Explore the city, London experiences,
July 05 2024
Forget the famous grey fog and drizzle, London in colour is dazzling. Take a trip to Covent Garden’s colourful street, see Portobello Road’s coloured houses and visit the technicolour God’s Own Junkyard. From Instagrammable landmarks to the all-pink café, London’s colourful collection of experiences will brighten up your day.
Notting Hill is the perfect neighbourhood for a stroll through London’s most colourful streets, by brightly coloured houses. Start in Portobello Road – it’s always a burst of life and colour, especially on market day. Enjoy a wander down St Luke’s Mews to see the gorgeous pink house featured in the film Love Actually, and head to Elgin Crescent for the row of pretty pastel terraces.
For more pops of colour, there’s a vision in purple down Lancaster Road, and the boutiques down colourful Westbourne Grove are particularly delightful. Time your trip for sunset to capture photos of London’s multicoloured houses at their brightest.
Step off the Elizabeth Line into Canary Wharf to see London’s most photogenic tunnel. Canary Wharf’s Adams Plaza Bridge is a tunnel of geometric colours, connecting the financial district to the waterside. Camille Walala is the artist behind this permanent mural that encases you in primary colours as you walk through it.
Don’t miss the underside of this tunnel-like bridge for more technicolour public art by LGBTQ+ artist Adam Nathaniel. The public artwork in this plaza brings colourful joy to your day, whatever the weather.
Indulge in a delicious ice cream, bubble tea or doffle (a doughnut–waffle) at London’s pretty pink café, Dyce Cafe. The eye-catching decor is a feast for the eyes, with pink hues and contrasting neon blue arches to frame the pictures you’re bound to take when you’re inside. There are plenty of scrumptious treats in every colour lining the counter, so pop on your pinkest outfit and get your sugar high in this playful café.
Hidden in a Walthamstow industrial estate is God’s Own Junkyard. Neon is on full display in this palace of vibrant tubes, signs and props. They stretch from floor to ceiling, creating a maze of colour to walk through. This is arguably London’s coolest museum, created by the late Chris Bracey, who spent decades collecting and designing neon signs.
This high voltage ode to neon is usually open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, but check the website because it sometimes closes for private events. It also has the Rolling Scones Café where you can sit down with a drink and see how well your mobile phone captured the junkyard’s neon magic.
Luxuriate in colour at this emporium of dazzling dining and drinking rooms. Sketch in Mayfair is a long-time treat: fine food and drink surrounded by opulent splashes of colour. Walk past neon art installations into a fabric-walled forest for lunch. Dine on Michelin-starred food in grand surroundings in The Lecture Room and Library.
Fancy an afternoon tea or cocktail? Sip a pink Cloudhopper Cocktail in the gold-coloured brasserie called The Gallery. For evening cocktails and light bites, take a pew in the quirky red Parlour. And you have to nip to the loos here to see the famous space egg pods, offering the best bathroom trip in London. There’s even a hidden bar near the pods, with a photo booth and a DJ mixing tunes into the night.
Enjoy dreams in glorious technicolour in the capital’s heart when you stay in a Thistle Hotel. Thistle London Hyde Park Kensington Gardens is ideal if you want a Central London location close to Notting Hill’s handsome multicoloured streets, and Thistle Marble Arch is perfect for a visit to Sketch Mayfair.
