Which is a better place to live in London, Islington or Bethnal Green?

Question

*needs to be within about 30mins travel to bank

*please be constructive and if you don't like either please give an actual area which is nicer and within 30mins of london and fairly affordable e.g. room in shares flat/house £550pcm rent

Cheers

Answer 1

Out of the two I would say Islington due to the great shops and bars.  Parts have a nice cafe culture too.  Though have you considered that if you live a little out of central London you could get a better deal for your money... Purley and Kenley are in zone 6 but you can get a train to London Bridge for less then 30 mins and Bank is one tube stop away or short walk away... trains also run through the night from Victoria to Purley... 550 could get you a nice one or two bed flat.  There is also places like Lee and Lewisham that are not far by train to London Bridge.  Yes you may have to pay more for travel but you end up with a nicer place...

Answer 2

Islington is more expensive, but if you're after lots of shops, cafes etc there's more to offer. Bethnal Green is great if you want to live in the East End, with all the nightlife Old Street has to offer.

Take a look at http://www.spoonfed.co.uk/ if you want to get a better idea of the social scene of each area.

Happy house hunting!

Answer 3

I'd say neither

I live near Belsize Park (Camden) and I love it!

You can get to Bank on the Northern line in like 20mins

I live in a one bed flat and its £600 pcm, so a house share should be a fair bit cheaper!

Good luck with your search

Answer 4

Islington has great bars, shops, cafes, restaurants etc and is a really easy commute to most places in Central London. Bethnal Green is probably a bit 'edgier' with more artists and students, and a greater mix of ethnic shops and individual bars and cafes, rather than say chains or high street names. Some parts around Bethnal Green are probably a bit rougher but it is on the central line making it a very very easy commute to Bank. For 550 you'll get a fairly decent flat share in either. Have fun! Hx

Answer 5

Islington.

Answer 6

Islington, without a doubt; however, if you want to be in a good area of Islington, your £550pcm budget might be too small.

Bethnal Green is too dangerous.

Answer 7

Islington is the posh part of north London but it still has some horrible estates too.

Bethnal Green is the true East End, known as the starting point for many immigrant communities over the centuries. In itself though I find it decent enough, Bethnal Green Road is a bit raw but there are lots of period properties with character around there so is still worth a look.

Answer 8

Islington is a great place to live ... vibrant, lots of shops and cafes etc, very multicultural

what is best depends on what you want ... do you want cheap, do you want nightlife, do you want cafes ... there are many places within 30 mins travel to Bank ... I would suggest you look at easy transport links to Bank and work outwards from there

Answer 9

ISLINGTON

NORTHERN LINE TUBE

Travelling by Tube from the Angel to the Bank. . . .

stations

ANGEL

OLD STREET

MOORGATE

BANK

= = = = = = = =

BETHNAL GREEN

CENTRAL LINE TUBE

Travelling by Tube from Bethnal Green to the Bank...

stations

BETHNAL GREEN

LIVERPOOL STREET

BANK

You will not get much for £550pcm in either location.  You might be able to get a 'bed-sit' for that or else if you really do want a flat/apartment - this will probably mean sharing either with a friend or other person.

London flatshareLondon most popular quality flatshare site with 1347 ads for flat share property and accommodation rental in London.

http://www.moveflat.com/  

How does flatshare work?

You register with the flat-share agency, they show you a list of flats and locations, you then choose a few and visit all, meet the person already there and make up your own mind about whether or not you want to move in.

Flatshare is one sure way of having half decent accommodation in an otherwise overpriced London rental market.

I'm pointing you in the above direction because this is exactly what I did back in the 1960s when I found myself without somewhere nice to live.  It works.