The sooty tangle of railways and derelict warehouses around King's Cross was once the UK capital's seediest quarter. Now, it's home to an ambitious urban renewal project -- and has become an unlikely model for the city's future.
King's Cross, London —
The sooty tangle of railways and derelict warehouses around King's Cross was once the UK capital's seediest quarter. Now, it's home to an ambitious urban renewal project -- and has become an unlikely model for the city's future.
Courtesy James Merrell/Travel+Leisure
Left: St. Pancras International, which now houses the Renaissance Hotel. Right: Students from Central St. Martins, near the art school's new Granary Square campus.
Art and design —
Left: St. Pancras International, which now houses the Renaissance Hotel. Right: Students from Central St. Martins, near the art school's new Granary Square campus.
Courtesy James Merrell/Travel+Leisure
Left: King's Cross Pond Club, a naturally filtered swimming pool with views of St. Pancras International and the BT tower. Right: The newly refurbished departures concourse at King's Cross station.
Swimmers and commuters —
Left: King's Cross Pond Club, a naturally filtered swimming pool with views of St. Pancras International and the BT tower. Right: The newly refurbished departures concourse at King's Cross station.
Courtesy James Merrell/Travel+Leisure
Left: Indian street snacks at Dishoom King's Cross. Right: Sculptor Antony Gormley's studio.
Food for body and mind —
Left: Indian street snacks at Dishoom King's Cross. Right: Sculptor Antony Gormley's studio.
Courtesy James Merrell/Travel+Leisure
Left: Evening drinks on the roof of a canal boat and new waterside seating off Granary Square; Right: The mirrored panels of Gasholder No. 8, a disused Victorian gas tank now converted into a public art piece.
Outdoor space —
Left: Evening drinks on the roof of a canal boat and new waterside seating off Granary Square; Right: The mirrored panels of Gasholder No. 8, a disused Victorian gas tank now converted into a public art piece.
Courtesy James Merrell/Travel+Leisure