Discover London rentals

There are countless different ways to experience London, a truly global city with a remarkably rich history

Few cities can match London’s marriage of history and cosmopolitanism. Make no mistake, the Big Smoke is a thoroughly global city, so while its rich historic grandeur is often the lure that draws visitors to the city, it’s the fast-paced vibrancy of London’s here and now that makes it such an exciting metropolis to explore.

Sure, London’s packed with famous landmarks and attractions like the Tower of London, the British Museum, the National Gallery and the Houses of Parliament, but look beyond the familiar checklist and you’ll discover a myriad of different Londons, from countless culturally distinct inner city neighbourhoods, like Brick Lane, Brixton and Chinatown, to the sprawling natural beauty of green spaces like Hampstead Heath and Richmond Park, that could easily pass for the English countryside.

London rentals

With so many hotels to choose from in London it’s tempting to wonder why anyone would consider anything but a hotel when planning a trip to the Big Smoke. Well, while London is undeniably chock-a-block with great hotels, it’s also home to an extremely healthy holiday rental scene and, for many, short term rentals in London might actually represent a better option than a hotel.

London rentals allow you to truly immerse yourself in the city in a way that hotels tend not to – as a hotel guest you’ll always feel like a visitor, while a rental property gives you a chance to make the place home for the duration of your stay. There’s no better way to experience the capital like a real Londoner.

Where to stay in London

There’s also plenty of scope to find a property that perfectly matches your needs – such is the extraordinary breadth of the capital’s holiday home market. London is so sprawlingly diverse and geographically disparate that neighbouring areas can feel like different cities altogether. A rental – be it a London apartment in the West End or a vast Chelsea townhouse with room for you and 13 friends – puts you in the heart of whichever area you choose to stay in.

Our shortlist of neighbourhoods barely scratches the city’s surface but hopefully represents four very different sides of London.

• The West End

  Home to London’s liveliest nightlife and the bulk of its most famous theatres, the West End is probably the capital’s classic city break destination. Granting easy access to many of city’s most popular attractions and an unmatched sense of inner city excitement, if you’re only in town for the weekend, nowhere plugs you into the city’s beating heart like the West End.

  For the most part, this densely packed area is a haven for compact London apartments that put you in the heart of the action. Some of London’s best shopping is on hand along Oxford Street and Regent Street while Theatreland is mostly concentrated around Leicester Square and Covent Garden. Soho’s dense warren of narrow streets have traditionally played host to London’s edgiest nightlife and, though the area has been gentrified in recent years, Soho remains a hotspot for fashionable bars and restaurants.

• Chelsea / Kensington

  Arguably London’s swankiest enclave, this moneyed corner of the West London will appeal to anyone who has a taste for the finer things in life. Shoppers intent on splurging are particularly spoilt for choice; Knightsbridge boasts several world-famous destination shops including Harrods and Harvey Nichols, while the Kings Road, once the Bohemian heart of swinging London, now leans more towards the sort of high-end boutiques and swanky nightspots that should appeal to well-heeled locals.

  Kensington is no less replete with upscale restaurants, bars and shops but is also home to the Royal Albert Hall – perhaps London’s most celebrated concert venue – and a host of world class museums including the V&A, Natural History Museum and Science Museum.

• East London

  The edgy antithesis of West London’s establishment affluence, at least that’s the perception upon which trendy East London’s reputation was built. These days the creep of gentrification has spread through the East End’s fashionable neighbourhoods, largely replacing the dishevelled bohemianism of old with smarter, rather more expensive iterations of East London cool.

  Shoreditch – the centre of London’s late 90s / early 00s fashion and art boom – still trades on its reputation for edgy cool and remains a hotspot for hipsters in search of fashionable bars and pop-up restaurants. The gentrification doesn’t end there though, these days upscale dining and drinking opportunities abound throughout Hackney, where you’ll also find all manner of cultural diversions and plenty of lovely green spaces to wander.

• Hampstead

  Anyone looking for a bucolic getaway not too far from the centre of London will find cleaner air and calmer vibes in Hampstead, which has long been London’s favourite hilltop sanctuary. Here you’ll find village-like suburbs surrounding the capital’s biggest and wildest green space, Hampstead Heath. As an antidote to the hustle and bustle that characterises most of the capital, Hampstead and neighbouring Highgate, have long offered an important refuge to stressed out Londoners and could provide an appealing base for visitors who like the idea of escaping the hubbub at the end of the day.

Our favourite London Pubs

Pub culture is an important part of London’s identity and you don’t have to be in part mode to enjoy the laid-back pleasures of a pint in one of the city’s historic watering holes.

• The Princess Louise, Holborn

  A stunningly ornate labyrinth of polished wood panelling, shiny marble and so many nooks and crannies that finding your drinking companions on return from the toilet is often a challenge. The Princess Louise is undoubtedly one of Central London’s best preserved Victorian drinking dens but it’s also a lively post-work pub that can get rambunctious on weeknight evenings.

• The French House, Soho

  Something of a curious anomaly, the French House lives up to its name by offering a distinctly Gallic take on the London pub. Consequently, beer is only served in half-pints – a sacrilegious offence against British pub culture that less revered establishments may struggle to pull off – and wine is very often the preferred tipple of regulars. Nonetheless, the French House is a Soho institution that’s long served as one of the West End’s bohemian landmarks. Expect a tight squeeze most evenings.

• The Lamb and Flag, Covent Garden

  Another central London institution with a long, storied history, the Lamb and Flag is hidden down a narrow alleyway in the heart of Covent Garden and offers a pretty archetypal London pub experience that hasn’t changed much over the years. The Lamb and Flag apparently played host to bare knuckle boxing in the 17^th Century, when its back room became known as The Bucket of Blood, and legend has it that, in 1679, the poet John Dryden was attacked and beaten by thugs - hired by Charles II’s mistress - in the cobbled yard outside the pub’s front door.

• The Spaniard’s Inn, Hampstead

  Another London pub with a literary past, the Spaniard’s Inn dates back to 1585 and counts the likes of Byron, Keats and Dickens among its esteemed former patrons – it’s even mentioned in Dickens’ The Pickwick Papers and Bram Stoker’s Dracula. With its dark wood panelling and low beams the Spaniard’s Inn is steeped in history and offers an atmospheric pit-stop if you’ve been wandering the Heath.

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