London areas: the West

London Mix at Notting Hill

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Portland Arms pub in Notting Hill Photo - London, England

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The centre of London is an elusive beast, with various activities and areas of human endeavour peaking in various parts of an extensive area that encompass the official district called, somewhat confusingly to the uninitiated, the City of London as well as the majority of Westminster and southern sections of the boroughs of Camden and Islington. To the west, the social grading of inhabitants and the snob-kudos of the district creeps slowly down from Kensington & Chelsea through Fulham towards Hammersmith and beyond. And so it's hard to say where the ''west'' proper – not just the ''West End'' begins, but the road names along the lines of Westbourne Grove, Westway and Westbourne Park Road pr...Read More

The centre of London is an elusive beast, with various activities and areas of human endeavour peaking in various parts of an extensive area that encompass the official district called, somewhat confusingly to the uninitiated, the City of London as well as the majority of Westminster and southern sections of the boroughs of Camden and Islington. To the west, the social grading of inhabitants and the snob-kudos of the district creeps slowly down from Kensington & Chelsea through Fulham towards Hammersmith and beyond. And so it's hard to say where the ''west'' proper – not just the ''West End'' begins, but the road names along the lines of Westbourne Grove, Westway and Westbourne Park Road provide some indication of those borderlands.

Bayswater Road runs along the northern edge of the Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens to then become Notting Hill Gate and, further on, Holland Park Avenue. The latter ends at the large Shepherds Bush roundabout.

South of that road is Kensington proper and Holland Park, both affluent and pleasant but with no specific sights (apart from the rather lovely and romantic Holland Park) but with plenty of upmarket restaurants and shopping, the latter around Kensington High Street. Holland Park was rural until fairly late in London's history and is consequently full of large Victorian houses; Kensington is part of the most affluent area of London and is an example of that rare bird in the UK, graceful city living, likely made psychologically possible by the fact that at the incomes required to live here, most inhabitants have a house (or a few) in the country too.

North of the Bayswater Road are central-London districts of Paddington and Bayswater which belong in the central London section of this guide. Moving west, Notting Hill Gate and Holland Park Avenue mark a rough southern limit of the area known as Notting Hill, a district bounded in the north by Harrow Road and a key part of North Kensington. On other occasions, North Kensington is considered to be a sub-area of Notting Hill: such are the complexities of London toponymy and geography.

Notting Hill is an area of huge contrasts, material, racial and cultural. Until early 9th century it was rural, and then started to expand to become a comfortable suburb for the upper-middle classes – not quite the Mayfair and Belgravia set, but at correspondingly lower prices. The still extant communal private gardens of the area date to that period. In the first half of the 20th century the area went downhill rapidly. The large houses acquired multiple occupancy, and the district suffered in the Blitz. In the 1940sw and 1950s it was an epitome of cheap lodgings exploited by slum landlords including the notorious Peter Rachman. Those cheap lodgings attracted many of the newly arrived West Indian immigrants, and the racial tensions led to the Notting Hill riots of 1958. Slum clearances followed in the 1960s and 1970s and by gradual gentrification from the 1980s onwards. The big houses become single-occupied again, and the arty and bohemian moved in, followed by the seriously rich in some sections of the district at least. There are, however, still pockets of poverty and deprivation in Notting Hill, particularly to the north where council housing dominates.

Apart from the associations with the eponymous film and the interest and vibrancy of the area, Notting Hill has two chief attractions: Notting Hill Carnival and the Portobello Road Market.

The former is the annual celebration of the culture of London's Caribbean population, and has, since 1965, evolved from an edgy, even subversive street party (which was started in the spirit of improving racial relations but featured several riot incidents) to a very large and mostly officially-approved but still occasionally an edgy one. Recent attempts at controlling the Carnival came under the guise of health and safety as attendance now exceeds a million participants. It's crowded, busy, noisy and still worth going to, at least once.

A somewhat more sedate (and easier to attend as it runs on a weekly schedule) Notting Hill event is the Portobello Road Market, famous for bric-a-brac, second-hand clothes and antiques.

All in all, an iconic area of London and well worth a visit or two. Read Less

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Museum-Land London: South Kensington

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The London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is one of the wealthiest in the land, abounding in multi-million pound properties, designer shops and fashionable venues of all sorts. Being part of that exclusive area, South Kensington also boasts exclusive housing and other signature features of the wealthy lives. Interestingly, the area has a strong French presence, with many expats as well as French institutions (Lycee Francais Charles de Gaulle and the French Institute among others). But what makes South Kensington a must-visit for even a fairly brief visitor exploring London is the incredible concentration of world-class cultural institutions, particularly museums in this area. It all sta...Read More

The London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is one of the wealthiest in the land, abounding in multi-million pound properties, designer shops and fashionable venues of all sorts. Being part of that exclusive area, South Kensington also boasts exclusive housing and other signature features of the wealthy lives. Interestingly, the area has a strong French presence, with many expats as well as French institutions (Lycee Francais Charles de Gaulle and the French Institute among others).

But what makes South Kensington a must-visit for even a fairly brief visitor exploring London is the incredible concentration of world-class cultural institutions, particularly museums in this area. It all started with the the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park in 1851, and now includes the Natural History Museum, Science Museum and – where South Kensington merges into Brompton – Victoria and Albert Museum. Add to this the Royal Albert Hall as well as educational bodies of the Royal College of Art, Royal College of Music, Royal Geographical Society and Imperial College London.

Of these institutions, the Natural History Museum is the definite must-see with its magnificent building and an amazing collection of life and earth science related exhibits. It combines modern-style, hands-on, high-tech galleries as well as some that appear to have stayed unchanged since the Museum's foundation. As most places of its kind, Natural History Museum is particularly attractive to children, what with robotic dinosaurs and interactive human-body exhibits, but adults will also find plenty to interest and amuse them.

Royal Albert Hall is famous for the popular series of concerts of classical music culminating with Union Jack waving last night, but it's a venue for other performances throughout a year as well as an interesting building in its own right.

The Science Museum is seven floors of technology and science related exhibits, from space travel to computing to chemistry to medicine. There are also science shows (demonstrations) and an IMAX cinema (this is not free unlike the rest of the museum). Iconic objects include Stephenson’s Rocket and Ford Model T among others.

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Brompton Treasures

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Brompton is a district located to the west of the immediate city centre, though still very much in the 'West End', wedged between Chelsea to the south and Knightsbridge and South Kensington museum district to the north, with its western border defined by the Brompton Cemetery. Even in the late 19th century the area was known as one inhabited by many artists,and it has been ever popular with artists, writers and actors although its current location nearby some of the most expensive properties and most upmarket streets in the world means that is now distinctly upmarket itself and hard to clearly distinguish from Chelsea that lies between Brompton and the river. Brompton has sever...Read More

Brompton is a district located to the west of the immediate city centre, though still very much in the 'West End', wedged between Chelsea to the south and Knightsbridge and South Kensington museum district to the north, with its western border defined by the Brompton Cemetery.

Even in the late 19th century the area was known as one inhabited by many artists,and it has been ever popular with artists, writers and actors although its current location nearby some of the most expensive properties and most upmarket streets in the world means that is now distinctly upmarket itself and hard to clearly distinguish from Chelsea that lies between Brompton and the river.

Brompton has several noticeable if not exactly A*-list attractions, the chief of them being the Brompton Oratory, or to give it its proper name, the Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Brompton Cemetery.

It is also – somewhat on its borders with Knightsbridge and Sounth Kensington - the location of a definite London Attraction A-lister, the Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, and an infuriatingly – because impossible to take in even in several visits - rich treasure-trove of objects ranging from a huge collection of Asian art to Britsh design throughout history to strange and compelling plaster casts of famous sculptures and tombs to ceramics, furniture and amazing fashion galleries. There are also, slightly unexpectedly, paintings and drawings, including Queen's Raphael Cartoons.

Brompton Cemetery forms the border between Brompton proper and the largely indifferent residential district of West Brompton and belongs to the 'Magnificent Seven' of London's 19th century burial grounds, atmospheric and overgrown in its older sections, but still a working cemetery.

Brompton Oratory, located on the borders of the actual district near Victoria & Albert Museum is the most magnificent Catholic church in London, built in the late 19th century to the design drawing on the Italian Renaissance but with noticeable Baroque- particularly native Wren – inspirations clearly present. The spiritual heart of Catholic London, the Oratory is a visually attractive edifice but primarily known for its exquisite music (several choirs and professional musicians work here) as well as solemn liturgy – in Latin – performed on all Sundays and holy days. The services attract Catholics from all over London as well as people wanting to sample the musical offerings of the Oratory. Read Less

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Chelsea Sloaneland

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The World's End Distillery, Chelsea Photo - London, England

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Modern Chelsea district lies along the Thames, west of the central part of London, between Chelsea Bridge Road and Sloane Road to the east, Brompton Cemetery to the west and Fulham Road to the north/north-west. In the 19th century Chelsea was known as an artist colony, a bohemian area - Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Turner, Whistler and John Singer Sargent as well as Meredith, Swinburne, Thomas Carlyle and Jonathan Swift lived and worked in Chelsea. Bohemian Chelsea came into the spotlight again in the 60's and 70's of the 20th century, where the Swinging London was at its most happening along the King's Road, with both the Beatles and the Stones living in Chelsea. Later on, Vivienne Westwood a...Read More

Modern Chelsea district lies along the Thames, west of the central part of London, between Chelsea Bridge Road and Sloane Road to the east, Brompton Cemetery to the west and Fulham Road to the north/north-west.

In the 19th century Chelsea was known as an artist colony, a bohemian area - Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Turner, Whistler and John Singer Sargent as well as Meredith, Swinburne, Thomas Carlyle and Jonathan Swift lived and worked in Chelsea. Bohemian Chelsea came into the spotlight again in the 60's and 70's of the 20th century, where the Swinging London was at its most happening along the King's Road, with both the Beatles and the Stones living in Chelsea. Later on, Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren run the famous punk SEX boutique here. Nowadays, chain-stores mix with designer shops but the edge is gone (as is, only recently, the famous Chelsea College of Art and Design which moved to Pimlico 2005).

Since the 1980's, Chelsea has been known as the prime habitat of the Sloane Ranger, and upper/upper-middle class philistine who either conform to or aspire to Tory values, countrified lifestyles (though this has been much less prominent recently) and self-confidence beyond any justification in one's own life achievements. Male Sloanes are also known as Hooray Henrys, but the most famous specimen was a female, Diana Spencer.

Chelsea has given its name directly to the officially most hated vehicle on British roads, the Chelsea Tractor aka the urban 4x4.

All in all, Chelsea is an interesting and attractive neighbourhood – if you can afford it and if the style is to your taste, but lacks major tourist attractions unlike nearby South Kensington for example. The grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea is a venue for the annual Chelsea Flower Show, a Mecca for English society and celebrity gardeners. Chelsea Football Club, though eponymous with the district, has its home at Stamford Bridge, slightly west, in Fulham. Read Less

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Tiara Triangle: Knightsbridge

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A Knighstbridge pub Photo - London, England

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Located directly south of the Hyde Park, sandwiched between the museum area of South Kensington and Sloane Street which forms the western border of Belgravia, north of Chelsea and Brompton, Knightsbridge is a small and extremely wealthy district named after the eponymous road that runs close to its northern border. Much of the land is still owned by old aristocratic estates and the properties in the strictly controlled conservation area go for staggeringly high prices (we are talking 300,000 pound sterling for a parking place, on lease). The core part of Knightsbridge is sometimes called the Tiara Triangle as it's a location of some of the most expensive shops in London, with Harrods at it...Read More

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