A big favourite of some on the forum, Richmond, is the happiest place to live in the UK, according to [real] estate agents, Rightmove.
It's a little far out of town for the first time visitors to London maybe, but seasoned London veterans may appreciate its charms It's a nice break away from the hustle and bustle of central London if you don't mind 25 or 30 minutes on the tube.
I guess if I could afford to live in Richmond I’d be pretty happy with life too!
average asking rent is £3,148 a month
Eek! I thought my rent was bad over here on the other side of the tracks.
If you're going to Richmond, of course you must always remember to keep Fenton on a leash...
So aside from the happiness part, the emphasis on Richmond is Rich?
We visited Richmond on our last London stay and walked in the park, saw the deer. We really liked the vibe of the village so will spend 3 nights there on our next trip later next year. Convenient to LHR, too.
The trip into the city wouldn’t be a deterrent for us as it is a 40 minute subway ride from Brooklyn into Manhattan.
I hear they have a great football team.
It’s my preferred neighborhood primarily because of Richmond Park.
There’s also my favorite pub dog Rudi, great dinners at the Dragon Inn, good pub grub at the Angel and the Crown and The White Cross.
Prior to Apples TV’s Ted Lasso Richmond didn’t have a touristy environment.
Things change. Would I return to Richmond? Absolutely!
However, will admit it was a very late night after seeing Hamilton at the Victoria Palace.
1/2 hour tube ride from Victoria station to The Quadrant in Richmond. From there to where I was staying was a 25 stroll. Hamilton is over 3hours long. I was on a District Line train at 11pm. Thus a late walk home. Saw no one but remained aware of my surrounding. Also used a pocket flashlight.
If you’re interested in staying in a lovely neighborhood, like meandering about a huge park, walking along the river path, seeing good theatre and having a variety of food offerings then research Richmond.
I live in the Land of La and Richmond reminds me of the Hancock Park and Los Feliz neighborhoods as well as Beverly Hills.
Anyway, as noted, its all about seeing Rudi!
So aside from the happiness part, the emphasis on Richmond is Rich?
I'm happy every time I'm there (most recently 3 days ago) and I'm not rich, and I don't look rich, and I see a large number of people like me there. I disagree that the emphasis on Richmond is rich.
Nigel's spot on. Most of London tends to be like this. The rich folk tend to intermingle with us less wealthy folks fairly well. Richmond's not quite as diverse in income equality as some places, but there's going to be many places to live well under that £3000 average rent. Renting a room in a shared house well into your 30's isn't uncommon in London. I'd bet there's many young professionals in Richmond sharing some nice old properties in the £800 - £1200 per month ballpark.
Where I live in Hackney, houses in my street can be worth £1.5 - £2 million these days. Just across the road there's tower blocks and a large council housing estate with some people still living with poverty and social issues. Everyone shops at the same local stores and the kids go to the same schools. London's kinda like that, to a greater or lesser extent, all over.
To bring it back to more travel related topics, I enjoyed Mardee's recent thread which discusses Richmond at length. I'll post a link for anyone who missed it.
I would take anything that Rightmove says with a heap of salt
I would take anything that Rightmove says with a heap of salt
I think that's a good rule to apply to any sort of similar puff piece in a newspaper. Just a bit of fun.
Welcome to the forum.
I wish I had a fiver or every “best/happiest/cheapest/most fun” place to live in the UK I have read.
I remember when South Ribble, the Borough that I live in, was selected as the “Best place to live” in 2017. Clitheroe is usually on these lists, deservedly so in my view. None of them mean anything really, other than as ways to fill news space.
I went to Richmond only once, to see a show at the Richmond Theatre. I tied it in with Kew Gardens. It was one of my best days in London. Richmond is fantastic: Richmond Green, the river, the many little lanes and shops. Beautiful.
