For much of its history, Croydon, situated ten miles south of Central London, was part of the estates of the Archbishops of Canterbury, the leading figures of the Church of England.
Croydon Palace and the Whitgift Almshouse stand as historic reminders from that era.
In contemporary times, the town has established its significance in UK popular culture, primarily through Croydon College and the Brit School, where renowned artists such as Adele and Jessie J honed their skills.
Croydon boasts a dynamic nightlife scene, an emerging dining culture, and a shopping centre that was the largest in Greater London until 2008. The town is conveniently accessible, with London Bridge reachable in under 15 minutes from South Croydon Station. In 2000, the town welcomed Tramlink, marking the first tram system reintroduced to the capital since 1952.
Let’s explore the top attractions in Croydon:
1. Croydon Airport Visitor Centre
The United Kingdom’s first international airport was located in Croydon.
This facility evolved from an airfield constructed during World War I to safeguard the capital against Zeppelin attacks.
Regular flights commenced in 1920, making Croydon Airport the first globally to feature a control tower and air traffic control that utilized radio position-fixing methods.
The final scheduled flight took off in 1959, and the terminal building has since been designated as a listed monument, housing a visitor centre in the control tower.
This engaging museum chronicles notable milestones at Croydon Airport, including the UK’s initial significant civil aviation accident in 1924 and Amy Johnson’s historic solo flight from England to Australia, which originated from the airport in 1930.
2. Croydon Clocktower
A prominent landmark in Croydon, the Clocktower is part of a complex that includes Croydon Town Hall and Braithwaite Hall, which was formerly a theatre and concert space.
Featuring a neo-Baroque architectural style, the Croydon Clocktower was constructed between 1892 and 1896. It houses the Croydon Central Library within a modern extension and the Museum of Croydon, which will be discussed next.
A cafe operates within the building six days a week, and the David Lean Cinema offers a valuable asset to the local community, showcasing vintage and independent films in an intimate setting.
3. Museum of Croydon
The main galleries at the Museum of Croydon provide a social history of the town spanning from 1800 to the present day.
Notable exhibits include a bubble car produced in the town during the mid-20th century and a 19th-century clock from the Greyhound Inn, a renowned pub and live music venue that ceased operations in the 1980s, alongside artifacts from the local football club, Crystal Palace, and furniture sold at the local IKEA since its inception in 1992. The Riesco Gallery showcases a variety of Roman and Anglo-Saxon artifacts found locally, as well as an exquisite collection of Chinese ceramics dating back from 2500 BC to the 1800s.
The museum also features works by notable individuals who attended Croydon College, including the famous punk impresario Malcolm McLaren.
4. Croydon Palace
The Archbishops of Canterbury have been associated with the Manor of Croydon since Anglo-Saxon times.
This collection of buildings, dating from the 14th to the 16th centuries, served as their summer residence for over five centuries.
Croydon Palace currently houses the Old Palace School, an independent institution for girls. Online resources provide a calendar of tours available during school holidays and half-terms.
These tours are worthwhile to experience the remarkable 15th-century Great Hall, featuring a timber roof from the 16th century and a beautifully crafted Gothic interior porch.
Additionally, visitors should not miss the former state apartments located to the west, which include the Guard Room (now functioning as the library), characterized by an oriel window and intricately carved stone supports.
Also noteworthy is the 17th-century chapel, which boasts ornately carved choir stalls and a decorative corner gallery.
5. Whitgift Almshouses
In the bustling centre of Croydon, amid crowded pedestrian streets, shopping centres, and high-rise office buildings, lies an exceptionally historic structure that may catch your eye.
This is the Whitgift Almshouses, established by Archbishop of Canterbury John Whitgift in 1596. This site, located at the intersection of George Street and North End, continues to serve as an almshouse for elderly local residents aged over 60. The Whitgift Foundation also manages three independent schools in the borough, including the previously mentioned Old Palace School.
While access to the Whitgift Almshouses is restricted, one can appreciate the exterior, characterized by 16th-century brickwork, gables, quoins, a prominent main portal, mullioned windows, turreted chimneys, and intricate window tracery.
6. Croydon Minster
The tomb of John Whitgift resides within Croydon Minster, which also serves as the burial ground for five other Archbishops of Canterbury.
Once a parish church, it was designated as a “minster” in 2011, with a rich history dating back to Saxon times.
Regrettably, the 14th-century structure was significantly damaged by fire during restoration efforts led by Sir George Gilbert Scott in the 1850s, necessitating a complete reconstruction, finished in 1870. The tomb monuments within have survived intact, particularly those of Whitgift (1605) and Gilbert Sheldon (1677). The church also features stunning stained glass created by the Clayton and Bell workshop, known for producing glass for church restorations throughout the UK during the Victorian era.
7. Surrey Street Market
The largest market in Croydon and the oldest street market in the capital is located here.
This market has operated at this location since 1276, primarily offering fresh produce such as fruits and vegetables. Surrey Street Market occupies the road behind the Croydon Grants Cinema.
From Monday to Saturday, approximately 70 fruit and vegetable traders set up stalls, while on Sunday a special artisan market showcases international and specialty foods.
For an authentic London street market experience, Saturday is the optimal day to visit, as it remains the busiest trading day.
8. Boxpark Croydon
This innovative pop-up mall concept was initially trialled in Shoreditch in 2011, achieving considerable success and subsequently expanding to Croydon in 2016. Boxpark offers affordable and flexible retail space for its tenants, enabling a diverse shopping and dining experience not typically found on the high street, all within 80 repurposed shipping containers.
Beatbox serves as Boxpark’s primary nightlife venue, featuring established and emerging DJs performing sets on Thursday evenings.
Boxpark further distinguishes itself through its cosmopolitan variety of street food options, including souvlaki, falafel, Taiwanese pork buns, gourmet burgers, craft beer, Nashville hot chicken, tapas, Filipino snacks, and even artisan porridge.
9. Spread Eagle Theatre
This distinctive venue adjacent to the Croydon Clocktower, housed in a grand Victorian former bank building, has been transformed into a pub featuring a 50-seat studio theatre on its upper floor.
The Spread Eagle Theatre is dedicated to new productions and is under the same ownership as another unique venue, the Old Joint Stock Theatre, a converted library in Birmingham.
Both establishments are part of London’s Fuller’s brewery group and offer a blend of live music and theatrical performances.
In 2017, the Spread Eagle introduced the Croydon Cabaret Festival, celebrated annually in May.
Downstairs operates a traditional London pub where one can enjoy a drink and a pie, with a general knowledge quiz night every Sunday.
10. Fairfield Halls
As of 2018, this esteemed performing arts venue was undergoing a £30 million refurbishment scheduled for completion in March 2019. Opened in 1962, Fairfield Halls developed into a regional hub for the arts, hosting renowned acts such as the Beatles, Stevie Wonder, Pink Floyd, and The Who.
The BBC has recognized the superior acoustics of its primary concert hall, utilizing it for radio and television broadcasts, alongside orchestral recordings.
Upon reopening, Fairfield Halls is anticipated to become a central feature of a new cultural quarter in Croydon, catering to the community with a diverse program of performances, including plays, stand-up comedy, opera, musicals, ballet, classical and contemporary music, and children’s productions presented by both famous touring artists and local amateur performers.
11. South Norwood Country Park
This 125-acre expanse of landscaped parkland and countryside may surprise you, as it was previously a sewage farm.
The visible concrete channels in the park are remnants of a Victorian facility, while the site now features a pitch and putt golf course located where a 20th-century treatment plant once stood.
The park boasts a northern lake and a visitor centre providing information about the flora and fauna inhabiting this Local Nature Reserve.
Children’s playgrounds within the park have recently been refurbished, and it features a substantial mound that once belonged to a medieval moated house, now functioning as a viewing point.
The park is the southern terminus of the Waterlink Way, an eight-mile cycle trail leading to Cutty Sark in Greenwich.
12. Addington Park
Spanning 24.5 acres of woods and landscaped parkland, this green space was formerly the Addington Palace Estate.
In the 16th century, the land served as a hunting ground for King Henry VIII. Today, the existing Addington Palace is a magnificent Palladian mansion constructed in 1768, which was utilized by the Archbishops of Canterbury as a summer residence in the 19th century.
Currently, the estate is available for events and is predominantly utilized as a wedding venue, also complimenting the Addington Palace Golf Club, which welcomes visitors for golf rounds.
This gently rolling parkland was designed by the renowned landscaper Capability Brown in the 1780s.
On the eastern boundary of the park rests the Church of St Mary, which features a Norman chancel and nave built around 1080.
13. Crystal Palace F. C.
Crystal Palace has historically fluctuated between the top two divisions of English football, and as of 2018, they were enjoying their longest period in the English top flight since regaining promotion in 2013. The Eagles have several notable attributes.
In a city filled with modern arenas, Selhurst Park stands out as a traditional English football stadium, designed by Archibald Leitch in the 1920s.
In 2018, proposals were unveiled to expand the main stand, which would increase the stadium’s capacity to 34,000. The current ownership of Crystal Palace has also innovated in engaging supporters, even involving fans in the design of the team’s badge.
This connection is palpable on match days, when Selhurst Park is often regarded as one of the loudest stadiums in the country.
An international membership package provides fans the opportunity to secure tickets for matches, but it is essential to act quickly, as home games consistently sell out.
14. Shirley Windmill
This meticulously restored tower windmill is one of only four that are accessible to the public in Greater London.
The Shirley Windmill, constructed in 1854, replaced an earlier structure that was destroyed by fire, utilizing materials salvaged from other locations, as evidenced by a beam marked with the date “1740.”
Rising 17 meters high, the mill has encountered several near threats, including abandonment in 1892 and strikes by lightning in both 1899 and 1906. Restoration efforts took place in the 1920s and 1930s, and it became a museum in the 1990s after receiving funds from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Today, Shirley Windmill and its interior mechanics are nearly fully preserved, and visitors can explore the site on the first Sunday of each month during the summer.
Additionally, there is a small visitor centre that outlines the flour milling industry during the Victorian era.
15. Wandle Park
Located just west of the town centre, Wandle Park spans 21 acres and gets its name from the river flowing through it.
The park was developed in the 1880s as a recreational area for a rapidly growing industrial town.
In the early 2010s, Wandle Park underwent an enhancement, which involved restoring the riverbanks and constructing a new cafe, a bandstand, a pond, an innovative play area, and a skate park.
For those visiting, checking online for events is recommended, as the park hosts activities such as garden parties, outdoor theatre performances, and movie screenings during the summer months.
