Little Venice facts for kids

The east side of Little Venice basin, with pretty white houses

Little Venice basin from the west, looking towards the Regents Canal

A British Waterways tug pushing a barge in Little Venice

Little Venice is a lovely part of West London, England. It's known for its beautiful canals and fancy white buildings. This area is where three canals meet: the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal, the Regent's Canal, and the entrance to Paddington Basin.

This meeting point forms a special triangular area called a basin. It's designed so that long canal boats can easily turn around. Many of the buildings here are grand, white, terraced houses and taller blocks. They are built in a style called Regency. Little Venice is about 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) west-north-west of Charing Cross. It's also right next to Paddington.

The area is part of the City of Westminster. In 2015, about 11,040 people lived in the Little Venice area. A main road called Warwick Avenue runs through it. There's also a tube station with the same name.

What's in a Name?

Junction of the Regent's Canal, at Paddington in 1828

The name "Little Venice" is quite new for this part of Paddington and Maida Vale. People had called it London's "Venice" for about a hundred years before "Little" was added. The full name became common in the second half of the 1900s.

Some people say the poet Robert Browning gave the area its name. He lived nearby from 1862 to 1887. However, others believe Lord Byron first joked that the place looked like Venice. Later, "Little Venice" became the official name for a local area in the City of Westminster.

Where Canals Meet

Narrowboats in Little Venice on the Regents Canal

Boats on the Grand Union Canal in Little Venice

Three canals join together here to form a triangular basin. There's even a small island inside it! The Paddington Arm of the Grand Union Canal enters from the west. The Regent's Canal comes in from the north-east. A short connecting canal to the Paddington Basin is in the south-east.

The sides of this basin are about 120 meters (120 yards) long from the Regents Canal to the other two corners. The distance from the Paddington Arm to the Paddington Basin canal is a bit longer, about 170 meters (170 yards).

The basin and the Grand Union Canal form the southern edge of the Little Venice area. This means that boats moored along the eastern part of the Grand Union Canal are within Little Venice. This also includes boats on the Regents Canal up to the start of the Maida Hill Tunnel.

What Does Little Venice Look Like?

The exact borders of Little Venice can be a bit unclear. However, most buildings in the area have white stucco fronts. This is a special plaster finish. This architectural style and being close to the canals really define the area.

Sometimes, the name "Little Venice" is used for a wider area. This includes new buildings around Paddington Basin. But the modern style of Paddington Basin is quite different from the older parts of Little Venice.

Generally, Little Venice is thought to be bordered by streets like Delamere Terrace, Warwick Crescent, Howley Place, and Maida Avenue to the south. Maida Vale Road is to the east. The Lord Hill Road / Formosa Street footbridge is to the west. Sutherland Avenue is to the north. This is the main area around the Little Venice basin with its famous white Regency-style buildings.

Fun Things to Do

The IWA Canalway Calvalcade at Little Venice in 2005

Little Venice is a popular place to live in London. It has many restaurants, shops, theatres, and pubs. You can find places right by the canals, like the Canal Cafe Theatre and the Puppet Theatre Barge. There's also the Waterside Café and the Summerhouse Restaurant.

In the northern part of the area, where it meets Maida Vale, there are three historic pubs. They are called The Warwick Castle, The Warrington, and the Prince Alfred. They are special because of their old interiors and outsides.

Every year, the Inland Waterways Association holds a special event called the Canalway Cavalcade. It happens over the early May Bank Holiday weekend. It's a fun boat rally with a trade show, activities, and entertainment for everyone.

Famous Buildings

19 Park Place Villas

• The Colonnade Hotel on Warrington Crescent is a very fancy building. It was built in 1863 as two houses. It has detailed decorations and a continuous balcony on the first floor. This building is famous because Alan Turing and Sigmund Freud both have connections to it. There are blue plaques outside to show this.
• Pondfield House on Clifton Gardens used to be a police building until the 1980s.

Well-Known People Who Lived Here

Many interesting people have lived in Little Venice:

• The writer Katherine Mansfield lived here in 1908–9 while studying music.
• Lennox Berkeley (1900-1989), a composer, lived on Warwick Avenue.
• The actor John Inman lived in a house in the area for 30 years.
• The famous psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud lived briefly in what is now the Colonnade Hotel.
• The brilliant code-breaker and mathematician Alan Turing was born in 1912 in a maternity home here. This building later became the Colonnade Hotel.
• Australian cricket star Shane Warne also lived here.
• John Julius Norwich, a historian, was a resident.
• Paul Weller, a musician from bands like The Jam, lived in Little Venice.

Getting Around

You can take a waterbus from Little Venice. It travels east along the Regent's Canal, past Regent's Park, stopping at London Zoo, and continuing to Camden Town.

Little Venice has one London Underground station, Warwick Avenue. It's on the Bakerloo line. You can also catch bus routes 6, 46, and 187. Paddington Station, a major train and underground station, is also just a short walk away.