Kite Flying Sites

If you're looking to find places to fly kites, in and around London, try the following...

Stopsley Leisure Centre, Luton * BEST BUGGYING SITE *

Hampstead Heath, North West London * BEST FAMILY SITE *

Hackney Marshes, East London * BEST FESTIVAL SITE *

Blackheath, South London

Russell's Water, nr Watlington, Oxfordshire

Key: Click on to view the flying site or to see a map of the local area (opens a new browser window).

Stopsley Leisure Centre - Luton ......

This is now our "local" buggying site, and boy is it a great site for buggying! Always seems to be windy - maybe that's because it's on the top of a hill with great views over Luton. (OK, with *views* over Luton). The leisure centre is open in normal leisure centre hours and supplies all the usual leisure centre facilities: toilets, food, drinks, etc from vending machines. The flying field is fairly large - big enough to zoom around on a buggy without fear of hitting things. However, in football season it has goalposts all over the prime flying area.. Watch out for the dip at the brow of the hill, it's very easy to pick up speed and go hurtling along towards the trees and if you don't turn in time, you're history. (And if you do turn in time, don't do what I did and fall off, 'cos the ground is hard and you can easily break a finger that way *ouch*).

You will usually find at least one buggier at Stopsley on a Sunday around midday, and more if the wind and weather are good! The only other people you will see on the huge field will be a couple of dog walkers, the odd group of kids and model aircraft flyers, but it is mainly a fairly clear flying site!

Photos taken 15th October 2003.

Directions:
By car: From the M1, take Junction 10 (Luton) and head down the A505 towards Hitchin. Keep going straight ahead at every roundabout until you get to the roundabout with no ahead exit!.. Take the right hand turn here, towards Stopsley.  You will go past the fire station and come to another roundabout (don't you love town planners..). Take the first exit here, then take the first main turning on the right, which should be signposted for the Sports Centre. Follow this road right down and you will see fields in front of you, the entrance to the Sports Centre is on the right hand side.

The other way to get here is to take the "slip road" off to the left just after you turn right at the roundabout with no ahead exit, and then it's a left hand turn at the war memorial, which takes you onto the road that goes down to the Sports Centre.

See our review of Stopsley here.

Hampstead Heath - North West London ... ...

Great for families to go and watch the one-liners at the top of Parliament Hill, but if you need room to fly some stunts then go down the hill towards the swimming pool and race track where you will find a large open area. Be careful which way the wind is blowing though, there can be some pretty bad turbulence off the top of that hill. Oh and watch out for unwary pedestrians who, despite seeing kites there every weekend, still don't seem to realise that a kite has lines attaching itself to its owner, and sometimes those lines are not very visible... Hampstead Heath is one of those places where you almost expect something to happen to your kite / lines... No festivals held here, but lots of flyers meet up here every weekend. Decent toilet facilities on-site and there's even a cafe.

Directions:
Train: North London Line trains stop at Hampstead Heath & Gospel Oak stations - both next to the Heath.
By car: Try to park along Hampstead Lane (B519) or Highgate Road (between the B519 and B518 at the east side of the Heath). Or you could brave the car park if you dare, on East Heath Road (but every time we've been there it was full).

Blackheath - South London ......

Directions:
Train: Nearest station Blackheath (Connex trains go from Cannon Street, Charing Cross & London Bridge).
By car from North London: Go through the Blackwall Tunnel southbound on the A102(M) and take the third exit after you emerge from the tunnel. Turn right at the roundabout onto the A2 and this takes you straight to the site!
By car from South London: Going northbound on the A20, at Lee Green, take a right hand turn onto Lee Road (B2122) which takes you up to the southern side of Blackheath.  Or take the A2 northbound and take the slip road off just before the road ahead turns into the A102(M). Turn left at the roundabout (continuing on the A2) and this will take you to Blackheath.

Hackney Marshes - East London ...

Directions:
Train: Nearest train stations are Homerton and Hackney Wick. Neither particularly close.
By car from the City / South London: From the Blackwall Tunnel, follow the A102 northbound, which turns into the A102(M). At the end of the motorway section, it changes to the A106 (Eastway). Then almost straight away you need to take the left turn onto the B112 (Homerton Road). The Marshes car park is just on the right hand side.
By car from North / West London: From the Holloway Road (A1), turn onto St. Paul's Road (A1199) which turns into Balls Pond Road (A104) and then hooks left towards Hackney Downs station.  At the roundabout take the 3rd exit down Dalston Lane, then left at the T junction into Lower Clapton Road, then right at the next T junction into Urswick Road (A 102). Continue down this road until you get to the Marshes. The car park is on the left hand side of the road.

Russell's Water, nr Watlington, Oxfordshire ......

Directions:
By car: Leave the M40 at junction 6, take the A4009 towards Watlington. Go through Watlington, turn left at the T-junction onto the B480, follow this road for a couple of miles and as you get to the top of the steep hill you will see the signpost pointing left to Christmas Common. Don't take this turning, take the one 100 yards after it which takes you onto a narrow country lane. This takes you through the hamlet of Russells Water. Just keep going straight through the village, past the duck pond, until it seems like you're heading out into wilderness once more. You will pass the pub on your right hand side and at that point you will see the common! There are restrictions on where you can park- no motor vehicles allowed on the common itself but parking on the verges is OK.