Columbia Road Flower Market, Shoreditch, London

Beautiful flowers!

Best place to walk up to for a energy kick a Sunday – flower are amazing, good prices, wide variation and very good quality! Bets is to walk up in the end and do even more bargains on the last few flowers that are left!! amazing! http://londonsvenskar.com/nicolejacobsen/2011/06/23/a-sun...

You simply can't beat Columbia Road for top quality, reasonably priced flowers. After a visit here, you'll never willingly buy a supermarket or flower store bouquet again, as you won't get anything as interesting or affordable elsewhere!

Head down here on a sunny weekend for a look around while cheeky market traders yell out some of the funniest slogans in town (on a recent visit, one particular character seemed very proud of the phallic-looking amarylis he'd 'hand stolen' from Ann Summers).

Those on a budget may wish to avoid the very exclusive homeware boutiques alongside the stalls, and also the tempting but pricey organic lattes on offer...

MARKET OPERATES ON SUNDAYS ONLY - just in case you weren't aware.

Brilliant atmosphere, first and foremost. Retains an authentic market feel with shouty market traders and slightly less than tidy stalls. I looked at the plants but my main interests were the gorgeous little shops up and down the road, some of which only open on market days e.g. vintage clothes place, independent perfume boutique run by the artisan perfumer herself etc. Plenty of good quality street music. Yesterday there was a lady singing Edith Piaf type French songs accompanied by an accordian. The eat places on this road are simply out of this world gorgeous!

loved columbia road market. fabulous plants and flowers. best go early it gets packed.

This is a great flower market open sundays off Bethnal Green Road in Columbia Road E2.

You get a great array of plants and flowers not as good as it was in years gone by but much better than buying from B and Q and Homebase.

A good market. You can get many unusual flowers and plants here

A place to visit at the weekend and then go to the Blind Beggar on Whitechapel Road where the Kray brothers murdered a notorious villain for a drink afterwards.

Alot of lovely sundays to be had pootling around the flower market. Tip top.

if you're at a loose end on a sunday morning, or want to impress a certain someone , or your mum then you can't do better than a trip to columbia road. the flowers are cheep and cheerful, the stall holders the same. Ilove the shops, not a gap or starbucks in sight... look out for the vintage stalls on ezra st. and look out for favorates like The Cake hole. the very talented rob ryan, the delightful Suck and Chew, complete with vintage caliper box charity collection box and the quirky lapan and me.

Every Sunda, the (rather small and narrow) Columbia Road hosts stalls selling all sorts of floral loveliness - from bunches of roses to potted plants and shrubs.

Not only are all those flowers in one place beautiful, the smell is lovely and the prices are much more reasonable than any florist. If you go after 2pm you'll get them even cheaper as the stallholders try to get rid of unsold stock.

Don't forget to explore the shops on Columbia Road whilst you're there - most of them are only open on the weekend, and are every bit as charming as the market.

An institution on Sundays... Even if you don't want to buy flowers, or I you don't have a green thumb... This place is perfect for an on-the-go brunch and just wandering around with no particular goal is very nice!

I recommend you go early to avoid the tourists crowds (for some reason, the french are prominent there but, hey, the French are everywhere!)

I just hope this market is not going to become a mainstream place to hang out on Sundays... Let's keep it for londoners (and east londoners)

If you are more interested in food than flowers, flock to the broadway market which takes place on Saturdays... And be as always, early !

Not ideal whether conditions for my first visit - cold and rainy-ish but then again this is what is needed for such pretty tulips and daffodils! I think the market is sort of out-growing Columbia road and with two single-file rows of people-traffic, it was still rather nightmarish getting through.

If it's your first time it's worth walking one way through and looking at what's available (and what deals people have further on), then dive in for a second swoop and get what you want. That way you don't have to worry about your flowers getting crushed by too many passers by.

I expected it to be a bit cheaper and so would probably only pop in to take people to or if I was in the area - unfortuntely it's just a little out the way for me and doesn't warrant flocking here for fresh flowers. Even though a house with fresh flowers is a happy one.

Perfect place to spend a Sunday morning, with all sorts of deals to be had. Real old school market feel about this place and some bargains to be had towrds the end of the day. Also some quirky little shops along the road to call into.

Every Sunday this long old east london street opens up early in the morning to charm us with its unique shops and fantastic flowers... Its a place of character and if you want to get some beautiful flowers and plants, definitely try here, but get there early, because by 9-10 am its pretty busy and by 11 its a squeeze!

There's only one time to turn up, and that is EARLY to miss the crowds.

For the idiots who suggest the place is horribly overcrowded with Shoreditch hipsters, I think you are horribly mistaken. If anything it is the people who schlep from all over town, and the planet, to vsit this East End institution that fill it to bursting whilst the hipster lay in bed from partying the night before.

Personally I visit the shops on Saturday and head only to the market on Sunday for Flowers. And for those interested in Food, on Saturday Broadway Market is only a short walk further up Hackney Rd.

Interesting far beyond the flower market for the surrounding activity: great atmosphere made of East London arty crowd.

I always recommend this and Broadway Market to London visitors to understand why London is so special.

its pretty, and there are lots of wonderful stalls with wonderful products, but it's MUCH to busy on a nice day. Go early or late, but never around lunch time!

If you are going, you can combine it with a stroll down brick lane market which is also busy, but in a less painful way!

Great flower market with loads of cool shop and arty things. Perfect for Sunday walK and angout

Fun to walk down even when one has 0 intention of buying flowers. Loud, bustling, beautiful bursts of colour and street performers make this such a lift to one’s day.

Another one of those with the old 'institution’ tag. Yes, it’s rather more trendy these days than I expect it was when trading first started there… but the prices and quality are still fantastic, and the traders are still in fine voice.

It is rammajam on a sunny day, no space to push a three-wheeled buggy (though the yummy mummies and daddies still try), but it’s worth the pushing. I picked up a potted sunflower this time with a lovely red shiny pot - could have easily spent a week’s wages though on orange and olive trees, vines, bedding plants, orchids, lilies…

The street itself seems to be growing shops selling cupcakes, vintage clothes and pretty household pottery at an impressive rate of knots which makes for a fun (and perhaps expensive) day’s browsing. Still the most popular though is the store selling squiddy and prawns for £1.50 a pop.

Go late to pick up the bargains and don’t forget to barter!

I absolutely love this place! I love coming down when the sun is out and taking some photos or buying some fruit seedlings, or even just having a wander!

There is a great selection of all things garden: from flowers to shrubs, trees to herb plants, pots, birdcages, olive trees, lemon trees, patio chairs… the list goes on!

This is a fantastic little market where you can go and buy as much or as ittle to do with a garden as you like! There are lovely little cafes and eateries scattered around so you can really make a day of it!