Surprisingly i had never heard about the Westfield shopping centre until it heard people raving about it when it first opened. Leona Lewis opened the store on the 30th October 2008. I managed to rope my OH into shopping for the day, so we decided to check out Westfield before it got nearer to Christmas.

** About Westfield**

As said above, the store was opened on the 30th October by the singer Leona Lewis. It took 13 million man hours to build it, and the constructions used enough concrete to fill 117 Olympic swimming pools. Westfield is the largest in-town shipping and leisure destination in Europe.

So, what can you expect from this shopping centre, I'm going to tell you just that in my review.

** Location **

Westfield is situated in the West of London, in Shepherds Bush. There are many ways to get there. Tube, train, bus, cycle (cycle bays at westfield), secure pedestrian routes, and car. My OH and I drove on the day, this was because we visited in the working week, so expected less people to be going there. Parking was very easy, and it was such a joy to see where exactly there are car parking spaces. You know where you just drive around for ages looking for that hidden space, well Westfield have come up with a brilliant idea, on the ceiling they have the vehicle management system, which indicates to you whether a space is vacant by showing a green light, occupied is a red light, disabled is a blue light and parents with prams is an orange light. It really is very good, and makes it that much stress free trying to find a space.

The bad bit about the driving is the cost to park, but this is totally understandable when in London, the parking charges;-

Up to 1 hour £2.00
Up to 2 hours £4.00
Up to 3 hours £6.00
Up to 4 hours £8.00
4 to 7 hours £12.00
7 to 10 hours £16.00
10 to 24 hours £25.00

If you don't drive, and are arriving by tube, then your walk won't be long. There are 4 underground stations on the central line or Hammersmith and City line.

Shepherds Bush and White City on the Central line and Wood Lane and Shepherds Bush on the Hammersmith and City line.

** Shopping**

There is a great mix of Designer and High St stores at Westfield. The 4 stores at the corners of the shopping centre are Marks and Spencer, Next, House of Fraser and Debenhams.

With more than 265 stores from over 15 countries, you really are spoilt for choice when shopping here. What amazed me about this shopping centre is how very posh all the shops were. I walked past the kids store Adams, and couldn't believe how totally different it looked to the ones on the High Street. All the stores have been made with such class, and you can see how much work has gone into it.

You have the great High St names here, like Topshop, HMV, River Island, Dorothy Perkins, Jane Norman, Oasis, and if you are into the Ugg craze, then you will love the first ever Ugg store they have. Myself being a lover of the Ugg brand, had to venture inside and see what it was like, and it was great. I have never seen so many different kind of Uggs. Its def worth a look inside.

If you are into your designer labels, then you will love the huge list of names they have. Dior, Gucci, Burberry, Jo Malone and many many more. Unfortunately when we visted these stores were yet to open, and some even had opening in 2009 on. This was a little disappointing, it would of been nice to have looked inside, but I'm guessing this is what will bring me back at some point, to see it all completely finished and all the shops open.

** What can you expect from the Food here**

Amazing!!!! You have a choice of 50 international food concepts, and a lot of them have NEVER been seen in the UK before. If you have been to Bluewater before (Kent) you will love the fact there is no VERY BUSY food court, and no wondering around with your trays trying to find a seat.

With a wide range of choice here, you will be stuck for choice as to where to eat.

You have The Southern Terrace, which is outside and you can enjoy restaurants like the Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Kitchen Italia, Wagamama, and many many more. If you fancy The Balcony, this is where open cooking happens, you have Crepeaffaire (if we hadn't just eaten when we walked past this, we would of went in, the Crepes looked YUM), YO! Sushi.

Or, if you fancy eating in The Loft, which is positioned beneath the cinema, and is home to family restaurants, Pizza Express, Nando's, and Bryon.

Its not cheap to eat here, but if you have come out for a day out, then spending more than you usually would on a meal doesn't always seem as bad.

** Added Extras to Westfield**

I have mentioned in my review the cinema which Westfield has. It's not yet open, but the state of the art 14 screen Showcase cinema, will open in 2009. You will also find a gym and spa here, along with a new library which will serve the local community.

** My thoughts about Westfield**

WOW. However, I found it a little bit tricky to stick to a set plan to make sure i visited all the shops. It's not a straight forward map and you end up getting a bit lost, it really has an odd layout. There are computer maps located around the mall, but there wasn't enough to cater for the amount of people you have shopping. You will normally need to wait about 5-10 minutes to get your hands on one. We found a lot of people were using these to look up all the jobs, and because the shopping centre was new, there was a LONG list of jobs. Once you have found the shop on the map, you can have the route sent to you as a text message, this is very handy, especially if like us, you walk away and end up lost again LOL.

This shopping centre is nothing like your average shopping centre, it is so much more