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Original poster

What do non-Londoners think of London?

387 replies

savedbyanalien · 09/04/2022 12:31

We live (just inside) zone 1, so very central. We're very much "big City people" and couldn't imagine living in the suburbs or the countryside, or even a provincial town.

I was at London Victoria station earlier today and saw reams and reams of day-trippers (Hen and stag do's etc) and tourists getting off the Gatwick express with their luggage.

I wonder, what do you think about london when you get here? Big, noisy, busy, pretty, exciting?

OP posts:
timestheyarechanging · 10/04/2022 07:03

Oh and my partner is selling in Camden for £800k and me £300k in London (both flats) We are then able to buy a house and two flats for that by the coast! London prices are ridiculous.
I'm trying to convince my daughter to move out of London to buy but she won't.

Saltyquiche · 10/04/2022 07:16

Interesting exhibitions and so I tend to visit for a day every few years. Like the easy public transport too, however the lack of horizon, the greyness, the smell, the hecticness all make it overwhelming for me as someone who likes hills, woodlands, a more laid back community.

User48751490 · 10/04/2022 07:39

Couldn't imagine living in a place like London. Give me the East Neuk any day! If only I could afford to live there😫

Clean fresh air is priceless, out on the coast is the place to be. Agree with several others on this thread.

I am semi rural which I love. Surrounded by hills. Lots of fresh air. No congestion.

RishisPA · 10/04/2022 07:44

I think there’s an expectation from some people that london will be unfriendly and then when they see any evidence of this it’s like ‘OH SEE THEYRE HORRIBLE’. I was on the escalator on the tube in front of two scouse blokes and one said to the other ‘look no one is f-ing smiling’. Yeah it’s 8 am and most people were travelling alone to work…not gonna be grinning ear to ear… you see what you want to see sometimes

camelfinger · 10/04/2022 08:15

I’m never sure who a Londoner is. I’ve lived in the outskirts for 20 years and love the sense of opportunity it offers. I cba to sell my house and go and live in a bigger one somewhere else.
I’ve often wondered the same as the OP, where you see coach loads of people hanging around waiting in boring, traffic heavy areas.
I never understand the “greyness” criticism. Is it the weather? Because it’s generally much better there than elsewhere in the UK. Or the buildings? Again, not dissimilar to other UK cities. Edinburgh is beautifully grey. Or is it all the grey flowers that they have planted in St James’ park and the other huge green spaces? Plus it seemed like half the country painted their interiors grey so not necessarily a bad thing.

Snog · 10/04/2022 08:25

I think it's really fun, vibrant and exciting with loads to do. Fun fashion to admire and great food choices. Great shopping.

Also so very dirty. My contact lenses get dirty quickly, my hair gets dirty in one day and my skin gets dirtier too!

RinklyRomaine · 10/04/2022 09:03

Both parents Londoners, dad is a full on cockney. Married to a Londoner. Grew up between North London and Hertfordshire and had best of both so not really a not Londoner perspective, a bit of both. I've never commuted into town for work which I always imagine changes your whole outlook.

Love it. Never been further than 30/40 mins away from the City, always lived close to a station. Love to visit, don't feel particularly like a tourist. Always felt London is just a series of villages very close together, not some monolithic, grey mess. Green areas, culture, diversity, grime, poverty, availability. Architecture and history also fascinate me. One of my favourite places.

Would never, ever live centrally. I'm not rich enough to have the lifestyle we have out here in London proper, and I wouldn't want the lifestyle we could afford. Five minutes drive to rolling countryside, half hour to town...best of both worlds for me.

TheChosenTwo · 10/04/2022 09:10

I like to visit, once a month for theatre/food/shopping/drinks and meeting friends but I wouldn’t want to live within zone 2. Having said that, my friend has a place in elephant and castle in a residential area and I couldn’t believe how quiet and pretty leafy it was for being on the border of zone 1/2. I mean, obviously not vast open spaces but just really nice and peaceful.
Love going up for a weekend or just the day but my god I feel grubby when I get home!
Definitely couldn’t afford to buy the equivalent of our house with the size of garden we have in London though, quite happy where we are and being able to jump on a train and be in central in 45 minutes.

mnnewbie111 · 10/04/2022 09:22

Dirty 😂😂 yeah ok. All of Londoner is absolute filth right?. God the narrow mindedness on these threads is always so predictable

mnnewbie111 · 10/04/2022 09:22

#london

mnnewbie111 · 10/04/2022 09:24

@Pyri

Bingo bingo bingo!

I think that pretty much all the people on this thread can only ever have been to zone 1 London (probably an Aberdeen Angus steakhouse in Piccadilly circus) and don’t realise that London stretches all the way down to zone 5ish and includes Richmond, Wimbledon, Hampstead Heath etc, ie all beautiful lush green areas!

Exactly. I'm embarrassed for them that they even bother to comment when clearly have no clue
tinytemper66 · 10/04/2022 09:24

Love it!.. my favourite city.

januaryfanuary · 10/04/2022 09:40

I live in Scotland now. I used to live outside of Birmingham but my then BF now DH, lived in Guildford then London so I'd happily visit every weekend. I love the buzz of it, the atmosphere, the warm weather etc. everything! I miss it. But now I have two kids and dragging them around London would be a nightmare! Also I could never have bought a home there. I tried to find work but found it hard to break into the London bubble there. Now I'm in Scotland freezing my balls off !!!

TwoLeftSocksWithHoles · 10/04/2022 09:57

@HollowedOut

Oh I didn't know that. Maybe I was in Basildon for the whole weekend then? Mind you it was a cheap mystery weekend-break. Hmm

Scarybutnecassary · 10/04/2022 10:02

Even though I live an hours commute from London I never go there unless I have to.
I absolutely loved New York though.

MardyOldGoth · 10/04/2022 10:09

Nice to visit, wouldn't want to live there. Too busy, too expensive, too stressful for me to cope with every day. Could probably live in one of the outer zones if I didn't have to work in the centre. They're more like little villages really. I live somewhere quite similar in a suburb of another city. Rarely go into the city centre anymore as it just makes me feel stressed!

Trixiefirecracker · 10/04/2022 10:17

Love to visit and have lived there for a few years but would never go back to live permanently. Wouldn’t want to bring my kids up there but I think we are very lucky to have such an amazing capitol city.

User48751490 · 10/04/2022 10:22

@januaryfanuary

I live in Scotland now. I used to live outside of Birmingham but my then BF now DH, lived in Guildford then London so I'd happily visit every weekend. I love the buzz of it, the atmosphere, the warm weather etc. everything! I miss it. But now I have two kids and dragging them around London would be a nightmare! Also I could never have bought a home there. I tried to find work but found it hard to break into the London bubble there. Now I'm in Scotland freezing my balls off !!!
But at least you can breathe in fresh air 🤣
DinosApple · 10/04/2022 10:42

I bloody love London.

As a child I lived less than an hour away by train, and it was always the go to option for a day out. Tbh, it was overwhelming, the noise, the number of people, the tube when you're too short to teach the grab rail Grin. But, there was and is culture, galleries, museums, food, things to do. And now I love the buzz.

I live even further away now and it's just so expensive to take the DC, but I still feel the pull. We try to take them once a year - a train ticket from our nearest station is £99 per adult, which is out of our reach, but we drive a bit nearer and it's much cheaper.

Londoners are just people, same as any town or city. Some are grumpy, some having a shit day, some rude, but there's still polite, kind, cheerful sorts about too. The difference is if I'm walking about grumpy with a face on round here I probably would only pass one or two people at most and still say good morning and slap on a smile, even if I don't know them. I wouldn't be jostling with hundreds of others to make my way from A to B Grin.

inheritancetrack · 10/04/2022 10:44

Was born and grew up there and hated it. Live rurally now and so much better. I think the dirt, traffic fumes, noise and so many people made me ill.

ThreeRingCircus · 10/04/2022 10:54

I think London is exciting, always something going on and parts of it are absolutely beautiful. It's cool and I always feel strangely proud that it's our capital city when I visit.

Having said that, as much as I enjoy visiting I always breathe a sigh of relief when I get on the train home. I was brought up in the countryside and now live in a small town and I think if you're used to the space, the country, lack of crowds then London can feel very overwhelming.

That said, a born and bred Londoner would probably find my small town excruciatingly boring so to each their own!

CordeliaBrideshead · 10/04/2022 12:27

Love London

Love the country

Original poster
savedbyanalien · 10/04/2022 14:48

@Trixiefirecracker

Love to visit and have lived there for a few years but would never go back to live permanently. Wouldn’t want to bring my kids up there but I think we are very lucky to have such an amazing capitol city.

Can I ask why you wouldn't want to bring your kids up here?

I have 2 DC and can't imagine bringing them up in the suburbs or countryside - we'd have to rely on the car a lot for a start.

OP posts:
Original poster
savedbyanalien · 10/04/2022 14:54

Also what is everyone talking about pollution and smog and black snot and feeling grimey??

I've never seen the air pollution go above 3. 90% of the time it's at 2 and sometimes at 1, very rarely at 3.

🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️🤷🏼‍♀️

What do non-Londoners think of London?
OP posts:
Blossomtoes · 10/04/2022 14:56

Had a day in London yesterday and I love everything about it apart from the tube. Crammed into a carriage with my nose in someone else’s armpit is most definitely not my idea of a good time.