What do you like about living in your area?

valentin

I'm originally from Vienna, studied in Milan and lived for a while in Lisbon. About 3 years ago I decided to move to London - and although I've been here before as a tourist - I haven't really seen the city in the eyes of locals.

London is such a big and beautiful city with so many things to explore and choosing where you want to live has a big impact on how you experience this city. That's why I believe it would be amazing if people could share what they really like about their area and go as much in detail as possible about local hideouts and hidden gems.

With your permission we'll share your story on our new interactive property search map to help people new to London make better decisions when the rent their first property as well as provide locals with new insights about exciting areas to live in.

valentin

I'm originally from a part of Vienna where we've had a river close by and parks. So I'm extremely used to being outside in the nature to relax from the big city life.

I somehow ended up in Belgravia when I moved to London - although I've been looking more closely in Shoreditch. Although the area was relatively quiet and there wasn't too much going on it immediately reminded me of Vienna, and I really enjoyed the proximity of three of the nicest parks in London: Hyde Park, St. James Park and Battersea Park (my personal favourite!). There's a lot of beautiful cafes (e.g. Dominique Ansel), pubs (The Orange) and brunch places nearby.

However, my favourite part of the neighbourhood was the location. It's super central and since it's next to the Victoria line you're extremely fast nearly everywhere in London - even Canary Wharf where I used to work.

What's your favourite area and why?

dbaranowski

I've moved to London from Italy earlier this year. I lived in a green, yet central area in Milan, and I had been looking to find a similar area in London - a relaxing, but not too distant neighbourhood

I knew I found the perfect one when I first stepped into Wapping. One of my favourite things about it was the way into Wapping, as skyscrapers of Aldgate disappeared behind me, and cute brick houses with lush gardens appeared. Wapping sits right by St Katherine's Docks and its many bars restaurants, letting you walk back along the Thames after an evening out. The area is spotted with parks and gardens, as well as historic riverside pubs hidden between cute Georgian houses. I also love that I can take a longer walk to get to Shoreditch on foot, or just take the overground and be in central London in minutes.

RJThorpe

I moved to London about 2 years ago, I spent the first 2-3months air-bnb for 2-3 days at a time trying to find the right location, I tried everywhere... I eventually settled on Tower hill/Aldgate area. It is within walking distance of the river so it's great to go for a run/walk. I wanted to also be in an area with people around my own age, a short walk from Shoreditch but most importantly reasonably close to work - Canary wharf (no more than 20min travel time) - I'm from a small island so I don't enjoy travelling the underground and dealing with rush hour. I prefer a calm relaxing cycle where I don't have to rely on public transport to get me somewhere on time.

A modern area with brilliant little pubs, bars, restaurants and a buzz of an atmosphere with other families and people going about their business, with really good transport links, it's been my home now for over a year and enjoying it a lot.

mihnea

I'm from Bucharest (Romania) – I lived in the US for a while when I was a kid, and moved to London over a decade ago.

I've always lived in fairly central areas, so that's what I looked for when I moved to London. It makes most commutes much easier, and most bars and restaurants are just a short walk, cycle or cab ride away.

I (also) landed in Belgravia initially, where I spent about 4 years. It's as central as it gets, when it comes to predominantly residential areas. And aesthetics aside (those grand white stucco houses are always a sight for sore eyes), it's literally around the corner from Hyde Park and Green Park. From a neighbourhood perspective, though, you're not going to find the most engaged local community (there are a lot of embassies and official residences around) – but you do have some great pubs to hang around (see The Alfred Tennyson or The Thomas Cubitt).

I then moved to Notting Hill. It's also very central and residential, but with a much better sense of community. Its main hotspots (Portobello Road and Westbourne Grove) will be buzzing on weekends, but otherwise things are usually calm and quiet. It's got great transport links, with the Central Line covering its southern border and the Circle and Hammersmith & City Lines snaking along the northern side. You'll have everything you need within short walking distance, including great pubs (The Westbourne or The Oak), restaurants (Granger, Gold, Electric Diner) or cinemas (Electric Cinema). The one thing I would personally recommend, when looking for a flat around here, is to consider something that isn't in the middle of the madness (and definitely not on the Notting Hill Carnival route) – great examples include Sunderland Terrace, Northumberland Place, Chepstow Villas or Hereford Road.