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Splendidly chic boutiques, exquisite antiques shops and hundreds of charming eighteenth and nineteeth century houses make Chelsea one of the most desirable areas in London. King's Road is the main shopping area and provides a wealth of opportunity for the keen shopper. Most outlets (especially on the King's Road) tend to be small, with smart fashionable bars and restaurants jostling for space in between. Glorious 18th and 19th century buildings abound housing many artistic and literary names just as they have done through the centuries.

The Royal Hospital was founded in 1682 by Charles II and houses the Chelsea Pensioners (distinguished ex-servicemen) who you will probably see strolling around the streets of Chelsea in their bright red coats and tricorn hats. Every year the grounds of the Hospital open to the public for the world famous Chelsea Flower Show - one of London's great social events.

Chelsea is indeed one of London's most delightful residential areas and the ideal place for a stroll on a summer's day. What's more, if you're around in the evening you may well bump into the future King of England: Prince William has taken something of a shine to the exclusive restaurants and bars in the area!

Famous residents of Chelsea have included Hilaire Belloc (poet), Arnold Bennett (novelist), Sir Isambard Kingdom Brunel (civil engineer), George Eliot (novelist), Sir Alexander Fleming (discoverer of penicillin), Elizabeth Gaskell (novelist), Percy Grainger (composer), John Ireland (composer), Charles Kinglsey (writer), Dante Gabriel Rosetti (painter and poet), Captain Scott (Antarctic explorer), Bram Stoker (writer of Dracula), Algernon Charles Swinburn (poet), Tobias Smollet (novelist), Mark Twain (American novelist), James Whistler (painter), William Wilberforce (anti-slavery campaigner), and Oscar Wilde (notorious dramatist and wit).

Nearest Underground stop: Sloane Square