Hello there, this is a message to the members of the Holland Park Tennis Club. I am a tennis player…read moreand I would love to have a chance to play on grass one day! Since I am not a member myself and I am only going to be in London for the next 5 weeks, I was wondering whether I could play with one among you and so fulfill this little dream of mine. Thanks for your kind attention, Nino

This place is so much more than a tennis club; it's my second home. Tennis clubs and I have known…read morea few can be elitist, cold places, full of cliques and rules. Take Hurlingham, where if you're not wearing 87% white, some haughty octogenarian will shuffle over and delight in ticking you off. And where despite the fact they boast dozens of often deserted, pristine courts, you can't book for more than an hour. And don't get me onto the 10-year waiting list. HPLTC is infinitely friendlier with far more sensible rules. What makes it special is the fact it's small enough to encourage a community feel, but not so small as to feel claustrophobic. The grounds are also wonderful. If you don't have any outdoor space at home as I don't you can while away summer days with a few sets on grass courts, before collapsing with a newspaper and Pimms in a deckchair on their generous lawn. The club, tucked away in Holland Park, has a unique atmosphere and is the type of place where you can turn up alone and find someone to chat to and probably play with. There's a club night on Wednesday with a dinner afterwards, a singles league, tournaments, barbecues in the summer and a dedicated core of regulars. Really, if you're tennis-mad, as I am, there's no better place to be on a sunny day...and no better tennis club in London.

I have been a member for over 14 years, and this place used to be amazing. Fair warning: the branch…read morehas actively been pushing members away for a little over a year to justify drastic changes driven by a shockingly unprofessional management at the top (up to the brand level). The club stopped paying Zumba licence, right before removing all music so they could slowly remove valuable classes and replace trained instructors with cheap in-house staff with basic knowledge. Exit cycling, swimming, Zumba, boxing and anything worth paying a premium membership. Now all you get is a few machines, one working toilet at best per changing room and some mediocre offering with extremely boring AI music (instructors who played their own music got either fined or fired). Pool is often broken and closed, with regular shortage of hot water in the changing rooms. All the best instructors have left by now. The club has fallen so badly it's made it to the newspaper. If you are looking for anything else than jogging on a few treademills for a very high price, look elsewhere.

This is a lovely Virgin gym. I especially like that the freeweights are kept separately to the…read morecardio machines etc. The pool feels a little like a tin can - so they lose points for that, but the jacuzzi is huge and deserves recognition! Very lush changing rooms and they come with little tvs to entertain!

Having the desire to pick up my tennis again, as I was a regular player in Switzerland, having a…read moregood example with Roger Federer, it started to do my research into tennis courts in London. Living in Fulham as a student, I discovered a tennis court when going jogging in Bishops Park. At that point I did not have a tennis racket in London. With a friend we went there to inform our selves. They actually rent out rackets, they are not the newest models, but they do for getting your first introduction to tennis again. The Bishop Park Tennis Centre has hard out door courts only. Therefore it is more fun in spring, summer and autumn. There are also coached lessons, which you can book with a friend. As this tennis court is run by the Hammersmith & Fulham borough, the tennis courts are relatively cheap and they are usually only crowded around the Wimbledon period. The exercise value of tennis improved the more we played. The bending, stretching, leaping and running made us fit and healthy with sometimes a rather unhealthy student life.

This place is amazing. Truly amazing…read more While visiting South Kensington for a family vacation, our football-obsessed son was craving a spot to stretch his legs and kick a soccer ball around. It's surprisingly difficult to find a place to do that. There's plenty of neighborhood green areas in Kensington but those don't allow ball play. There's also large lawn areas but those don't have goals. After a ton of random searching, I came across this spot and thought I'd chance it. This place checks all the boxes. Astro turf. Free Not crowded Food/coffee nearby (via the local church) 100% win

Tucked away just off the King's Road next to the church where Charles Dickens said his "I do"s, is…read moreSt. Luke's Gardens. Popular with locals at lunchtime, yoga practitioners throughout the day, mums & nannies taking little ones for walks, and plenty of friendly pigeons, it's a lovely little spot. I've wandered here a few times over the past few years, but recently found solace under a tree on a dry bench as a flash rain shower soaked everything and everyone around me. I got about 3 drops on me - which was pretty cool. It's nice to know there's a little haven amongst the local hustle and bustle to escape to. I'm a big fan of church yards in general and while I do find it weird that the old gravestones have mostly been removed and lined up around the fence wall by the church, it's still a beautiful & relaxing spot to enjoy.

This is a wonderfully old-school and sophisicated London members club - perfect for a game of lawn…read moretennis or just hanging out drinking tea and reading a book in one of the beautiful conservatories or on the terrace (I did the latter!) You can only get in here with a member - and most people are either married into or born into membership at Hurlingham because the wait is around 15 years - but luckily members can bring a bunch of people at a time. The grounds are gorgeous and with a perfect weather weekend you can spend hours wandering around and taking in the beautiful scenery. If you decide to opt for a membership, by the time your name is at the top of the list 15 or so years down the track, you may just be about nearing the right age to fit in with the clientele here. Yes, I'm talking OAPs. This club is a million miles away from the media crowd you find in most well known members club, this really is a place for the old-school English gentleman in his suit - which gives it a special vibe. Oh and don't forget your crisp whites on the tennis courts, no other gear allowed here!

This private club is a wonderful sanctuary in the middle of busy London…read more Its grounds are simply divine and the view onto the Thames is really gorgeous. You feel like you've stepped into some alternate universe where everyone is friendly and nice. There's a great playground for children, an outdoor swimming pool and jacuzzi i think, tennis courts, croquet lawns etc. There are the usual rules regarding wearing only white. The restaurant is also quite yummy though I wouldn't say it's mind-blowing. The BBQ in the summer is delicious though! Obviously the down-sides are that it's ridiculously expensive to become a member and the waiting list is close to almost a century.

At Hyde Park I was a spectator rather then a tennis player. I watched friends of mine playing a…read morematch on a hard court from a bench, surrounded by the green. The garden has been well taken care of and on the side there are people playing lawn bowls. Even though this tennis court does have members, who benefit from certain advantages, it was able for us to book a court in advanced where we paid £12 an hour. The bookings can be easily made online. There is a little café at the entrance, where players and spectators can have refreshment. When walking past, I have seen you also can hire this place for private functions such as BBQ or weddings. The good thing is the tennis court is open all day around and does not its tennis season by October. However it is dependent on weather and light. The opening times are by daylight, as they do not have floodlight when it gets dark. Even though this court is quite expensive, the It is an exceptional experience being able to have this quality of sport in middle of Kensington Park/Hyde Park.

I have used the cafe and people who work there made me feel unwelcome.never use that place…read more again.

I am a passionate tennis player and I found a place in London where you do not need to be member of…read morea tennis club. West way is on the Hammersmith line at Royal oak. I have been there in summer, as they also have 4 out door courts as well as 8 indoor courts. You will play on the clay court outdoors and on an acrylic court indoors. Playing tennis at this sports centre gave a proper city like feeling, as it is next to an autoroute bridge. The facilities are absolutely ok. You have to book in advanced, as they do get buys at peak times, but otherwise they have a free court on the day. West Way sports centre is a pay and play centre without members, we were charged a one-off registration fee of £3 for 1 hour. In summer it can get quite hot when the sun gets out. When walking to the courts there are football games taking place, everyone gets sportive active. If you want to have a more professional lesion there is also the possibility to book a coached session. This place is great value for money, which makes you go out there and play tennis!

Westway Sports Centre is a Mecca for football, tennis and something called Eton Fives…read more With six outdoor artificial football pitches, eight indoor tennis courts and four Eton Fives courts this centre is busy all week long. None of the courts are expensive to hire, but you should aim to book well in advance. Eton Fives is a game played by hitting a small ball with a glove hand within a three walled court. It requires devastatingly quick reflexes to master. Housing a pool, climbing wall and a whole host of sports, the Westway Centre is a popular sporting location.

From where we stayed in Notting Hill, we were a very short walk to Holland Park…read more We entered through Holland Walk and headed to the Dutch Garden first, where thousands of tulips were starting to bloom. It was a bit early in the season so the garden was not nearly as beautiful as it might have been just a week later. This year, the color theme was primarily purple and yellow and those were the tulips not fully bloomed. A garden plot with vibrant red tulips that were in full bloom was very pretty! After, we walked onto the Kyoto Garden, which was much more congested because it is a picturesque spot. There is a walking path around a pond with a key photo spot being the waterfall. The tourists queue up in one line clockwise to take photos at the waterfall. Oddly, there are some walkers that are clearly frustrated by the presence of visitors and insist on walking counter-clockwise through the visitors. We exited on Abbotsbury Road, on the opposite side of the park. It was a nice 1-2 hour excursion, a nice walk and recommend it!

Gayle and I took a long walk from our Hilton Paddington Hotel to Holland Park, specifically to see…read moreand enjoy their Japanese (Kyoto) Garden. We were not disappointed. It's a sizable park and feels more like being in a jungle vs. the more manicured London green spaces like Kensington Gardens or Hyde Park. So after our visit to the Japanese Garden, we enjoyed just wandering around and kind of getting lost. We also appreciated the peace and quiet that comes with the relative lack of crowds.