Highlights • We investigated the change in visitation of urban green spaces (UGS) during COVID-19 pandemic. • Social isolation reduced extent, type and distance of visited UGS on the basis of legal restrictions. • Reasons for visiting UGS changed from non-essential before the pandemic to essential during it. • Respondents missed visiting UGS regardless of the view of UGS from their window. • Respondents expressed the need for UGS integrated within the urban fabric.