Brash, bustling and occasionally boisterous, Notting Hill Carnival is one of London’s most exciting festivals. Having begun in 1964 as an offshoot of the Trinidad Carnival, it is now the largest street festival in Europe. Notting Hill residents who surrender their streets to hundreds of thousands of revellers might not appreciate its popularity, but if you choose to go prepare to enter the spirit of things.
It begins on Sunday with the Carnival Parade, an hours-long promenade of bass-pounding floats, spandex-wearing dancers and plenty of glitz, glitter and body paint. It’s the best day to take kids. Monday’s when the main carnival takes place and when the street parties with makeshift sound systems come in to their own. Occasional outbursts of crime have marred the carnival’s reputation somewhat and there were even murmurs of it being cancelled following the riots. That hasn’t happened, but things will be finishing earlier than usual this year, at around 7pm each day.
Getting there: Notting Hill Gate or any of the other Tube stations servicing the area will get you there, but they’ll be extremely busy. Pedestrians tend to access the Carnival by Harrow Road/Great Western Road but, again, this can get crowded.
How much: Free
Drop anchor at London’s docklands for ARC Gloria
Colombia comes to Canary Wharf this week, as the ARC Gloria tall ship sets down anchor at West India Dock. On a goodwill tour of the world, the three-masted vessel is Colombia’s flagship ship, as it were, and can be visited and boarded by the public during its brief stay in London. There’s an exhibition of pre-Columbian gold and ceramics on board, but the most impressive sight is the ship itself. At 1,300 tons and 206ft in length, it’s one of the biggest tall ships standing. This is Gloria’s first time in London in 18 years so who’s to say if it will ever return. After its departure, the 163-strong crew – which includes its mascot Argos, a seafaring black Labrador - will sail to Spain, Morocco and the Caribbean before returning to Cartagena in Colombia.
Combine Culture and Cocktails in Kensington
Weekend cultural obligations and bank-holiday celebrations are comprehensively, handsomely catered for at two of South Ken’s world-class museums. The Natural History Museum stretches its opening hours until 10pm, with extended opening times for current exhibitions Age of the Dinosaur and Sexual Nature. If the weather holds, aim to visit the futuristic Darwin Centre at dusk. The glass-fronted building looks spectacular at sunset. Once indoors you can listen to live music or book one of the summer mini picnics if you think you’ll be feeling peckish. Across the road, the V&A considers all facets of design with a series of engaging installations, talks and performances. As Juneau Projects perform on homemade instruments, you can participate in workshops, experience interactive installations and quench your thirst at the bar. Bombay Sapphire has opened a pop-up bar at the V&A to coincide with the late-night opening, serving inventive cocktails concocted to complement the evening’s entertainment.