New York Habitat Blog

While Notting Hill may be well-known worldwide for the eponymous film featuring the famous blue door, it made our top five list for two very different reasons: “Alfie” and “The Italian Job,” both watershed movies in the career of Michael Caine and in their portrayals of swinging ’60s London. If you’re a fan of either film or just love that time period in general, then Notting Hill is the place for you—and New York Habitat has the perfect pad (um…rental accommodation).

Notting Hill, London

In 1966’s “Alfie,” Caine plays a playboy with an irresistible Cockney accent, about a million assorted girlfriends and a West London flat off Chepstow Road (at 29 St. Stephen’s Gardens, to be exact). That neighborhood was—and still is—the epicenter of happening London and hasn’t changed all that much in terms of being the place to see and be seen.

Filled with cutting-edge shops, retro fashions, antique decorations, laid-back cafés, cool cinemas and artsy residents, Notting Hill ranks as one of London’s must-see neighborhoods. That’s especially true on Saturdays, when Portobello Road market comes alive, just as it has been doing since the ’60s—the 1860s, that is! The streets overflow with international travelers, vendors, local celebrities (just look for the not-so-inconspicuous sunglasses) and more vintage finds than you ever imagined could be assembled in one place. Sienna, Gavin and Gwen all call Notting Hill home—and Alfie would fit in just as well there today with his mod look and stovepipe pants.

Just as smooth is Caine’s Charlie Croker in 1969’s “The Italian Job,” one of Britain’s most beloved films. If it’s playing in Notting Hill Gate’s historic Coronet movie theatre or Portobello Road’s funky, art-house Electric Cinema while you’re in London, be sure to catch it—and listen as the locals sing along to the theme song and recite some of the movie’s classic lines (it’ll come in handy if you know when to say, “You’re only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!”).

In that comedy, Charlie’s campy flat was at 18 Denbigh Close in Notting Hill, off the north end of Portobello Road near Alice’s Junkshop. (His coming out of jail party was celebrated close by at the Royal Lancaster Hotel on Lancaster Terrace in always buzzing Bayswater.)

Through the decades, directors have loved the look and feel of Notting Hill, using its colorful houses and vibrant streets as backdrops for “Withnail and I” and “Performance” (where Mick Jagger had a hideaway), and the more contemporary settings of “About a Boy,” “Sliding Doors,” and, of course, “Notting Hill.” You’re sure to fall in love with the neighborhood, too—especially during your stay in a New York Habitat vacation rental, such as:

London Accommodation: 1-bedroom in Notting Hill (LN-112)

• A charming 1-bedroom accommodation in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-112) on Chepstow Road. This renovated third-floor apartment with amazing rooftop terrace is in an 1840s walk-up building. Our client testimonial states: “The London accommodation was good. Thank you.”

• A lovely 1-bedroom vacation rental in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-258) on Chepstow Road. This lower ground floor apartment comes complete with laundry and is near Portobello market, Queensway shopping center and Kensington Park. A satisfied client raved: “I want to thank you for your excellent service.”

• A nicely decorated and comfortably furnished 1-bedroom accommodation in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-622) on the second floor of a walk-up townhouse located on a residential street in the heart of this cosmopolitan neighborhood.

Stay in a New York Habitat rental accommodation in Notting Hill and experience swinging London the way Sir Michael Caine did!

What was your best find in Portobello market? Let us know in a comment below—and be sure to check out our other selections for cinematic London and next week’s number one.

Check out the prvious selections:

Check out: #5: Liverpool Street, #4: Earl’s Court and #3: Canary Wharf.

Bayswater is located on the north end of Hyde Park, a plum spot not too far from central London yet on the outskirts enough to retain its own identity as a haven for student and budget travelers. What makes it an attractive place for those trying to save a few quid is its proliferation of low-cost but high-quality ethnic eateries, its £1 an hour Internet cafés and cheap international call services, its bustling streets and vibrant neighborhood feel. New York Habitat has some choice studio apartments in the area to help you experience everything the city has to offer without having to wire home for extra cash!

London accommodation: studio apartment in westminster (LN-391)

Okay, so Bayswater isn’t exactly known for its nightlife. No worries. It’s less than a ten-minute walk to Hyde Park, where so many free shows and concerts are being held this summer. Also in the park is this year’s Serpentine Pavilion, designed by renowned architect Frank Gehry. Admission to the pavilion’s art gallery is free; the Friday night screening of the 1970s’ Two-Lane Blacktop requires tickets but is definitely worth seeing for Warren Oates and the retro factor alone, especially in an open-air setting that echoes the film’s feel of the open road.

Each Sunday for more than fifty years, the gates near Kensington Gardens on Bayswater Road have acted as the site of an outdoor art sale with hundreds of works lined up for public viewing. Although you can find some pretty good deals on painted scenes of London’s landscapes, which make for one-of-a-kind souvenirs, looking is always free and it’s a good introduction to the city’s many museums, most of which also have no admission fees and are accessible by foot from the front door of your rental flat.

Leave Bayswater Road, with its nice selection of used bookstores and vinyl shops, cross through Hyde Park and you’re on High Street Kensington, full of summer clearance shops and chain stores, and only a few blocks from London’s museum mile (the V&A, Science and Natural History Museums). Or head east on Bayswater Road past the majestic Marble Arch, and before you know it, you’ll have j

London Accommodation: studio apartment Bayswater (LN-538)

oined the throngs on busy Oxford Street.

Aside from its prime location, perhaps the biggest attraction in Bayswater is its abundance of Chinese, Indian, Middle Eastern, Trinidadian, Greek and Eastern European restaurants/storefronts. After all, one can’t survive on fish and chips alone, even in London. You can pick a different country’s cuisine to sample each evening of the week for less than five pounds—best of all, many of the establishments are open all night, which means that after a hard day of sightseeing, you’ll have a snack to bring home to your New York Habitat studio flat and enjoy.
We have a good selection of clean and cozy studios to choose from:

• A sleek, nicely detailed furnished studio in Bayswater, Westminster (LN-538) off Bayswater Road. This studio has two separate sleeping areas—a double bed and a double sofa bed—as well as laundry facilities in the building, blonde wood floors, a heated towel rack in the bathroom and a wooden bar.

• A homey furnished studio in Marble Arch, Westminster (LN-391) on the lower ground floor of a building just off Bayswater Road. This studio has a single trundle bed with a second bed that pulls out underneath and a double sofa bed. A recent client testimonial raved: “The London apartment we were in is delightful for the right people”—meaning anyone who wants a great deal and doesn’t mind close but comfortable quarters.

• A self-contained studio in Bayswater, Westminster (LN-471) on Inverness Terrace just a few yards from Hyde Park. This studio is one of eighty units in a newly refurbished six-story terraced building with a reception area and thoughtful, make-yourself-at-home touches such as a power shower head.

To really make the most of London—and make your money go a long way—take advantage of New York Habitat’s Bayswater accommodations. It’s the perfect place to stay near the center of the city, yet off the usual tourist-trap map.

Share your stories about your Bayswater stay below…and be sure to include the best late-night and bargain eateries!

There’s nothing like summer in London. It’s the time for free outdoor events, musical Proms, festivals and theatrical plays in the park. Londoners get a two-month break from umbrellas and all the tourists flock to Oxford Street for—well, no one quite knows why.

Since something is sure to be happening in any part of the city on any given day of the season, let a New York Habitat vacation rental put you where the action is.

Notting Hill London

One such area that teems with activity when the weather turns warm is Notting Hill. If you groaned just now, it means you’re not such a huge fan of romantic comedies. No worries! The real Notting Hill isn’t much like its movie counterpart. It’s diverse, multi-faceted and much more fun, especially in the summertime.

The big draw on weekends, of course, is Portobello Market. Outdoor markets are synonymous with London in the summer and even if crowds and shopping aren’t your scenes, there are three reasons you still have to see it: 1) the sheer size and scope of the thing; 2) the excellent pubs with outdoor gardens that line the way; 3) the farm fresh, £1-a-bag fruit and produce stands clustered at one end (go especially for the ripe peaches and authentic Cockney accents).

The streets surrounding Portobello are particularly good walking routes. Westbourne Grove boasts small boutiques and stately homes; Ladbroke Grove leads to Lisboa for Portuguese pastries and other multiethnic eateries; Kensington Church Street is home to Kandy’s (the best place for afternoon tea), as well as countless antiquarian bookshops, and will take you toward Hyde Park and High Street Kensington.

Late in the season, this same area hosts the Notting Hill carnage—oops, Carnival, a spirited and sprawling Caribbean festival that packs revelers shoulder to shoulder, street after street. It’s a London institution—and a great way to meet the locals—so it should be experienced at least once in your lifetime.

If all you’ve got are sunny afternoons to spend in London, New York Habitat has the perfect places for you to stay. Consider these convenient accommodations:

London Accommodation 2-bedroom Notting Hill (LN-38)

A 2-bedroom furnished vacation rental in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-342) just off Ladbroke Grove. It’s on the ground floor of a period townhouse and comes with a garden terrace.

A 1-bedroom furnished vacation rental in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-258) between Westbourne Park Road and Westbourne Grove. This renovated, airy apartment with archways is on the lower ground floor of a building from 1840. A customer who recently stayed here wrote: “I want to thank you for your excellent service.”

A 2-bedroom furnished vacation rental in Notting Hill, Kensington-Chelsea (LN-38) between Ladbroke Grove and Clarendon Road. This apartment is on the third and top floors of a period townhouse walk-up. It has its own private staircase, a balcony off the living room and bedroom windows overlooking a park.
New York may have Sex and the City, but nowhere tops London for Summer in the City!
Next week, New York Habitat will bring you another London “hot” spot for summer fun. In the meantime, if you’ve ever visited—or hoped to visit—Notting Hill, please leave us your comments below.