After two years of pandemic lockdowns, alfresco dining is more popular than ever as families flock outdoors for picnics this summer.

Google searches for "picnic areas near me" spiked by more than 5000 per cent in the last 30 days while searches for "picnic places near me" also jumped 170 per cent, new data shows.

In response, food box delivery service EveryPlate compiled a list of Australia's Most Popular Picnic Locations and an iconic park in Sydney was named number one.

With 189-hectares of open space, Centennial Park in the Eastern Suburbs is said to be Australia's most popular picnic area, followed by Burleigh Beach on the Gold Coast and Glenelg Beach in Adelaide.

Other locations which made the cut include Woolamai Surf Beach in Victoria's Phillip Island, The Gibraltar Falls in Canberra and Araluen Botanic Park in Perth.

Each location was ranked based on the analysis of tagged locations on Instagram.

The growing interest around picnics comes as experts say demand for urban recreation spaces has increased since COVID-19.

The Urban Development Institute of Australia national president Maxwell Shifman said factors like the pandemic, population growth and an increase in apartment dwellings had boosted demand for nature spaces.

"The importance of having these things really close is very high and it's no surprise that people are looking for those sorts of facilities closer to where they want to live," Mr Shifman said.

"People tend to stay closer to home for more of the time, so instead of commuting long distance every day they might commute fewer days per week, so they're using recreational facilities particularly that are closer to home more of the time."

From 2001 and 2021, the number of detached houses increased by 26 per cent, while the number of apartments grew 43 per cent and the number of semi-detached grew 85 per cent, according to REA Group Ltd.

Proptrack economist Angus Moore said more people prefer to live closer to urban recreation spaces, particularly since the pandemic.

"That's a trend we've seen across the pandemic in particular, was increasing value put on living close to things like beaches, national parks, etc," Mr Moore said.

"We saw prices for homes in those areas grow pretty quickly as people put increasing value on those, but they have always been sought after just even more so in the past few years."

Australia's Most Popular Picnic Locations

1. Centennial Park, Sydney

2. Burleigh Beach, Queensland

3. Glenelg Beach, Adelaide

4. Araluen Botanic Park, Perth

5. Observatory Hill Park, Millers Point, Sydney, NSW

6. Wendy Whiteley's Secret Garden, Sydney, NSW

7. Shelly Beach, Manly, Sydney, NSW

8. Squeaky Beach, Victoria

9. Himeji Garden, Adelaide

10. Corin Forest, Canberra

© AAP 2023

Nick Kyrgios has issued a public apology after pleading guilty to pushing over his former girlfriend and having the assault charge dismissed.

The tennis star fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Friday where a bid to have the charge thrown out on mental health grounds was rejected.

But magistrate Beth Campbell later dismissed the charge, accepting the seriousness of the matter was "low-level" and indicating Kyrgios was not a risk of reoffending.

The world No.20 was charged over a late-night incident from January 10, 2021 when he pushed over his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari following an argument outside her apartment in inner-city Canberra suburb Kingston.

The court heard Ms Passari was standing in the door of an Uber preventing Kyrgios from leaving when he pushed her over.

He stood over her and remarked "seriously" while she lay on the ground.

Ms Passari reported shoulder pain along with grazing on her knee.

Kyrgios had told Ms Passari to "leave me the f*** alone" and to "just f***ing piss off" while she asked him to get out of the car and to calm down.

Ms Passari didn't report the incident until 10 months later, when the couple split after getting back together following the incident.

Kyrgios's lawyer Michael Kukulies-Smith asked the charges be dismissed under the a section of the local crimes act that lets a magistrate dismiss a charge if they think an accused is mentally impaired and that it would benefit the community along with the offender.

Psychologist Sam Borenstein gave evidence Kyrgios suffered major and recurring depression and anxiety, adding he relied on drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism.

He said that included suicidal ideation and intent.

But Ms Campbell found Kyrgios was not mentally impaired, pointing to Dr Borenstein's evidence he was not suffering from depression.

Mr Kukulies-Smith then asked she not record a conviction given the low seriousness of the offending, saying he had immediately taken responsibility for the offending.

"It was not an action to impose himself on her to win that argument, rather ... he had clearly sought to remove himself from the argument," he said.

A victim impact statement from Ms Passari said she felt "betrayed" by Kyrgios, suffering long-term effects including severe weight loss.

Ms Campbell said Kyrgios had acted out of "stupidity or frustration", but credited him with trying to leave "when you knew you were being triggered ... and needed to get away from the situation".

She said a combination of it being a one-off incident, not deliberately planned, his lack of criminal record and glowing character references justified not issuing a sanction.

Kyrgios, 27, arrived in court flanked by family members and partner Costeen Hatzi.

He entered on crutches after having knee surgery last week.

Kyrgios issued a written statement after court, saying he was grateful to the court for dismissing the charge.

"I was not in a good place when this took place and I reacted to a difficult situation in a way I deeply regret. I know it wasn't OK and I'm sincerely sorry for the hurt I caused," he said.

"Mental health is tough. Life can seem overwhelming. But I've found that getting help and working on myself has helped me to feel better and to be better."

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© AAP 2023

Nick Kyrgios has had an assault charge dismissed by a magistrate after he pleaded guilty to shoving over his ex-girlfriend in 2021.

The tennis star fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Friday where a bid to have the assault charge thrown out on mental health grounds was rejected.

But magistrate Beth Campbell threw out the charge, accepting the seriousness of the matter was "low-level" and indicating Kyrgios was not a risk of reoffending.

The world No.20 was charged with a late-night incident from January 10, 2021 where he pushed over his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari following an argument outside her apartment in inner-city Canberra suburb Kingston.

The court heard Ms Passari was standing in the door of an Uber preventing Kyrgios from leaving when he pushed her over.

He stood over her and remarked "seriously" while she lay on the ground.

Ms Passari reported shoulder pain along with grazing on her knee.

Kyrgios had told Ms Passari to "leave me the f*** alone" and to "just f***ing piss off" while she asked him to get out of the car and to calm down.

Ms Passari didn't report the incident until 10 months later, when the couple split after getting back together following the incident.

Common assault carries a maximum sentence of two years in jail.

© AAP 2023

Nick Kyrgios has pleaded guilty to assault after admitting he shoved over his ex-girlfriend in 2021.

The tennis star fronted the ACT Magistrates Court on Friday where a bid to have the assault charge thrown out on mental health grounds was rejected.

The world No.20 was charged with a late-night incident from January 10, 2021 where he pushed over his ex-girlfriend Chiara Passari following an argument outside her apartment in inner-city Canberra suburb Kingston.

The court heard Ms Passari was standing in the door of an Uber preventing Kyrgios from leaving when he pushed her over.

He stood over her and remarked "seriously" while she lay on the ground.

Ms Passari reported shoulder pain along with grazing on her knee.

Kyrgios had told Ms Passari to "leave me the f*** alone" and to "just f***ing piss off" while she asked him to get out of the car and to calm down.

Ms Passari didn't report the incident until 10 months later, when the couple split after getting back together following the incident.

Common assault carries a maximum sentence of two years in jail.

The hearing continues.

© AAP 2023