In a city famed for its beaches, it can be easy to overlook the lush green spaces that punctuate Sydney. From sprawling botanic gardens (including one that recently ranked among the best to visit in the world, and a lesser-known gem that’s bigger than NYC’s Central Park) to gorgeous inner-city parks, Sydney is home to some truly magical green spaces. In fact, a recent study has just revealed the 100 cities with the most green spaces in the world – and Sydney ranked at number 16.
To rank the cities with the highest number of green spaces, researchers at Freepik analysed Google reviews for 2,300 parks and green attractions across the world's 100 most populous cities. Only green spaces with more than ten reviews on TripAdvisor were included, ensuring they focused on popular spots rather than each and every tiny neighbourhood park – giving a clearer picture of the top green spaces worth visiting.
Sydney knocked it out of the park (ahem), ranking 16th worldwide for its green spaces and taking the top spot in Australia. The fittingly-coloured Emerald City boasts 30 notable green spots to stretch your legs, walk the dog, have a leisurely picnic or simply take a break from your four walls. The grand 189-hectare Centennial Park is Sydney’s largest park for outdoor adventures, while Hyde Park in the middle of the city is the country’s oldest. There’s also the truly special Wendy’s Secret Garden sitting on the banks of the harbour north of the bridge, Camperdown Park in the heart of the Inner West (a fave spot for sunset pizza) and the famous harbourside Royal Botanic Gardens. A personal favourite is McKell Park: a glorious pocket of green in the luxe, leafy Inner City suburb of Darling Point. That’s only scratching the surface of Sydney’s beautiful stretches of green – you can read our full guide to the best parks and gardens in Sydney here, and you can learn more about the Central Park-style garden set to open in Western Sydney's new CBD here.
The next city with the second-most green spaces in Australia is Melbourne, which ranked 31st worldwide, offering 21 spots to get in touch with your green side. Adelaide claimed the title of Australia’s third greenest city, ranking 59th overall with 12 green spaces and attractions. The final Aussie city to make the list was Perth, which ranked as Australia’s fourth best city for green spaces and 68th worldwide.
You can check out the top 100 cities with the most green spaces in the world here.
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