Royal parks
The centrepieces of London's park system are the eight Royal Parks of London. Covering 1976 hectares, they are former royal hunting grounds which are now open to the public. Four of these — Green Park (16 ha), St. James's Park (34 ha), Hyde Park (140 ha), and Kensington Gardens (111 ha) — form a green strand through the western side of the city centre, whilst a fifth, Regent's Park (197 ha) is just to the north. The remaining three Royal Parks are in the suburbs — Greenwich Park (73 ha) to the south east, and Bushy Park (450 ha) and Richmond Park (955 ha) to the south west.
Garden squares
Many of the smaller green spaces in central London are garden squares, which were built for the private use of the residents of the fashionable districts, but in some cases are now open to the public. Notable examples open to the public are Russell Square in Bloomsbury, Lincoln's Inn Fields in Holborn and Soho Square in Soho.
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea contains over a hundred garden squares whose use is restricted to residents. The upkeep of these squares is paid for through a levy on top of residents' council tax.
Council parks
The bathing pond at Victoria Park. Unused for bathing since the 1930s.
In addition to these spaces, a large number of council-owned parks were developed between the mid 19th century and the Second World War, including Victoria Park (86.18 ha), Alexandra Park (80 ha) and Battersea Park (83 ha).
Hyde Park - a different park each season:
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