I'm researching London and I'm getting conflicting opinions about where to live. Whilst many folks say the west side is preferable, others say to avoid it. I've heard the same about north and south as well.
Is London one of those cities where the good and bad areas are intermixed? I've lived like that before and didn't care for it (million dollar homes a block away from housing projects).
The type of area for which I'm looking: Upscale with little to no riff-raff, low crime, classic British architecture, and within walking distance of theatres, bookstores, cafes, pubs, and restaurants. Basically, I would like to live inside a Hugh Grant film for a year.
In which direction should I be looking? Any specific areas or neighborhoods would be especially useful. Thanks in advance for any information.
EDIT - Typo.

Presumably renting?

What kind of budget?

Apartment, bedsit, house?

When you have an idea of where you stand with those requirements, you should be able to narrow it down.

Your best bet might be to go through letting agents based in London to see what they have.

I don't live in London so there ill be other people better placed to advise.

http://www.moove2london.co.uk/where-to-live-in-london/

 

Thank you for the replies. I'm just in the planning stage at this point. I was looking at homes for sale/rent and was trying to focus in on a specific area. I would, of course, work through an agency when I actually moved.



Most of the places I have liked the look of were in the Knightsbridge/Hyde Park areas. The only problem has been trying to find a rental without a fitted kitchen.



As I said, I'm just planning at this point. I move frequently and enjoy the research stage. Thanks again for the information.

I rented in St Johns Wharf a couple of years ago. south bank of Thames next to MI6.

I wouldnt live in london myself, worked there, i would look at surrounding areas and commute.

Will you have to deal with a commute and what hours will you be at work etc?  The areas you would look to live are often dictated by this if you know the answer already as commuting is fairly crap...

There are lots of nice areas though and much less crap ones than there used to be. The areas where you have 'million dollar homes' next to 'housing projects' don't feel the same as, say, in NYC or Chicago as the feel of the City is so different.

It's is highly unlikely you would find any apartment to rent though without a fitted kitchen, but some will be more open plan than others.

Hope that helps for now

If you think you can afford Mayfair, that sounds like the area you described.  Or Kensington near the palace.  Both will be expensive.  Right now London makes Manhattan real estate look cheap.