London/North

Introduction

North London colloquially refers to areas north of Central London and is made up by the London boroughs of Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey and Islington.

Broadly speaking, North London also means the part of Greater London that is north of the River Thames.

Sights and Activities

• 

  Cherry Tree Woods

  © StephenJen

  Cherry Tree Wood Park is a popular park surrounded by treed woods and containing a playground for the kids and two tennis courts. It is a great spot for picnics and getting some fresh air amongst the beautiful birds and large numbers of playful and semi-tame squirrels. To get to Cherry Tree Wood Park, catch the Northern Line tube to East Finchley and cross the road when you come out of the station to follow the signs. It's a very short walk to the entrance.
• Alexandra Palace was opened in 1873, and has a fascinating history – built for the purpose of creating a recreation and entertainment place for the Victorians. It has been extensively renovated to hold exhibitions and events for and is set in 196 acres of gorgeous parkland overlooking London, and is located between Muswell Hill and Wood Green. Address: Alexandra Palace Way, Wood Green, London N22 7AY (Piccadilly Line: Wood Green) Tel: 020 8365 2121

Phoenix Cinema

© StephenJen

• The Phoenix Cinema is a delightful art deco independent cinema in East Finchley with a program of new releases, independent, foreign-language and specialist films, as well as showing old and new classics. If often also has a variety of special nights such as Q&A sessions with film directors etc, as well as offering a membership program and kids club. Address: 52 High Road, London N2 9PJ (Northern Line: East Finchley), Tel: 020 8442 0442.
• Royal Airforce Museum is one of the biggest Aviation Museums in the world AND ITS FREE! Address: Grahame Park Way, London, NW9 5LL. Catch the Edgware branch of the Northern Line (underground) to Colindale and it's a short 5-10 minute walk from there.
• Hampstead Heath is one of the largest green spaces in London, with countless walking paths, woodland, hills, ponds, playgrounds, tennis courts, an open air lido, an athletics track, even a small zoo.
• Parliament Hill is one of the highest spots in London, and has one of the best views of the capital.
• The Parkland Walk follows the path of an old railway line that used to run between Finsbury Park and Alexandra Palace, also connecting Stroud Green, Crouch End, Muswell Hill, and Highgate. It’s also London’s longest nature reserve, home to wildflowers, birds, squirrels, butterflies, hedgehogs, foxes, and bats.

Events and Festivals

• East Finchley Festival is a community festival that takes place each year around June/July. The festival has two stages set up for a variety of local bands, performers and other entertainment... all for free! You can also sample the delights in the Food Marquee and try ales in the Beer Tent (all profits going back to the festival, keeping it free). There are over 60 stalls offering everything from herbal remedies and massages, gardening, local arts and crafts, as well as all the fun stuff for the kids... making it really a free fun day out for families. Where? Cherry Tree Wood (get off at East Finchley tube) and walk across The High Street, and you will see the signs to Cherry Tree Wood.
• London Drinker Beer and Cider Festival is an annual festival run around March each year, and in 2008 took place in Camden. It is exactly as it sounds, with real beer and ales tasting and food available for each session. This event is run by The Campaign for Real Ale.
• The Red Stripe Camden Crawl is a 2 day music festival in Camden, with buskers, acoustic and electric performances in venues and spots all around Camden, and poetry readings to boot! It's a blast!

Getting There

By Train

You can catch the Northern Line of the Underground either on the Barnet Branch or the Edgware Branch, depending on where you are trying to get to. Your best bet would be to log on to TFL Journey Planner to plan your trip by entering your departure postcode/station and your destination point.

By Car

Driving to North London is quite easy as it is serviced by major roads such as the A1, A406 (North Circular) and the A41 but depending on where you are going, like everywhere in London, traffic and parking can be a problem. Parking officers frequent all of London and you need to be sure that you are leaving your car in a safe place in an appropriate zone or risk penalty fines or even wheel clamping/towing which can really ruin a good day out! Best bet unless further out is public transport!

By Bus

There are a number of different bus routes travelling to North London areas, depending on where exactly you want to get to. Log on to TFL Journey Planner to plan your travel by bus.

London Buses

© StephenJen

Getting Around

By Car

Driving around North London can be easy, but can also be a nightmare, depending on where specifically you are trying to get to! Before you decide to drive - log on to RAC Route planner to help you make your decision. Keep in mind traffic and parking (and the environment!)if you are planning to drive.

By Public Transport

Train/Underground
North London is generally fairly well covered in terms of public transport... for the Tube (Underground), you can catch either branch of the Northern Line, if you want to get to northeast London - try the Victoria or Piccadilly Line and for North West - check out Jubilee Line, Metropolitan Line or even the Bakerloo Line. There are also overland trains covering areas not covered by the Tube - but your best bet is to log on to TFL to plan your journey.

Buses
There are loads of buses heading in almost every direction in London and the North is no exception. Again - Before you leave for your destination - login at TFL to plan your route - you can even get the directions sent to your mobile!

Eat

• Le Mercury is a wonderful example of a restaurant with affordable prices and delicious French cuisine! The place is small, so you may have to wait for a table (even during the week) if you don't make any booking. Address: 140A Upper Street, Islington, N1 1QY. (Tube: Northern line: Angel) Tel: 020 7354

Drink

• The Boogaloo is a bar known for its good music and good atmosphere, with a large variety of live entertainment each week. Address: Archway Road, Highgate. Nearest tube : Highgate (Northern Line).

Keep Connected

Internet

Internet cafés can be found in many cities and towns. All UK public libraries provide access, often branded as "People's Network", usually at no or little charge, though there is usually a time limit. Some hotels/hostels also offer internet access, including wifi, but most times at a cost. Using the internet on your personal phone can become expensive very quickly, with carriers charging 100's of times the local rate for data. To avoid these expensive roaming charges, you can hunt for wifi at a local cafe or hotel, or rent a mobile hotspot via several providers including DATAPiXY, and XCOM Global.

Phone

See also: International Telephone Calls

The country calling code to the United Kingdom is: 44. To make an international call from the United Kingdom, the code is: 00

In case of emergency, call 999 or 112 from any phone. Such calls are free and will be answered by an emergency services operator who will ask you for your location, and the service(s) you need (police, fire, ambulance, coastguard or mountain rescue). You can call this number from any mobile telephone as well, even if you do not have roaming.

Although the number is declining, you can still find payphones in many public areas, especially stations, airports etc. You can usually pay with cash and sometimes by creditcard or, for international calls, special phonecards are still available.

Mobile phones are heavily used. The main networks are T-Mobile, Vodafone, Orange and O2. 3G data services are available, usually priced per megabyte and coverage is usually very good in the UK, however it may lack in rural areas. Roaming on your personal phone plan can be expensive. To manage costs, consider purchasing a local UK SIM card for your phone. Several companies offer local SIM cards including Telestial, and CellularAbroad.

Post

The Royal Mail provides postal services in the United Kingdom. The Royal Mail's store fronts are called Post Office and offer services ranging from sending letters and packages to foreign currency exchange. Use the branch locator to find the nearest Post Office branch. There will be at least one post office in any town/city and there are quite often post offices in larger villages. It's common for a post office to be incorporated into a grocery store, where there will be a small counter located at the back of the store for dealing with post related matters. All post offices are marked with signs that say 'post office' in red lettering. Post boxes can be found at any post office and standalone large red post boxes on the streets or red boxes in the sides of public buildings.
For sending packages overseas, it might be a good idea to check prices and services with international companies like TNT, UPS or DHL.