Shoreditch

Shoreditch has spent the last couple of decades turning old industrial buildings into something else entirely, and the places to stay here still carry that history. You will find rooms in converted warehouses and loft-style buildings that once belonged to garment factories and print works, now sitting alongside sleeker modern developments. It is an area that has never quite settled into one identity, and that restlessness is part of the appeal.

Staying here puts you at the centre of East London's creative sprawl, within easy reach of the City to the south and the canals and markets of Hackney to the north. The streets around Redchurch Street and Brick Lane are where most visitors end up wandering, past street art, independent shops and the kind of buildings that get reused every few years for something new.

There are not many formal attractions in the traditional sense, but that has never been the point of Shoreditch. Ballie Ballerson, a bar filled with ball pits, sums up the area's willingness to do things differently, while the Museum of Shakespeare offers a quieter, more historic counterpoint tucked into the same streets.

The range of cuisine on offer is wide even by London standards. Hoppers Shoreditch brings Sri Lankan and South Indian cooking to the area, Dang's offers something different again, and Nekter Deli and Amelio cover more familiar ground for a relaxed meal. With 118 The Lane and dozens more within a short walk, deciding where to eat is often the hardest part of staying here.