London Roof Garden

Gardeners’ World is one of my must-watch programmes on TV and a few episodes back they showed a Roof Garden in Fenchurch Street, London. I told my son about it (the marathon running son), as he lives and works in London. He knew the building but had never been to the garden, so a couple of weeks ago, we met outside Exit 8 of the Bank Underground StationIMG_5814

and made the short walk to Fenchurch Street.

What a place The Sky Garden at 20, Fenchurch Street is!

20, Fenchurch Street roof garden

It is all undercover, the planting is tropical, and on several levels.

IMG_5816

It is free to visit but you have to book a time slot – book well in advance as it has become very popular.

Spectacular! but I immediately realised that this was not the garden I had seen on Gardeners’ World. Nevermind, we had a good look around and enjoyed the absolutely breathtaking views of LondonIMG_5817

and the Thames

IMG_5818

IMG_5825

Look! The Tower of London and London Bridge

Tower of London and London Bridge

The Shard

IMG_5826

London

from the Sky garden

The obligatory selfie to send to the rest of the family

skygdn

And then lunch: there is a bar and a couple of places to eat – a very posh restaurant, right at the top and a more casual area of comfy seating where you can get wraps and baguetteslunch

Looking out of this window, my son spotted another Roof Garden – “That’s it!” I squealed.

IMG_5821

IMG_5815

So he consulted the internet and discovered that this too was free to visit with no booking system – we could just turn up, so after a bit more of a wander, off we went to find 120, Fenchurch Street ………..

33 responses to “London Roof Garden

  1. I have yet to go to either. Always forget to book a slot or run out of time to queue. London is such a fab city, I love it!

    Liked by 1 person

  2. You have shared some fascinating sides to Central London Sandra. I am amazed at the more human scale of the taller buildings, and so many low scale buildings. Here in Melbourne our CBD is a mess of enormous skyscrapers.

    Liked by 1 person

    • The mix of old and new, tall and small all jumbled together is part of the character of London that I really appreciate. You are amidst buildings that reach to the sky, turn a corner and you stand in front of a medieval church, and the sky opens up. It was such fun to be above so many looking down.

      Like

  3. Pingback: 120, Fenchurch Street | Wild Daffodil

  4. The views were stupendous – and looks like perfect weather!

    Liked by 1 person

  5. coastalripples

    I so enjoyed this post! Living on the other side of the pond I was reminded of how thrilling it was to photograph from the top of the Empire State building, but I must say it doesn’t hold a candle to London city vistas! What a great son to share a memory making day.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Thank you so much for your lovely comment. I went to New York about 12 years ago and loved it, but the scale of the buildings there is rather overwhelming for this country bumpkin! 😉
      New York was an exciting place to be though.

      Like

  6. I’d much rather look at the view from there than go up on the London Eye again.
    Looking forward to seeing the Gardeners’ World garden next.

    Like

  7. Your eagle eyes have done you proud! Looking forward to part 2!

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Wow, amazing what is hiding in the centre of big cities like London. And the views are wonderful too. Look forward to the second part!

    Liked by 1 person

  9. A wonderful place – truly a concrete jungle! Looking forward to more magnificent views in part 2.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. Phew! Glad part two is to come. Green spaces in a city are always welcome, and people flock to them. The garden you visited is wonderful, and I so enjoyed seeing the selfie of you and your son.

    Liked by 1 person

  11. What a wonderful location for a garden. It looks very luscious.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. I dearly love a roof garden; in fact, I love all gardens in unexpected places. The one I’d love to visit but never will unless I win the lottery is the Sky Garden at Gardens by the Bay in SIngapore.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Now that’s a good son! Part two to come I assume…..

    Liked by 1 person

I love your comments, keep'em coming :-)

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.