrapped by the canal on its western side.
Best time to go: A weekend morning for the cafe and the stalls, or a summer evening for the canalside walk back into town.
Insider tip: Leave by the canal rather than the way you came. The towpath on the west side is a free, flat, traffic-free walk or cycle that takes you past the Hackney Wick bars and all the way down towards the Thames, with a coffee stop or two on the way.
Official site: https://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk
Free things to do in London · London Free Guide