Discover Wandsworth: Parks, Culture and History

Wandsworth appeals to visitors with a wide range of interests: historic green spaces, a lido with a unique history, cultural venues and a diverse market. When planning your stay, consider whether parkland, architectural history, performances, swimming or food will be a priority. These interests can help guide you when looking for a hotel in Wandsworth.

Riverside parks and protected common land

Battersea Park is a 200-acre Victorian park on the riverside. Its landscape includes a Thames promenade, a lake, notable trees, ecological areas and sports facilities. The park is also home to Battersea Park Zoo, Go Ape, bicycle and boat hire, and Putt in the Park. The park thus brings together riverside scenery and a range of leisure activities in one place.

Wandsworth Common has a different character: woodland, lakes and heathland form part of a common landscape with special statutory protection. Public access is available via entrances on Bolingbroke Road, Bellevue Road, Trinity Road and Burntwood Lane, as well as on other surrounding streets. As the access information may change, check the latest details before your visit.

Tooting Bec Lido: a historic open-air swimming pool

Tooting Bec Lido is the largest freshwater outdoor swimming pool in the United Kingdom. Its 90-metre outdoor pool offers lane swimming and relaxed open-swim sessions during the summer season. Access depends on current operating arrangements; check the season and opening times in force before visiting.

The lido first opened in 1906. Its surviving features include colourful changing huts and spacious areas around the pool. Here, the lido’s long history meets the distinctive design of the swimming complex.

Industrial history and cultural venues

Battersea Power Station is a Grade II* listed interwar utility building in the London Borough of Wandsworth. The free exhibition “Power of Place – The Making of Battersea Power Station” traces the building’s journey from closure to reopening. After an exhibition in the Art Deco Turbine Hall A, the Chimney Lift takes visitors up one of the chimneys to a height of 109 metres. Exhibition and visitor information may change; check the latest details before your visit.

Battersea Arts Centre has operated as an arts centre and performance venue since 1980. It is housed in the former Battersea Town Hall, a Grade II* listed building associated with radical politics and the campaign for women’s suffrage. The former town hall comprises around 70 rooms, including a theatre hall. The venue thus combines its role as a contemporary arts centre with the history of the former town hall.

In Putney, the Church of St Mary the Virgin features surviving fabric from the 15th century, as well as additions from the early 16th and early 17th centuries. Wandsworth Council provides downloadable audio guides for walks around Putney. Visitors interested in architectural history will find here another distinctive perspective on the past, alongside Battersea’s cultural venues.

Market flavours and walking routes

Tooting Market offers food to eat in or take away. The selection includes Korean fusion cuisine, Italian pizzas and panzerotti, Guyanese cuisine, burgers and Caribbean dishes. There is also a microbrewery with a tasting bar serving local Graveney Gin. Traders and offerings may change; check the market’s latest information in advance.

The Wandle Trail offers car-free routes between Earlsfield and Poulter Park that are suitable for people with a range of abilities to explore. As route conditions may change, it is worth checking the latest path information before setting out. This stretch adds another way to explore the area on foot to its historic green spaces.

Discover more destinations: Wandsworth, Kingston Upon Thames, Ealing, Islington, Tower Hamlets, Richmond Upon Thames, Brent, Kensington And Chelsea.

For the main travel overview: Greater London.