The results of research on the key area "Sestra River" (229 km²), located within St. Petersburg and the Leningrad region, are considered. The study of recreational development of the territory was carried out in 2009-2010 and 2019-2020 using field surveys, analysis of topographic maps of different times and satellite images. Maps of recreational development of the model territory for the 1960s, 2010, and 2020 were compiled. In 2010, 16 types of land use were identified as the territories that have a recreational function as the main or additional one; this number does not include complexes with a primary residential and additional recreational function (cottage settlements, etc.). In 2020, 17 types of such territories were identified. Comparison of maps of recreational development revealed qualitative changes in various recreational complexes in 2010-2020: collective gardens, social dachas, year-round and seasonal complexes with low-rise buildings, cultural entertainment and sports-entertainment centers, etc. Over 10 years, the share of the area of recreational and residential-recreational complexes at the "Sestra River" key area has increased from 4.8 to 5.2 %. Recreational activities are being diversified. While preserving its traditional types, new types appear: farms with a recreational function, rope parks, entertainment complexes, etc. Recreational complexes for year-round use with low-rise buildings on forest land are being created. Cottage development becomes comparable to recreational development of the territory. A significant part of the houses in cottage and dacha settlements and collective gardens are used as permanent residence; at the same time, their recreational function becomes additional. Increasing the area of cottage settlements on forest land reduces the availability of landscapes of high recreational value for the population. Recreational transformation of territories, which is inseparable from suburbanization in the zones of influence of major cities, is rapidly changing the landscapes.