May 26, 2007
Free Wifi in London...Mapped
UPDATE 27 April 2008
THIS MAP IS BEING UPDATED
Almost 200 wifi hotspots have now been mapped. Please keep suggestions coming in. Remember, the location must offer wifi access for free. MacDonalds are rolling out free wifi to all their branches, but we're not going to map all them unless they want to sponsor us!
UPDATE 19 January 2008
We now have 169 bars, restaurants and hotels mapped, and will continue updating the map as and when further additions are suggested by readers. Thanks for your help.
UPDATE 06 October 2007
Thanks to everyone who has contributed free wifi locations to this map. We ARE still updating the map, so keep your comments coming. Remember, we're only mapping free and legal hotspots - i.e. cafes, bars, restaurants and other establishments offering free services to customers.
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ORIGINAL ENTRY
Try as we might, we couldn't find a decent site that maps all the bars, pubs and coffee shops with free wifi access. So we made a start on it ourselves.
As well as individual eateries, there are several areas in London where free access can be gained over a wide space. The whole of Upper Street is the largest example, but also Leicester Square and a residential area in Marylebone. The whole of the City of London is covered by The Cloud, with a deal that'll get you free access for a month. You then have to pay, so we've not included it on this map.
We'd love to hear about further locations in the comments (preferably with a postcode or door number). Remember, only legitimate places where free access can be gained without tapping into unsecured networks.
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Have you tried using the free wifi on Upper Street? It's non-existent. Same with Leicester Square. I was there the day it was supposed to go live in the latter, and the only signal to be had was inside All Bar One...and it was the signal from the bar.
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Ray's Jazz cafe inside Foyles on Charing Cross Road has free wifi.
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GREAT project.
All the Leon restaurants have free wifi.
Addresses from their website as follows:
35 Great Marlborough St W1F 7JE
12 Ludgate Circus EC4M 7LQ
136 Brompton Road SW3 1HY
3 Crispin Place E1 6DW
73-76 The Strand WC2R 0DE
275 Regent Street W18 2HB
and i think there are more opening soon.
Goodness* Cafe in Chiswick - you have to get a free token to sign in.
30-34 Chiswick High Road W4 1TE
When I think of and come across more, I'll post here.
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Seconded on Ray's Jazz in Charing Cross Road (they really need to make the cafe and the shop bigger). Also the Apple Store in Regent Street (they also have plug sockets, and don't really mind if you spend hours there working - so long as you put up with the Apple advertising/propaganda*).
Now that I am without an institutional home in London, I feel I will be trying out a lot more of these free wi-fi places. The key thing is (a) availability of power and (b) not being out-of-place. Call me old-fashioned, but if I'm in a pub, it's not the place to get my laptop out and work like it is in a cafe.
M: I have used the Leicester Square wi-fi without a problem. It's not stunningly fast, but it seems to work. It's called something like "Four's Free Access". I used it on my Palm Pilot while waiting outside the Odeon Cinema and it worked, and it's also reachable (just) inside Starbucks.
Perhaps we ought to have a central London wi-fi hunt day? Everyone get themselves a wi-fi detector of some sort and hunt through the city looking for places to park your arse down and surf the Internet.
* Depending on your perspective on brushed metal and white plastic and the suchlike. Having bought in to the whole Apple thing hook, line and sinker (and can recite the many flaws nonchalantly), I'm pretty much immune to the aforementioned propaganda.
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Thanks for the additions so far. I'll update the map tonight.
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The Greyhound, Chamberlayne Rd, NW10
Gracelands Cafe, College Rd, NW10
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Le Pain Quotidien on Great Marlborough Street almost directly opposite Liberty's.
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nft has free access also
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'Seven', the nft is already on the map under its new name - bfi southbank.
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St Christophers inn in Greenwich has - I imagine their bar in London Bridge does as well.
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Natural Cafe
21 Church Street
Kingston on Thames
KT1 1RW
Tel: 020 8971 8195
Not sure if their other locations have free WiFi. I used this location a lot when I was back for Xmas last year
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Natural Cafe
21 Church Street
Kingston on Thames
KT1 1RW
Tel: 020 8971 8195
Not sure if their other locations have free WiFi. I used this location a lot when I was back for Xmas last year
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The Natural Cafe in Richmond does too.
7 The Quadrant, TW9 1BP.
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SHOREDITCH - a teeny selection:
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The Humus Brothers resturant on Wardour St advertises free wifi, but I
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... Oops. Anyway.
I've never tried using the Humus Bros wifi, but there are often people in there with laptops so I assume it's problem-free. And the food's good, too (unless you don't like humus, of course)
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the suburb coffee store in covent garden seems to have closed down :(
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a couple in Battersea:
The Lighthouse (formerly the Dovedale, and before that The Clockhouse)
441 Battersea Park Road, SW11 4LR
The S Bar and Restaurant
37 Battersea Bridge Road, SW11 3BA
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'A bar' on Brick Lane and the LCB surf store at the top of Brick Lane.
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The Gowlett,
62 Gowlett Road,
London,
SE15 4HY
Oh and this pub also serves some of the best pizzas in London :-)
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Glow Lounge on Cavendish Parade isn't free - it's £3.
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Water's Edge
Bar and Restaurant
Packet Boat Lane
Cowley
Uxbridge, Middx
UB8 2JS
Good steaks and burgers and free Wi-Fi, does have an annoying ad before you can start using the net but has no port restrictions.
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damn! when will i get free wifi in my country.
jenny
www.spaml.com
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Gastronomica Wapping has free access. Not exactly central London though. Wapping High St, East end. 0207 481 8669
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I wonder if those coffee shops are okay with people using their wifi from outside the establishment..
This would be a great resource if it were available as a points of interest file file for my Garmin Nuvi 310d ;]
nice work folks :)
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Plazes is also a good source for this information - you might want to cross-reference yours with the Plazes map. www.plazes.com
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Base2stay , I stayed there recently, it DOES NOT offer free wifi fyi, take this map with a large pinch of salt
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Library with cafe inside - quiet place to work
Bow Idea Store
1 Gladstone Place, Roman Road
Bow, London E3 5ES
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Adam St Club. (Adam st WC2N) Free wifi, but you have to talk your way in.
Similarly Institute of Directors, Pall Mall.
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>Base2stay , I stayed there recently, it DOES NOT offer free wifi fyi, take this map with a large pinch of salt
Well, it's only as good as the reader suggestions. If any of these spots are just not true, or something's changed, let me know here and I'll update the map.
Matt
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free wifi in camden:
Oh! Bar
111-113 Camden High Street
London
NW1 7JN
Camden Eye (across from camden town tube)
2 Kentish Town Road
London
NW1 9NX
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Another Cafe in the city:
Fly
26 Copthall Avenue, The City
EC2R 7DN
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Half Moon
10 Half Moon Lane
Herne HIll
London
SE24 9HU
Has free wifi
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There is a restaurant on Jermyn Street that offers free wifi. Its called Abracadabra
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Good ol' Cecil's Cockring Emporium has 24hr wifi over on Bendover St. Put that down.
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Here's another with free access - Café Arlington at 92 Dean Street, London, W1D 3SY
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Hi there -- nice one.
What about taking wikimapia-style concept so others can contribute their own directly?
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The george in Whitechapel says it does... never been in though.... think it's on commercial road.
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Suburb (19 Short Gardens, Covent Garden) has now closed down :-(
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Hi,
Both Hummus Bros have free wifi:
88 Wardour Street, W1F 0TJ
Victoria House, 37-63 Southampton Row, WC1B 4DA
www.hbros.co.uk
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Prince of Wales Pub on Wilton Road @ Longmoore Street (Pimlico).
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The Mucky Pup in Angel does free wifi
The Mucky Pup
39 Queen's Head Street
Islington
London
N1 8NQ
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Marylebone tup on Marylebone high street supposedly has free wifi
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Ritzy Cinema in Brixton - the cafe on the 1st floor has free wi-fi. Haven't tried accessing it from outside the building tho.
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www.wimbledonhideaway.com
Wimbledon Hideaway,
175 Kingston Road,
London,
SW19 1LH
Tel. 020 8544 9451
info@wimbledonhideaway.com
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The Camden Tup has free Wifi, you just have to buy a drink to get the key
2-3 Greenland Place,
Camden,
London,
NW1 0AP
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The Pembury Tavern in Hackney (E8 1JH) also has free wireless.
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Institute of Directors has free wfi for members only. You need a membership number to log in. Their door staff won't let you in the premises without a membership card !
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The Covent Garden Hotel, Monmouth Street's got it.
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Rich Mix arts centre/cinema at the end of Bethnal Green Road.
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Leon at 3 Crispin Place is in kinda the wrong place on your map, I know because I wasted half an hour at lunchtime looking for it! Very glad to have the map though, cheers.
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Cafe Shiraz, 127 Hammersmith Road W14
...Pick More Daisies, Crouch End Hill, N8
Natural Cafe, Crouch End Broadway, N8
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One more to add: my lovely local, the Lord Stanley.
51 Camden Park Road
London
NW1 9BH
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Great idea.
I have 2 to add off the top of my head.
1st is a restaurant cafe baropen 7 days from Breakfast thru Dinner -
The Empress of India
130 Lauriston Rd
Hackney E9 7LH
It is free just ask for password.
Same applies the the next a pub-
The Lauriston
cnr Victoria Park Rd and Lauriston Rd E9
162 Victoria Park Road, London, E9 7JN
Keep it up
Jayne
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Great project....
another to add
5th View Bar
Waterstone's Piccadilly
203-206 Piccadilly
London W1J 9LE
020 7851 2433
Free Wi-Fi and great views as well....
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This is great. The commercial Wi-Fi maps - even the free ones are woefully inadequate. Thanks for your efforts!
Another one for your list is the Albany Centre, Douglas Way, Deptford SE8 4AG. Free Wi-Fi and decent coffee.
You can also set up your own free wi-fi hotspot