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Packed to the brim with cultural activities and opportunities for retail therapy, Battersea is the perfect place to spend a day, or longer. Here's how to while away at least 12 hours.
9am
On your way out of Queenstown Road station (a seven-minute trip from Waterloo), pop down the stairs and grab a flat white or a fresh juice from Coffee Affair. This café takes up residence in the old ticket hall and offers an ambience of times of transport past.
If you’re an early bird, wander down to the New Covent Garden Flower Market, open from 4am until 10am, to discover the difference between a larkspur and a lilac and soak up the atmosphere as the traders haggle.
10am
It’s puppy time (is it ever not?). Head over to the Battersea Cats & Dogs Home to meet the residents and check out their new kennels and play areas, opened by the Queen in March (a corgi welcomed her, of course). See if you can resist taking one home.
11am
Time for a visit to the famous Battersea Park for a walk along the river, or get competitive on the Boating Lake in one of their infamous pedalos. If you’re visiting in late June, you’ll see preparations well underway for the finale of the 2015 Formula E racing season on 27th-28th June.
1pm
You must be starving. Pop into the Prince Albert or the Lighthouse for a proper pub lunch and soak up the sun in either's beer garden, or hop on the 345 towards Clapham Junction and stroll up to Northcote Road for lunch. Try out the hamburger with chorizo at The Bolingbroke at the top of the road, or sample one of the delicious Franco Manca sourdough pizzas. Skip pudding and instead head to Oddono’s for homemade gelato, or down the road for a box of Merveilleux cakes.
3pm
Time for a spot of retail therapy. Pick up a few gems at the Northcote Road Antiques Market and The Painthouse, and peruse the many boutiques and clothes shops. Don’t leave without visiting Hamish Johnston and taking a look at their fantastic selection of cheeses, pickles and truffle honey.
4pm
Channel your inner Mary Berry at the Biscuiteers icing café, with their daily selection of biscuit designs, icing and decorations. If you manage to leave without eating them all, pack them up into a box to showcase your skills to friends, family and passers by.
6pm
Treat yourself at London House in Battersea Square, Gordon Ramsay’s newest restaurant, to round off the day. Start with An Honest Plum cocktail (or two) in the bar, before settling down to dinner in the restaurant.
9pm
Feeling a little more energetic? Swing by the Doodle Bar for a drink and a speed game of ping pong, before you put on your dancing shoes to dance the night away in Bunga Bunga. Warm up your vocal chords and impress the crowd with a karaoke classic before you collapse into your taxi home.