Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
staid. Just to the west, the increasingly
fashionable area of
Shepherd's Bush
is
attracting a slew of artists and photogra-
phers, and in their wake a number of trendy
new hangouts, while Europe's largest shop-
ping center—upscale
Westfield
—can be
found on the northeastern flank of Shep-
herd's Bush Green.
SOUTHWEST LONDON
Westminster
Westminster has been the
seat of first English, then British govern-
ment since the days of Edward the Confes-
sor (1042-66). Dominated by the Houses
of Parliament and
Westminster Abbey
(p. 103), the area runs along the Thames to
the east of St. James's Park. Whitehall is
the main thoroughfare, linking Trafalgar
Square with Parliament Square.
Westminster also encompasses Victoria,
an area that takes its name from bustling
Victoria Station. Many B&Bs and hotels
have sprouted up here because of the
neighborhood's proximity to the rail sta-
tion, which provides the main fast link with
Gatwick Airport. If you've arrived without a
hotel reservation, you'll find decent pick-
ings on the streets off Belgrave Road;
we've selected our local favorites starting
on p. 187. Things are a bit pricier to the
southwest in Pimlico, the area bordering
the river, which is filled with fine Regency
squares.
Belgravia
South of Knightsbridge, this
area has long been one of the main aristo-
cratic quarters of London, rivaling Mayfair
in grandeur. Although it reached its pinna-
cle of prestige during the reign of Queen
Victoria, the Duke of Westminster—the
country's third-richest man—still maintains
one of his many houses at Eaton Square
(where both the 1970s' and 2010 versions
of BBC drama
Upstairs, Downstairs
were
set). Packed with grand, formal, and often
startlingly expensive hotels, Belgravia is a
haven of upmarket tranquility. If you lodge
here, no one will ever accuse you of staying
on the “wrong side of the tracks.”
Chelsea
Beginning at Sloane Square, this
stylish Thames-side district lies south and
to the west of Belgravia. The area has
always been a favorite of writers and art-
ists, including Oscar Wilde, George Eliot,
James Whistler, J. M. W. Turner, Henry
James, and Thomas Carlyle. The main
drawback to Chelsea as a base is inacces-
sibility. Except for Sloane Square, there's a
dearth of Tube stops, and unless you like to
take a lot of buses or expensive taxis, you
may find getting around a chore.
Chelsea's major boulevard is
King's
Road,
where Mary Quant launched the
miniskirt in the 1960s, Vivienne Westwood
devised the punk look in the 1970s, and
where today Charles Saatchi's eponymous
Saatchi Gallery
(p. 101) makes the running
in the contemporary art world.
Knightsbridge & Brompton
One of Lon-
don's swankiest neighborhoods, Knights-
bridge is a top residential, hotel, and
shopping district just south of Hyde Park.
Its defining feature and chief attractions
are
Harrods
(p. 158) on the Brompton
Road, “the Notre Dame of department
stores,” and nearby Beauchamp Place (pro-
nounced
Bee
-cham), a Regency-era, bou-
tique-lined street with a scattering of
restaurants. Knightsbridge, and the equally
well-to-do Brompton to the south, make up
one of the most convenient areas of west-
ern London, ideally located if you want to
head east to the theatre district or the
Mayfair shops, or west to Chelsea or Kens-
ington's restaurants and museums. How-
ever, staying here will come at a price.
South Kensington
If you want to be in the
vicinity of the shops, boutiques, and res-
taurants of Knightsbridge and Chelsea, but
don't have the resources for a hotel there,
head for South Kensington, where the
accommodations are more moderately
priced. Southeast of Kensington Gardens,
primarily residential South Kensington is
often called “museumland” because it's
dominated by a complex of museums and
colleges, including the
Natural History
Museum
(p. 100),
Victoria & Albert
Museum
(p. 102), and
Science Museum
(p. 153). South Kensington boasts some
fashionable restaurants and townhouse
hotels, and is just a couple of stops along
the Tube's Piccadilly Line from Green Park.
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