Living in Canary Wharf - is it so terrible?
I'll be working in CW as an IB Associate starting next month. So far, I've been looking at alternatives about where to live.
I have seen that the developments in CW seem quite comfy places to live (modern buildings, gym, pool, services, etc.) and they are close to the office (I like the idea of walking every day at least 15min).
I am aware that there is not much going on during the night in CW, but does it really matter when you work IB hours at least 5 days a week? I understand that other neighbourhoods seem more fun, but the buildings are much more expensive and old. Additionally, London seems to have a nice public transport that easily allows you to commute in the weekends.
Could someone chime in about his/her experiences in CW?
Many thanks!
CW is nowhere near as bad as people make it out to be. However, do I see myself living here for the next 5 years+? No
Having said that, CW is super clean and safe. Only select cars are allowed in so the air is actually decent for London standards.
The night life is non-existent but honestly, when I get back from a night out in central London and the streets are completely empty it feels like home.
Thanks for your answer, much appreciated. Is public transport safe when you come back from central London at night?
By your own experience / friends, do you happen to know which developments are good in CW? In terms of price vs quality / services
Tube is very safe yes, no sketchy people
South Quay Plaza and the Wardian are literally 3 minutes from any office, have wuite a few friends that live there. I personally have a super good deal because my landlord lives in China and she isn’t really aware of flat prices in London lol.
Having said if you go a tiny bit south of cw onto the isle of dogs, you get much better prices for the likes of Ostro tower. Basically the developments on the sides of the inner dock are equally as nice and cheaper, albeit 2 minutes farther from cw and the area is not as nice.
Let me know if you want some info on agents and such, have heard quite a few horror stories.
Agree with the above.
Working in IB means you won’t be going out during the week (other than afterwork drinks next to the office) so no need to commute to central so distance isn’t a problem.
Regarding flats, you get much more value for the price you pay vs. central - being able to chill by the pool, hot tub, having a nice and big gym is priceless. Specially when you need to relax after a long week. My daily quality of life has increased a lot thanks to this.
On weekends, I go out in central (15min commute with Elizabeth line) and get the tube back (Jubilee is very convenient), or Uber if too late but that’s max 3 weekends per month.
As the post above mentioned, coming back from central to find a nice, clean and quiet neighborhood is a great feeling.
During the day on weekends, you can easily find places to chill here, green spaces, a huge shopping mall underneath Canada Place with everything you can imagine (shops, beauty, food court, electronics, etc), nice places to eat (lots of restaurants have recently opened), and so on.
I don’t understand why people make such a big deal out of living in CW, commute has never been quicker to Central, you get better living standards (assuming you go to the nice developments) and not to mention the 5-10min walk to the office which is a great advantage too.
Canary Wharf reminds me of that American Psycho scene where he gets into shootouts in the dark empty city and I love it
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