Revealing The Best Capital City In Europe For A Picnic This Summer

With the warmer weather finally settling in, many of us will be planning a variety of trips out in the sun. One tried and tested event which never fails in the hotter months is a picnic, with al fresco dining perfect in the summer heat.

What makes an ideal picnic? While snacks and friends are important, the location of the picnic is also vital. From picturesque locations to popular choices on social media, there are some fantastic options all around Europe – particularly in the biggest capital cities.

To explore this further, we at Ubuy have examined the data surrounding the best European capital city to eat a picnic in this summer. We did this by analysing popular parks, their Tripadvisor rating, and their popularity on Instagram and TikTok according to hashtag views and posts.

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the cities which ranked as the best options for a picnic this summer.

Methodology

We looked at the capital city of every European country to find the best location for al fresco dining. To do this, we used TripAdvisor to source the top three rated parks in each city.

We then used Instagram to record the number of posts for each park using the most popular hashtag and TikTok to record the number of hashtag views for each individual park.

We then combined the number of posts on Instagram and the TikTok views and gave each destination a score.

We also gave each city a score depending on the average star rating of each park on TripAdvisor and Google Reviews.

These scores were combined and each destination was ranked accordingly, with an overall score out of 81 points.

The Ranking

London, England

Ranking as the best European destination for a picnic is London, with the English capital receiving a score of 78.6 out of 81 points. With parks such as Hyde Park, St James’ Park, and Regent’s Park, the city has a variety of suitable options for snacking outside in the heat.

Hyde Park in particular was extremely popular on TikTok, with #HydePark receiving 386.8 million views and a further 2.46 million posts on Instagram. Each of the three parks examined in London had an average rating of 4.6 stars on TripAdvisor and Google Reviews.

Top 3 Parks: Hyde Park, St James’s Park, Regent’s Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 427,686,472
Average star rating: 4.6

Berlin, Germany

Placing second in the ranking is Berlin, the German capital received a score of 77 out of 81 points narrowly missing out on the top spot. Treptower Park, Mauerpark, and Tempelhofer Park (pictured) ranked as the city’s top three locations for a picnic. Treptower Park is also home to a Russian War Memorial.

These destinations proved extremely popular on social media with #Mauerpark receiving 36.2 million views on TikTok while #Tempelhof had 23.6 million views and was used on 200,959 Instagram posts. Overall, each of the three parks had an average rating of 4.5 stars.

Top 3 Parks: Treptower Park, Mauerpark, Tempelhofer Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 65,038,751
Average star rating: 4.5

Budapest, Hungary

Next, in third place is Budapest – with the Hungarian capital city receiving a score of 76 out of 81 points. The destination is home to some beautiful areas for a picnic – including; Margaret Island, Varosliget, and Millenaris. Margaret Island is particularly unique and is secluded from much of the bustling city.

Varosliget is also a picturesque option for visitors and remains popular on social media with #Varosliget receiving 6.1 million TikTok views and 53,502 Instagram posts. Rating-wise, the three parks had an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 across TripAdvisor and Google Reviews.

Top 3 Parks: Margaret Island, Varosliget, Millenaris
Combined hashtag views & posts: 52,134,808
Average star rating: 4.5

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Moving on, in fourth place is Amsterdam, the Dutch capital city received a score of 73.4 out of 81 points. Home to so many brilliant parks, the top three were; Vondelpark, Amsterdamse Bos, and Amstelpark. Vondelpark is the largest and is a popular option for cyclists who explore from the comfort of their bikes.

Vondelpark also proved the most popular on social media with 27.9 million TikTok views and 294,000 Instagram posts with the hashtag #Vondelpark. Additionally, #Amsterdamsebos had 3.2 million TikTok views while #Amstelpark had 156,600. Each of the parks also had an average star rating of 4.6.

Top 3 Parks: Vondelpark, Amsterdamse Bos, Amstelpark
Combined hashtag views & posts: 31,676,200
Average star rating: 4.6

Ankara, Turkey

Rounding off the top five is Ankara with the Turkish capital city receiving a score of 71.7 out of 81 points. According to TripAdvisor, the top three parks in Ankara were Genclik Park, Dikmen Vadisi Park (pictured), and Göksu Park. The Dikmen Vadisi Park is one of the most popular picnic destinations and has been open since 1994.

It was also the most popular park according to social media data, with #DikmenVadisi receiving 26.2 million TikTok views compared to #GöksuParki receiving 6.2 million views. Across TripAdvisor and Google reviews, the three parks averaged a star rating of 4.1 out of 5.

Top 3 Parks: Genclik Park, Dikmen Vadisi Park, Göksu Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 44,986,200
Average star rating: 4.1

Ljubljana, Slovenia

Next, sixth place in the ranking went to Ljubljana. The Slovenian capital city received a score of 71.4 out of 81 points. The vibrant city is home to wonderful parks including Tivoli Park (pictured), the Manas Energy & Healing Park, and Park Spica. Tivoli Park is the largest in the city, and is home to beautiful architecture such as Tivoli Castle.

While there were no relevant TikTok hashtags for the Manas Energy & Healing Park or Park Spica, #TivoliPark received 11.6 million views and was used on 39,421 Instagram posts highlighting the popularity of this destination. The Manas Energy & Healing Park had a 5-star rating on TripAdvisor but a 4.6 rating on Google Reviews.

Top 3 Parks: Tivoli Park, Manas Energy & Healing Park, Park Spica
Combined hashtag views & posts: 11,639,626
Average star rating: 4.6

Brussels, Belgium

Placing seventh in the ranking is Brussels. Overall, the Belgian capital received a score of 70.9 out of 81 points. The parks investigated included Bois de la Cambre, Warandepark, and Leopold Park. Bois de la Cambre is by far the biggest park at 302 acres in length, and was also developed in 1866.

#BoisDeLaCambre proved the most popular tag with 27.3 million TikTok views compared to 3,650 for #WarandePark and 13,400 for #LeopoldPark. The three locations also averaged a star rating of 4.3.

Top 3 Parks: Bois de la Cambre, Warande Park, Leopold Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 27,351,892
Average star rating: 4.3

Dublin, Ireland

In eighth place was the city of Dublin. The Irish capital received a score of 70.6 out of 81 points. The top three parks in the city include; St. Stephen’s Green, Phoenix Park, and Corkagh Park. For animal lovers, Phoenix Park is a great option as it remains home to wild fallow deer, as seen above!

Phoenix Park was also quite popular on social media platforms with #PhoenixPark used for 231,539 different Instagram posts. #StephensGreen had 3.2 million views on TikTok, while all three parks received an average star rating of 4.6 across Google Reviews and TripAdvisor.

Top 3 Parks: St. Stephen’s Green, Phoenix Park, Corkagh Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 10,683,937
Average star rating: 4.6

Cardiff, Wales

In ninth place in the ranking, Cardiff received a score of 69 out of 81 points. The Welsh capital is home to a variety of parks including Bute Park, Roath Park (pictured), and Parc Cefn Onn. Roath Park is home to a lake that provides a natural backdrop perfect for any picnic this summer.

On TikTok, #ButePark received 855,500 views while #RoathParkCardiff racked up 8.8 million on the same platform. Furthermore, #CefnOnnPark was used on 2,852 Instagram posts with visitors keen to share snaps of their day out. Overall, the three parks had an average star rating of 4.5 out of 5.

Top 3 Parks: Bute Park, Roath Park, Parc Cefn Onn
Combined hashtag views & posts: 9,769,155
Average star rating: 4.5

Chisinau, Moldova

Finally, rounding off the top ten best capital cities in Europe for a picnic is the Moldovan capital – Chisinau. The city received a score of 68.7 out of 81 points and is home to parks such as the Valea Morilor, Dendrarium Park, and Stefan cel Mare Park. The Valea Morilor is accompanied by a lake, as seen in the picture above.

The data revealed that much of Chisinau’s hashtags and posts came from one park – Valea Morilor with #ValeaMorilor receiving 6.6 million views on TikTok compared to 249 for #ParcuStefanCelMare and #DendrariumPark receiving 63,600. Each of the three parks had a star rating of 4.6.

Top 3 Parks: Valea Morilor, Dendrarium Park, Stefan cel Mare Park
Combined hashtag views & posts: 6,678,347
Average star rating: 4.6

Although we’ve just run through the top ten best capital cities for a picnic, the table below displays the full top 20 rankings.