Two Week Layover in London; where to run?

Parks and river. Make it second nature to look left for cars and buses before you cross streets while running.

Stay in the neighborhood near Paddington Station. You are only a few blocks away from Hyde park. Great and safe place to run.

nategunawan wrote:

I'm stopping for two weeks in London and am wondering, first of all if it is safe to run there, and if so, where should I run?

Thanks!

it depends where you will be staying ... where?

I used to go over monthly for business Favorites were Hyde Park, Hampstead Heath for hills, path along south bank of Thames (great views).

Richmond park or the Thames towpath.

Both of those are miles ahead of what you can get in any similat sized American city. That is, once you take into account London's depressing weather.

Two week layover?!?!? Now that's a sh$#ty flight. What airline?

Look right, not left or you might get killed.

Hampstead Heath and Greenwich Park for the views. Hyde Park centrally. Richmond Park is eight long around the perimeter. Thames towpath and the canals. Parkrun 9am on Saturday morning all over the city...http://www.parkrun.org.uk.

I was amused at the question - is it safe to run in London.

I think the members of over 45 running clubs in the area manage to train regularly without fear for their safety!

Wonder how many active running clubs there are in New York?

An indication as to where he will be resident would have been useful.

I would agree, Richmond Park and the towpath along the Thames are great for longer runs. You might even spot a few elites training as well.

Check the

www.runnersworld.co.uk

for race listings.

Parkrun, google it. It will give you a good idea where the running spots are.

I was just there for two weeks a month ago. There are a number of parks with decent trails in them. Regent's Park was my favorite, if you go off the paved path, there are some good little dirt trails worn around the outskirts in the shade of the hedges if you go in the morning. The Thames is unique and a good place to run although there is very poor air quality.

Some years back I hooked up for a long-run with and did a 5K in Hyde Park organized by the Serpentines: http://www.serpentine.org.uk/ I also got in some speedwork at one of the local tracks. Just remember to look the correct way for traffic.

I travel to London a lot and run there all the time. Very safe.

As other have said you'll find a lot of runners in the main parks (Hyde, Regent's, Green, St. James, Hampstead Heath, etc.) and along both banks of the Thames (the south bank is a little quieter).

Another great place to run is along the canals such as "Regent's Canal". The easiest place to find it is just north of Regent's Park, near the zoo.

Or you can string them all together, here's a route.

http://www.mapmyrun.com/gb/city-of-london-eng/london-long-run-route-24054736

Business Traveler wrote:

I travel to London a lot and run there all the time. Very safe.

As other have said you'll find a lot of runners in the main parks (Hyde, Regent's, Green, St. James, Hampstead Heath, etc.) and along both banks of the Thames (the south bank is a little quieter).

Another great place to run is along the canals such as "Regent's Canal". The easiest place to find it is just north of Regent's Park, near the zoo.

Or you can string them all together, here's a route.

http://www.mapmyrun.com/gb/city-of-london-eng/london-long-run-route-24054736

based on your run route you appear to have had a room in the tower of london?

Well.... I was at the Tower Hotel. Probably not much better than the Tower of London, although the hotel has gotten a little better over the years.

Richmond Park. Also, Bushy Park is hallowed ground in distance running history. They also have a great 5k run there on Saturdays.