5 Great Country Parks In Buckinghamshire 

If you fancy a change from your local park, perhaps it’s time to get out of town and find more outdoor space at a country park. Whether you’re local to the area, looking for a green escape from London or visiting from elsewhere in the UK, Buckinghamshire’s country parks provide easily accessible outdoor space and lots of things to do, from family activities to grand stately home tours.

Our list of five great Buckinghamshire country parks has plenty to keep you busy for several days, so it’s well worth planning to stay in the area for a night or few. Camping and glamping are excellent ways to have an affordable break and will give you even more chances to soak up the scenery and the fresh air. Have a look at Pitchup’s full range to find somewhere that suits your travel style.

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Denham Country Park

Part of the bigger Colne Valley Regional Park, lovely Denham Country Park is a great place for a full day of countryside and waterside exploration. With the rivers Colne and Misbourne flowing through and the Grand Union Canal nearby, it’s a scenic setting for all sorts of walks, including a family orienteering trail, a nature trail and a stroll to the ancient village of Denham for a pub lunch and pint. 

Denham Country Park’s 69 acres are home to a nature reserve that’s full of wildlife – look out for dragonflies and kingfishers in summer and overwintering wildfowl in colder months. The adventure playground and paddling beach are popular attractions for families, and there's also a café for meals, snacks, ice creams and drinks.

Hughenden Park

For a grander park experience, head to Hughenden, a National Trust estate just outside West Wycombe. The grand former abode of Victorian PM Benjamin Disraeli is a 600-acre estate that’s also a gateway to one of Buckinghamshire’s most adored natural areas, the Chiltern Hills National Landscape.  

You can, of course, visit the house and tour its elegant Italianate grounds (certainly among our favourite five gardens in Buckinghamshire), but many guests prefer a day spent exploring the waymarked paths running through Hughenden’s sprawling parkland. Take the Boundary walk for a tour of woodlands and open space or the Monument walk for spectacular views. You could also wander through the densely packed trees of the German Forest or take a short stroll on the Woodcock Wood walk. 

After that, it’s up to you – head further out into the Chilterns, take the kids to the play area (a natural-style effort with lots of logs to clamber on, plus stepping stones and a climbing rope) or relax and refresh at the lovely café.

Black Park Country Park

With everything from serene lakeside areas to thrilling adventure activities, the 530 acres of woodland and heath at Black Park Country Park make a fantastic destination for anyone wanting a full country park experience. This huge park near Slough has something for all ages – family facilities include playgrounds, a Go Ape treetop trail and a downloadable orienteering activity pack, and there are miles of walking and bike trails along with a fishing lake with a day and annual passes available. 

Home to relatively rare species of plants, insects, snakes and lizards, this perfect park is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest. That means there’s plenty of wildlife to look out for here, including 18 types of butterfly. Pop into the visitor centre for information on what you might spot, or introduce younger kids to local wildlife with a forest school session. 

Langley Park

Once a royal hunting ground and pleasure gardens, Langley Park has since become one of Buckinghamshire’s most scenic green spaces and a welcoming haven for local wildlife. There are 130 acres of peaceful parkland here, including rhododendron gardens and woodlands full of mature oak and chestnut trees (some of them planted by famed garden guru Capability Brown).

Fittingly for a park that has historic links to the likes of Henry VIII, Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, you can see all the way to Windsor Castle from some parts of the park. If you’d like to find out more about the park’s regal past, follow the history trail walk taking in places like Kings Wood and Temple Gardens.

Alongside all of this are plenty of useful facilities including a café, picnic areas and the Jubilee Play Garden for under-12s.

Emberton Country Park

Originally a gravel works, this outdoor space became England’s first country park in 1965 and Emberton Country Park is now made up of 200 handsome acres of wooded glades, meadows and parkland just northeast of Milton Keynes.

There are all sorts of outdoor activities to fill your time with here – the park has a bird hide and three birdwatching platforms, a sailing club and four fishing lakes. Several miles of walking/cycling trails run through the park, and there are often themed wildlife walks to join at weekends. At other times, head to the duck feeder to buy safe food from a sustainable solar-powered machine and get your wildlife fix by feeding the birds.

Playgrounds, a café and a couple of picnic areas are all on hand for a family day out. You could also encourage the kids to earn their treat with a good deed by picking up a litter-picking kit from the café.

 

If these parks have inspired you to spend more time in the fresh air, how about trying out one of our favourite Buckinghamshire walks? Our list of things to do with the kids in Buckinghamshire also has ideas for family outdoor activities, plus some indoor options in case you hit a rainy day. 

Whether you’re visiting with friends, bringing the family, having a solo adventure or planning a couple’s weekend away, camping is another great way to make the most of the area's countryside scenery. Click on the button below to see what’s available, then use Pitchup’s clever filters to select the features that matter to you and find the perfect place to stay.

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