London/Hornchurch

Hornchurch is an outer district of East London, England. It is about 15 mi (24 km) from the centre of the city, in the London Borough of Havering. It is one of two main tourist centres in Havering and extends to include the neighbouring areas of Rainham and Upminster, with a collection of small museums and heritage sites. The area is primarily a residential suburb, but has some value hotel accommodation and is on the London Underground network. It has a large theatre and is a popular location for weddings. There is a large retail area which has a good selection of restaurants, cafes and bars. There are a lot of outdoor activities, parklands and hiking trails. The area of Hornchurch is 31,000 m2 (330,000 ft²).

Get in

On public transport, coming from the City of London the quickest route is a c2c train from Fenchurch Street to Upminster and then the District line. From the rest of Central London the journey is best completed by using the London Underground.

By tube

There are three London Underground stations on the District line in Zone 6 around Hornchurch. However none are especially close to the town centre:

By train

The nearest National Rail station is at Emerson Park to the north (served by London Overground). This has limited services and requires a connection at either Upminster or Romford.

  • Emerson Park (north of the town centre). London Overground services from Romford and Upminster. 
  • Gidea Park (about 1.5 miles northwest of Hornchurch town centre). Elizabeth line services. 
  • Harold Wood (about 2 miles northeast of Hornchurch town centre). Elizabeth line services. 
  • Rainham (about 3 miles south of Hornchurch town centre). c2c services from Fenchurch Street and Grays. 
  • Upminster (about a mile east of Hornchurch town centre). c2c services from Fenchurch Street, Tilbury and Southend. Interchange with the District line. 

By bus

London Buses routes 165, 193, 248, 252, 256, 365 (24 hour), 370 and 372 all pass through or near Hornchurch Town Centre. These routes provide connections to the three tube stations and the National Rail stations mentioned above. 24-hour route 365 provides a connection with the rest of the night bus network at Romford.

  • Bus 165. Rainham—Elm Park—Hornchurch—Emerson Park—Romford. 
  • Bus 193. County Park—Hornchurch—Romford—Queen's Hospital. 
  • Bus 248. Cranham—Upminster—Hornchurch—Roneo Corner—Romford. 
  • Bus 252. Hornchurch—Elm Park—Roneo Corner—Romford—Collier Row. 
  • Bus 256. Hornchurch—Emerson Park—Ardleigh Green—Harold Wood—Harold Hill—Noak Hill. 
  • Bus 365. 24 hour. South Hornchurch—Elm Park—Hornchurch—Roneo Corner—Queen's Hospital—Romford—Collier Row—Havering Park. 
  • Bus 370. Lakeside—South Ockendon—North Ockendon—Upminster—Hornchurch—Emerson Park—Heath Park—Romford. 
  • Bus 372. Lakeside—Aveley—Wennington—Rainham—South Hornchurch—Elm Park—Hornchurch. 

By car

The nearest trunk routes are the A12, A127, A13 and M25

See

Hornchurch cultural centre

Hornchurch has a large theatre and an arts space. There is an annual Hornchurch Festival.

  • 🌍 Fairkytes Arts Centre, 53 Billet Lane, Hornchurch, RM11 1AX, ☏ +44 1708 456308. Arts centre with occasional public events and exhibits. 
  • 🌍 Queen's Theatre, Billet Lane, Hornchurch, RM11 1QT, ☏ +44 1708 443333. 500-seat theatre with an active production company called Cut to the Chase and regular performances. The theatre opened in this purpose-built site in 1975. The Arts Council of England provide funding for the theatre and it is also a registered charity. 

Upminster heritage sites

Upminster has three heritage sites. They have limited opening, mostly weekends during the summer. To make visiting easier, they all open at the same time, and are within walking distance of each other.

  • 🌍 Old Chapel, St Mary's Lane, Upminster, RM14 2QR. Daily 2-5PM. Grade II listed restored chapel for Protestant Dissenters. Free. 
  • 🌍 Tithe Barn Museum, Hall Lane, Upminster, RM14 2TX, ☏ +44 1708 500600. Collection of 14,500 artifacts of domestic and agricultural use, ranging from Roman times to the present day. Its thatched building dates from 1450. Free. 
  • 🌍 Upminster Windmill, St Mary's Lane, Upminster, RM14 2QL, ☏ +44 300 030 1803. 2-5PM. Grade II* listed smock mill that is being restored to be a working windmill. Free. 

Rainham and the River Thames

Rainham is about 3 miles south of Hornchurch town centre on the River Thames and has become a tourist destination since the development of the RSPB Rainham nature reserve.

Parks

The area has a lot of good quality large parks. Many of them form part of the Thames Chase community forest.

  • 🌍 Harrow Lodge Park, Hornchurch Road, Hornchurch, RM12 4AD. Park with a boating lake and cafe. 
  • 🌍 Hornchurch Country Park (Thames Chase), Squadrons Approach, Hornchurch, RM12 6TS. Park on the former site of Hornchurch Airfield, south of Hornchurch. The River Ingrebourne passes through it. The most popular part of the park is to the west of the Ingreborne, where the ground is flat and paved; this area is most commonly frequented by dog walkers. The woodland to the east of the river is somewhat inaccessible. There is a fishing lake and there are many paths leading from the park to other near by areas, including Upminster, Dagenham and Rainham. There are a number of pillboxes and other items dating from the Second World War. 

Sports

There is a stadium on the boundary between Hornchurch and Upminster, home to local sports team. It is also possible to see cricket matches during the summer at Harrow Lodge Park.

Do
  • 🌍 Delta Force (East London Paintball Centre), Aveley Road, Upminster, RM14 2TN. 
  • 🌍 Hornchurch Sports Centre, Hornchurch Road, Hornchurch, RM11 1JU. You can find several activities like swimming, squash, cricket and gym. 
  • 🌍 Langtons House, ☏ +44 1708 433523. Langtons House is the register office of the London Borough of Havering. It is a Georgian Grade II listed building overlooking landscaped gardens and an ornamental lake. It includes function rooms and is a popular location for weddings and civil partnerships. The grounds are open as a public park. There is an annual free concert in the summer. 
  • 🌍 London LOOP hiking trail (Section 22 starts at Harold Wood, 23 at Upminster Bridge and 24 at Rainham). Hiking trail that encircles the whole of London. 

Buy

Hornchurch has a good selection of basic high street shops, but offers little more. There are large malls that can be accessed by car and public transport at Intu Lakeside and Westfield Stratford City. Nearby Romford has a wide selection of shops and several shopping centres.

Eat

There are lots of restaurants throughout Hornchurch, both independent and chains. Many are around the high street area:

Independent
  • 🌍 Le Moulin, 18B Station Lane, Hornchurch, RM12 6NJ, ☏ +44 1708 472121. Independent authentic French patisserie with good coffee. 
  • 🌍 Da Vinci's, 13-15 Station Lane, Hornchurch, RM12 6JL (half a mile north of Hornchurch London Underground Station), ☏ +44 1708 474054. Independent Italian restaurant. 

Chains

Indian restaurants

This area has a large collection of Indian restaurants:

Drink

Coffee shops

Pubs and bars
  • 🌍 The Fatling, 109 High Street, Hornchurch, RM11 1TX, ☏ +44 1708 442125. 
  • 🌍 The Harrow (Ember Pub & Dining), 130 Hornchurch Road, Hornchurch, RM11 1DP. 
  • 🌍 J.J. Moon's (Wetherspoon), 46-62 High Street, Hornchurch, RM12 4UN, ☏ +44 1708 478410. 
  • 🌍 KC's, 155 Billet Lane, Hornchurch, RM11 1UR (Opposite Emerson Park Station), ☏ +44 1708 608112. 
  • 🌍 Railway Hotel (Ember Inns), Station Lane, Hornchurch, RM12 6SB. 
  • 🌍 Sutton Arms, 14-16 Station Lane, Hornchurch, RM12 6NJ. 
  • 🌍 The Windmill (Greene King), 167 Upminster Road, Upminster, RM14 2RB, ☏ +44 1708 442657. 

Sleep

Hotels in walking distance of the town centre and London Underground:

Hotels more suited to driving:

Connect

Locations with free Cloud WiFi:

  • Greggs. 
  • Hornchurch Sports Centre. 
  • J.J. Moon's. 
  • KFC. 
  • Superdrug. 

Locations with free O2 Wifi:

  • The Harrow. 
  • Harvester. 
  • McDonalds. 
  • Railway Hotel. 
  • Subway. 

Go next
Routes through Hornchurch
East London ← Dagenham ←  W  E  → Upminster → END
North London ← Brentwood ←  anticlockwise  clockwise  → Dartford → South London


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