VISITOR INFORMATION

Parks and Gardens

Truro is fortunate in having some excellent parks and gardens and equally in having a city council which takes every opportunity to exploit their natural beauty.

Beside the river Kenwyn, Victoria Gardens, originally created to commemorate Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee, is filled with exotic trees, shrubs and flowers. There is also a bandstand and during the summer, concerts are held on Sunday afternoons. You would not think you were in the middle of a city, the calm broken only occasionally by a train passing over the majestic granite viaduct nearby. The original viaduct was built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1859, but was replaced with the present structure in 1904, and now carries the main line from Paddington to Penzance.

Boscawen Park, by the side of the Truro River, and next door to Truro Cricket Club, is the city's main open space with tennis courts, cricket, and football pitches. Here children can play in safety and adults can laze the afternoon away in idyllic surroundings.

Opposite the park is the lovely Duck Pond where you can take a relaxing stroll around its perimeter.

A mile from the city centre is Bosvigo Gardens. Here there are rare and unusual plants and a small specialist nursery. The gardens are open from March to the end of September, Thursday to Saturday.

Truro is a regular entrant in the Britain in Bloom contest, which aims to find the country's most florally attractive towns and cities. Businesses around the city are encouraged to give backing to hanging basket and bedding displays, which make Truro's centre one of Cornwall's most attractive.

The city is no stranger to winning silverware, which is reflected in the wonderful displays in the parks and gardens, and you can be sure that this year the city council's Parks Department will be putting every effort into securing another prize.