GREAT (BRITISH) NATURE ESCAPES

With its vast mountainous landscapes and famous lochs, it’s no surprise that Scotland is home to the cities with the cleanest air. Aberdeen, Dundee and Glasgow had the best air quality on average throughout 2020.

The air quality around Milton Keynes, Hastings and Oxford was the poorest around Great Britain. Those spending time in higher polluted areas may be exposed to pollutants like industrial smog and smoke.

This is not only harmful to our planet, but the effects of pollution can be seen on our skin too, leading to skin problems like blemishes, ageing and sensitivity.

Breathing in clean air is one important part of living in a healthy environment. So if you’re planning to travel to a new place and explore nature, add Scotland to your bucket list for a breath of fresh air.

Public parks and urban greenspace are very popular in cities and large towns since they offer a nature haven for highly populated areas. But they can feel crowded with families, dog walkers and runners everywhere you look, making it seem like you’re not as secluded as you might like.

With this in mind, we’ve found the cities that offer the largest amount of greenspace per person, and we can reveal Swansea, Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee as the top five areas, each offering over 100 square meters of greenspace for every city-goer.

Unsurprisingly, the super populated cities of London and Manchester have the lowest amount of greenspace per city resident, followed by Wolverhampton and Coventry.

Hearing urban noise pollution like road traffic, passing trains and industrial noise can impact how immersed we feel in nature.

Just 30% of residents living in Kingston Upon Hull, Milton Keynes and Cardiff are impacted by such disturbances. If you’re luckily enough to reside here, continue to enjoy the peace and quiet. Namaste.

At the other end of the scale, Glasgow, Slough, Edinburgh, London and Aberdeen are the noisiest cities, with industrial noise pollution impacting the entire population that lives within the city perimeters.

But don’t let this put you off. Come rain or shine, time spent amongst nature can help to soothe our minds but it can be damaging to our skin, so help protect your skin from the sun before heading off.

After an extensive analysis of over 2,500 forests and parks listed on Trip Advisor, our research reveals Medway and Thanet, both located in Kent, and Southampton and Portsmouth, in the county of Hampshire, have the highest number of forests and parks just a short journey away.

In the southeastern county of Kent, Sandwich Wildlife Park is the top 5* rated park to visit, followed by Orlestone Forest Nature Reserve.

Further along the south coast, Southampton Common and Wildgrounds Nature Reserve are the top rated amongst Trip Advisor reviewers.

Lastly, our Trip Advisor analysis extended to review over 450 walking trails listings to find the cities in the UK with the highest number of walking trails in their respective counties.

Exeter, Torbay, Bournemouth, Plymouth and York offer the most walking trails for you to enjoy as part of your self-love routine.

The South West Coast Path is among the top 5* rated walking trails to visit in the south west of England, as well as Durdle Door and the White Nothe Circular Walk.