London/Lambeth

This destination covers most of the borough of Lambeth, except for a chunk around Waterloo station that is covered under South Bank. Lambeth was historically a largely deprived area of Inner London with very dense housing. However, this began to change in the 1990s as the gentrification that was apparent in just about all of inner London also manifested itself here.

Brixton is a colourful, unique urban area that is like nowhere else in London. Brixton has a mix of residents, ranging from people who have lived in the district for generations to new residents who have moved prompted by a new trendy image that it has gained. It is a multi-ethnic community, with around 24 percent of the population being of African and/or Caribbean descent, giving rise to Brixton being called the unofficial capital of the British African-Caribbean community in London.

The diverse population originates from the 1940s and '50s, when Britain invited large numbers of immigrants from the West Indies to fill the job gaps.

There is a thriving scene for clubbing and live music, especially reggae/ska and rock. There are also several trendy markets stretching across the district where you can buy all manner of exotic foods, textiles and jewellery. It is well known for its nightlife, particularly the Brixton Academy, along with many other interesting bars, pubs and clubs to explore. Electric Avenue (of Eddy Grant song-fame) was the first electric-lit street in the UK; even if it is in a rather obscure location, it's worth checking out for the thriving, competing halal butchers.

Herne Hill is a village-type area on the corner of Brockwell Park, which includes a historic velodrome.

Kennington is a residential district with a rich history. The area is characterised by late Georgian and early Victorian roads and squares. It is dominated by two London landmarks: The Oval, an international cricket stadium, and the Imperial War Museum, a national museum. Kennington appeared in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Chenintune", which may mean "place of the King". Edward III gave the manor of Kennington to his oldest son Edward, "the Black Prince", in 1337, and the prince built a large royal palace between what is now Black Prince Road and Sancroft Street. Geoffrey Chaucer was employed at Kennington as Clerk of Works in 1389. Kennington remains a Royal manor, and the Duchy of Cornwall has a substantial property portfolio within the district. A large number of Members of Parliament have London residences in Kennington; the district falls within the Division Bell Zone, because it is geographically close to the Houses of Parliament.

Kennington Park (south London's oldest public park, laid out by Victorian architect James Pennethorne) and St Mark's Churchyard now cover the site of Kennington Common, which was a place for executions, entertainment and demonstrations. In 1746 the Surrey County Gallows at the southern end of the common was used for the execution of nine leaders of the Jacobite rebellion of 1745. The Common was also where the Chartists gathered for their biggest demonstration in 1848. "The Gymnastic Society" met regularly at Kennington Common during the second half of the eighteenth century to play football. The society - which could lay a claim to being the world's first football club - consisted of London-based natives of Cumberland and Westmorland. The tradition of crowds gathering at Kennington Park in advance of marches upon Parliament continues today.

Vauxhall, dominated by its gyratory system, is best known to many Londoners for its gay scene and as a transport interchange (its bus station is the second-busiest in London; there is also a railway station served by South West Trains, and the Victoria line stops there) - but it is experiencing rapid gentrification along its Thames frontage. Vauxhall is the location of the offices of MI6 (famous from James Bond films), and will be the site for the new American Embassy.

The history of Vauxhall is tied to industry: it was there that Vauxhall Motors was founded, and Royal Doulton had a factory. Before that, the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens, created in 1661, attracted visitors. The largest green space in Vauxhall today is its small Park, which came about in 1890 through the campaigning of Octavia Hill (co-founder of the National Trust) for "More Air for London". In the 1990s, Vauxhall became a prominent feature on London's gay scene; a number of clubs, bars and pubs have placed it as an alternative to Soho. Bonnington Square, close to The Oval, where Vauxhall meets Kennington, developed from a squat, threatened with demolition, into an artists' community, with carefully tended gardens and community spaces.

• 🌍 Brockwell Park, Herne Hill (From town walk up Effra Rd, take a left into Brixton Water Ln, and look out for entrance on the right). Daily. A large hilly green park; 10 min walk from the centre of Brixton. Has the following facilities: Brockwell Lido, children's play area, paddling pool, café, flower gardens, sports facilities, toilets and several ponds. Brockwell Park also has a BMX track. Free. 
• 🌍 Charles Chaplin plaque, 287 Kennington Rd. Charles Chaplin lived with his mother in various addresses in and around Kennington Road in Lambeth, including 3 Pownall Terrace, Chester St and 39 Methley Street, and briefly lived with his father and his mistress, Louise, at 287 Kennington Road where a plaque now commemorates the fact. After Chaplin's mother was admitted to the Cane Hill Asylum, her son was left in the workhouse at Renfrew Road in Kennington. 
• 🌍 Lambeth Palace, Lambeth Palace, SE1 7JU (tube: Lambeth North  BAK ). Library Exhibition only May-Jul M-Sa 10AM-5PM. The palace has been the official residence of the Archbishop of Canterbury since the 13th century. Guided tours of Lambeth Palace are incredibly popular and there has been a substantial waiting list for some years. £8 for the Library Exhibition. 
• 🌍 Leake Street, Leake St (Near Waterloo under the train arches). Also known as the "Banksy tunnel", every inch of the walls of this 300 m-street are decorated with graffiti - it was created during the "Cans Festival" organised by Banksy in 2008. Whatever the legal position may be, the ongoing creation of graffiti is tolerated, backed up by a (graffitied) billboard advert outside the tunnel stating that this is the case. 
• 🌍 Kennington Park, Kennington Park Rd, SE11 4BE (tube: Oval  NOR ). Small London park with some lovely tended gardens. 
• 🌍 Museum of Garden History, Lambeth Palace, Rd SE1 7LB (tube: Lambeth North  BAK ), ☏ +44 20 7401-8865, info@gardenmuseum.org.uk. Daily 10:30AM-5PM. In an old church, which also has the tomb of Captain Bligh of The Bounty mutiny fame. The museum charts the history of garden design and gardening. £6, under 16s free. 
• 🌍 SIS/MI6 Building, Vauxhall Bridge (tube: Vauxhall  VIC ). Imposing building on the waterfront with a huge number of CCTV cameras and looks more fortified than a prison. Quite a sight to behold and you're able to walk around the outskirts of the building but can guarantee that you're being watched when you do. 
• 🌍 Imperial War Museum, Lambeth Rd, SE1 6HZ (in the pretty GMH Park, which has plenty of picnic spots; Tube: Lambeth North  BAK  or Elephant & Castle  BAK  NOR ), ☏ +44 20 7416-5320, mail@iwm.org.uk. Daily 10AM-6PM. Fronted by two immense guns from Royal Navy battleships, the IWM focuses on British military history since 1914. The central atrium display of objects bearing "witness to war" (everything from a Harrier Jump Jet to a battle-scarred press Land Rover) branches into immersive and sensitive exhibitions on the First and Second World Wars, modern warfare, the Holocaust, and more. The same institution owns the HMS Belfast (South Bank), Cabinet War Rooms (Westminster), and Duxford Air Museum (Cambridgeshire - a day trip from London). Free except some temporary exhibitions. 
• 🌍 575 Wandsworth Road, 575 Wandsworth Road, SW8 3JD, ☏ +44 20 7720-9459, 575wandsworthroad@nationaltrust.org.uk. A uniquely decorated house. Book in advance. 
• 🌍 Cinema Museum, 2 Dugard Way, SE11 4TH (off Renfrew Road; Elephant & Castle  BAK  NOR ), ☏ +44 20 7840 2200, info@cinemamuseum.org.uk. A somewhat idiosyncratic but interesting museum with limited opening. It can only be visited on guided tours or screenings that can be booked by email or phone. The building is a former workhouse where Charlie Chaplin once lived. £10, concessions £7. (updated Apr 2023)

• 🌍 Brixton Academy, 211 Stockwell Rd (tube: Brixton  VIC ). Live music venue for audiences as large as 4,000 in a beautiful Art Deco building. It is often considered one of the best concert halls in the world. (updated Jul 2019)
• Brixton Audio Tour. Alex Wheatle, the Brixton Bard, takes you on a personal journey through the vibrant streets of Brixton that have been his inspiration. 
• 🌍 Brockwell Lido. Outdoor swimming pool that's empty during cold days and has queues around the block whenever the sun is out. 
• 🌍 The National Theatre, South Bank, SE1 9PX, ☏ +44 20 7452-3000. The Royal National Theatre is one of the UK's two most prominent publicly funded theatre companies. The controversial building is "an aesthetic of broken forms" meaning a concrete monster. The riverside forecourt has outdoor performances in the summer. 
• 🌍 The Old Vic, 103 The Cut, SE1 8NB, ☏ +44 20 7928-2651. Kevin Spacey has been the artistic director here since 2003 receiving considerable media attention and starring in a number of the shows himself. Great for something a bit different, and further up the cut you can check the Young Vic which focuses on productions of a younger generation. 
• Cricket: 🌍 The Oval (The Britoval, Kennington Oval), Kennington SE11 5SS (tube: Oval  NOR ), ☏ +44 8712 461100, enquiries@surreycricket.com. The second home of English cricket in London after Lords - these Test matches sell out early. Surrey CCC play here in Division One of the County Championship and tickets are readily available. Also here are Oval Invincibles men's and women's teams playing in The Hundred short game. (updated Aug 2023)
• 🌍 The Southbank Centre, South Bank, SE1 9PX, ☏ +44 844 875 0073. Southbank Centre is the largest single-run arts centre in the world and includes the Royal Festival Hall and the Queen Elizabeth Hall. It's one of the largest arts centres in the world, occupying a 21-acre site in the midst of London’s most vibrant cultural quarter on the South Bank of the Thames. It offers a wide-ranging artistic programme including classical & world music, rock & pop, jazz, dance, literature and the visual arts. 
• 🌍 Stockwell Skate Park, Stockwell Park Walk. Also ironically named Brixton Beach, this free skate park began in the 1970s. Skateboarders and BMXers can regularly be seen riding or simply hanging out on the edges. 
• Torture Garden. An avant-garde fetish club in Brixton—not for the squeamish! They do not have a permanent venue. 

• 🌍 Brixton Market, info@brixtonmarket.net. M Tu Th-Sa 8AM-6PM, W 8AM-5PM. Brixton Market consists of several different parts. The main section is Electric Avenue, selling mainly fruit, vegetables and meat, which also has a very good Chinese supermarket. On Pope's Road, you will find clothes and bric-a-brac. You will find more indoor markets around the area, such as Brixton Village (between Pope's Road and Coldharbour Lane), Reliance Arcade (between Brixton Road and Electric Lane) and Granville Arcade (running between Electric Lane and Atlantic Road). These sell everything from wigs, clothes, pets, exotic foods and coffee. 

There are many different types of food available in Lambeth, from Caribbean to Eritrean and fish and chips to noodles. You will find most of the restaurants on Coldharbour Ln and Atlantic Rd. Here are a few noted establishments. Clapham High St has a good selection of restaurants.

• 🌍 Asmara, 386 Coldharbour Ln, Brixton, SW9 8LF (Facing the Dogstar), ☏ +44 20 7737-4144. 5:30PM-12:30AM. Small friendly restaurant serving interesting Eritrean food. 
• 🌍 Eco Pizza (formerly Pizzeria Franco), 162 Clapham High St, Clapham Town, SW4 7UG, ☏ +44 20 7978-1108, cherif@eco-group.co.uk. Daily noon–10PM. Tasty reasonably priced pizzas, calzones and sandwiches using fresh ingredients. (updated Apr 2021)
• 🌍 Gandhi's Restaurant, 347 Kennington Rd, SE11 4QE (tube: Kennington  NOR ), ☏ +44 20 7735-9015, info@gandhis.co.uk. Daily 5–11PM. Traditional Indian restaurant. Mains £6-13. (updated Apr 2021)
• 🌍 Ichiban Sushi, 58a Atlantic Rd, Brixton, SW9 8PY, ☏ +44 20 7738-7006. Tu–Sa 6–10:30PM, closed M. Great freshly prepared sushi and tofu dishes. (updated Apr 2021)
• 🌍 Negril, 132 Brixton Hill, Brixton, SW2 1RS. M-W 10AM-6PM, Th-Sa 10AM-10PM, Su 10AM-6PM. Jamaican restaurant that serves traditional Jerk chicken and Caribbean curries. Most of the food is organic and they make their own fresh fruit juice. Reasonably priced and has lovely patio area. 
• 🌍 The Pepper Tree, 19 Clapham Common Southside, SW4 7AB (tube: Clapham Common  NOR ), ☏ +44 20 7622-1758, info@thepeppertree.co.uk. Tu–Sa noon–11PM, Su M noon–10:30PM. A long-established and very popular Thai restaurant serving good food in rather spartan surroundings, alongside Clapham Common. Good value. Expect to queue in the peak period. Mains £5-7. (updated Apr 2021)
• 🌍 Satay Bar, 447 Coldharbour Ln, Brixton, SW9 8LP (tube: Brixton  VIC ), ☏ +44 20 7684-5566, info@sataybar.co.uk. M–F 5–11PM, Sa Su 1–11PM. Brixton's longest-running restaurant, specialising in Indonesian, Malaysian and Thai cuisine. Also has a cocktail bar and lounge with an extensive cocktail list and premium drinks menu. Located next to the Ritzy Cinema. Probably Brixton's busiest restaurant and it runs many specials including a lunch special at £4.95. (updated Apr 2021)
• 🌍 Trinity Upstairs, 4 The Polygon, Clapham, SW4 0JG (Side street off Acre Ln above Opus), ☏ +44 20 7622-1199. Michelin Bib Gourmand winning restaurant in the unlikeliest of locations. A non-descript door buzzer in what looks like a flat leads you up to a cosy bar serving delicious cocktails before you ascend again to the tiny restaurant. The food is delicious and though expensive, very reasonably priced for such upmarket cuisine with very attentive staff. Not a place for every day, but a great choice for a treat. Expensive. 
• 🌍 Wang Fa, 208 Coldharbour Ln, Brixton, SW9 8SA (Next to Loughborough Jct Railway Stn), ☏ +44 20 7998-6587. M-Sa noon-10:30PM. Authentic Chinese and Japanese cuisine. Bento boxes, pad Thai, mizo, spare ribs. 

Brixton has the advantage that every night you can stay out drinking later than almost anywhere else in London. Even on a Sunday, there are plenty of bars open until 2AM if you really do not want the weekend to end. The more interesting and local bars are dotted down backstreets.

• 🌍 Maiden Oval Hotel, 13 Clapham Rd, ☏ +44 20 7793-0142. Nice little economy hotel with friendly staff. Very simple clean rooms. from £53, £100 security deposit. (updated Aug 2023)
• 🌍 Chelsea Guest House, 372 Wandsworth Road, SW8 4TE, ☏ +44 20 7627-6262, info@chelseaguesthouse.co.uk. Nice little economy hotel with friendly staff. Very simple clean rooms. 
• 🌍 Church Street Hotel, 29 Camberwell Church St (2 mi from the Brixton tube stn, bus goes from Brixton Academy to right by the hotel), ☏ +44 20 7703-5984. Small beautifully decorated boutique hotel. Also the amazing Hotel Pasha is nearby. 
• 🌍 London Hotel, 411 Coldharbour Ln, ☏ +44 20 7737-0837. Small budget hotel. 
• 🌍 No 7 Guesthouse, 7 Josephine Ave (A ten minute walk from Brixton tube). A bed and breakfast run by a friendly gay couple. 
• 🌍 Park Plaza London Riverbank, 18 Albert Embankment, SE1 7TJ (tube: Vauxhall  VIC ), ☏ +44 333 400 6120, pprlres@pphe.com. Stylish and reputable. 

• Aa's Communication Internet Cafe, 248 Kennington Park Rd, ☏ +44 20 7820-8946. 
• Apollo Home Entertainment, 400-402 Brixton Rd, ☏ +44 20 7733-8330. A video/DVD hire shop which has branched out into providing internet access. 
• Internet Exchange, Brixton Library, Brixton Oval (Next to Ritzy Cinema), ☏ +44 20 7926-1056. M 1PM-8PM, Tu Th 10AM-8PM, W F 10AM-6PM, Sa 9AM-6PM, Su noon-5PM. Free use of computers for internet and word processing, although you may have to queue. No food or drink. 

Most of Lambeth is as safe as the rest of London. The South Bank is a major tourist area, so do watch out for coats and bags, as opportunist theft is not unknown.

In the 1980s Brixton had a reputation for crime and, even until a few years ago, it was almost impossible to leave Brixton tube station in the evenings without being offered drugs. While the situation has improved a lot, it's still sensible to take some precautions in Brixton and the nearby areas at night. Stick to well-lit, busy areas and you have little to worry about. Some South London housing estates have a poor reputation for violent crime; while these are rarely places tourists would have much reason to go, visitors should avoid spending too much time passing through housing estates at night, at least until they have got to know the area. The same goes for the open space of Clapham Common; fashionable during the day, at night it has something of a reputation for sexual activity and muggings.