Cannon Hill Park: Birmingham Travel Guide (4.6★)

Lakes, lawns and the river edge

Cannon Hill Park opened in 1873, on land given to the town by Louisa Ryland. The layout is still Victorian. Formal flower beds sit near the gates and stone-edged lakes fill the middle, then the ground gets looser and greener toward the River Rea. The whole site covers 250 acres.

What you’ll find inside:

• Boats on the main lake, hired from the lakeside, mostly in the warmer months
• Mini-golf near the boating area
• Tennis courts and a bowling green
• Walking trails through woodland and along the Rea

The MAC (Midlands Arts Centre) stands inside the park grounds. It has a theatre, cinema, galleries and a café, so you have somewhere to go if it rains. Birmingham Nature Centre is right next to the park on the Pershore Road side.

Getting to the Moseley side of Edgbaston

The postal address is Russell Road, B13 8RD. Buses running south from the city centre along Pershore Road drop you a few minutes’ walk from the gates. The trip takes about 15–20 minutes.

Cyclists can follow the Rea Valley Route, part of National Cycle Network Route 5, out of the centre. It runs along the river and right past the park. You get there almost entirely off the road.

Edgbaston Stadium is just across Edgbaston Road. On cricket match days the roads and kerbside parking nearby fill up long before the first ball. Check the fixture list before you drive.

Beating the weekend rush

This is one of the most visited green spaces in the city, so timing matters more than anything else. The gates are open 7:30am–8:15pm every day of the week.

• Quietest on weekdays: 8am–10am
• Quietest at weekends: 8am–9am
• Busiest: weekends from 10am to 7pm. Try not to turn up in that window if you want an empty path or a free tennis court.

Other habits worth picking up:

• The ducks: bring seeds or oats instead of bread. Bread is bad for the birds and fouls the lake.
• Boats and mini-golf: prices and the season are posted at the kiosks, so read the board before you queue.
• Dogs: keep them on a lead around the lake and the play areas, where the waterfowl and small children gather.
• Picnics: the open lawns between the lakes fill up first. The quieter grass is further south, toward the river and the nature centre.

How long to stay and what’s nearby

A loop of the lakes plus a round of mini-golf takes about two hours. Add the river trails, a boat and a coffee at the MAC and you’ve filled half a day. Spring and early summer are the best seasons, when the flower beds near the entrance are planted up.

Close by:

• Edgbaston Stadium, just across the road, home of Warwickshire cricket
• Birmingham Botanical Gardens, a short drive north-west in Edgbaston, with Victorian glasshouses
• Moseley village, uphill to the east along Alcester Road, for independent cafés and pubs
• Birmingham Nature Centre, right next door, for native and exotic animals in a small walled site