South Croydon

South Croydon sits just below Croydon's town centre, a residential stretch of south London that trades the bustle of the shopping streets for quieter roads and a slower pace. It has long been a place people pass through on the way to the Surrey hills beyond, but it holds its own as a base too, with good transport links back into central London and out towards the countryside.

Accommodation here ranges from the dependable to the genuinely characterful. The Travelodge London South Croydon is the obvious choice for anyone wanting a straightforward, no-fuss stay near the main roads. Croham Park Bed & Breakfast and the Hayesthorpe Hotel offer something more personal, the kind of places where you get to know the owners over breakfast. For a bigger occasion, Selsdon Park Hotel stands apart, set in its own grounds on the edge of South Croydon with far more space and grandeur than the town's other options.

There isn't a single headline attraction that draws people to South Croydon; instead, it works as a calm residential counterpoint to Croydon proper, useful for visiting family, breaking a journey south, or exploring the green spaces that start to appear as the suburbs give way to Surrey. Selsdon Park Hotel's grounds are worth a wander in their own right if you're staying there.

Altogether, South Croydon is a practical, well-fed base for anyone wanting easy access to London without staying in the thick of it, with enough places to eat that you'd struggle to visit them all in one trip.