Are You Going to the Carnival this Weekend?

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Follow our guide to getting around Notting Hill

Over a million Londoners will be taking to the streets this weekend for the biggest Carnival in Europe - the Notting Hill Carnival.

The fun begins on Saturday August 23, Panorama, a free open-air annual steel band competition for the whole family, steel band and general music lovers, held at Emslie Horniman Pleasance centre in W10 from 7pm - 8pm.

Sunday begins early with J'ouvert, a procession from 6am till 10 pm beginning and ending at Canal Way in Ladbroke Grove, with the Family Day Parade beginning at 10am.

Monday, from 10am till 8.30pm is the main carnival parade - expect colourful floats, stages sound systems, street food and pop-up bars.

You can find a full guide to the event at the Carnival website

TfL has produced a guide to travelling in the area, warning that roads and public transport in west London will be very busy and asking people to make the most of this fantastic annual event by planning ahead and following this advice:

Road users

Roads in west London will be very busy on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August. To create a safe environment during Carnival there will be extensive road closures in Notting Hill, Ladbroke Grove and Westbourne Park areas.

Road closure times:

• Sunday 24 August from 06:00 until around 23:59
• Monday 25 August from 06:00 until around 03:00 on the morning of Tuesday 26 August

Road closures will be from:

• Harrow Road in the north
• Notthing Hill Gate in the south
• Clarendon Road in the west
• Queensway in the east

The road closures will make traffic around the event areas busier than usual, including A5 Edgware Road, Holland Park Avenue, Notting Hill Gate and Bayswater Road. Wherever possible, drivers should avoid these parts of west London, or allow for delays to their journey.

Local parking restrictions will apply. Find out more from the local councils Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea.

For the latest information on how the roads are operating, check before you travel and follow @TfLTrafficNews on Twitter.

Taxi and private hire

Taxi and private hire services will be operating normally, although they will be affected by the road closures in the area.

Read more information about taxi or private hire, including booking a vehicle.

Follow @TfLTPH on Twitter for our latest updates on London's taxi and private hire trades.

Cycling

A small number of Barclays Cycle Hire docking stations in the Carnival area will be suspended from 21:00 on Saturday 23 August until 07:00 on Tuesday 26 August. These include:

• Turquoise Island
• Pembridge Villas
• Chepstow Villas
• Notting Hill Gate station
• Hereford Road
• Ladbroke Grove (central) 
• Landsdowne Walk
• All Saints Church
• Blenheim Crescent
• All Saints Road
• Westbourne Park Road (Powis Gardens)

Although all other docking stations will remain available, traffic congestion in the area may make it difficult for Barclays Cycle Hire redistribution vehicles to collect and/or replace bicycles across west London.

Customers are advised to check availablity online using the live docking station map.

Follow @BarclaysCycle on Twitter for the latest updates.

Walking

Magenta wayfinding signage will be in place to help carnivalgoers get between transport hubs and the event.

Tube and Rail

Tube and rail will be the best way to get around on the weekend, although stations in west London will be busier than usual.

Planned tube closures on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August include:

Tube

• Ladbroke Grove (Circle and Hammersmith & City lines) will be closed on Sunday 24 and Monday 25
• Latimer Road (Circle and Hammersmith & City lines) will be closed 23:30 on Sunday 24 and Monday 25
• Notting Hill Gate (Central, Circle and District lines) will be exit-only between 11:00-19:00 and no interchange between District, Circle and Central lines on Sunday 24 August.  On Monday 25 August this station will be exit only and District and Circle lines will be non stopping between 11:00-19:00. There will be no interchange between the District, Circle and Central lines all day.  Please go to Bayswater or Paddington stations instead 
• Queensway (Central Line) will be exit only between 11:00-19:00 on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August
• Royal Oak will be exit-only between 11:00-18:00 and closed from 23:30 on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August
• Westbourne Park will be exit-only between 11:00-18:00 and closed from 23:30 on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August

Stations around the Carnival area with no planned closures:

Tube

• High Street Kensington (Circle and District lines)
• Holland Park (Central line)
• Queen's Park (Bakerloo line)
• Shepherd's Bush (Central line)
• Bayswater (Circle and District line). On Monday 25 August, between 12:00-19:00, customers are advised to use this station as Circle and District line trains will not stop at Notting Hill Gate
• Paddington (Hammersmith & City and Circle lines) on Sunday 24 and Monday 25 August - customers are advised to use this station instead of Notting Hill Gate or Royal Oak, as both these stations will have entry restrictions

London Overground

• Queen's Park
• Kensal Rise
• Kensal Green
• Shepherd's Bush

Oyster card top ups

Stations in west London will be very busy on both days of Carnival. To save time and avoid queues, top up your Oyster card in advance. Find out more about Oyster or get a card.

Ticket gates may need to be left open due to the large number of people attending the Carnival. If you are unable to touch in or out with your Oyster card, and are not charged the right fare, you will get an automatic refund within seven days of the end of the Carnival.

To plan ahead on the day visit Journey Planner.

For up to date information on Tube, DLR and London Overground services follow @TfLTravelAlerts on Twitter.

Buses

From 16:00 on Saturday 23 August until the end of the Carnival weekend, route 23 will be affected due to a road diversion in place for the Panorama event.

From around 02:00 on Sunday 24 August until 05:00 on Tuesday 26 August, buses in and around the event area will be on diversion or will terminate earlier than usual to avoid the road closures. 

During these times, buses will start from the Prince of Wales on Harrow Road to the north of the Carnival area.

To the south of the Carnival area buses will start from Notting Hill Gate.

Bus stops within or adjacent to the area will carry displays about diversions or disruptions.

Bus routes affected include: 6, 7, 16, 18, 23, 27, 28, 31, 36, 46, 52, 70, 94, 98, 148, 187, 205, 220, 228, 295, 316, 328, 332, 390, 414, 436, 436X, 452, N7, N16, N18, N28, N31  N98 and N207.

Notting Hill Carnival buses map (PDF 182KB)

There will be extra day and night buses serving the Notting Hill Carnival, however buses in west London are expected to be busier than usual so allow plenty of time for your journey and plan ahead.

Find out how your bus may be affected.      

Follow @TfLBusAlerts on Twitter for the latest bus updates.

The Metropolitan Police have produced a guide to staying safe at this year's Notting Hill Carnival which you can find here.

August 22, 2014