Showing 1-6 of 6 results
-
Chelsea Football Club
There's something corporate and bland about the home of London's richest football club, Chelsea, but supporters after souvenir kit or a tour won't care. They'll be even more over the moon if they snaffle a rare available ticket to a match. There are two interlinked hotels in the building.
-
Greenwich Park
One of London's largest and loveliest parks, with a grand avenue, wide-open spaces, a rose garden and impressive views across the River Thames to the Docklands from atop the hill. Covering a full 74ha, it is partly the work of Le Nôtre, who landscaped the palace gardens of Versailles for Louis XIV. It contains several historic sights, a teahouse, a café and the Wilderness - a deer park in the southeast corner.
-
London Wetland Centre
One of Europe's largest inland wetland projects, this 43-hectare centre run by the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust was transformed from four Victorian reservoirs in 2000 and attracts some 140 species of birds as well as 300 types of moths and butterflies. There's even a large colony of parakeets, that may or may not be the descendants of caged pets.
-
Richmond Park
At just over 1000 hectares (the largest urban parkland in Europe), Richmond Park offers everything from formal gardens and ancient oaks to unsurpassed views of central London 12 miles away. It's easy enough to escape the several roads that cut up the rambling wilderness, making the park an excellent spot for a quiet walk or picnic, even in summer when Richmond's riverside can be heaving.
-
Serpentine Lake
Hyde Park is separated from Kensington Gardens by the squiggly L-shaped Serpentine lake, which was created when the Westbourne River was dammed in the 1730s. At Christmas, it's the site of a brass-balls swimming race, and in summer people like to rent pedalos. The latest attraction is a solar ferry (adult/child around £3 /1.50), going veeerry slowly from the boathouse to the Lido Café. It's in operation year-round they assure us, although we presume it must depend on the weather.
-
Thames Flood Barrier
The sci-fi looking Thames Flood Barrier is in place to protect London from flooding, and with global warming increasing the city's vulnerability to rising sea levels and surge tides, the barrier is likely to be of growing importance in coming years. Under construction for a decade and completed in 1982, the barrier consists of 10 movable gates anchored to nine concrete piers, each as tall as a five-storey building.
Showing 1-6 of 6 results
