Time Out names street one of the 'world's coolest'

Northdown Road in Cliftonville has been applauded for its "edgy feel"

A high street in Kent has been named among the "coolest streets in the world" for 2025 by Time Out magazine.

Northdown Road in Cliftonville sits on a list of 31, alongside others in places such as Rio de Janeiro, Osaka and Montreal, and has been praised for its "edgy feel not unlike a street you'd find in east London".

Despite being one of Kent's most deprived areas, Northdown Road is host to a number of independent shops, bars, restaurants and art galleries.

The magazine describes it as the "main artery between Margate's cute old town and Cliftonville, the one-time fashionable hotel quarter" which "fell on hard times in the 1980s and has been making a slow-and-steady comeback ever since".

Georgina Wilson-Powell from the Don't Miss Margate newsletter said the Cliftonville street had "everything you'd need in your day-to-day life.

"It's a working high street, a real working community and that's what you want to live in when you move from a big city to a small town."

Ms Wilson-Powell has lived in Cliftonville for seven years and said it was the area where people in Margate like to "hang-out" as it gives them "respite during the summer" when the main town is busy with tourists.

"You can't swing a cat for artists and art exhibitions," she said. "Cliftonville's got a real DIY culture so everything is being done by the people who are just getting on with it."

Georgina Wilson-Powell from the Don't Miss Margate newsletter said Northdown Road was "a working High Street"

About halfway down Northdown Road is The Grain Grocer which sells organic produce and everyday household goods in refillable containers.

Its co-owner, Tim Connoly, has been running the shop and cafe for two years.

He believes the people who run the businesses are the secret ingredient to why it has been named one of the world's coolest streets.

He said: "We're just a bit different I guess, we've got a lot of variety - creatives, musos, poetry - it just brings a nice vibe into the area."

He said the vast majority of customers were regulars "so we really get to know everyone".

Tim Connolly from The Grain Grocer believes creative people are the secret to Northdown Road's success

Others along Northdown Road are equally pleased with the Time Out magazine accolade which places them alongside more established shopping streets in New York, Berlin and Bangkok, among others.

Holly Ayers moved to Cliftonville just over a year ago and said she was attracted to the area because "it was queer friendly". She said she liked the music and art scene there.

"It's a lot different to North Devon where I'm from," she said.

Another cafe customer, who had also recently relocated said, it was "crazy" the road had received such as a big award but they had "obviously made the right choice moving here!"