Knightsbridge

The definitive department store experience — seven floors of luxury retail across every conceivable category, from the Egyptian Hall to the Tool Shop to the Food Halls that justify a visit alone. Expensive, extraordinary, and entirely worth the walk-through.

The more considered luxury alternative to Harrods — five floors of fashion, beauty, and homewares with a smaller, more curated selection. The Fifth Floor is a restaurant and bar with one of the best terraces on Sloane Street.

350 acres of central London parkland, running from Park Lane to Kensington. The Serpentine Lake, the Diana Memorial Fountain, the horseguards, and the wide-open grass — this is where Londoners come to escape the city without leaving it.

One of the finest Roman Catholic churches in England — a 1884 Baroque building with a soaring nave, Italian marble, and a programme of high-quality liturgical music. Most visitors walk straight past it on the way to the museums.

A seafood restaurant on the site of what was once the Knightsbridge branch of the London and South Western Bank. The cooking is Italian-influenced and technically accomplished, with a raw bar, a charcoal grill, and a wine list with serious depth.

A short residential street off Brompton Road with a cluster of independent restaurants, boutiques, and antique dealers that most visitors miss entirely. Named Beauchamp (pronounced 'Beecham'), it's the quieter, more interesting face of Knightsbridge.

A 49-room boutique hotel on Basil Street — one of the most consistently excellent small luxury hotels in London. The restaurant, Justin's, is a neighbourhood institution that has been quietly excellent for decades.