A Guide to Portobello Road
London is well known for its plethora of wonderful markets and, having lived here my whole life, I've been able to visit many of them. Surprisingly, one place I have never been is Portobello Road, the world's largest antiques market, so my family recently decided to pop over to Notting Hill in order to explore one of the most popular tourist destinations in the city and see what we had been missing out on...
Arriving by tube at Notting Hill Gate, we were greeted by the sight of the iconic colourful houses that the area is known for.
Arriving by tube at Notting Hill Gate, we were greeted by the sight of the iconic colourful houses that the area is known for.
Once on Portobello Road there are a range of stalls to check out that stretch on for what feels like a never-ending distance, as well as a whole host of quirky shops that line the street. Saturday is the busiest day to go because it's when the market is at its biggest, although we went on a Friday and still spent a good few hours browsing the goods on offer.
My favourite aspect of the market was by far the variety of goods on offer which is what really sets it apart from the likes of Camden and Spitalfields which have become quite commercialised over the years. Antiques are what Portobello Road has been most famous for in the 150 years that it has been around, but there were also multiple racks of vintage clothes, artwork, some beautiful jewellery and other bric-a-brac to browse. It's somewhere I would definitely recommend if you're ever on the hunt for some nice gifts, as I saw some lovely bags, prints, rings and other things which would make great presents and were good value too.
At lunchtime we visited Granier Bakery where I had a delicious salmon and avocado gourmet sandwich and cup of English Breakfast Tea, a thoroughly enjoyable meal in a pleasant setting. However there was also a lot of street food stalls within the market selling various types of cuisine from different countries, and stands loaded with baked goods at reasonable prices, so plenty of options regardless of your taste/ budget.
It was a really enjoyable day, and I was glad to have the chance to explore a part of London that I hadn't been too familiar with previously. Overall I would strongly recommend taking a trip to Notting Hill and Portobello Road Market if you have some spare time or are looking for something to do on a trip to the city!
My favourite aspect of the market was by far the variety of goods on offer which is what really sets it apart from the likes of Camden and Spitalfields which have become quite commercialised over the years. Antiques are what Portobello Road has been most famous for in the 150 years that it has been around, but there were also multiple racks of vintage clothes, artwork, some beautiful jewellery and other bric-a-brac to browse. It's somewhere I would definitely recommend if you're ever on the hunt for some nice gifts, as I saw some lovely bags, prints, rings and other things which would make great presents and were good value too.
At lunchtime we visited Granier Bakery where I had a delicious salmon and avocado gourmet sandwich and cup of English Breakfast Tea, a thoroughly enjoyable meal in a pleasant setting. However there was also a lot of street food stalls within the market selling various types of cuisine from different countries, and stands loaded with baked goods at reasonable prices, so plenty of options regardless of your taste/ budget.
It was a really enjoyable day, and I was glad to have the chance to explore a part of London that I hadn't been too familiar with previously. Overall I would strongly recommend taking a trip to Notting Hill and Portobello Road Market if you have some spare time or are looking for something to do on a trip to the city!
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| Look out for parts of the 'Notting Hill' set! |
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| Artwork on display |
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