Highgate sits on top of one of the highest hills in London, and almost every road into the village climbs. Swain's Lane drops so steeply past the cemetery that cyclists use it for hill-climb races. At the top, the village has old pubs, Georgian houses, a famous school founded in 1565 and views across the whole city. Minibus hire Highgate customers book is mostly school sport and trips, weddings, visits to the cemetery and Kenwood, and airport runs, all of them planned around those hills.
Highgate straddles the boundary between Camden and Haringey, between Hampstead Heath, Archway and Muswell Hill. From our base in SE1, it's about thirty-five to forty-five minutes outside the rush hour, up through Camden Town or the Holloway Road.
Minibus hire Highgate for school sport
Highgate School, Channing School and several state secondaries and primaries in and around the village have busy sports calendars. Most schools here play at grounds away from the hilltop, and teams travel to fixtures across north London, Hertfordshire and beyond.
The squad and the kit travel together, and the driver waits until the match is over. Send the fixture list at the start of term and we'll book the runs around it. School sports days are often held at the Parliament Hill track, a few minutes away, and the minibus can run pupils down and back in shifts. Schools also book us for museum visits, theatre trips, music competitions and residential trips.
School gates in the village are on narrow streets, and the start and end of the day is busy. We'll agree the pickup point with the school, often inside the grounds or on a wider road nearby.
Weddings at Lauderdale House and the village
Lauderdale House, a sixteenth-century house in Waterlow Park, hosts weddings, receptions and concerts, and the park, with its ponds and terraces looking south over London, makes the backdrop for photographs. St Michael's, the church at the top of Highgate West Hill, hosts church weddings, and receptions follow at Lauderdale, at restaurants in the village or at venues across London.
The minibus collects guests from homes or hotels, drops at the ceremony, carries on to the reception and handles the late run home. Lauderdale House sits on Highgate Hill, a steep main road with buses, so we'll agree a drop-off at the gate and a waiting point nearby.
Highgate Cemetery, Kenwood and the Heath
Highgate Cemetery is one of London's great Victorian cemeteries, with catacombs, Egyptian Avenue and the graves of Karl Marx, George Eliot and many others. The East Cemetery is open for visits, and the West Cemetery is seen on guided tours that need booking. History societies, school groups and tour parties book us for visits. Guided tours of the West Cemetery take a while, so set the pickup for a little after the tour ends.
Kenwood House, at the top of Hampstead Heath, has paintings by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Gainsborough, free to see, and its grounds suit a picnic. Highgate Wood and Queen's Wood, on the Haringey side, are ancient woodland used for school nature trips. The driver drops at the gate and comes back when the group is ready.
The village, the pubs and evenings out
Highgate Village, around Pond Square and the High Street, has historic pubs, such as the Flask, along with restaurants and cafés. It's a popular spot for a birthday lunch or a walk-and-pub outing, with a route down through the Heath to Parliament Hill or Hampstead.
For a group walk, we'll drop at the start and collect at the finish. For an evening out, the driver collects from homes across Highgate, Dartmouth Park and Crouch End and plans the drop-offs at the end.
Airport runs down the Archway Road
The Archway Road, the A1, runs along the eastern side of Highgate and heads north to the North Circular and the M1 and A1(M). Luton is about forty to fifty minutes outside the rush hour, and Stansted about an hour. Heathrow is about fifty minutes to an hour, via the North Circular and the A40 or the M4. Gatwick is an hour and a quarter or more.
When relatives fly in, send us the flight number and the driver will be waiting in arrivals.
Steep, narrow lanes
The hills are the main thing to plan for. Swain's Lane and Highgate West Hill are steep and narrow, with tight bends and parked cars, and the village streets around Pond Square are tight for a larger vehicle. Highgate Hill has buses and a steep gradient, and the Archway Road is busy at peak times. Minibus hire Highgate residents book for a home pickup is easiest when we know the address in advance, so we can choose the best approach and a safe place to stop.
For minibus hire in Highgate, call 020 7183 0567.