The Foresters Arms

My parents stayed at the forester arms while visiting me, it was only 5 minutes from my home, so the location was great for us. It is also really close to the tube, so it would be ideal even for tourists who are looking to visit London but want to enjoy a quieter and more local experience of the city. The staff was friendly, and the room was really spacious, clean and well noise-insulated.

The room was up 3 flights of stairs without a lift. It was the summer and it was better to open the windows to get some air circulation, but obviously you get the noise of the frequent tube next door.

Clean good location for crystal palace park

Road noise

Very comfortable bed, lovely room and bathroom. Great to have water provided as was hot that day/evening. Staff very friendly.

No parking available at the pub. There is car parking opposite in a rather run down car park (Perry Vale car park) backing onto the railway. Two hours’ free parking is available before you have to pay. No payment needed for 6.30pm- 8.30am. However, staff in pub didn’t tell me in advance when I called to check - because they said they didn’t know about the car park rules- that I could only register to park via a parking app, one which I hadn’t used before. Even when I asked when checking in, they said they didn’t know about the car parking arrangements even though they know guests with a car can’t park in the nearby roads due to restrictions. The app - PayByPhone- wouldn’t allow me to register (I kept being bumped out) and there’s no longer a machine to pay by card. I had to park somewhere so I could unload our luggage, leave it in our room and change clothes for an event I was attending. As there were only double yellow lines /other restrictions on all adjacent roads, I did have to park in the car park. When I returned to the car half an hour later, I had received a penalty notice courtesy of Lewisham Council. Apparently - having spoken to a local who was parking there - this change ( now app only and must register to have the first two hours of parking free) is fairly recent. I highly recommend not taking your car if you can possibly help it, or downloading the app for parking/register on it before travelling if you don’t already have it. See photo with review for info as at 7 August 2026. Of course this might change again in future so please check. Forest Hill station is five minutes’ walk away so if more practical definitely use the train. We had no choice as we needed the car to move stuff to and from our daughter’s flat as well as attend a family event. So be warned- get that app if you don’t already have it and register on it before you travel - just in case you can’t download or register on it when you park as happened to me.

Overall the property met our needs, with a comfy bed to sleep in post gig at crystal palace park. The location is ideal to commute to crystal palace park, with the tube in being only 16 minutes or a 30 minute walk if you dont want to queue in the crowds.

When we were eventually checked in, we were taken around the back of the pub and up a narrow, steep and winding staircase to reach our room on the top floor. We stayed during a heatwave to which no adjustments had been made, not even so much as a desk fan to provide some relief resulting in us checking out very early to find an establishment with air conditioning. The shower also didnt cool down; the lowest temperature would have been too hot in winter nevermind a heatwave.