What about Blackheath if that fits the direction of your day trips? It's not outside the city. It's just on the other side of the heath from Greenwich- you can walk if the weather's nice, but you wouldn't in the winter- so it's not impossible to get to the tube and buses, but also has the feel of a small town and beautiful views and perfectly cute shops and pubs and restaurants.

Richmond is truly perfect for this (but it's also expensive). But, there are so many nice things to do there that I think it's a great choice, because you'd still have many days without long tube rides. Go to Ham House or Marble Hill House. You can go to Hampton Court by boat if you wanted (or bus). You can walk to Kew Gardens. You can eat in the pubs by the river. You can also be in Central London in 30-45 minutes, depending on where you want to go. It's my favorite part of London for the very reasons you describe. You could "live" there for the week vs. being a tourist in a hotel.

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, all. This is super helpful! We most likely would only go into London itself for 1 day, the rest just relaxing, day trips, etc. We're going to Asia this summer and hitting several big cities (Tokyo, Bangkok, etc.) so looking for a somewhat more chill trip than staying right in the midst of the city but still with lots to do/see.

Are you driving for the day trips or taking the train? If train, pick your location based on easy access to whichever mainline station you’ll need - Kings Cross, Euston, etc (so stay in north London probably on the Northern Line). If you’re driving, stay somewhere in the direction of your intended travel - i.e. don’t be in South London if you’re going to be heading north.

Anonymous wrote:Thanks, all. This is super helpful! We most likely would only go into London itself for 1 day, the rest just relaxing, day trips, etc. We're going to Asia this summer and hitting several big cities (Tokyo, Bangkok, etc.) so looking for a somewhat more chill trip than staying right in the midst of the city but still with lots to do/see.

If that's the case, then I would pick where to stay based on where you expect to take your day trips, in that general direction.

Thanks, all. This is super helpful! We most likely would only go into London itself for 1 day, the rest just relaxing, day trips, etc. We're going to Asia this summer and hitting several big cities (Tokyo, Bangkok, etc.) so looking for a somewhat more chill trip than staying right in the midst of the city but still with lots to do/see.

WEST LONDON:
Richmond
Kew
Chiswick
St. Margarets (no tube, but a train)

SOUTH LONDON
Herne Hill
Dulwich

NORTH LONDON
Hampstead
Highgate

EAST LONDON
Walthamstow

The problem with being based in the suburbs is that once you leave “home” for the day, you’re pretty much “homeless,” with nowhere to safely take a real break, a nap, etc. It also limits evening activities, since you’re then going “home” after hours when it may not be as safe. This is not to say that being in a “real” area and traveling with commuters isn’t a worthwhile experience, but it comes at a cost. I also find that, for me, using underground trains rapidly becomes very dull and a little disorienting. Sure, there’s some people-watching, but after a while things blur together and you’re missing a great deal of the very place you came to see.

Another rec for Notting Hill. Plenty of new apartments in that area and we were able to get a 2 bed unit very close to Westbourne Park tube station.

Richmond/Twickenham are very nice. They have many restaurants and supermarkets. They are also close to Hampton Court and Kew Gardens.

If you want quick access to Central London, you can stay on the middle parts of the Northern Line: Highgate, Tufnell Park, and Archway on one branch and Hampstead or Belsize Park on the other. You do have to pay attention to which branch of the Northern Line you take home in the evening. All are very nice areas. Hampstead Heath and Highgate Cemetery are sights in their own right.

St Albans is very nice with interesting things to do. It's on a direct commuter rail (Thameslink) line to Central London. However, it's a bit of a hike, and that line can go down on short notice.

Putney is also nice. Its close to the Wetlands Center, an old Victorian reservoir that's now a waterfowl sanctuary. It has less of a High Street, but there are still rrstaurants.

Hammersmith in the west and Spitalfields/Brick Lane in East London have plenty of restaurants and transit. They have a much denser urban feel, but if you want artisanal coffee, you're good. Staying in the eastern part of the city has the added benefit of access to Victoria Park and Olympic Park, as well as Call the Midwife fan sites.

Ealing in the western part of London has a very neighborhood feel, and train redundancy, which is important.

Clapham and Wandsworth are nice and Clapham has restaurants. They are very residential, and I think they might be a bit boring to stay in. If your kids are young, though, there are playgrounds.

Most of these places, except St Albans, are in one of the 33 boroughs of London. You can go further out to Surrey, Hertfordshire, Kent etc., but you are looking at some serious train time.

We did this—stayed near Gunnersby Park in Chiswick.

I agree with the PP who said you can do this in so many neighborhoods.

I will admit to finding the tube rides kind of a drag after a while, and it not being easy to go out again for theatre or concerts or dinner in town after coming “home” from a day of sightseeing.

This could literally be any London suburb. The key thing is to make sure the place is very near the station, and obviously understand that the further out you go, the more time you will waste each day commuting. I’d try and stick to zone 2 or at the most, zone 3, otherwise I think it will feel really exhausting. Even in those zones you can still end up spending a long time traveling if you need to get to a different part of london.

Wimbledon.

You are describing most of greater London.

Why not just stay in a nice residential part of the city, but not in the core? An hour each way over multiple days seems not worth it. Examples:

Notting Hill
Kensington
Hampstead
Camden
Islington

The week of New Year's, we're thinking of going to London but keeping it low key (we've been to London most of the major tourist stuff before) and wanting to get an AirBnB for our family (2 adults, 4 kids). I'm trying to find a place in an outer part of London or London suburb where we could easily get into London on the train (within an hour trip or so) to do a few things or see a show, but also easily take the train or drive for day trips. And, I'd love it to be cute walkable area where we could walk to pubs/restaurants for meals, grocery stores, shops, etc.

Any recommendations for a place like this? I've heard the Richmond area is nice, or St. Albans, but looking for other options too.