The 5 IKEA'S in London

The view of the two Croydon Towers

IKEA is a well known cheap Swedish furniture shop and is famous for its meatballs. IKEA has 5 (proper large) stores in and slightly around London, and I have been to all of them. They are all located (except Lakeside) in the middle of Outer London, mostly in industrial or shopping estates. In fact almost 1 in 4 of IKEA'S 21 UK stores are in London.

The locations are listed in order from the closest to Trafalgar Square to the furthest.

Greenwich

From the O2 IKEA Greenwich is just visible in bright blue
IKEA Greenwich in the Swedish Blue

Opened in 2019, IKEA Greenwich is the newest IKEA in London. It is located in the Millennium Leisure Park, south of North Greenwich underground station and just west of the freight only Angerstein Wharf branch line. Inside the blue building is a normal (slightly small) IKEA with everything you expect including a Swedish Flag. Inline with IKEA'S green push the building has been constructed in an environmentally friendly way.

Wembley

IKEA Wembley is located just outside the North Circular but access from that road requires you to go inside the North Circular. The ULEZ (Ultra Low Emission Zone) boundary is formed by the North and South Circular and charges drivers of highly polluting vehicles. But the spur off the North Circular to IKEA is one of the few places where the boundary is slightly inside the expected border. This is definitely beneficial for IKEA as it relies on people taking their flat packs home by car.

The Swedish Flag is the sign of IKEAs home country

Tottenham

The other IKEA in North London is IKEA Tottenham and before Meridian Water station opened in 2019 it was only served by the 192 and 341 buses. This has meant it is now much easier to get to this IKEA as Meridian Water gets a regular train service (well towards London). IKEA Tottenham unlike IKEA Wembley is on the wrong side of North Circular so full ULEZ charges apply. This means that you could be charged £12.50 (if your vehicle is not exempt) to travel a few hundred metres between the North Circular and IKEA.

Croydon

The entrance to IKEA Croydon with the two towers to the left

Croydon IKEA is famous for its two towers penetrating the South London skyline. These chimneys are remnants of the former power station at this location and have survived attempts for their demolition, showing how iconic they have become. The towers have the iconic IKEA yellow and blue (based on the Swedish Flag) on their crown serving as an unusual advert. IKEA Croydon is also served by Ampere Way Tram stop which opened in 2000. The Trams are multiple times more popular than the rail line that was that used to be on this alignment.

The massive Croydon Tower up close in the dark

Lakeside

IKEA Lakeside is the furthest IKEA from Trafalgar square, is over 2.5 miles outside Greater London, and is located just outside the M25. Technically it's the A282 which is formed directly from and goes directly to the M25 just north of the A13 and, to the south, over the River Thames, using the QEII bridge or Dartford crossing (which is the easternmost tunnel under the Thames), to just south of the A2. IKEA Lakeside is located in the Lakeside shopping estate which like its name has a large lake in its centre. All IKEA’s are very similar inside: with a food hall, a long winding one way system, and an open warehouse near the exit. IKEA Lakeside is no exception with it also containing a large car park and is reasonably easy to get to by public transport from Chafford Hundred station.

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