Paddington Hotels

Paddington, London - Guide

Paddington - General Information

Paddington is bordered by Hyde Park to the South and Oxford Street to the East making it an ideal base from which to explore the city of London. With more affordable hotels than many other areas of London, Paddington is becoming increasingly popular with London's visitors.

As late as 1801, Paddington was a quiet leafy suburb of London with just over 300 houses. It was also the location of the infamous Tyburn Tree, where many of London’s public executions were conducted, sometimes with as many as 21 people at a time. By the mid 19th Century, Victorian London was sprawling ever outwards and Paddington was redesigned with elegant squares, gardens and terraces attracting lawyers, bankers and professionals from the City. Paddington also attracted a creative community with former residents such as the poet Robert Browning, mathematician Alan Turing and the scientist Sir Alexander Fleming. These days Paddington is the home to musicians such as Seal and Elvis Costello together with actors like Alan Rickman and Emma Thomson.

Paddington Basin

The Paddington Basin is the terminus for the Grand Union Canal linking the cities of Birmingham and London. The 137 mile long canal was an amalgamation of several independent canal systems brought together by the threat of freight transport by train and by road. Paddington was chosen because it was positioned on the New Road running East into the centre of the city. Paddington Basin was opened in 1801 and in its day was one of the busiest transport hubs in London. Today, the area is the centre of major urban regeneration and ‘Little Venice’, as it is nicknamed, is home to trendy bars, art galleries, restaurants and coffee shops.

Paddington Station

Paddington remains an important transport hub to this day. Paddington Station is one of the major National Rail and London Underground station complexes. It is also serves as the terminus of the Heathrow Airport Express.

Paddington Bear

Paddington’s greatest claim to fame is undoubtedly the Paddington Bear children’s books series written by author Michael Bond. The story goes… Paddington Bear, an immigrant bear from ‘darkest Peru’, arrived at Paddington Station with his ‘old bush hat, battered suitcase and marmalade sandwiches’, from there, he was picked up by the Brown family, who adopted him and gave him the name Paddington.
Michael Bond started the Paddington series in 1958 and it quickly became a children’s literature icon. It was subsequently translated into 30 foreign languages and sold over 30 million copies worldwide. There is now a bronze statue of Paddington Bear within the Paddington Station complex.

Imperial College London

Imperial College London had been ranked 9th in the world by THES and consistently is ranked in the top three within the UK. It was founded in 1927 with the merger of the City and Guilds College, the Royal School of Mines and the Royal College of Science. The university’s medical and engineering faculties are world-renowned and have produced 14 Nobel Laureates.