[Closed] Help - moving to London

Bracknell, avoid.

Sorry I don't know Didsbury but there are a lot of very nice places that you could probably afford within 45 minutes or closer to Heathrow. Marlow, Henley, Wendover, Cookham, Beaconsfield, Amersham spring to mind but there are loads of smaller towns and villages within the sort of radius that you're looking at. From a biking point of view I'd be looking at the Buckinghamshire/Oxfordshire borders for easy access to the Chiltern hills.

For those of us that can't make the comparison with Didsbury it might be useful to describe what it is about the place that you like.

well, for starters, you need to get over the common misconception that the entire south east of england == london.

Dave

Is that the plane with the dodgy wings?

There are lots of sleepy leafy suburbs near Heathrow that are quite nice. You've picked a good place to work - most people live there and have to schlep into town.

I don't suppose you mind the noise of planes landing either do you?

Twickenham, Teddington...

Most places beside the airport are pretyt crappy so best avoided.

It might be worth looking towards

Walton
Chertsey
Epsom
Dorking
Reigate
Windsor

Out of interest, which airline will you be flying for?

My sister used to fly for BA (trolley dolly, not flight crew). She, and everyone else she knew, lived in Windsor. Nice place, reasonably Disbury-esque

just avoid anywhere under the flightpath, them planes are damn noisy!

Is that the plane with the dodgy wings?

Nah, 320 is a the Euro hopper.

Assuming it's BA, can you please let me know which flights to avoid? 😉

Windsor's alright, but I'd be tempted to suggest living a little further out, longer drive but you can get some lovely places.

Oh yeah - if you live further out along the M3 you get some lovely riding on your doorstep.

Richmond is very nice and well based for trips into Central London, but also trips out the other way.

Henley-on-Thames is nice as well, quite posh (if that's your thing)

Sounds a cool job too 😆

Personally i'd live in the countryside somewhere ebtween heathrow & Oxford, no idea of any locations but somehwere there.

I am surrounded by aircrew in Kingston - they all seem to catch the 285 bus to work if they don't have a parking perk!

The A3 leads to the hills - to the coast - and to the M25!

But what Molegrip has said is a good bet for your money. Other than ride what else do you do with your time off?

Living in the South west 'burbs ain't that bad - lots to do and easy reach of town if you need that as well.

Don't rule out Bracknell without reason. Swinley's on your doorstep there.

Chertsey. CHERTSEY.
Nicknamed the a..ehole of surrey.

Should have asked for more. 60k won't go far on a London property 😉

Can't you stay where you are and, err, catch a commuter flight to work? Be cheaper than relocating.

Some good suggestions from Bracknell to Windsor, but for an easy life I'd not want to commute in from too far away, or rely on motorways- there'd likely be a few pissed off people if you're late for work.

If it were me i'd pick somewhere within riding distance of the Surrey Hills, Guildford - Dorking area. Not too far to South Downs either from there.

My last neighbour worked at Heathrow, anywhere out to Aylesbury is fine for a off-peak 45min commute.

Which would get you the Chilterns.

Need to balance cost vs nearness/poshness 😉

45 minutes outside of the rush-hour to Heathrow could be St Albans, Guildford, High Wycombe and thats only counting outside the M25. I would personally narrow my search down to the A30/A3 corridors if I had to move back 'there'
😛

Dorking might be a bit too far to do in 45mins, Leatherhead seems nice though.

This is assuming that you are basing your decision on proximity to the Surrey Hills of course.

Which you should be.

richmond - you can then train in.

I drove into near heathrow each day and it can be a nightmare - 5 hours plus on a wet November morning for a 20K journey.

richmond - you can then train in.

Expensive though, and a 60K salary isn't that much for that part of town.

If I were you I'd be factoring in the ability to ride on back roads to Heathrow. That is, if you have somewhere at work to hang your pilot's outfit 🙂

I went for a night out in Windsor - dirt hole full of scum bags. Probably nice in the day.

Look at rental/purchase prices before deciding the area, but tbh I'd look at somewhere you can easily drive in from (irrelevent of public transport, as it may not suit your working patterns) - and definately ensure you've parking onsite in the deal.

And if you motorcycle, sorted for the commute 🙂

Thanks for the advice. Eventually might be able to commute from Manchester. Trouble is, when things start going pearshaped at Heathrow the first flights cancelled are the shuttles between regional airports and London so it's a bit dodgy relying on it.

Northfields Ealing. Been here 10 years moved down from Leeds. I work near heathrow and it's a 20-30 min drive. most people moving to the area comment on it's villagey feel, but it's not dead poncey either. It's 25 min tube ride to west end too.

Riding wise: 45 mins to Surrey hills, 30 mins swinley, 2 hrs s Wales

If you are not traveling in the rush hour you have plenty of choices.

I would say anywhere from Putney to Hampton Wick and Hampton Court on the SW London corridor is a reasonable commute and generally very pleasant leafy areas. Personally, I would avoid living over the bridge in Kingston or Surbiton, as that means crossing Kingston Bridge/Hampton Court Bridge.

Walton for me would be a no-no as that involves crossing Walton bridge. Weybridge probably the same.

So IMO on the SW corridor best to stay north of the river, although I did the commute from Putney to LHR for 7 years without too many problems in the rush hour.

Winsdor is too touristy for my tastes.

You could also look at west of the airport, Bagshot, Ascot, Sunningdale, Virgina Water.

Basically lots of choice, may depend on whether you are after more of a London feel or a Surrey/Berkshire feel?

Edit. Personally, I never took to Northfields and Ealing, but loads of younger BA people live there.

The obvious answer would seem to be to save up of a Cessna 172 and air commute.

Plenty of parking at Heathrow, though the wake turbulence is a right bugger at times !

Or get a jetpack.

I have no useful suggestions otherwise.

I'm afraid that 60K won't get you anything in Windsor. A lot of aircrew live here and catch the 77 bus to LHR. Living further in, I'd suggest Ealing, Acton, Northfields, Boston Manor as public transport to the airport is very good.

On the outskirts, Twickenham, Teddington, Richmond are all nice and just as unaffordable as Windsor.

If you fancy Swinley, Bracknell has a lot to offer. And 60K will buy you something.

EDIT

45 minutes outside of the rush-hour to Heathrow could be St Albans

under NO circumstances should you consider an anti-clockwise commute on the M25 to Heathrow. Having spent 10 years driving the opposite way, and marvelling at the traffic jam, it's a recipe for disaster in your line of work!!!

I'm amazed that no-one's mentioned Slough 🙂

I'm amazed that no-one's mentioned Slough 🙂

Come, friendly bombs, and fall on Slough!
It isn't fit for humans now,
There isn't grass to graze a cow.
Swarm over, Death!

Ligh****er could be a good bet, J3 of the m3. And swinley/tunnel hill on your doorstep.

I don't know what Didsbury is like but there are plenty of nice places within 45 mins of that area.

We lived in Barnes for a number of years which is a great neighbourhood - 20 mins to Heathrow, 20 mins to Waterloo.

[i]Come, friendly bombs, and fall on Slough!
It isn't fit for humans now,
There isn't grass to graze a cow.
Swarm over, Death! [/i]

Betjeman couldn't get anything to rhyme with Sheffield so he had to go for Slough. FACT.

Wimbledon is nice. Good comms, not far from decent riding. The common and richmond park for out-the-door blasts.

Plus, Wombles!

You mention your 62K salary but do not specify rent/buy/size of family equity in current house etc.

Some nice places being mentioned; Barnes, Wimbledon, Richmond etc but not necessarilly affordable on 62K.

[i]Betjeman couldn't get anything to rhyme with Sheffield so he had to go for Slough. FACT. [/i]

But, since he wrote it, Sheffield has improved enormously. Slough, on the other hand, is an utter pit of hideousness. FACT.

Jeez, Sheffield must have been grim back then for it to have 'improved massively' and still be a dump...

Yeah, it was. In fact, as Betjeman implies, it was as bad as Slough still is...

"Slough: making Swindon look good"

Catchy, eh?

🙂

Thanks for all the advice. Single right now so will probably be looking to get a place by myself, though if meet other people starting on the same course early enough I might be able to share. Can't commute in from Manchester at the moment due to the way BA short-haul works - when things go wrong at Heathrow the first flights to be sacrificed are the shuttles coming in from regional airports.

Rent is a max of £900/month. Don't mind anything up to a 45 minute off-peak commute. Looking at South East rental prices and wishing I'd become a landlord.

[i]Rent is a max of £900/month. Don't mind anything up to a 45 minute off-peak commute. Looking at South East rental prices and wishing I'd become a landlord. [/i]

Look further afield. I'm Buckinghamshire and you could get a 2-bed cw garage for £600pcm around here, and loads of riding in the Chilterns (which are basically Dunstable to Goring).

Friends (various) have come up with this list

[b]Good.[/b]
Chalfont St peter
Beaconsfield
Denham
Gerards Cross
Cookham (three suggestions for here)
Egham
Englefield Green
Chertsey
teddington
Shere
Peaslake, now funnily enough I drove through this place and remember thinking what a beautiful place it was.
Holmbury St Mary
Abinger
Hammer
Maidenhead
Marlow
Stokenchurch
Eaton Bray
Bracknell. Three suggestions for Bracknell but one saying ok but some scuzzy places there.

[b]Avoid at all costs.[/b]
Hounslow
Feltham
Bedfont
Some areas of Twickenham
Whitton.
High Wycombe.

So can you help me narrow it down into biking friendly areas? Tend to be a lazy sod on my days off, so convenient walk to a local coffee shop important but not essential. Don't care about clubbing or rail access. Happy with a smaller town but with decent motorway access, if such a place exists?

Will probably rent for six months and then buy, as have a decent deposit saved up.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isleworth

Local biking not spectacular but nice
Grand union canal into or out of London
Thames path into or out of London
Osterly park
Richmond park (the days of single track there are long gone)
Wimbledon Common
Urban

Easy to get to other riding areas though.

Chalfont, Beaconsfield, Denham and Gerards Cross are nice but you'll be paying a premium for good links to London on the Chiltern line that you say you don't need.

In general places inside the M25 won't be particularly biking-friendly unless you're a closet roady or you want to travel to Heathrow by bike.

Slough should be added to your "don't do it" list.

Amersham, Chesham and Berkhamsted or the surrounding areas might be worth considering, but again you pay extra for the rail links. Avoid Hemel Hempstead.

What's wrong with Whitton? I've a mate who lives near there, didn't seem all that bad to me.

[i]Avoid Hemel Hempstead. [/i]

And Wycombe is 'interesting'...

If you are serious about your riding then there is only 1 answer...

Dorking, westcott, holmbury, peaslake etc - nothing else compares...

I don't know the Surrey towns very well so I'll not comment on those but of the berks,bucks and Oxfordshire locations I'd go for Marlow as the best all round place on your list.

It's a decent sized town so will have a bit of variety about it, just on the edge of the Chilterns so you've got road and offroad cycling covered.

The commute into Heathrow would be pretty easy as your likely going to be on the M4 and barring accidents the M4 flows pretty well up to the Heathrow junction, plus if there were a problem there's other quick routes in. You could conceivably cycle from Marlow to Heathrow if you fancied.

Agreed that Slough should be on the 'to be avoided' list but then I'd also put Maidenhead and Bracknell on that list too.

freeridenick is right.

if you going to the hassle of driving 45 minutes to work, you might as well have the benefit of great riding on the doorstep. It'll be dead easy to meet fellow bikers living nearby too.

Look at the areas around Guildford - Dorking - Leatherhead triangle. Popular areas of Leith/Holmbury/Pitch hill which are south of the a25 between Guildford and Dorking, where Peaslake, Holmbury st mary are.

I've been to Bracknell, seems ok to me.

If you are serious about your riding then there is only 1 answer...

Dorking, westcott, holmbury, peaslake etc - nothing else compares...

That is 4 answers.

Bracknell is not at all pleasant to look at but Wokingham is right next door, still handy (as in 3 miles away) for Swinley. Might be expensive though 🙂

http://www.primelocation.com/uk-property-to-rent/details/id/JCAL999000362/

In the country (40 mins to LHR off-peak) and within 1/2 mile of a number of bridleways - and walking distance to the pub.

One thing you don't say is whether you'll still have any links up North. If you do, don't underestimate the additional time to get there from anywhere south of London (unless of course you're flying!). Dorking to the M1 can be an hour on a good day, more like 2 at a bad time. An accident on the M25 can make it a bit longer - M25 J7 to J25 once took me 5 hours...

As rio said if you want the Chilterns (ie Stokenchurch) then also Amersham, Chesham etc. I wouldn't go to High Wycombe or Bracknell. I know a lot of police officers who live there as it's cheap but they all think it's a dive, only way for them to get on the property ladder. Yes it's close to Swinley but Chilterns gives you FAR more options. I can't comment on the other side of London I'm afraid. Chilterns ace though except in winter 😉

If I was renting somewhere and thinking about the commute to work it wouldn't involve 45 minutes on the M25 or indeed any driving at all.
And your list has some most amusing likes/dislikes.

Nothing wrong with Whitton, and the Action Bikes are great. I might be biased having lived on the Hounslow/Whitton border all my life, but i don't see anything wrong with most of the area.
Feltham is apparently getting gentrified but i would avoid, likewise Isleworth, central/west/east Hounslow. Hampton/Hampton Hill is nice.

Yes, obviously Chiswick is a hole too.
Way too much generalisation here. Choose how far you want to commute, how much you want to spend and that'll narrow down your choices.

I worked in Chiswick, it was ok. High St was a fairly decent place to eat, shop and drink. Ok so it's not Richmond but we're hardly talking millionaire's row here are we?

Didsbury

Despite many opinions to the contrary I have never thought Didsbury was that nice ok but not mega nice - not that i can talk as i live in Woking - direct bus to Heathrow though.

As for stuff round heathrow it all potentially horrible/nice at the same time. e.g. Staines can be both horrible and nice depending on which street you are on.. Ligh****er is ok though a bit dead - but handy for riding places.

*slurps coffee from apartment overlooking Richmond Bridge* 8)

For similarness to Didsbury i.e. distinct small towny feel with some nice nightlife type pubs and bars I'd say Marlow. Has then bonus of being 20 mins from Heathrow off peak if you blat down the M4 but you can take the back roads at peak time and do it in 30. Expensive though.

But for similarness to Didsbury i.e. posh suburb with easy access to Motorway and proximity to city center at the same time you need to be looking inside the M25, Chiswick, Strawberry Hill, Richmond, Twickenham, Kew etc. And again, nice places round there aren't cheap.

For similarness Didsbury i.e. nice place to live, then list is almost endless. I'd be looking for somewhere cheap, close to the airport on a short lease and then move when I had a better idea of where I liked and where was close to my mates.

And to all the Sheffield haters, I give you The Peak District.

Choose how far you want to commute, how much you want to spend and that'll narrow down your choices.

45 minutes (possibly stretched to an hour) and £900/month. Would prefer to have somewhere nicer with a longer commute than somewhere next to the airport. As I said, I'll be commuting at off-peak times so rail / bus isn't an option.

Despite many opinions to the contrary I have never thought Didsbury was that nice ok but not mega nice - not that i can talk as i live in Woking - direct bus to Heathrow though.

If you ignore the office block centre of Woking and look to the outer parts, its ok. Also it places you more or less between, Swinley, tunnel hill and the Surrey hills.

Pretty good access to the M25 which avoids the M3. The M3 can be an absolute bitch getting from the slip road onto the M25 during peak times and quite often during off-peak times.