The Journal
From the Blog
Dispatches from the village — written by people who walk these streets every day. History, food, culture and the stories behind the places you love.
Nature & Outdoors
Dog Walking on Hampstead Heath: The Unofficial Guide
The best routes, the rules, the seasonal mud, the ponds, and everything you need to know to make the most of the Heath with your dog.
Oliver Hartwell · 6 min read
Arts & Culture
Best Photography Spots in Hampstead
Hampstead rewards the observant photographer at every turn, from the Georgian terraces of Church Row to the hilltop panoramas of Parliament Hill and the wild, light-filled spaces of the Heath.
Oliver Hartwell · 6 min read
Nature & Outdoors
Running Routes on Hampstead Heath: The Complete Guide 2026
The Heath offers some of the best trail running in London with routes to suit everything from a quick parkrun to serious long run training.
Oliver Hartwell · 5 min read
Local Life
Hampstead Heath in Bloom: Wildflowers Through the Year 2026
From the first celandines of February to the last brambles of October Hampstead Heath stages a continuous wildflower display. Here is what to look for each month.
James Calloway · 5 min read
Arts & Culture
Burgh House & the Hampstead Museum: Complete Guide 2026
Hidden on New End Square, Burgh House is a Queen Anne mansion turned community arts centre and local history museum. Free to enter, rarely crowded, and entirely worth your time.
Oliver Hartwell · 5 min read
Food & Drink
Vegetarian & Vegan Hampstead: The Complete Guide 2026
Hampstead has quietly become one of North London's best areas for plant-based eating, here's where to find the good stuff, from casual lunches to proper dinners.
Beatrice Thornton · 5 min read
Local Life
Community Gardens of Hampstead & Belsize Park: A Guide 2026
Beyond the Heath Hampstead has a quietly thriving network of community growing spaces. Here is where to find them and how to get involved.
Beatrice Thornton · 6 min read
Nature & Outdoors
Hampstead Heath Ponds: Opening Times, Prices & Swimming Guide 2026
Three outdoor swimming ponds, open year-round, in the middle of London. The Hampstead ponds are a genuinely singular experience, here is everything you need to know.
Oliver Hartwell · 12 min read
Local Life
Schools in Hampstead NW3: The Complete Guide for Families (2026)
State schools, independent options, admission processes, and what local families actually say about education in the NW3 area, an honest guide without the estate agent gloss.
James Calloway · 15 min read
Nature & Outdoors
Nature in the City: What to Do at Hampstead Heath
790 acres of ancient woodland, meadow, and swimming ponds just four miles from central London. Hampstead Heath is unlike anywhere else in the city, here is how to make the most of it, in every season.
Oliver Hartwell · 8 min read
History & Heritage
Church Row Hampstead: London's Finest Georgian Street
Built in the 1720s and barely altered since, Church Row is Hampstead's architectural masterpiece, a perfect Georgian terrace leading to St John's Church and one of London's most atmospheric churchyards.
James Calloway · 6 min read
Food & Drink
Best Bakeries & Delis in Hampstead: The Complete Guide 2026
The places to find exceptional bread, good cheese, smoked fish, and the kind of provisions that make a Saturday morning feel genuinely civilised.
Oliver Hartwell · 5 min read
History & Heritage
The History of the Spaniards Inn: 400 Years of Legend
Dick Turpin, Lord Byron, John Keats, and Bram Stoker all passed through the same low door. The Spaniards Inn is one of the most storied buildings in London.
James Calloway · 5 min read
Food & Drink
A Coffee Lover's Guide to Hampstead's Best Cafés
Hampstead's café scene is as distinctive as its architecture, independent, unhurried, and quietly excellent. Here is where to find the best flat white, the finest pastry, and the most restorative corner table in NW3.
Beatrice Thornton · 7 min read
Local Life
GP Surgeries in Hampstead: The Complete Guide 2026
Registering with a GP in Hampstead, what to expect from the main local surgeries, and how to navigate NHS primary care when the system feels impenetrable.
Beatrice Thornton · 5 min read