Welwyn Garden City is in Hertfordshire and sits about 20 miles north of Central London.
Welwyn Garden City is in Hertfordshire and sits about 20 miles north of Central London. The clue is in the name and it was the second of the garden cities that came out of a movement loosely inspired by a utopian science fiction novel and resulting from the subsequent work of Ebenezer Howard who, following the urban overcrowding and deprivation of the Industrial Revolution, conceived a new idea of town planning meant to integrate open space and public parks intrinsically into concentrically arranged, self-sufficient cities located close to each other.
Nowadays, visitors to our serviced apartments in Welwyn Garden City will find a pleasant commuter belt town of a little under 50,000 people – a little, but not drastically beyond Howard’s original 32,000 plan – in a relaxed environment and surrounded by similarly genteel towns. The original town planning is still very much there – a town laid out in a precise manner – which is a little odd at first, but also leads to some pleasant and green boulevards where you might not otherwise have expected them and a nicely compact main shopping district.
The town is well connected, as guests coming to our Welwyn Garden City business accommodation will find. The town lies just off Junction 4 of the A1(M), which darts down to intersect with the M25 after about 15 minutes on the road. The train takes about 30 minutes to reach Central London, with typically two or three trains running every hour.
When shopping in Welwyn Garden City, you will find a large John Lewis store at it heart, one which has been there since 1984 after taking over from the original Welwyn Stores, conceived as one-place-fits-all stores in the town’s original design, until commercial realities took over and diversity followed. That said, the town’s shops are very much about the names you know rather than boutique and independent stores you don’t. The Howard Centre is the town’s main shopping centre.
Dining and eating out for a change when on a self-catering stay in Welwyn Garden City can be a little more diverse, although many of the favourite chains are still present. Bill’s on Howardsgate gives a diverse European-centred menu, while The Don offers Asian and Indian dishes and Peri Jerk serves up Jamaican and Caribbean-style fast food. For something a little more refined, try Auberge du Lac by The Broadwater to the west of town. This award-winning restaurant overlooks the Brocket Hall Estate. For golf fans, Brockett Hall also has a golf club, while the Welwyn Garden City Golf Club is also close by.
While staying in our Welwyn Garden City business accommodation, you may want to check out Gosling Sports Park; this large sports facility includes a dry ski slope, a gym, bowls, squash, tennis and a driving range.