Getting Around Islington
Islington is an inner-city area of north London, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields and the Regent's Canal, taking in the busy High Street, Upper Street, Essex Road and Southgate Road to the east. For a visitor, the practical upshot is that Islington sits close enough to central London to be explored on foot, while also being well served by Tube, rail, Overground and bus services.
How Tourists Move Around
London's public transport is organised around a zonal fare system, and Islington's stations fall into fare zones 1, 2 and 3. The Angel, at the southern end of the district, is in Zone 1, while most other stations in and around Islington sit in Zone 2, with a few reaching into Zone 3. For a visitor, the simplest approach is to think in terms of these zones: the closer you are to central London, the lower the zone, and the easier it is to walk between attractions rather than pay for another journey.
Tickets and passes are not sold separately by each operator; the network is integrated, so the same ticket or pass covers Tube, rail, Overground and bus travel within the relevant zones. If you plan to make several journeys in a day, a travelcard or day pass for the zones you need is usually more economical than buying single tickets each time.
Tube, Rail and Overground
Islington is served by a number of Tube stations across zones 1, 2 and 3:
- Angel (Northern line) – Zone 1
- Highbury & Islington (Victoria line) – Zone 2
- Tufnell Park (Northern line) – Zone 2
- Archway (Northern line) – Zones 2 and 3
- Highgate (Northern line) – Zone 3
- Finsbury Park (Victoria and Piccadilly lines) – Zone 2
- Holloway Road (Piccadilly line) – Zone 2
- Caledonian Road (Piccadilly line) – Zone 2
- Arsenal (Piccadilly line) – Zone 2
For mainline National Rail services, the nearest major stations are London King's Cross and London St Pancras International, both just over the border in Camden. Within the borough itself, National Rail stations include Highbury & Islington, Essex Road, Canonbury, Finsbury Park and Upper Holloway.
Islington also has several London Overground stations, all in fare zone 2. From west to east these are Caledonian Road & Barnsbury, Highbury & Islington, and Canonbury. Overground services from these stations run to Stratford, Clapham Junction, Willesden Junction, Richmond, New Cross and West Croydon, which makes them useful for reaching parts of London that the Tube does not cover directly.
Note that Islington does not have a tram network; the modes available to visitors here are the Tube, National Rail, London Overground and buses.
Buses
Buses are a practical way to move around Islington and into central London, and several routes serve the main hubs:
- Archway and the surrounding area: routes 41, N41, 134, 390, 43, 17, C11, 4 and W5
- Finsbury Park, connecting with the centre of London: routes 29, 19, 4, 259, 253 and 254
- The Angel, Islington: routes 19, 30, 38, 43, 56, 73, 153, 205, 214, 274 and 341
Because the bus network is integrated with the rest of London's transport, the same tickets and passes that work on the Tube and rail also work on buses. Buses are particularly handy for short hops along Upper Street and Essex Road, or for reaching places that sit between Tube stations.
Taxis and Ride-Hailing
Islington's busy High Street, Upper Street and the area around The Angel are the natural places to look for a taxi, and these main roads are also where ride-hailing pickups are easiest to arrange. As in the rest of London, taxis and ride-hailing services are a convenient option for late nights or for journeys that would otherwise involve several changes, though they cost more than public transport.
Walking
Islington is a compact, mainly residential district, and much of it is very walkable. The Regent's Canal passes through the area, and for much of its route in Islington it runs in a tunnel from Colebrook Row east of the Angel to Muriel Street near Caledonian Road. Because there is no towpath inside the tunnel, the stretch above it is marked with a series of pavement plaques so walkers can find their way from one entrance to the other. East of the tunnel and north of City Road, the canal opens out into an area that was once dominated by warehousing and industry around the City Road Basin and Wenlock Basin; many surviving old buildings are now residential or small creative work units, and there is an old double-fronted pub, The Narrowboat, with one side accessed from the towpath.
Walking is also a good way to link Islington's stations and hubs: the distance from the Angel down through Upper Street and Essex Road is easily covered on foot, and the plaques along the canal make a pleasant alternative route across the area.
Getting In from the Airport
The reference material for Islington does not describe airport connections directly, so the practical guidance is to treat the airport journey as a normal London arrival: take the airport's rail or express service into central London, then continue by Tube, National Rail or Overground to one of Islington's stations. The nearest mainline stations to Islington are London King's Cross and London St Pancras International, both in Camden, which are the most convenient central London railheads for onward travel into the borough. From there, the Northern line serves Angel, the Victoria line serves Highbury & Islington and Finsbury Park, and the Piccadilly line serves Finsbury Park, Holloway Road, Caledonian Road and Arsenal. Because tickets and passes are integrated across the network, you can buy a single ticket or pass covering your journey from the airport into the relevant zones and use it across the different modes.