The area around Dulwich is mostly park, and the shops are the smaller part. There's a green space roughly a street away from most front doors. Dozens more are within a kilometre. The high street is short, with only a handful of pubs. It's south London with more grass than most of it gets.
The nearest public green space is about 110 metres from the average home, and there are about 47 green spaces within a kilometre. Dulwich Park, Belair, Brockwell Park, Peckham Rye Park, Horniman Gardens and The Rookery are all close, and Dulwich Park hosts the Dulwich Horse and Motor Show every year. Charles I used to ride out to hunt in Dulwich Woods. These days the 37 bus does the job.
Water is close too. The nearest pond, lake or stream is about 650 metres from the average home, and there are about seven within a kilometre.
Long-distance cycling takes more effort. The nearest stretch of the National Cycle Network is about 3.8 kilometres away on average, and no postcode in Dulwich is close to it. You'll find leisure rides in the parks, and you'll need to ride a bit further for anything longer.
Private gardens are generous for inner London. Homes in Dulwich have about 57,700 square metres of private garden for every 1,000 residents, and many households have their own lawn as well as a park nearby. That's the outdoor space people pay for here, and mostly why the houses cost what they do.
The local shops are small. Of the 351 rateable premises on the valuation list, 70 are shops, 16 are offices, three are pubs and five are restaurants. These are premises on the valuation list, so a few may be empty or doing something else. Three pubs for an area this size means getting a table on a Friday is its own competition. Dulwich Village is where the old shopping street is, and most of its 18th and 19th century buildings are still standing.
Of the 71 food premises that have a hygiene rating, about 80% hold the top score and none is at the bottom.
Southwark as a whole had a fine-particle level of about 9.5 micrograms per cubic metre in 2024. That covers the whole borough, from the busy roads in the north to the parks around Dulwich.
The area's character comes from its institutions. The Dulwich Picture Gallery and its mausoleum, the main building of Dulwich College and the conservation areas covering Dulwich Village and Dulwich Wood make it feel like a place that was planned and then left mostly alone. West Dulwich is quieter and greener on the Brockwell Park side. Most of what you'd want for a weekend is within walking distance. A big night out means getting on a bus.
No area of outstanding natural beauty, site of special scientific interest or ancient woodland designation overlaps Dulwich. The green space here is parkland owned by the public and by local institutions, not protected countryside, and that's the reason it is so close to everyone's door.
Dulwich's surroundings are one of the best things about living there. Parks, private gardens and water are all close, so you can spend most weekends outdoors without driving anywhere.