The Time Out London blog team

Craving a bit of fresh air? Luckily, London is literally surrounded by fabulous seaside towns where you can go to clear your head and your lungs.  As we enter summer, Time Out has just published its list of the best seaside towns to visit in the UK this year, with seven of them being within easy reach of the capital. The towns range from old-school resorts to quaint fishing villages and up-and-coming arty spots. Can’t decide which one to visit? Here we’ve mapped them all out for you. The best seaside towns near London mapped Image: Time Out Sister towns Hastings and St Leonards came in second place in our annual ranking. We love the duo for their art galleries, restaurants and jam-packed calendar of local events which includes pagan festivals and the UK’s biggest Mardi Gras. The East Sussex town to the southeast of London is sandwiched between Brighton and Folkestone along England’s south coast. All three towns can be reached from the capital in under two hours by train.  Slightly north from Folkestone you’ll find the glorious Whitstable, known for its oysters and shingle beaches, which ranked 14th on our list. This Kent town to London’s east can be reached in just over an hour on the train.  If you’re looking to try something slightly further afield, and perhaps less obvious than the Sussex or Kent coast, to the southwest of London you’ll find Hampshire’s quaint Lymington (number 15) which is an entry point to the pony-filled New Forest, and Southsea (3), an old-school...

Every year, travel mag Condé Nast Traveller publishes a list of the world’s best new hotels. This prestigious ranking names the cream of the crop when it comes to new places to stay around the world. We’re talking boutique city boltholes, luxe seaside resorts, ultra-premium safaris and some very bougie spa hotels.  CNT’s list was curated by the publication’s global editors and contributors, who spent the past 12 months staying at the top hotel openings around the world. For 2026, two hotels in the long list were in London. The world’s best new hotels in London in 2026 Photograph: Six Senses London Six Senses The new Six Senses hotel London made the cut for 2026. The wellness behemoth with 27 hotels and resorts around the world opened its first UK outpost this year. Housed in the former Whiteleys department store in west London, the building underwent an eye-watering £1.5 billion redevelopment to create the glamorous 109-room hotel, as well as shops, restaurants and a cinema.  When Time Out reviewed the Bayswater hotel in April this year we rated it five stars. We thought the second-to-none spa was the main draw of a stay at Six Senses London. It offers a luxury but surprisingly laid back experience, where guests can try everything from a Finnish sauna, quartz crystal bed, and 20-metre swimming pool to a magnesium plunge pool and cryochamber. The cost of a stay here starts at £825 per night – see options on Booking.com here. Photograph: Booking.com Chancery Rosewood...

It’s been seven years since a big Star Wars film landed in cinemas, so it’s fair to say that excitement for Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu is high. The new film is a feature-length outing for Mando (played by Pedro Pascal) and his little green friend Grogu, better known as ‘baby Yoda’, as the duo head out on an intergalactic adventure.  Can’t wait to get to the cinema? If you’re itching for your in-Universe fix, a new pop-up cafe will be immersing fans in all things Grogu before the film hits the big screen.  Open from Friday May 15 to Sunday May 17, the Grogu cafe will be serving up matcha blends, ‘cosmic desserts’ and treats themed around the cute little creature, all surrounded by themed decor. Photograph: Disney+ The food and drink have all been created by top London joints, including Bread Ahead, which has created a ‘Little Green Doughnut’ and ‘Cosmic Cookie’ for the occasion, Bubble CiTea, and PerfectTed, which has concocted a ‘Little Green Lemonade’ and a ‘Galactic Blueberry’ drink. There’ll also be the chance to join ‘curated photo moments’ and shop new Star Wars merch, including some intriguing-sounding Grogu-inspired ‘blind boxes’. Photograph: Disney+ While we can’t promise any of the stars from the film will be dropping by for their morning coffee, there will be plenty of Grogu plushies in the shop, so you can take some cuteness home.  Grogu Café will be at Kachette Annexe, 1 Kingsland Rd, E2 8AA from May 15 (12.30pm to 8.30pm), May 16 (9am to...