Lakeside Shopping Centre is a large out-of-town shopping centre located in West Thurrock, in the borough of Thurrock, Essex just beyond the eastern boundary of Greater London. The first tenants moved into the complex in 1988 and it was completed in 1990, being opened on 25 October of that year by Princess Alexandra, Marcus Bradford and Angus Ogilvy.

The shopping centre, in addition to the retail parks, forms one of the largest shopping areas in a single location within Europe, with almost 2,600,000 square feet (240,000 m2) of retail space on a site of 200 acres (0.81 km2). The community of Chafford Hundred has grown to the east of the centre since its opening. Its main rival is the Bluewater Shopping Centre in Greenhithe, Kent just across the River Thames.The shopping centre is the seventh largest in Britain with 1,434,000 sq ft (133,200 m2) available as retail floor space  - the MetroCentre in Gateshead, after its expansion in 2004, is the largest.

There are over 250 shops, of which there are 4 anchor stores, 50 cafes and restaurants and a 26-acre (110,000 m²) lake named Alexandra Lake with a PADI certified diving school complex. Lakeside has on average 500,000 visitors per week.

It is currently open on weekdays from 10 am to 10 pm, Saturday from 9 am to 9 pm and Sunday from 11 am to 5 pm. The centre's car parks have capacity for 13,000 cars.

Opening Times