London’s most walkable / friendly / lovely neighbourhoods?

[Bagggy]

I feel like I live in my car and I live in a popular, expensive London neighbourhood.

Where do you think I’d get all of the above in my title? Walkable (as in, no one drives around really), friendly, lovely, great atmosphere generally?

I'd lived in London for 20 years before I summoned up the courage to cycle. Once I did, I never looked back and ended up joining a cycling club and becoming a triathlete 😅. You can get Bikeability training through the local council. I did this when I first started and it was an absolute game changer. Really helped with my confidence cycling round London.

https://youtube.com/@londoncycleroutes?si=vKcV0c0CleEtc2ls

Some friends really rate this channel for finding better routes around - I find it a bit hard to remember what he's said between watching and cycling, but might help you get some confidence?

I would def look at the mindset first OP, start with getting a few more buses - ( even if just to the tube station at Highgate or Turnpike Lane) - MH is a great area for lots of things and I think you might end up with similar issues elsewhere - mix it up a bit more -

I walk everywhere around your area @Bagggy , and the back streets are basically empty. Cyclists seem to stick to the main roads, which I find really strange when the quieter roads would be much safer. Parkland Walk and Ally Pally to get your confidence up.

I'm not big on walking too, mainly because weather is so unbearable in London most of the days through the year, it just really windy. I admire people who have that sort of motivation to walk miles to closest stations, but I'm not one of them. I don't like driving either, parking costs fortune and so the only way was to move closer to things I like.

I think it just depends what you prefer, larger property or more convenient area and that's what it comes down to majority of Londoners with budget limitations.

London is really windy? Really? The weather in London is really mild most of the time. There is the occasional storm, but they seem to affect most places these days. It rains a lot less than much of the rest of the country too. Maybe it's because I'm originally from Manchester though that I just think the weather in London is good. I grew up on the moors where it's constantly blowing a gale and pissing it down. There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing - as they say.

Interesting we have different perspectives. I also live in MH and walk/bus everywhere. I don’t have a car. Indeed, would be handy to visit friends (most live in SW London) but cheaper to uber. It is hilly, but good for the glutes!

Yes some people totally enjoy London's weather, I just find it too cold and unpleasant most times personally. This winter was absolutely miserable with never ending rain and storms and whatnot.

@Gekko21 I totally agree about the weather, it’s an assumption that has become accepted. We used to go to Kenwood every Saturday to meet SIL for years. I know the garden there is quite sheltered, but we almost never had to go inside or cancel, we often used to comment on it.

Having lived in several countries, for me, the weather in London is the best I've lived in. I don't like extremes. We have our own micro climate in our patio garden. Flowers blooming all year round.

People sit outside at cafes in London all year round.

Whereabouts are you that you have this bizarre year round wind? You live next to lots of tall buildings perhaps?

I wouldn't call it bizarre lol London is very windy city compared to the rest of Europe. Maybe your cold threshold levels are just higher than somebody elses? I live in Pimlico now, but used to be in SW zone 3.

your weather opinions are entirely subjective. Entirely.

If you want shit weather then it’s been fairly shitty for almost 2 years I reckon here in Bath with the odd few days or weeks of consistent sun - my son lives in London and it’s frequently perfectly ok when I call him , whilst drizzling and windy here. I have at points been tempted to move back to the south east just for an improvement in weather- and it’s hardly the med-

Windy isn’t really a threshold, though - either it’s windy or it isn’t. Cold doesn’t equal windy.

Ive lived in London for 53 years, and other than when I worked on the Euston Road which is a total wind tunnel, it’s not a windy city. Objectively.

Wow, no way. London isn't even one of the windiest cities in the UK, never mind the rest of Europe.

Fulham, Chiswick, Twickenham and most definitely Barnes.

Is London windy?

Of course the large built-up city generates a lot of heat but I remember reading that London was one of the warmest places in the UK. As for wind, only in those violent storms affecting everywhere.