South-east London with room to breathe: Edwardian streets, real parks, free parking, and fast trains into London Bridge.
Inside The Lewisham House, in Lewisham.
This part of Lewisham (Lee, around SE12) is quieter and greener than the town centre, and it is one of the few places this close to central London where parking is simply not a problem. For anyone arriving by car, that is worth more than it sounds.
The housing is mostly Edwardian and inter-war, with gardens front and back, and the streets are wide. Manor House Gardens is the local park: a lake, old trees, a library in the manor house itself, and a playground that is busy on a Saturday for the right reasons.
It suits a stay where the point is space and calm rather than being in the middle of things: families, longer stays, and anyone working at the hospitals or in the Docklands, which is a short hop north.
Getting out
Southeastern rail
Lee and Hither Green into London Bridge, and on to Charing Cross and Cannon Street
DLR
From Lewisham, for Canary Wharf and the Docklands
By car
Free on-street parking, and the South Circular for the M25
What is nearby
Manor House Gardens
A park with a lake, a playground and a library in the manor house
Blackheath
Open heath and a village of independent shops, a short drive or bus ride
Greenwich Park
The Observatory, the Maritime Museum and the view back over the river
Lee High Road
Everyday shops, a supermarket and takeaways within walking distance
