Whiteleys

What is it?

One of London’s first department stores went to sleep for the best part of a decade, and it’s finally woken up. Whiteleys is the grand emporium on Queensway that opened in 1911, and has spent years as a tired shopping centre before closing for a top-to-toe restoration. It reopened in stages from late 2025 as The Whiteley, and it’s a very different beast.

The big headline is Six Senses London, the wellness brand’s first UK hotel, which takes up a whole quarter of the building. Its spa has London’s first hotel magnesium pool. You don’t need to be staying, though, as the ground and lower floors are now home to a handpicked mix of restaurants, fitness and culture. There’s Nela, the Amsterdam live-fire restaurant on its first UK outing, plus a flagship Everyman cinema, a Third Space gym and 3812 Gallery, which shows contemporary Chinese art. Grab a coffee and a pastry at Guillam Coffee House, then lose half an hour in the Adventures in Furniture showroom.

Why go?

It’s one of west London’s great buildings, back to its best, and the best reason in years to spend an afternoon on Queensway. 

Don’t miss

A film at the Everyman. It’s the chain’s largest London site, with five screens across three floors, velvet sofas, two bars and pizzas brought to your seat. Make a night of it with dinner first at Nela, where the open kitchen and 360-degree bar put the flames front and centre.

When to visit

Evenings, when the restaurants and cinema are at their buzziest. Or come for breakfast, when Whiteley’s Kitchen, Bar and Café in the Six Senses turns into a café serving bread and pastries baked in-house.

Time Out tip

It’s still a work in progress, so keep an eye out for new arrivals. Healthy restaurant chain atis is due in November, and the coming months should also bring Mayfair café LALÏ, indoor golf at 14 Clubs, mochi bar Yuum and posh food store Willy’s.