Advice on Bethnal Green, Shoreditch area London
 

Found a nice AirBnB in this area any thoughts as to the location? The other option is a place in Chelsea area.

It's where we would like to live :)

This area is trendy, hipster, lots of cocktail bars in random places like railway arches...but it is pretty gritty in some places, down and out and grungy.

Do you have the postal code of the property?

It could be great, could be terrible depending on the exact location.

We'd need more detailed info re the addresses.

the 'Chelsea area' is very large and some parts are not served at all by the tube while others are quite convenient.

And Bethnal Green/Shoreditch if close to Spitalfields wouldn't be too bad -- or it could be very far east and not very convenient.

was posting the same time as jamikins -- yep -- could be fine or truly terrible

Thanks jamikins and janisj I will get exact address as soon as I can.

when I used to work in London nearly 20 years ago you couldn't have paid me to stay in that area but I gather that things have changed.


PS - for the avoidance of doubt, I mean Shoreditch, not Chelsea.

Annhig - we stepped off the tube in Mile End in 2007 when we went to visit friends and were terrified. Now we can't afford to live there!

"when I used to work in London nearly 20 years ago you couldn't have paid me to stay in that area"

In 1996? Come off it. You were clearly overpaid if you could have afforded to be snooty about Shoreditch even then.

1996 was precisely when we were deciding where to move to. The Cotswolds won: because we could afford the Cotswolds, but couldn't afford Shoreditch.

Funny how times change annhig!!

I would imagine the Cotswolds would be much more desirable than Shoreditch then and now flanner, but who knew!

Horses for courses. Who would you rather risk rubbing shoulders with, Nathan Barley or David Cameron?

Not that that helps the OP, of course....

In 1996? Come off it. You were clearly overpaid if you could have afforded to be snooty about Shoreditch even then.>>

the only bit I knew was round Shoreditch County Court which was not desirable area, believe me. As to being over or underpaid, you live in the Cotswolds, Flanner.

I rest my case.

Still waiting on exact location!! Will hopefully have it soon and post I am really looking forward to getting feedback on the neighborhood. Thanks again to everyone.

Also tell us the location of the Chelsea property

Why not post the links and we can probably figure out where they are . . .

When I was planning our recent UK/London trip, it became obvious that Shoreditch was a very hip and happening area. If I were younger I would have wanted to stay there.

But I'm old. I don't drink so bars and clubs and happening restaurants with even cooler bars weren't calling my name.

We had a very nice Airbnb in Knightsbridge, which was a horse of a completely different color (or colour).

We lived in London in 1996 and Shoreditch was far from a desirable area to live. Notting Hill was becoming more popular then, but still quite seedy in places.

I'm with flanner on this one, Shoreditch was hugely desirable in 1996. I suppose it depends on what you like though. I was living in Marylebone for a few years during this time (thank goodness for subsidised halls of residence) and would have happily moved Shoreditch.

At that time it was genuinely interesting, with lots of artists and creatives in the area rubbing shoulders with the mainly working class locals who hadn't yet been completely priced out.

I would regularly make the trip out east to go drinking or clubbing (the legendary Blue Note or 333 anyone?) rather than stay in the blander, centre of town.

Shoreditch had already jumped the shark by the early 2000's (and gave rise to the brilliant Shoreditch Twat fanzine around this time) and now 16 years later, it's safely ensconced in guidebooks as a "trendy" area despite the fact that it's about as edgy as Guildford.

It would be a good place to stay for a short visit and I'd still pick it over Chelsea, even though on the weekends it's populated by the bridge and tunnel crowd all wearing the same thing from Urban Outfitters. Still preferable to the boat shoe and red trouser mob though...

Just replying again to let you know that Fodors turned my mention of a certain clothing shop in my previous comment to a hyperlink automatically and it has nothing to do with me!

Unfortunately the Chelsea and Shoreditch/Bethnal Green Airbnb are not available now. :(

So DD is continuing to search.

Thanks so much to everyone. Love hearing about the various neighborhoods from locals.

But if you'd like help evaluating options, try to get a postcode or map reference. How the agents/landlords describe them can have a very elastic relationship to what people who live there would call them.

I was in the area in 2002 to view the BodyWorlds exhibit at the Truman Brewery. It appeared gentrification was well under way. That said, I do believe I may have been approached by a prostitute. Either that or the young female just couldn't stay away from me. :)