World's greenest cities revealed - with a surprisingly high ranking for London
A new survey has revealed the best cities in the world for green space - and British people might be surprised by the results.
The ranking comes from the team at Time Out who asked 18,500 people from cities around the world to rate their city's green spaces.
Each of the cities in the top 20 picks up a rating of 'good' or 'amazing' for its green space and access to nature.
Top of the list? Medellin, the second-largest city in Colombia.
More than 90 per cent (92 per cent) of locals are happy with the South American city's green spaces.
Time Out says: 'It's known as the "city of eternal spring" with consistently high daytime temperatures thanks to a trade-wind tropical climate - however, greenery is how the city stays cool.
'Back in 2016, a scheme to add "green corridors" to Medellin's sprawling (and scorching hot) concrete streets began, and in the first three years of the project, the city's overall temperature fell by two degrees.'
Medellin's riverside parks have 280 trees and a whopping 38,052 square metres of green space.
Second on the ranking is Boston in the USA where 88 per cent of residents are happy with the city's green spaces.
Time Out recommends Boston Common as the city's most 'iconic' green space and the oldest park in the USA.
Sydney ties with London in third place with 87 per cent of residents in each metropolis happy with their home city's green space.
London has more than 3,000 parks and open spaces to choose from. Richmond Park is the city's largest green space, covering 2,500 acres.
And as much as it might seem as though it's dominated by skyscrapers, the Big Smoke is actually 21 per cent covered by trees.
That means it technically qualifies as a forest under the United Nations definition that designates a forest as anywhere with 20 per cent tree coverage.
Another UK city sneaks into fifth place on the ranking. Edinburgh ties with Austin and Melbourne in fifth position with 86 per cent of residents happy with its green spaces.
Holyrood Park is the Scottish capital's biggest green space and spans 650 acres, next to the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
THE WORLD'S GREENEST CITIES
1. Medellin, Colombia
2. Boston, USA
3. Sydney, Australia
=London, UK
5. Austin, USA
=Edinburgh, UK
=Melbourne, Australia
8. Denver, USA
9. Abu Dhabi, UAE
=Cape Town, South Africa
=Chicago, USA
12. San Francisco, USA
=Stockholm, Sweden
14. Montreal, Canada
=Munich, Germany
16. Mumbai, India
17. Beijing, China
18. Zurich, Switzerland
=Ottawa, Canada
19. Brisbane, Australia
Source: Time Out
Denver, Abu Dhabi, Cape Town and Chicago also make the top 10 with great rankings for their green space.
The other European cities to rank among the top 20 include Stockholm, Munich and Zurich.
Abu Dhabi recently topped Time Out's ranking for walkability as it's flat with lots of pedestrianised areas.
And in the UK it was a seaside city that grabbed the top spot as the country's most walkable.
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