Favorite and Nicest areas in Zone 1 Central London?

[Peregrine 4903]

It just occured to me recently that there seem to be very few, if any bad areas left in Central London (Zone 1)

As there are so many nice areas I thought people could rank or just say what are their favorite areas in Zone 1 Central London by using the nearest tube or train station to that area.

Mine are:

Kings Cross St Pancras - The redevelopment of Kings Cross has been wonderful and made it in my opinion one of the nicest areas in London
Covent Garden
Leicester Square
Piccadilly Circus
Green Park
South Kensington
Victoria
St James's Park
Westminster
Waterloo
London Bridge
Sloane Square
Southwark
Blackfriars
Cannon Street
Embankment

Honestly there are too many to name.

 

[Bletchleyite]

There are still quite a few Council estates hidden away in central London - the ones between Kings Cross and Euston are rather scruffy, for instance.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

When I go to London I tend to stay in hostels, one in particular I've used a few times is in Bloomsbury near Russell Square tube, off Marchmont Street near those peculiar concrete flats with a Waitrose underneath. It's a fairly quiet area though, and hard to believe you're in Zone 1 (until you see the price of literally anything).

 

[J-2739]

Living in those areas are bound to leave your wallet in tears.

 

[Mojo]

Living in those areas are bound to leave your wallet in tears.

Only with your accommodation costs. If we’re talking about things like social housing tenants or those who have been bequeathed a property or are on a protected tenancy or paid off your mortgage then your costs of living are potentially lower than people who live in most of the rest of the country.

 

[Busaholic]

When I go to London I tend to stay in hostels, one in particular I've used a few times is in Bloomsbury near Russell Square tube, off Marchmont Street near those peculiar concrete flats with a Waitrose underneath. It's a fairly quiet area though, and hard to believe you're in Zone 1 (until you see the price of literally anything).

''Those peculiar flats'' are a modernist marvel, now Grade 2 listed, and form part of the Brunswick Centre. The flats were privately built but were leased to Camden Council as council flats around 1972. I worked in Camden's Housing Department for a few years from early 1973, and always enjoyed my visits to Brunswick. Used to be a Safeway's there, one of the best Central London branches too.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

''Those peculiar flats'' are a modernist marvel, now Grade 2 listed, and form part of the Brunswick Centre. The flats were privately built but were leased to Camden Council as council flats around 1972. I worked in Camden's Housing Department for a few years from early 1973, and always enjoyed my visits to Brunswick. Used to be a Safeway's there, one of the best Central London branches too.

Thanks for informing me of their name and history! Their peculiarity as I put it is probably a reason why they've been listed. It is indeed a strikingly beautiful building, but it is peculiar!

More deserving of listing in my opinion than the Park Hill flats in Sheffield, but what's that saying about opinions...

 

[telstarbox]

Zone 1 has a few areas which although very 'central' are also pretty quiet and pleasant to walk around, such as:

The area between Waterloo Bridge and London Bridge (not sure if you'd call this Waterloo or Southwark?)
Clerkenwell/Finsbury (straight line between Kings Cross and Old Street stations)
The streets either side of Marylebone High Street

 

[sprunt]

The City is great at the weekend when there's hardly anybody there.