Aptly described as the ring doughnut around Paddington, largely residential Bayswater is an area of West London in the City of Westminster. Situated in tube Zone 1 and inside the central London congestion charging zone, Bayswater is surrounded by fantastic places like Notting Hill, Kensington, Maida Vale, Mayfair and Paddington. Bayswater actually sits on the Northern borders of Hyde Park and Kensington Park and has 4 tube stations for you to choose from, including Bayswater and Queensway. You can even walk to Paddington Train Station, home of the Heathrow Express!

Bayswater, a corruption of the name Bayard’s Watering Place that was first recorded in 1380, was stigmatised by wealthy London residents for being the wrong side of Hyde Park. However, the removal of the Tyburn Gallows in 1783 increased respectability for the area, especially as the City and the West End were so filthy. Samuel Pepys Cockrell began building the grand squares and terraces of Tyburnia (also known as Hyde Park Estate) here between 1807 and 1815. The arrival of the Great Western Railway at Paddington in 1838 also attracted further development, and Bayswater grew from here on in.

Just like most areas that surround mainline stations, Bayswater spent much of the 20th century in decline, with decaying houses either being split up into nasty bedsits or used as hotels of all shapes and sizes. However, the huge influx of Arab, American, Jewish and Brazilian populations into the area, and government grants, has helped Bayswater to tidy itself up and transform into the cosmopolitan area of London that it is today – one that you should definitely discover!

Thanks to its diverse population, you’ll find that Bayswater has a unique multi-ethnic vibrancy and colourfulness you’ll enjoy. Interspersed amongst the houses and range of hotels, you’ll find plenty of amazing attractions to visit. Bayswater’s proximity to beautiful Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens is a huge bonus too, as you’ll have somewhere tranquil to relax. When you want to head outside of Bayswater, you can use tube stations like Queensway and Bayswater to get around London with ease. As it’s so close to Paddington Train Station, you can even get to places like Heathrow Airport and Wales!

As you would expect from any central area in a capital city that’s so close to a mainline train station, Paddington, there’s lots of traffic and noise for you to cope with, but this is a small price to pay when Bayswater is full of affordable hotels for you to stay in! You shouldn’t let the fact that Bayswater is a largely residential area put you off either. If you don’t stay here you wouldn’t be so close to places like Notting Hill and Oxford Street, surrounded by off the beaten track attractions that are well worth a visit, and staying on the verge London’s largest area of greenery - Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens.