Palmers Green is often called the biggest Cypriot village outside Cyprus. Greek and Turkish Cypriot families have lived here for generations, and Green Lanes is lined with Cypriot bakeries, grocers, restaurants and the halls where christenings and weddings are celebrated with hundreds of guests. Broomfield Park, with its lakes and gardens, sits at the heart of the neighbourhood. Minibus hire Palmers Green customers book is mostly family events, weddings and christenings, school trips and runs to the airports.
Palmers Green sits in the south-west of Enfield borough, between Southgate, Winchmore Hill, Bowes Park and Wood Green, with the North Circular running along its southern edge. From our base in SE1, it's about fifty minutes to an hour outside the rush hour, up through Islington and Wood Green.
Minibus hire Palmers Green for weddings and christenings
Greek Orthodox weddings and christenings at the churches of north London, St Demetrios in Edmonton and St John the Baptist in Wood Green among them, are followed by receptions at banqueting halls in Palmers Green, Enfield and along the North Circular. Guest lists often run to three or four hundred, with relatives flying in from Cyprus, Greece and Australia.
The minibus collects guests from family homes and hotels across north London, takes them to the church, on to the reception and back at the end of the night, often well after midnight. For the biggest events, a second vehicle can run alongside. Minibus hire Palmers Green families book for a christening usually includes the godparents' families as well as the grandparents.
Turkish Cypriot weddings, engagements and circumcision celebrations follow their own patterns and timings, often with a henna night beforehand, and we'll plan to them.
School trips and Broomfield Park
Palmers Green's primary and secondary schools, including Palmers Green High School for girls in nearby Winchmore Hill, book us for museum visits, theatre trips, swimming and sports fixtures. The South Kensington museums are about an hour away outside the rush hour, and the British Museum about forty-five minutes.
Broomfield Park has three lakes, a conservatory, sports pitches and the remains of Broomfield House, a Tudor mansion damaged by fire, and its playground and gardens suit a nursery or primary outing. The driver drops at the gate on Aldermans Hill or Broomfield Lane and returns when the group is ready. The park's conservatory and gardens host summer events, and the lakes are popular with families feeding the ducks. Many local children also attend Greek and Turkish Saturday schools, which book outings and end-of-year trips.
Green Lanes and family gatherings
Green Lanes, Palmers Green's high street, has Cypriot and Greek restaurants, meze houses and bakeries, along with cafés, pubs and shops selling halloumi, olives and sweets. Family gatherings, name-day celebrations and anniversary dinners fill the restaurants at weekends, and groups book us to get there and home.
For an evening out, the driver collects from homes across Palmers Green, Southgate and Bowes Park and drops everyone back at the end, however late the meze runs on.
Airport runs to Cyprus and beyond
Stansted is about forty-five minutes to an hour from Palmers Green outside the rush hour, via the North Circular and the M11, and Luton about forty-five minutes. Heathrow and Gatwick, where most flights to Larnaca and Paphos leave from, are about an hour and an hour and a quarter.
Families flying to Cyprus for the summer often travel with a lot of luggage, and relatives arriving for a wedding or a christening need collecting together. Send the flight numbers and we'll be at the terminal when they land. Summer flights to Larnaca and Paphos are busiest in late July and August, so book early for those dates.
Easter, name days and late services
Greek Orthodox Easter is the biggest celebration of the year for many Palmers Green families, with the midnight service on Holy Saturday, candles carried home and a family feast on Easter Sunday. Name days, the feast days of the saints people are named after, bring more family meals through the year.
For the midnight service, the minibus can collect older relatives from their homes, wait near the church and bring them back afterwards, when the streets are busy with families walking home. Christmas and New Year services follow the same pattern.
The North Circular and Green Lanes
The North Circular runs along the southern edge of Palmers Green, and it's been widened and rebuilt here, but the junctions at Green Lanes and Bounds Green are still slow at peak times. Green Lanes itself is busy with buses and parked cars, and stopping is limited near the shops. The residential streets are long and lined with parked cars. Pickups happen on side roads, and for weddings we'll allow time for the North Circular.
For minibus hire in Palmers Green, call 020 7183 0567.