Hackney is a large east London borough, but for a visitor it comes down to a small area: London Fields park with its heated 50-metre outdoor pool, Broadway Market running along one side of it, the Regent's Canal a few minutes south, and the old town centre around Mare Street. All of it is about 15 minutes by train from Liverpool Street.
The heart of it is the park. London Fields is a flat green rectangle with plane trees, a cricket pitch, a playground and, along its western edge, an open-air swimming pool that is heated every day of the year. On a warm Saturday the whole park is covered in people with disposable barbecues; on a wet Tuesday in February you can have the pool almost to yourself.
This is a residential part of London that happens to be pleasant to visit, rather than a place built for visitors. There are no ticketed attractions. Plan a half-day around the pool, the market and a canal walk, and treat anything else as a bonus. If you want the street art and the nightlife instead, that is Shoreditch, 20 minutes' walk south.
The essentials
- London Fields Lido
- 50-metre heated outdoor pool, open daily 06:30-21:00
- Swim price
- Adult £6.40; child aged 3-15 £3.75 peak, £3.50 off-peak (September 2026)
- Broadway Market
- Saturday 09:00-17:00 and Sunday 10:00-16:00, 52 weeks a year
- Stations
- London Fields and Hackney Downs (Weaver line); Hackney Central and Homerton (Mildmay line)
- From Liverpool Street
- About 9 minutes to London Fields
- Canal
- Regent's Canal towpath, 5 minutes south of the park
- Note for 2026
- Hackney Museum is closed for refurbishment and reopens in 2027
Swimming outdoors in January: London Fields Lido
The lido is the one thing here that is genuinely unusual. It is a 50-metre outdoor pool, floodlit, and the water is kept heated all year, which means people swim lengths outside in the dark in midwinter with steam coming off the surface. The operator lists the water temperature on the day, and it was 24 degrees in mid-September 2026.
It opens at 06:30 and closes at 21:00, seven days a week. A single swim costs £6.40 for an adult and £3.75 for a child aged 3 to 15 at peak times, or £3.50 off-peak (September 2026). For two adults and two children that is £20.30 at peak, which is cheap for a London family outing. Lockers are free to use but need a £1 coin or a reusable token that costs £1.50, so bring a coin.
The pool is divided into lanes for most of the day, with slower and faster lanes marked, and there are family sessions at set times. Check the current timetable and prices on the operator's page for the lido before you go: the lane timetable changes with the season and during swimming lessons.
It gets extremely busy on hot weekends, when queues form outside before opening. Early weekday mornings are the calmest. Our wider guide to swimming ponds and lidos in London compares it with the Hampstead ponds, Brockwell and the Serpentine.
The lido is one of the cheapest things a family can do in east London. Two adults and two children swim for £20.30 at peak times, with no booking fee and no timed ticket. Bring a £1 coin for the locker and your own towels, and the whole morning costs less than one adult ticket to most paid attractions.
Photo: Emmabellechan · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · resized
Broadway Market: Saturday, and now Sunday too
Broadway Market is a short street running south from the corner of London Fields down to the canal. On Saturdays it fills with about a hundred stalls, mostly food: bread, cheese, oysters, cakes, hot food from around the world, plus flowers, second-hand books and clothes. The market runs 52 weeks a year, from 09:00 to 17:00 on Saturday, with a smaller Sunday market from 10:00 to 16:00.
Go early if you want to move. By midday on a sunny Saturday the street is one slow-moving crowd and the queues at the popular food stalls are 15 minutes deep. Before 10.30am you can walk the length in five minutes and talk to the traders.
The permanent shops along the street stay open when the market is not on, and Netil Market, a small yard of food counters and studios just off Westgate Street, runs on its own hours. Our overview of London's food markets sets Broadway Market against Borough, Maltby Street and Brixton, and our page on brunch in London covers the cafés that ring the park.
Walking the Regent's Canal through Hackney
The Regent's Canal passes along the bottom of Broadway Market. The towpath here is wide, flat and lined with moored narrowboats, and it is one of the easiest walks in east London.
Turn west and you reach Angel and Islington in about 45 minutes, then Camden. Turn east and you reach Victoria Park in 15 minutes, and the Olympic Park at Stratford in about an hour, where the Hertford Union Canal and the Lea Navigation take over. Our guide to the Regent's Canal covers the whole route and the boat trips on it.
The towpath is shared with cyclists, some of them commuting fast. Keep to one side, and do not step out without looking. It is unlit in long stretches, so walk it in daylight. If you would rather cycle it, our pages on cycling in London and taking a bike on public transport explain the hire schemes and the rules.
Victoria Park and the eastern green space
Victoria Park, 15 minutes east along the canal, is much bigger than London Fields: two lakes, a Chinese pagoda, a deer enclosure, cafés, tennis courts and a large playground. It opened in 1845 and was the first public park in Britain built specifically for a working population. Several large music festivals use it in summer, which closes parts of it for days at a time.
Closer to the canal, Hackney City Farm on Goldsmiths Row has pigs, goats, chickens and donkeys, and costs nothing to enter. It is small, and a visit takes half an hour, but for anyone travelling with a toddler it is a useful stop. Our list of city farms and playgrounds has the others, and our family guide to London covers what children pay on transport.
Mare Street, the Hackney Empire and old Hackney
Mare Street is the old centre, about 10 minutes' walk east of London Fields. The Hackney Empire, opened in 1901, is a Frank Matcham music hall with a lavishly decorated auditorium, still working as a theatre. It puts on comedy, variety, opera and a famous Christmas pantomime, and it is worth going inside for the building alone. Our guide to comedy in London lists what to expect from a night there.
Next door stands the old Hackney Town Hall, a clean 1930s civic building, and behind it the Hackney Picturehouse cinema. St Augustine's Tower, a few minutes north, is a 16th-century church tower, all that is left of the medieval parish church; it opens on limited days each month.
Hackney Museum, which tells the borough's story of immigration and settlement, is closed for refurbishment and is due to reopen in 2027. Do not plan a visit around it. The nearest alternative is the free Museum of the Home at Hoxton, one stop away on the Windrush line.
Getting here and which station to use
| Station | Line | Walk to |
|---|---|---|
| London Fields | Weaver line, from Liverpool Street | The lido and Broadway Market, 3-5 minutes |
| Hackney Downs | Weaver line, from Liverpool Street | Mare Street and the Empire, 8 minutes |
| Hackney Central | Mildmay line, Stratford to Richmond | Mare Street, 3 minutes; linked to Hackney Downs by a short covered walk |
| Bethnal Green | Central line | The canal and Broadway Market, about 20 minutes |
| Cambridge Heath | Weaver line | The canal and the city farm, 5 minutes |
There is no Underground station in this part of Hackney, which is why it took longer than its neighbours to fill with visitors. The trains are frequent and take contactless and Oyster, and Hackney Central and Hackney Downs are joined by a signed walking route, so you can change between the two Overground lines on foot. Our explainer on the Overground network and its line names is the place to start if the map looks confusing.
Buses 26, 48, 55, 106, 254, 388 and 394 cover the area. The 55 and 243 run through the night towards the centre at weekends.
Hackney Central and Hackney Downs are two stations, five minutes apart. They are on different lines and neither is inside the other. If a journey planner sends you to one and your train leaves from the other, follow the signed walkway between them rather than waiting on the wrong platform.
Is Hackney a good base?
Rooms cost less here than in the centre, and the area is pleasant to come back to in the evening. Against that: no Tube, trains that finish earlier than the Underground, and a 20- to 30-minute journey to Westminster or South Kensington. It works for a second visit, for a longer stay, or for anyone whose plans are mostly in east London. Our page on staying in Shoreditch and the east compares the options and prices.
For the areas either side, see Dalston and Stoke Newington to the north and Whitechapel and the East End to the south.
Frequently asked questions
Is London Fields Lido heated in winter?
Yes. The 50-metre outdoor pool is heated all year, and it is floodlit, so people swim lengths outdoors in the dark in December. It opens daily from 06:30 to 21:00. Check the day's water temperature and lane timetable on the operator's website.
How much does it cost to swim at London Fields Lido?
A single swim costs £6.40 for an adult and £3.75 for a child aged 3 to 15 at peak times, or £3.50 off-peak, as of September 2026. Lockers are free but need a £1 coin or a £1.50 reusable token. Prices are on the operator's site.
What day is Broadway Market on?
The main market runs every Saturday from 09:00 to 17:00, 52 weeks a year, with a smaller Sunday market from 10:00 to 16:00. Go before 10.30am on Saturday if you want to browse without queueing. The permanent shops on the street open through the week.
Can I walk from Hackney to the Olympic Park?
Yes. Follow the Regent's Canal east from Broadway Market, past Victoria Park, then join the Hertford Union Canal and the Lea Navigation. It takes about an hour at an easy pace, is flat throughout, and is shared with cyclists. Do it in daylight, as the towpath is unlit.
Is Hackney Museum open?
No. It is closed for refurbishment and is expected to reopen in 2027, so do not build a visit around it. The Museum of the Home at Hoxton, one stop away on the Windrush line, is free and open, and covers related ground.
Sources
- Better - London Fields Lido, opening times and prices (checked September 2026)
- Broadway Market - Market hours (checked September 2026)
- Hackney Museum - Refurbishment notice (checked September 2026)
- Transport for London - London Overground (checked September 2026)
- Transport for London - Bus and tram fares (checked September 2026)