The four markets everyone asks us about

Every guest asks about these four. They are the big names, and they are busy. This is how we would do them if you were staying with us for the weekend.

Camden Market

Camden Market is what most people mean by Camden Town Market: three connected sites along the canal and Chalk Farm Road, the Stables, the Lock and Hawley Wharf, with more than a thousand shops, stalls, bars and cafés between them. It is best for street food, alternative and vintage fashion, and the spectacle of the place. It is not where we do our weekly shop. Go on a weekday morning from 10am, when there is room to browse; at weekends it is packed by midday. Head straight into the Stables and the Horse Tunnels for the vintage dealers, then eat at the Lock, by the water. The one thing to know: Buck Street Market is not part of Camden Market any more, so do not go looking for it, and skip the Camden High Street shopfronts on the way in. Entry is free; street food mains are roughly £8 to £15. Camden Town station is five minutes' walk.

Borough Market

London's main food market, under the railway arches beside Southwark Cathedral. Produce, cheese, bread, meat and fish are in Three Crown Square and the Green Market; street food is in Borough Market Kitchen. It is best for serious ingredients, a grazing lunch and food gifts to take home. If you actually want to shop and talk to the traders, go Tuesday to Thursday from 10am: do the Green Market for the small producers, buy cheese and bread for the flat, then eat at the Kitchen. Saturday is a scrum by 11am; if the weekend is your only option, be there for the 9am opening, or go on Sunday morning, which is the calmer day. The one thing to know: it is closed on Mondays, apart from the run-up to Christmas. Street food is £8 to £14. London Bridge station is next door.

Portobello Road Market

The Saturday antiques market at the Notting Hill Gate end of the road, running north into fruit and veg, then second-hand and vintage clothes under the Westway. For antiques go on Saturday between 8am and 10am; the arcades open only on Saturdays, most from 7am until about 4pm. If you hate crowds, go on Friday late morning instead: the whole market trades, the vintage stalls are out, and it is the second busiest day rather than the busiest. Monday to Thursday it is a small fruit and veg market, so skip those days unless you want vegetables. The one thing to know: there is no street market on an ordinary Sunday, only on the announced summer and pre-Christmas Sundays, though the shops and cafés open. Ladbroke Grove station is five minutes' walk, Notting Hill Gate ten.

Greenwich Market

A covered market with a royal charter in the middle of the Greenwich World Heritage Site: arts and crafts, antiques and collectables on set days, and a long line of street-food stalls. It is best for a day out that takes in the Cutty Sark, the Old Royal Naval College and the park. Pick your day: antiques and collectables are Tuesday, Thursday and Friday; arts and crafts are Monday, Wednesday, Friday and the weekend; Friday gives you both. At the weekend go for the 10am opening, before the tour groups arrive. Come by boat if you can: Uber Boat by Thames Clippers stops at Greenwich Pier, five minutes' walk away. The one thing to know: it is closed on the first six Mondays of the year. Street food is £8 to £12; crafts £10 to £40.

• Camden Market: daily 10am to 7pm, though many traders keep 10am to 6pm; closed Christmas Day only.
• Borough Market: Tue to Fri 10am to 5pm, Sat 9am to 5pm, Sun 10am to 4pm; closed Monday.
• Portobello Road: Mon to Sat, traders roughly 8.30am to 6pm (earlier finish in winter); whole market Friday and Saturday; antiques arcades Saturday only.
• Greenwich Market: daily 10am to 5.30pm; antiques Tue, Thu, Fri; arts and crafts Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun.