Kensington

Kensington is a historically fashionable and high value area in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Despite the wealth in the area, the high street, unlike many other London villages, is made up of many chain and brand names. Kensington Church Street offers a selection of the higher end boutiques, which are more commensurate with the wealthy residents that populate the surrounding residential roads.  The key store on Kensington High Street is Whole Foods, which of course has a global following.

Kensington is very much on the tourist trail, as a result there are many hotels that service this tourist demand. Kensington Palace Gardens, which forms the western border of Hyde Park, not only provides home to Kensington Palace (a residential address and home for members of the Royal Family) but also houses the Diana Memorial Playground and on its most western boundary, the Serpentine Sackler Gallery.

The housing stock in Kensington comprises a mixture of Victorian white stucco rendered substantial villas and terraced houses with substantial apartment buildings, many of which were built post war, following war damage to the above status quo.

There are also examples of Edwardian architecture throughout Kensington. The area immediately to the north of Kensington High Street is owned by the Philimore Estate. This is regarded as the most salubrious part of Kensington, with some of the houses overlooking Holland Park.