Living in Wood Green

Wood Green is a working town centre rather than a village. The High Road is one of north London's biggest shopping streets, with a large shopping mall that bridges the road, national chains, discount stores, markets and plenty of places to eat. It is busy and practical, and it is the place people from the surrounding hillside neighbourhoods come to for everyday errands.

The area has a notably diverse population, with long-established Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities, and more recent arrivals from Eastern Europe, Africa and Latin America. Green Lanes, running south through Harringay, is famous for its long strip of Turkish and Kurdish restaurants, grills and bakeries, many open late.

Transport is straightforward and quick. Wood Green and Turnpike Lane stations are on the Piccadilly line, which reaches King's Cross in around fifteen minutes and continues to the West End, and the Great Northern trains at Alexandra Palace are a short walk away. Bus routes run in every direction. Alexandra Palace and its park rise immediately to the west of the High Road, which gives the area a major green space and viewpoint very close by.

Housing is a mix of Victorian and Edwardian terraces, many converted into flats, post-war estates and a growing number of new-build developments, including large schemes on former industrial and gasworks land. Rents are typically noticeably lower than in Crouch End, Muswell Hill or Highgate just up the hill, with a better tube connection than any of them. The trade-offs are a busy, unglamorous centre and limited evening life beyond restaurants. Wood Green suits people who want value and a direct tube line, and who are happy to walk up the hill for the prettier parts of north London.