The Parque Ribera del Carrión is a linear park running along the east bank of the Río Carrión through the city — a green corridor of trees, paths, and gardens that gives Palencia an unusually pleasant outdoor space for a Castilian provincial capital. The river itself is lined with poplars and willows, and in spring the banks are bright with flowering vegetation. Palencians use the park for morning walks, cycling, and evening promenades.
The park also serves as a useful orientation tool: the east side of the city, with the river and its bridges, gives the best sense of Palencia's historic townscape from a distance. Looking west from the opposite bank, with the cathedral towers visible above the rooftops, is one of the city's better views.