Things to do in Chelsea, London

Bookended by Chelsea Bridge and Albert Bridge, Chelsea Embankment promises a short but very sweet (and ultra-scenic) stroll along the north bank of the Thames. Gazing across the broad river from beneath lofty London plane trees is as good an introduction to Chelsea as you're likely to find. That familiar landmark directly opposite? That’d be the iconic Battersea Power Station, looking for all the world like an upturned table, its four gleaming white Art Deco chimneys (or legs, if you will) pointing every skywards. If you have time, it’s worth hopping across for a visit; its 21st-century transformation to entertainment complex, complete with shops, bars, restaurants, cinema and observation platform is a sight to behold. Right next door, Battersea Park boasts a similarly impressive embarrassment of riches, not least the Pump House gallery, boating lake, Children’s Zoo and Peace Pagoda, from which you can gaze straight back across the river at the plane trees you just left behind.

Back on Chelsea Embankment, make time for a pitstop at Chelsea Physic Garden, a small pocket of green space established in 1673 as a garden for the cultivation of edible and medicinal plants. Among its many quirky exhibits are the world’s most northerly grapefruit tree, Britain’s largest olive tree and the oldest alpine rock garden in Europe. Don’t skip the historic glasshouses with their splendid collection of species from the Americas and Atlantic islands.

The Physic may be London’s oldest garden, but it’s the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show, which takes over the grounds of Chelsea’s Royal Hospital each May, that draws the big crowds. For much of the rest of the year it’s possible to tour the historic hospital guided by one of its residents – red coated pensioners who had served the country in the military. Downton Abbey fans will recognize the building’s stunning red-brick English Baroque facade, from the series finale when Lady Edith finally got her happy ending by marrying her Bertie.

Fancy exploring a little further afield? Uber Boat by Thames Clippers call at Chelsea Harbour and serve 23 stops along the river, connecting you to Westminster, the Tower of London, Greenwich and beyond. You get a one-day river roamer pass with the Go City London pass, which also gets you discounted access to over 100 more essential London attractions, tours and activities.

A mews is a side street that once housed the stables of grander houses, and Chelsea has these attractive little thoroughfares in spades. Take in the area’s best architecture by pedaling your way along these (generally) traffic-free streets on a rented bike. Peepers peeled for London’s blue plaques along the way. These little wall-mounted markers immortalize the places where famous figures lived, died, worked and performed and you’ll find plenty of them – including Bob Marley, Lillie Langtry and Oscar Wilde – attached to building facades throughout the borough.

The National Army Museum is one of Chelsea’s more modern architectural marvels. Free to visit, it consists of five galleries, which together tell the story of the British Army from its origins in the Civil Wars of the 17th Century right up to the present day. Lock up your bike at the dedicated stands by the enormous armored tank parked outside (trust us when we say you really can’t miss it). Then step inside to explore some 2,500 eye-popping artifacts, including the skeleton of Napoleon’s horse (yes, really) alongside the cloak of his arch nemesis the Duke of Wellington, plus Lawrence of Arabia’s robes, Florence Nightingale’s lamp, and much more besides.

Pedal your way to Duke of York Square, home of the Saatchi Gallery, which developed out of the private art collection of advertising impresario Charles Saatchi. It’s often associated with the Young British Artists movement of the 1990s, which brought Damien Hurst and Tracey Emin to national and international attention, and you’ll find works by these and other established and upland-coming contemporary artists at the regularly rotating exhibitions held here.

An army of a very different kind floods the streets around Stamford Bridge – Chelsea Football Club’s home ground – on match days. But you can take a peep behind the scenes any day of the week on a guided tour. You’ll get a chance to eyeball the club’s silverware up close (as well as the opportunity to have your photo taken with UEFA Champions League trophies. You’ll also get to visit the dressing room and press room and even to imagine the roar of the crowd as you pass through the hallowed players’ tunnel to the edge of the pitch itself. It’s manna for soccer fans but, in the event that you consider a visit to Chelsea FC about as much fun as a wet kipper around the face, there are several alternative stadium tours available with Go City London, including Arsenal, Spurs and West Ham grounds, as well as wonderful Wembley itself. Just pick your team!

Got a bit of extra time on your hands? Chelsea’s stadium has a rather unusual location beside Brompton Cemetery, one of London’s ‘Magnificent Seven’. Property of the crown, it has become an important habitat for Chelsea’s urban wildlife, as well as being the final resting place of some 200,000 souls. Among its most notable permanent residents are suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, epidemiologist John Snow and John Keats’ muse Fanny Brawne.

Known rather drably as the A3217, as well as the far more evocative King’s Road, this three-kilometer-long thoroughfare has dominated the Chelsea scene since the 1960s. Fun fact alert: it was also, until 1830, used as a private road for the monarch, providing direct access to Kew Gardens and Palace. Hence, you see, the regal name.

Nowadays, you can give your credit card a very serious workout in its 300-or-so high-end stores, where you could easily spend a king’s ransom (geddit?) on fashion one-offs, branded kitchenware, cool wall art and more. Heck, even a takeout coffee and croissant here might set you back a week’s wages.

But with good reason. After all, the King’s Road ain’t without pedigree. Vivienne Westwood once had a boutique here with Malcolm McLaren, while Starbucks opened its first UK premises on the street too. Another blue plaque marks the place Sir Carol Reed lived – director of such movies as The Third Man, Trapeze and Oliver!.

And, if all that shopping and traffic noise leaves you in need of a little tranquility, head north to St Luke’s Church. Not only is it one of the earliest examples of the Gothic Revival style in London, it was also the church where Charles Dickens married Catherine Hogarth, flush with the success of The Pickwick Papers, published just two days prior.