12 quiet and relaxing places in London

Most people cite Richmond Park as the best place for pastoral tranquillity, except it’s not particularly quiet, what with tons of joggers and everyone else in London having the same idea. Bushy Park, which is a short distance from Hampton Court station or a bus from Kingston, is far wilder and has way more deer. And there’s a mile-long tree-lined avenue designed by Christopher Wren, punctuated by a massive eighteenth-century statue of the Roman goddess Diana. The water garden is possibly the best spot for solitude, tucked away from the crowds, where the only noise you’ll hear are ducks flapping their wings in the spray.

Explore more of London’s greatest green spaces here. 

Decked out with soft sofas and squishy bean bags, the Wellcome Library’s Reading Room is a supremely cosy sanctuary for whiling away the hours. Spend as long as you like here, completely free of charge. From memoirs to graphic novels, there are more than 1,000 books (loosley related to human health) to delve into and help take your mind off the outside world (or you can always bring your own). 

 Find more of London’s best and most beautiful libraries here. 

Highgate Cemetery, in all its crumbling glory, is a perfect setting to slowly wander and muse on the miracle of life. Not only does it have status as a nature reserve and is a haven for birds and foxes, but it is the burial place for many historical figures including poet Christina Rossetti and architect Sir Lawrence Weaver.   

A real local landmark, Baywater’s historic Porchester Spa claims to be London’s oldest spa, having first opened in 1929. For just under £30, relax your mind and muscles in its steam room, sauna, plune pool, and three Turkish hot rooms (tepidarium, caldarium and laconium). 

See more of London’s best saunas here and its best spas here. 

The first temple of its kind to be built in the UK, this red-roofed haven is moments away from Wimbledon Common. It’s a Thai Buddhist temple but anyone is welcome to step inside or walk around in the grounds. The sanctuary garden is a top spot for quiet. No one speaks in a raised voice around here, and there are little signs with positive thoughts and affirmations. They also hold regular meditation classes and silent retreats.

For such a small spot, St Dunstan-in-the-East has been through a lot; the twelfth-century church was almost wrecked in the Great Fire of London of 1666, but Sir Christopher Wren added a tower and steeple in an attempt to patch it up. It was damaged again in the Blitz of 1941, but Wren’s creation remains standing and now nature is reclaiming the ruins granting it a beautiful half-forgotten, peaceful atmosphere, with climbers running up entire walls. Although it’s right near a Premier Inn, its location in the back streets means most people don’t know it’s there. At any time, it promises to be a pretty spot to stop and think.

Stumble upon more of London’s hidden gardens here. 

Wigmore Hall is considered one of the planet’s greatest recital halls. Come here to go full zen and be immersed in a sound bath of beautiful, other-worldly music from outstanding classical musicians. The Monday lunchtime recitals, broadcast live on BBC Radio 3, are excellent value, as are the Sunday morning coffee concerts. If you’re under 35, you can attend selected perfromances for just £5. 

This artist-led project has transformed a WWII bombsite into an impressive garden that provides free food for local communities. We often consider the plants they grow to be weeds, but they’ve been picked for their historic and modern-day use in phytotherapy. That’s the use of plant extracts as medicines or health-promoting agents, FYI. You can come down to the physic garden and pick some of 30-plus varieties of plants – with the supervision of staff – but they also have a deep investment in finding out how city living impacts mental health. The underlying ethos is that they provide a space that acts as an antidote to some of London’s stresses.

A literary refuge from central London crowds, this free to visit library is located on the fifth floor of the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, overlooking the Thames. Founded by the Arts Council in 1953, it was opened by none other than TS Eliot, before relocating to this site in 1988, where Seamus Heaney had the honour of opening its facilities. Today it is the largest public collection of modern poetry in the world. Chill out here with the soothing words and fictional worlds of Ocean Vuong, Carole Ann Duffy, Benjamin Zephaniah and many, many more. 

This 6,000 acre woodland on the border of north London is a beautiful expanse of mature native trees with more than 100 lakes and ponds among them. Ideal for a soothing stroll, walking routes are signposted throughout the area. Its quieter corners include Loughton Camp and Wintry Wood in the far north of the forest. 

The sprawling Barbican complex in the City of London definitely isn’t the place you’d expect to find one of the capital’s greatest green spaces. But wander for long enough among its concrete angles and you’ll stumble into a gasp-inducing tropical paradise. The Barbican Conservatory opened in 1984 and is one of the biggest greenhouses in London, second only to Kew Gardens. It houses 2,000 plant species, including towering palms and ferns, across an extensive series of concrete terraces and beds. There are even koi carp and terrapins. The atmosphere is almost post-apocalyptically peaceful.

Discover more of London’s prettiest greenhouses here. 

Slightly off the beatan track, just a stone’s throw from Holland Park, Leighton House is an incredibly well-preserved Victorian artists home and studio. The house was commissioned by Frederick Leighton and designed by his pal George Aitcheson and is a treasure trove of gorgeous decor and countless masterpieces. Its turquoise Arab Hall, lined with Islamic tiles is a particularly impressive site to behold. If you find a particular calmness in arts and crafts, the site  holds regular workshops, from relaxed monthly life drawing to classes on creating your own topical zine. 

Check out more of the city’s lesser-known galleries and museums here.