best places in london

Photo source: Wikimedia http://bit.ly/2lhq4IC

Walthamstow, also known as ‘awesomestow’, is exactly that.

 

An earlier spelling of Walthamstow was ‘Wilcumstowe’ meaning ‘place of welcome.’ AEC was located in Walthamstow and was responsible for the mass production of London’s famous buses. The “mile long” Walthamstow Market began trading in 1885 and is one of the most iconic markets in the city. However, the legend of it being a mile long is a slight overestimation as in reality it measures in at 100 metres. Despite starting life as a rural area, it’s now largely a suburban, built up area. Head to Walthamstow Village for a little taster of what the area was originally like.

 

Walthamstow is very well served by Underground and Overground stations with stations for both at Walthamstow Central and Blackhorse Road. Full bus services operate from Walthamstow Central. The buses also provide a hopper service making all journeys simple and quick.

 

All you read is love was a pop-up café/coffee shop with a twist that has just found a permanent spot in Leytonstone (next to Walthamstow). The twist is that it is a book café run by Danish siblings on the beautiful Hoe Street. Serving up sandwiches, cakes, coffee and craft beers along with DJs and writing workshops at certain times.

Walthamstow Market

 

This historic market has been trading for well over a hundred years. It has a variety of stalls selling food, clothes, furniture, and antique goods while there are also cafes and restaurants selling anything from Caribbean food to jellied eels. It hosts a popular farmer’s market every Sunday between 10am and 2pm.

Address: Walthamstow Market can be found on Walthamstow High Street.

 

‘The Mall’ have a number of shopping centres all over the UK and are one of the leaders in this market. As well as hosting a number of events throughout the year, including craft markets on Sundays and children’s events this Halloween, the Mall has hundreds of shops under its roof. From household names to eateries, it’s well worth a visit for all the shopaholics out there!

Address: The Mall Walthamstow, 45 Selborne Walk, Walthamstow

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For affordability and an easy commute to Canary Wharf, the only way is E16.

Canning Town platform Photo source: Geograph.co.uk http://bit.ly/2ljhSX8

East London’s post-industrial landscape is rapidly disappearing in favour of quirky cultural venues, artfully rustic cafes and glassy residential towers. While the investment potential in Hackney and Tower Hamlets has been well-documented, other locations that are just as accessible have managed to slip under the radar.

One of these is Canning Town, a part of town with a rich dockers’ history, that has just been re-zoned along with Stratford into Zone 2. Sitting on the Jubilee line and the DLR, commuters can be in Canary Wharf in 10mins and, once the Elizabeth Line is up and running at nearby Custom House, 17mins from Bond Street.

The first sign of investment interest arrived with the ExCeL London exhibition centre in 2000, but the financial crash slowed down further development – until the recent residential boom.

Now, 10,000 new homes are planned from a variety of developers and housing associations, many for sale on affordability schemes like Help to Buy and Shared Ownership, along with a £600m revamp of the town centre and a hotel along with new pedestrian and cycling routes.

The real jewel in the crown, though, is nearby London City Island sitting just across the border in Tower Hamlets, whose anchor tenant will be the English National Ballet bringing a much-needed cultural boost to the area in 2018.

Compared to other areas with similar commuting times prices are a steal, too, which is why young professionals priced out of surrounding boroughs are looking for value in Canning Town.

Nick Parr, partner at Knight Frank City & East, agrees, but thinks its investment appeal can only be fully realised when put in context with surrounding areas. “It’s a great place to be, two stops down from Canary Wharf and half the price, two stops from Stratford and The Royal Docks are taking off.

Data from Johns & Co bears this out; the estate agent reports that “a lot of interest” is coming from corporate tenants aged between 25 and 35 working in the City or Canary Wharf and, recently, buy-to-let investors.

“It’s proving a hotspot for investors, not least because property price growth is anticipated to rise by up to 30 per cent in the next five years,” says managing director John Morley. “Yields north of five per cent are now hard to come by in many parts of central London, but this is still possible in E16 with yields currently at five to six per cent.”

Area highlights

If you’re a keen comic book fan or just like roaming wistfully around travel shows, you’ll like being a short walk away from the ExCeL London Centre. Regular business travellers will also enjoy being so close to London City Airport, which is only 10 minutes away on the DLR and it’s so small, it’s like waiting to board a plane from someone’s living room. If you’re looking to meet new people, seek out the Canning Town Caravanserai, a flexible space used for art installations, story-telling, food markets and skills workshops. You’re never far from water, with the River Lea, the Thames and the Royal Docks nearby, and you can take the Emirates Skyline over to the 02 Arena. Good restaurants nearby include reasonably-priced Italian Pepenero, contemporary brasserie Docklands Bar and Grill and Fatboy’s Diner the other side of Bow Creek, a 1950s-style diner next to arts space Trinity Buoy Wharf.

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