To experience somewhere ethnically diverse and culturally exciting you should book a hotel in the London borough of Haringey in North London. It covers more than eleven square miles, with 25% of the borough made up of large areas of green space, like Finsbury Park and Alexandra Park, for you to relax in. You’ll be based in Tube Zone 3, with tube stations like Turnpike Lane and Finsbury Park to take you into central London when you want to tour the tourist hotspots. There are also three railway stations: Haringay, Hornsey and Haringay Green Lanes - so it’s an extremely accessible part of London. You won’t have to pay the congestion charge either as you’ll be based outside the congestion charging zone.

Haringey has a fascinating and extensive history. Traces of prehistoric human and animal life have been found in Haringey, especially along the River Lea (sometimes referred to as the River Lee). Roman remains have also been found here and there’s evidence that the area had settlers in Anglo-Saxon times. In ancient times, Haringey was made up of two large manors, Hornsey and Tottenham. These became parishes in 1300. In the Middle Ages, Tottenham's population consisted of 59 serfs, four slaves, two freemen and a priest!

As commerce developed, railways were built and gradually the rural area of Haringey merged into London. Local place names (such as Wood Green) are indicators of the area’s past as woodland and countryside, some of which still survives. Today Haringey has lots of beautiful green space that you can relax in, but the area also buzzes with fantastic pubs, clubs, cinemas, theatres, galleries, community centres and festivals.

You’ll never be short of things to do in Haringey. It’s a fascinating area to stay in because it’s so ethnically and culturally diverse. Haringey buzzes with entertainment and has great places to go out. Large festivals and pop concerts take place every summer in Finsbury Park and all year-round lots of venues offer almost any kind of entertainment you can think of. Haringey has some great old pubs that have live music, comedy evenings or small theatre companies. It’s far enough out of London to really have its own identity but thanks to plenty of tube stations and train stations, you’ll also have easy access to some of the bigger, more well-known attractions in central London too.

As with most parts of London, Haringey can get really busy and hectic (so be prepared for a lively time). Having said this, Haringey is made up of 25% green space and has some beautiful gardens and parks, so you’ll always be able to get away from the hustle and bustle. In fact, there’s an ideal balance of excitement and relaxation here. You may see the fact that Haringey is based in North London as a negative as it’s too far away for you from all the central London hotspots. However, as the transport links are so great it will never take you long to travel into the city centre. You’ll also find plenty of affordable hotels here too – much less pricy than in the city centre.