London South Kensington & Earls Court Estate Agents
90 Old Brompton Road
London
SW7 3LQ
One of London’s most famous cultural hotspots, South Kensington is an affluent and highly desirable location for property buyers and sellers.
Welcome to our South Kensington area guide where we take a look at this beautiful borough and why it is widely recognised as one of the capitals foremost areas for culture, education and science.
With such a collection of prestigious and world-class cultural icons, South Kensington is a unique location that is home to highlights such as the Science Museum, V&A, Natural History Museum and the beautiful Royal Albert Hall – all of which are within close proximity to one another. With so much investment and development in the area, South Kensington has also become a highly desirable place to live with a number of premium developments to tempt discerning buyers and sellers.
As well as the cultural highlights, premium food, drink and shopping is on offer with a number of highly popular social hubs, restaurants and stylish bars, making the area a social centre for young professionals and trendy Londoners.
Things to do in South Kensington
With world-famous performance venues and museums through to shopping, eating and drinking there is no shortage of things to do in South Kensington.
Learn and explore
South Kensington is home to some of the most famous museums in the country, arguably the world. The Natural History Museum is certainly one of the most popular, with free entry (donations are encouraged) which houses some of the best exhibits and specimens from the natural world through the ages. Best known for its dinosaur skeletons and stunning architecture, it truly is a centrepiece for the borough. Of course, this is not to take away from the other major museums close by, including the Science Museum and the stunning Victoria and Albert Museum which houses the world’s largest collection of decorative arts and design.
Honourable mentions go to the Lord Leighton Museum in Holland Park, the Army Museum and Kensington Palace, which all offer their own beautiful buildings, exhibits and gardens for visitors to explore and enjoy.
Entertainment
The Royal Albert Hall is perhaps the City’s most prestigious music venue, hosting a huge selection of music and performance art throughout the year. Located on the Northern edge of South Kensington, opposite Hyde Park it is perhaps best known for hosting the Proms concerts every year that captures a global television audience in the millions. Other entertainment highlights of the area include the charming Ciné Lumière which hosts both new and classic French films screenings in an attractive art deco theatre. For fans of fringe theatre, the Drayton Arms is a pub that doubles up as a performance area with high quality productions that are often sold out quickly.
Food, drink and shopping
After all of that culture, visitors and residents are likely to be looking for somewhere to relax and enjoy some great food and drink, which is in no short supply in South Kensington. It’s impossible to list all of the fantastic places to check out, but there are a few standouts that are popular amongst the locals. Obica Mozzarella bar can definitely be viewed as a niche prospect but there’s no denying its popularity for people looking to taste the finest mozzarella and enjoy a glass of wine. Other food options include the world-famous steak restaurant Hawksmoor and whole selection of delicatessens and cafés on the nearby high street.
Speaking of which, High Street Kensington has everything any shopper would want, ranging from premium chains such as Wholefoods and premium clothing outlets through to small specialist shops offering art, décor, antiques and tailoring. Other local amenities include a number of libraries, gyms and spas.
Why we love South Kensington
What’s not to love! Beautiful buildings, world-famous museums, top class shopping and fantastic property – just to name a few!
There’s just something about South Kensington that oozes class, opulence and culture. Whether you’re visiting one of the many local highlights or are lucky enough to live in the area, this is the kind of place that keeps surprising you with new things around every corner.
Where else can you have so many world-famous museums in such close proximity, interspersed with beautiful green spaces, parks and gardens. Where else do you get that peaceful opulence where visitors and residents alike can wander the wide streets and explore a whole host of ways to while away a pleasant weekend afternoon.
It’s all about the character – as well as having a high street with all of the retail outlets you would expect to see in a premium location, there are also a great number of charming and unique boutique shops and eateries, all infusing their own flavour to the wider area.
Then of course, Hyde Park is always close and you can easily spend a few leisurely hours walking its sprawling paths and discovering features such as speaker’s corner, beautiful flower gardens, fountains, sculptures and art galleries.
Access to and from South Kensington couldn’t be easier with many tube and bus options connecting you to the rest of the city – as if you’d want to leave!
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Key villages & towns in South Kensington
High Street Kensington
Looking for premium clothing labels, delicatessens, supermarkets or boutique shopping? Then High Street Kensington is the place for you. Just one stop away from South Kensington Station, it is the main shopping street in the area which has everything anyone could be looking for. Starting from the popular venue that is Kensington Olympia, the road makes its way up through a thriving high street and onwards through to Hyde Park and The Royal Albert Hall before leading on to Knightsbridge. Kensington Palace, Holland Park and a number of other local highlights are easily accessible from here as well as numerous transport links to the rest of the city.
Cromwell Road and Exhibition Road
Said to be named after Oliver Cromwell, Cromwell road is now officially part of the A4 and is a key transport connection between different locations of the wider area. What makes this road notable is that it leads to and passes the world-famous collection of museums and academic buildings which are informally collectively known as the Albertopolis, which is also connected to the aptly-named exhibition road which also provides access to the aforementioned features
Transport links
By train
Located in zone 1 South Kensington tube station and its neighbours are well served by the London Underground by the Circle, District and Piccadilly lines. High Street Kensington and Knightsbridge stations are also within easy walking distance. The closest overground station is West Brompton from where you can take train connections across the city to Clapham Junction in 11 minutes or Willesden Junction in the other direction within 12 minutes.
By train
There are a large number of bus routes operating though South Kensington, including night buses that connect the wider borough to the wider city. These include the number 14 to Warren Street, 74 to Baker Street and C1 to Victoria. Night options include N97 and N74 which go to Trafalgar Square.
For those in private vehicles, South Kensington is location on the A4 which means it has a convenient 20 minute drive to the M4, opening up access to the West of England and the M25.