Bayswater offers an intriguing mix of placid Georgian houses lining
tree-shaded streets, while only a few blocks away are lively clubs
and shopping areas. This is one of the more popular areas for visitors
to London, with the region boasting a wide variety of hotels and guesthouses.
Those hotels close to Hyde Park are generally larger and more luxurious,
but just a short walk away are smaller, family-run establishments
offering alternative accommodation at a budget price.
Attractions:
Hyde Park - Once a hunting ground for Henry VIII,
Hyde Park's character stems from the Serpentine Lake, home to waterfowl
and sweating oarsmen. Rotten Row, on the southern boundary of the
park, is a famous horse-riding area, and Speaker's Corner, by the
Marble Arch entrance, is the place to listen to soap-box orators on
Sunday mornings.
Notting Hill - famous for the recent hit film
of the same name, this region is still better known as the site of
a fabulous open air carnival, which fills the streets with friendly
mayhem and good times on the last weekend of August. It is billed
as the largest free festival in Europe, and for three days the streets
of Notting Hill are filled with musicians, dancers, and entertainers,
and the beat of Caribbean rhythms fills the air!
Portobello Road Antique Market - London's best
known destination for antique hunters; the road is lined with dealer's
shops, and each Saturday market stalls are erected, bringing the total
number of dealers to about 1500. A very wide variety of general and
specialist antique dealers can be found at Portobello Road. website
Oxford Street - this famous shopping street stretches
for a mile, and for most of its length it boasts some of London's
finest shops.
Marble Arch - an imposing arch built to commemorate
the Duke of Wellington's triumph over Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo.
Located just across from Hyde Park and Speaker's Corner.
Whiteley's Shopping Centre - the first department
store in London (opened 1885), now one of London's most popular shopping
centres. There are music concerts every week, and a very large free
art gallery.
Bayswater Market - every Sunday, Bayswater Road
is transformed into a large outdoor art gallery, with artists, painters
and photographers showing their artwork on the railings beside Kensington
Gardens.
London Toy and Model Museum (21-23 Craven Hill,
W2 3EN
tel:020 2629450, Lancaster Gate tube) - a fascinating museum sure
to please the young and young at heart! Exhibits tell the story of
toys throughout history, with working antique toys and a very wide
variety of models. There are model trains, cars, aeroplanes, and more,
plus dolls and plenty of cuddly teddy bears! Visitors can take a ride
on a model railway.
