To be
brutally honest, there isn't too much to do in Paddington itself.
Its very much a place where your accommodation is just a base to travel
from.
There are no classic must see tourist sites in the immediate vicinity
of Paddington.
The one big amenity in the area is Hyde Park, just 5 minutes walk
from Paddington Station.
Apart from if you are a keen jogger its an alternative option to get
to some of the sights and get some exercise as well. |
Speakers Corner Hyde Park |
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If
you wander down to Lancaster Gate Underground Station, Hyde Park/Kensington
Gardens are directly opposite. Kensington Gardens seamlessly merges
with Hyde Park at about this point . This royal park, a former hunting
ground is the largest royal park in Central London.
On a Sunday on the park boundary railings of Kensington Gardens there
is a tradition of paintings being displayed. This stretches all the
way from opposite Lancaster Gate Underground along the Bayswater Road
to Queensway Underground.
At this western end of the park is Kensington Palace. At the north
west corner of Kensington Gardens is the Princess Diana Memorial Playground,
this is just inside the park gates opposite Queensway Underground.
Opened in June 2000, in memory of the late Princess, near to her Kensington
Palace home just 5 minutes walk south. There is a sensory trail, teepees,
a beach around the pirate ship and various toys and play sculptures.
The Diana Playground Café serves fresh salads, sandwiches and
drinks, as well as offering a children's menu.
The playgrounds is also the north west point of the Princess Diana
Memorial Walk. The seven-mile-long walk crosses St James's Park, Green
Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. From the walk visitors can
see three palaces and two mansions which figured in the life of the
Princess: Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, St
James's Palace, and Spencer House, the one time London house of the
Spencer family. |
Just
west from Queensway Underground along the Bayswater Road is Cafe Diana
dedicated to Princess Diana. The whole cafe is lined with pictures
and other items.
On a Saturday you can easily walk from the playground onto Portobello
Market, one of the best markets in London.
Walking the other way, going east you come to Marble Arch in about
10 minutes. On a Sunday there is speakers corner, where anyone can
stand up on a box and say what they want without the fear of arrest.
It tends to be religious and politic biased, but its an off beat way
to spend a while on a Sunday. It can be good fun if you're brave enough
to heckle.
Opposite Marble Arch is the start of Oxford Street, London's main
department store strip. Most of the UK's retailers have their flagship
store here though note Harrods is in Knightsbridge, not Oxford Street. |
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