A Grand House with a Warm Welcome
There aren't many London guest houses where you double-check the address because the house looks too grand to be yours for the night. It happens here: The Bishop is a detached 1930s mansion on The Bishops Avenue, the North London street the world knows as Billionaires' Row, and you arrive at what feels like a friend's improbably splendid home. Shaf or one of the team usually meets you at the door, shows you the kitchen and the garden, and leaves you to settle in at your own pace.
Pick The Bishop if you want space, character and honest value: free reserved parking, a stocked help-yourself kitchen, a garden to unwind in and rooms that run from cosy singles to suites with their own pool table. If only polished chain perfection will do, look elsewhere; the appeal here is a grand home with quirks.
The house rewards the curious, from the gold and black staircase worthy of a hotel lobby to the Art Deco styling in the biggest suites. The Bishop works best for families, friend groups and value-minded couples who want room to breathe, a garden to sit in and an easy run into central London.
Seventeen Room Types, No Two Alike
The fun of booking The Bishop is choosing how you want to stay. Couples can take a garden-view double with a balcony over the terraces; solo travellers get a proper single by a leaded window; the attic hideaways under the eaves suit anyone who likes a room with angles and character. Self-caterers have a studio with its own kitchenette and three chalets to pick from.
At the top of the range the rooms turn theatrical. The King Room with Two King Beds pairs its beds with sofas and a pool table under a stained-glass skylight, and the Superior King Suite adds its own curtained lounge. Most rooms have private bathrooms, several with baths and bidets; a few of the simplest share, and each room's details spell out which is which before you book.
What's the Help-Yourself Kitchen All About?
The communal kitchen is the heart of the operation and the thing guests mention most. Help yourself to what's laid out on the big island: bread, pastries, tea and coffee and whatever else has appeared that day, all included in your stay. It stays open until around eleven at night, and some mornings the host cooks breakfast for whoever's around; treat that as a happy bonus rather than a promise.
Outside, the garden falls away in clipped terraces of topiary and lawn, with benches and flower boxes along the wrought-iron balustrades. You're on the doorstep of North London's best green space too: Hampstead Heath and Kenwood House are minutes away, and the Northern line from East Finchley puts King's Cross about nineteen minutes from your morning coffee.
Why Book The Bishop?
The Bishop is strongest for families, friend groups and value-minded travellers who want character and space with a fast Tube run into the centre.
Billionaires' Row address
A detached 1930s mansion on The Bishops Avenue, with Hampstead Heath and Kenwood House minutes away and the street itself a sight worth the walk.
Free reserved parking
Private on-site parking at no charge, reserved ahead of arrival and available from check-in at 15:00: a genuine rarity anywhere in London.
Help-yourself kitchen
A communal kitchen stocked with complimentary basics, open until around 23:00, with a cooked breakfast sometimes appearing as a bonus.
Space for groups
Multi-bed rooms, suites and chalets let families and friend groups stay under one roof, with a staff team guests praise behind the welcome.
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Interesting Points About The Bishop
- The house has its own name in the property records: Fairhill, a detached mansion built between 1930 and 1949 on a plot of roughly 0.95 acres. It last changed hands in 2023.
- The Bishops Avenue is named after Arthur Winnington-Ingram, the Bishop of London whose diocese owned much of the surrounding land following a 1904 grant; the 66-house street is regularly cited among the wealthiest in the world.
- East Finchley station, the nearest Underground stop, is not step-free: there are two flights of roughly fifteen steps each between street and platform, so allow extra time if you travel with heavy luggage.
- The host's own directions put the walk from East Finchley station at about 1,050 yards, a 13 to 14 minute walk, which is more accurate than the distances shown on most travel listings.
Rooms & Accommodation at The Bishop
Double or Twin Room with Garden View
Double or twin · Garden view · Private bathroom
The balcony is the reason to book this one: French doors open beside the terrace rail with the sunken garden below, and a patio spot waits for warm evenings. Inside there's a full private bathroom with a bath and bidet, a dressing area and a safety deposit box. A natural pick for couples who want the garden side of the house.
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Deluxe Triple Room
Sleeps 3 · Balcony · Private bathroom
The right call for three friends travelling together: the balcony gives the room its own bit of outside, the bathroom comes with a bath, and there's a coffee machine plus a kettle in the room for slow mornings.
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Deluxe Double Room
Double · Attic character · Private bathroom
A snug double under the eaves with plaid-upholstered seating, built-in storage and its own bathroom. The sloped ceilings give it more character than floor plan, which is exactly the appeal: couples who like a room with corners and quirk will be happier here than in a plain modern box.
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Deluxe Room
Double · Private bathroom · Safe
Pick the Deluxe Room when an en-suite double is the priority and suite space isn't: you get the textured gold feature wall, a wardrobe and tea and coffee in the room without needing one of the bigger suites. It's the one for guests who plan to be out all day and want a solid, secure base to come back to.
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Family Suite
Two bedrooms · Sofa · Private bathroom
Families with older children get what they actually want here: two separate bedrooms rather than one shared space, a sofa to flop on and a private bathroom between you. A coffee machine and a fan finish it off.
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Deluxe Quadruple Room
Sleeps 4 · Balcony and patio · Garden view
You get two double beds, a balcony and a patio with the garden beyond, plus a bath and a flat-screen TV. For families or four friends who'd rather share one big room than split across two, it's the house's most sociable spread.
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Studio
Entire studio · Kitchenette · Private bathroom
Self-caterers, this one's yours: an entire studio with a green-panelled kitchenette and breakfast bar, a sofa bed and a private bathroom with a bath. Ideal for guests who'd rather cook on their own schedule than plan around the shared kitchen's hours.
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Executive Triple Room
Sleeps 3 · Garden view · Private bathroom
A calmer take on the triple: silk-effect teal walls, a double and a single, the garden outlook and a bathroom with a bidet. Three friends or a small family fit here without feeling boxed in, and the quieter styling earns the executive name.
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Double Room
Double · Shared bathroom
The simplest way into the mansion: a straightforward attic double with fashion prints on the wall and a kettle on the dresser. The trade is a shared bathroom, which makes it right for solo visitors and couples happy to swap an en-suite for a few more nights out in London.
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Single Room
Single · Shared bathroom
Solo travellers get a real bed by a leaded window with tartan pelmets rather than a boxed-in bunk; the bathroom is shared. A sensible base for one when you're out exploring London all day and just need a comfortable, secure place to land at night.
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Chalet
Entire chalet · Double + sofa bed · Private bathroom
A self-contained option with a double bedroom and a separate living room with a sofa bed, so two can sleep while two sit up. It has its own private bathroom and suits guests who want a stay with a door between them and the main house bustle.
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King Room with Two King Beds
2 king beds · Pool table · Shared bathroom
The room guests tell stories about: two king beds, sofas and a pool table beneath a stained-glass skylight, with marble columns dividing the sleeping and lounging ends. It's the pick for friends and families chasing the most memorable room in the house; the trade for all that theatre is a shared bathroom, so pack a dressing gown.
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Superior King Suite
Private suite · Lounge with pool table
A proper suite arrangement: sleeping quarters plus a curtained lounge with sofas, a dining table and its own pool table. Book it when the room is meant to be part of the holiday rather than just where you sleep; it works well for couples or friends settling in for a few nights.
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Deluxe Double or Twin Room with Garden View
Double or twin · Garden view · Private bathroom
Up in the eaves with a purple-dressed bed, a marble-finished en-suite through the mirrored door and the garden outlook beyond. Couples and friends can have it made up as a double or twins, and it's the quietest corner of the top floor.
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Family Studio
3 bedrooms · 2 bathrooms
Three separate bedrooms with two bathrooms between them: the setup that ends arguments about who snores. Book it for a small family or three friends who like their own doors, with enough bathroom capacity that mornings don't bottleneck.
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One-Bedroom Chalet
Entire chalet · Double + sofa-bed lounge · Private bathroom
A large double bedroom plus a green-panelled living room with sofas and a sofa bed, all to yourselves. The living space is the point: somewhere to spread out in the evening with the kettle on, and a good fit for couples on longer stays who want more than a bedroom.
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Superior Chalet
Entire chalet · Private bathroom
The simplest brief of the three chalets: an entire unit with a wide bed under sloped ceilings, a sofa and a private bathroom. Take it when you want the self-contained setup with the least fuss: the pick for couples who'd rather have privacy than a main-house landing.
Check PricesWhat Facilities Does The Bishop Offer?
Rooms & comfort
- Free Wi-Fi
- Heated rooms
- Tea and coffee trays in most rooms
- Flat-screen TVs in selected rooms
- Wardrobes and dressing space
- Carpeted rooms
Bathrooms
- Private bathrooms in most room types
- Baths with showers in several rooms
- Bidets in selected rooms
Food & drink
- Complimentary help-yourself guest kitchen
- Kitchen open until around 23:00
- Tea, coffee and breakfast basics included
- Not available: On-site restaurant
Outdoors
- Landscaped sunken garden and terraces
- Balconies and patios on selected rooms
- Garden-view rooms
- Not available: Swimming pool
Parking & transport
- Free private on-site parking (reserve ahead; available from check-in at 15:00)
- East Finchley Underground about a 13-14 minute walk
- Buses 102, 143, 234, 263 and H3 serve East Finchley station
House policies
- Children of all ages welcome
- Free cot for ages 0-3 on request
- Quiet hours 23:00-09:00
- Non-smoking throughout
- Not available: Pets
- Not available: Parties and events
Location & Getting Around
The Bishops Avenue runs between East Finchley and Hampstead Garden Suburb in the London Borough of Barnet, a wide, tree-lined road of gated mansions that the press has called Billionaires' Row for decades. The street is named after Arthur Winnington-Ingram, the Bishop of London whose diocese owned the surrounding land after a 1904 grant, and its 66 houses have included some of the most expensive homes in the world. The Bishop sits at number 47, on the N2 side: leafy, quiet and considerably better connected than it looks.
For everyday needs, East Finchley's High Road is your local strip, with independent cafés, delis and pubs. Tops Pizza on the High Road, roughly a 15-minute walk (0.7 miles), is the reliable low-effort dinner, and the official East Finchley directory lists a healthy run of independents around the station. For green space you're genuinely spoilt: Hampstead Heath's 790 acres, the free Old Masters at Kenwood House and the trails of Highgate Wood are all close, with Alexandra Palace's events calendar a short hop east.
Transport is the Northern line's High Barnet branch from East Finchley, Zone 3, about a 13 to 14 minute walk from the door by the host's own directions. Trains run every few minutes and reach King's Cross in roughly 19 minutes; buses 102, 143, 234, 263 and H3 serve the station if the weather turns. One practical note: East Finchley station has two flights of stairs and no step-free access, so pack accordingly. Drivers do better than almost anywhere in London here, with free reserved parking at the house itself, and Heathrow is about 17 miles by road.
- East Finchley Underground (Northern line, Zone 3): 13-14 min walk. Direct trains to King's Cross in about 19 minutes, every few minutes; note the station has stairs, not step-free access.
- Kenwood House: Short drive or bus ride. Free English Heritage gallery with 63 Old Masters including a Rembrandt self-portrait and a Vermeer, in 74 acres of gardens.
- Hampstead Heath: A few minutes by car or bus. 790 acres of ancient parkland with swimming ponds and the Parliament Hill viewpoint over the whole city.
- Alexandra Palace: About 2 miles east. The Victorian People's Palace with panoramic London views and a year-round gig, event and fireworks calendar.
- Highgate Cemetery: About 2 miles. Grade I listed Victorian cemetery where Karl Marx and George Eliot are buried; pair it with a walk in Highgate Wood.
- Camden Market: About 15 minutes by Tube, direct on the Northern line. A sprawl of food stalls and vintage shopping either side of Camden Lock.
- Tops Pizza, East Finchley High Road: 15 min walk (0.7 miles). The easy takeaway dinner near the station, with a 5-star food hygiene rating.
- King's Cross St Pancras: About 19 minutes by Tube, 7 stops direct. Eurostar, national rail connections and the start of central London.
Getting to Key Locations
Photo: Jim Osley, CC BY-SA 2.0
Kenwood House
The free art fix locals keep to themselves: an English Heritage mansion holding a Rembrandt self-portrait and one of the world's few Vermeers, with 74 acres of gardens running into the Heath. Go early, do the lakeside walk, then coffee at the cafe.
View on Map
Photo: Jim Osley, CC BY-SA 2.0
Hampstead Heath
790 acres of proper countryside inside the city: swimming ponds, ancient woods and the Parliament Hill viewpoint where the whole London skyline unrolls at your feet. From the house you can be on the grass in minutes and lost, pleasantly, within the hour.
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Alexandra Palace
Ally Pally to everyone local: the Victorian People's Palace on the hill, with one of London's best free panoramas from its terrace and a year-round calendar of gigs, fireworks and festivals. Around two miles east, an easy taxi or bus hop from East Finchley.
View on MapHow to Get to The Bishop
- Start at King's Cross St Pancras: Follow signs for the Underground and board a northbound Northern line train on the High Barnet branch. Check the front of the train or the platform board reads High Barnet, not Edgware.
- Ride 7 stops to East Finchley: The train calls at Euston, Camden Town, Kentish Town, Tufnell Park, Archway and Highgate before East Finchley, about 19 minutes in all. An off-peak contactless fare from zone 1 is £3.10 (£3.80 peak).
- Walk to 47 The Bishops Avenue: The walk from the station takes roughly 13 to 14 minutes through quiet residential streets; any maps app will route you door to door. Note the station itself has two flights of stairs and no lift.
- Driving instead?: The house has free private parking that begins at check-in from 15:00. Reserve your space ahead of arrival so it's waiting when you pull in off The Bishops Avenue.
Exploring London from The Bishop
First visit? Do the classics from a calm base: the Northern line takes you straight into King's Cross, Camden and the West End, so you can queue for the British Museum, walk the South Bank and still come home to a garden and free parking. The video below is a solid three-to-four-day primer covering Westminster, the Thames, Borough Market, the Shard and the big museums.
From this side of the city, though, the smart move is to mix in the North London days the tour buses miss: a morning swim at the Hampstead ponds, the Rembrandt and Vermeer at Kenwood House, sunset from Parliament Hill or a gig night at Alexandra Palace. If your plans lean central for part of the trip, our guides to The Jade in Kensington and Westminster Fire Station Luxury Apartments cover two very different central bases.
London in Three to Four Days
A 15-minute area primer from Island Hopper TV covering Westminster, the Thames, Buckingham Palace, Borough Market, the Shard and the major museums.
Is The Bishop worth it?
Yes, if mansion-scale space, a warm host welcome and free parking matter more to you than box-fresh fittings: guests rate the stay well overall, with the location and the staff drawing the warmest feedback of anything here, and the help-yourself kitchen wins people over daily. Skip it if you want polished chain-hotel uniformity; this is a characterful, lived-in home.
What Guests Say About The Bishop
Scores and review counts are aggregated from verified guest bookings on major travel platforms.
Fabulous
Guests keep coming back to the surprise of the house itself, the warmth of Shaf and the team, and the stocked help-yourself kitchen; free reserved parking rounds out the value. The recurring note is that the house is characterful and lived-in rather than hotel-polished, and most reviewers treat that as part of the appeal rather than a flaw.
Loved every part of the stay and is already planning a return visit. Her one note: the room had a projector and screen rather than a TV, and the setup wasn't usable.
Leanne
Loved every part of the stay and is already planning a return visit. Her one note: the room had a projector and screen rather than a TV, and the setup wasn't usable.
2026-07-02Thought she'd come to the wrong address because the house looked far too beautiful to be the booking. Shaf met the group at the door, explained the kitchen and even cooked breakfast; their huge ground-floor room had two doubles, sofas, a pool table and its own door to the garden.
2026-07-01Found Shaf and the team endlessly friendly, and loved being free to raid the kitchen shelves and fridge, which she found wonderfully unusual and generous. Great room, lovely garden, great location.
2026-06-30Called it a genuinely one-of-a-kind place to stay and said you simply won't find anywhere else like it, so give it a go.
2026-07-01Stayed with three children and called the setup perfect for the family, with kind, helpful staff he'd recommend to anyone.
2026-06-25Praised the very spacious room with its lovely outlook over the garden, the secure locks throughout the house and the friendly host. His only suggestion was a new shower head.
2026-06-23Rated it a great property in a very good spot with helpful, friendly staff, though he felt the pool table could use a little attention.
2026-07-01Booked the stay for an employee and was impressed by how carefully and respectfully the team looked after her throughout.
2026-06-21Good to Know Before You Book
Parking
Parking is free, private and on site, but reserve your space in advance; it becomes available from check-in at 15:00.
Bathrooms
Most room types have private bathrooms, several with baths and bidets. The Double Room, Single Room and King Room with Two King Beds share facilities, so check your room's listing when you book.
Kitchen hours
The help-yourself kitchen is one of the best perks going, stocked with complimentary basics; it closes around 23:00 and not every room has its own fridge, so plan late-night drinks ahead.
Breakfast
There's no formal breakfast service; the communal kitchen covers bread, pastries, tea and coffee, and the host sometimes cooks as a bonus. Treat a cooked breakfast as a nice surprise, not a promise.
Cancellation & payment
Cancellation and prepayment terms vary by room type and rate; the exact conditions for your chosen room are shown before you confirm. A photo ID and payment card may be requested at check-in.
A quiet house
Quiet hours run 23:00 to 09:00 and the house doesn't take hen, stag or similar parties, which keeps evenings calm for everyone, families included.
Photos of The Bishop
Frequently Asked Questions
The Bishop is at 47 The Bishops Avenue in East Finchley, North London (N2 0BN), and East Finchley Underground on the Northern line is about a 13 to 14 minute walk away. Trains run every few minutes and reach King's Cross in roughly 19 minutes. One thing to know: the station has stairs rather than step-free access.
Central London is a direct Northern line ride from The Bishop, about 19 minutes to King's Cross. Walk to East Finchley station, board a southbound train and you reach Camden in around 15 minutes and the West End in roughly half an hour door to door. Contactless payment works throughout; an off-peak fare into zone 1 is £3.10.
Free private parking is available on site, with no daily charge. Spaces must be reserved in advance and parking becomes available from check-in at 15:00, so request yours when you book.
There's no formal breakfast service at The Bishop; instead a communal kitchen is stocked with complimentary basics such as bread, pastries, tea and coffee, and guests help themselves. The host sometimes cooks breakfast as a bonus, but it isn't a guaranteed inclusion, so plan around the kitchen rather than a set menu.
Check-in runs from 15:00 to 23:00 and check-out is between 08:00 and 12:00. Arrival is host-managed: Shaf or one of the team usually meets you at the door, and self-check-in can be arranged, so it helps to confirm your arrival time ahead of the day.
Most of the seventeen room types have private bathrooms, several with baths and bidets. Three of the simplest rooms share facilities: the Double Room, the Single Room and the King Room with Two King Beds. Each room's listing states its bathroom setup before you confirm.
Families and small groups are a natural fit: children of all ages are welcome, a free cot is available on request for under-3s, and the biggest rooms sleep three or four with suites, studios and chalets on top. The house doesn't take hen, stag or similar parties, and quiet hours run 23:00 to 09:00.
Pets aren't permitted at The Bishop and smoking isn't allowed anywhere in the property. Both policies apply across all seventeen room types.
No, this is a different place entirely. The Bishop guest house is a converted mansion at 47 The Bishops Avenue in East Finchley, N2. It's unrelated to The Bishop pubs in Kingston upon Thames and East Dulwich, and it has no connection to the Bishop of London; the street name simply comes from land historically owned by a former Bishop of London.
Cancellation and prepayment terms at The Bishop vary by room type and rate, so check the conditions shown for your chosen room before you confirm. A photo ID and payment card may be requested at check-in.
Other Great Stays in London
The Jade
Pick it over The Bishop when you want a compact Kensington boutique with a kitchenette in your own room and the Tube three minutes away, rather than a mansion up the Northern line.
Westminster Fire Station Luxury Apartments
Full-kitchen serviced apartments eight minutes from Westminster Abbey; the pick when you want self-catering in the middle of the sights instead of a hosted house in the north.
The Farringdon
Three polished apartments on the City fringe; choose it for a slick, central self-catering base when gardens and parking matter less than location.
Ready to Book The Bishop?
Mansion-scale rooms on Billionaires' Row, free reserved parking and a kitchen that keeps giving: check your dates and see what's available for your stay.
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