What to see in London | Guide to London

Guide to London

1. Pre-departure advice for London: preparing for your trip
2. London Airports: How to get to the centre
3. Accommodation in London: the best options
4. What to see in London
5. Public transport in London
6. The English Gastronomy
7. London nightlife
8. The surroundings of London: cities not to be missed

So, you have landed on British soil and you have found the way to your hotel or hostel without problems and now you want to know what is worth seeing and what your budget should be.

Without a doubt everything is worth a visit. Whether your budget can stretch to cover it all is another matter.

I would recommend you start with what to see (my favourite part).

From London you can visit the world. That is, you can find almost anything from anywhere. It depends only on your tastes and interests, but in any case, London can offer a such a variety of landscapes, monuments, museums and attractions (all catering for different budgets) that it includes almost everything.

Let's take a walk, then we will catch a bus or the Underground (which is an obligatory part of the London experience!)

Walking Tours

The Centre

One of the best-known attractions in London is the famous clock tower of Big Ben, so we will start our walking tour there.

Let's say you have just exited Westminster Station, from the exit that opens directly onto Big Ben. On your right is a small park with a beautiful white church. This is Westminster Abbey, and I just love the blue and yellow clock and the immaculate white walls. Inside the abbey, you can find the tombs of various famous and important people, including Geoffrey Chaucer, Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton. It is definitely worth the visit; check to see if you can buy advance tickets online, as it may be cheaper than paying on the door. Entrance tickets cost £16, but if you go for the Evensong service held five nights a week, it is free.

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Leave the Abbey and return to Big Ben. The clock is illuminated at night and is truly a spectacle, and worth returning to see in the evening. The tall clock tower is only a part of the beautiful building in front of you, the Houses of Parliament. You can admire the building from outside, completely free. Cross the bridge, from where you can see the entire parliament building, in all its majesty and pride.

At the far side of the bridge you will see a column with a statue of a lion on the left, with steps leading down to the river bank. The River Thames divides London into two districts and therefore each river bank has its own name. The northern side, where the Houses of Parliament stand is known as the Westminster riverside, while the southern side of the river is known as the South Bank or Bankside.

The Walking Tour can be done from the South Bank, following the water's edge and passing so many interesting landmarks and things to see and do that it could easily take you an entire day. You can continue, crossing one of the many bridges to the Westminster riverside, where you will find many buildings and historic palaces, all with their own little bit of London history to tell, and the famous St Paul's Cathedral, which you can glimpse from the South Bank. The Tate Modern, the contemporary art gallery, is directly south of St Paul's on the South Bank - if you go up to the restaurant on the top floor, you will get a beautiful view of London from the windows. If your budget can't stretch to a ride on the London Eye, this is an excellent alternative.

If done carefully, this tour can be extremely interesting because, without spending much money at all, you will have seen most of central London and the most popular tourist attractions.

Southbank Riverside

What is there to see?

• The London Aquarium
• The London Eye : the panoramic wheel on the south bank of the Thames
• The Tate Modern : the contemporary art gallery
• The Globe : Shakespeare's Theatre
• The Millenium Bridge : one of the locations in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
• The area around Waterloo
• BFI Southbank : a cinema specialising in classic, independent and international films
• The Royal Festival Hall : concert, conference and dance hall, part of the South Bank Centre and home to the London Philharmonic Orchestra
• The London Dungeon : interactive attraction and museum using live actors and special effects to recreate London's bloody and macabre history
• The Oxo Tower : originally built as a power station around 1900, bought by a meat company later to produce OXO stock cubes and now a trendy restaurant, bar and brasserie
• The Shard : the tall, pointed, glass building near London Bridge station, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano

I recommend taking a river boat tour, which you can find just by the London Eye on the Pier. Here you can buy tickets (with discounts for those with a student card and also those with an Oyster Card). It is worth doing a boat trip because it comes with explanations (in English) from the guide of the places you are passing. The guide will explain the history of the buildings dating from the Victorian era on the Westminster riverside. The buildings on the South Bank look more modern, and seeing both from the middle of the river is a very interesting experience.

Some tours (such as the Cruise City Tour) will take you all the way to Greenwich, which I highly recommend you visit. You can get off the boat in Greenwich and visit the Observatory, the Maritime Museum, the Fun Museum and others and then return to the boat which will take you back to the London Eye.

If you have already done the boat tour you may decide not to to the rest of the Walking Tour, as you will already have seen the places along the South Bank. However, the walk along the river bank is always worthwhile, especially in summer when it should be fairly sunny.

Continue along the South Bank until reaching the beautiful and famous Tower Bridge, crossing to reach the northern bank.

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Westminster Riverside

• The Houses of Parliament and Big Ben
• St Thomas' Hospital : directly opposite the Houses of Parliament, south of the river, is one of the best hospitals in London
• The Tower of London : officially the Royal Palace and where the Crown Jewels are kept
• The Embankment : the section of the northern bank of the Thames, with marvellous views of the London skyline and monuments such as Cleopatra's needle
• St. Paul's Cathedral : an Anglican cathedral designed by Sir Christopher Wren. A church has stood on this site for 1400 years
• Westminster Bridge : the bridge crossing from the Houses of Parliament, built between 1738 and 1750
• Westminster Abbey : the royal church, built in Gothic Anglican style with a history spanning more than 1000 years

Source: Photo by original author

Obviously this walking tour represents only one small corner of London, and there are many different "centres" of London. You can think of London as a large collection of small villages, each with their own vibe and centre.

Another of these centres is Victoria with its centrally located station, which isn't just an important transport hub, but also the centre of London dedicated to the theatre. Take a walk around the area, perhaps wandering into the station for a coffee. I personally love the chaos, and people-watching in a place as large and bustling as Victoria Station is one of my greatest pleasures. I will often get a coffee in Waterloo station (equally as beautiful as Victoria) and I feel alive watching the lives of thousands of people pass directly in front of my own eyes. To eat you have so much choice, from fast food chains to luxury dining, affordable bars and little food trailers selling delicious hot dogs and fantastic ice creams, especially welcome in the summer.

But I digress. Our visit now concentrates on the popular places for tourists to visit, starting with Picadilly Circus. Exiting the Underground station, you will see in front of you the famous digital screen. Behind you (or in front, depending on the exit you came from) is Cool Britannia, a really cool souvenir shop which I absolutely recommend you visit. In the centre of Picadilly you will find a statue of Cupid, street artists, and a fountain with lions (the English are obsessed with lions!).

Returning to the big screens, you can choose to take the road to the left or right of the building; you will find plenty to see and do on both.

If you choose the right, what are you going to see?

• The Trocadero : an entertainment complex, which houses shops and plenty more
• The M&Ms shop : go with a full stomach, otherwise the smell of chocolate will be too tempting!
• Trafalgar Square : built to commemorate the Battle of Trafalgar and now home to the British Museum and many pigeons!
• Soho : an area full of eclectic restaurants, bars and shops
• Charing Cross : the "centre of London" where all distances are calculated from, Charing Cross is a junction where six major routes meet
• Covent Garden : a lovely little covered market where you can spend hours wandering
• Tottenham Court Road : great for shopping

And if you got as far as Tottenham Court Road you can continue even further (use your map or ask someone) and reach Oxford Circus and Oxford Street, again very popular for shopping.

Tip: If possible, go to Covent Garden in the afternoon; the street artists and the market are the characteristic sights of this area.

If instead you choose to explore to the left of Picadilly Circus, what are you going to see?

• Victorian palaces and buildings
• Hamley's : the famous toy shop
• Oxford Street : shopping, shopping, shopping!

Once on Oxford Street you will once again have to choose right or left. Coming from Picadilly, if you turn right you will eventually reach Tottenham Court Road. If you choose the left (recommended), you can continue the tour and visit:

• Bond Street : famous for luxury shopping, and conversely the enormous Primark between Bond St and Marble Arch Underground stations
• Marble Arch : as suggested by the name, an arch made of marble, designed in 1827 to commemorate British victories in the Napoleonic wars
• Hyde Park : one of the largest parks in London, and a lovely place to visit at any time of year (including Christmas markets in December)
• Knightsbridge : one of the districts bordering Hyde Park, Knightsbridge is known for its luxury shopping, especially Harrods and Harvey Nichols
• Gloucester Road : shopping
• South Kensington : beautiful architecture and peaceful gardens, South Kensington is also a hub for the famous and prestigious museums (below)
• Science Museum : great for all things science-y
• Victoria and Albert Museum : museum of art and design
• Natural History Museum : a world-class museum covering our planet's natural history

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Everything is relatively close, so you don't have to go far to reach the next attraction. Be aware that the queues for the Natural History Museum can be enormous. It is also possible to spend the whole day inside, so you may think it's worth arriving early to beat the queues on a separate day.

The whole walk is quite long, but worth it if you have the possibility. If you don't have the time or physical ability, you can either do it in stages or take the Underground or bus between the main locations.

In terms of eating, you will always have plenty of choice and I have no specific recommendations to give you, having never eaten in this part of London myself. To save time and maximise your sightseeing, there are plenty of fast food outlets including McDonalds, Pret a Manger (a French company and delicious!) and Starbucks, or you can buy something in one of the plentiful 24 hour shops that sell sandwiches and other ready-to-go meals at an affordable price. If you want to stop in one of the many supermarkets that you find during your wanderings, you could even stock up for the next day too. Look out for:

• Tesco or Tesco Express
• Sainsbury's or Sainsbury's Local
• Waitrose (expensive but very good)
• ASDA
• Lidl

Now we have seen the centre of London and its main attractions in the immediate surrounding area. Next, I will cover a few more "random" places, as well as where to find them.

South London / South of the river

• Clapham Common : pubs, parks and much more
• Clapham Junction : a really lovely spot with lots of small shops and pubs
• Brixton : an African/English area with music, shops, restaurants and the Brixton market where you can lose yourself for an afternoon of wandering and evening in one of the many pubs
• Wimbledon, Fulham and Putney : a green area of London with lots of parks - and the famous tennis courts of course! The Underground stations are all named as above

West London

• St James' Park : close to Buckingham Palace and accessible by the Underground station of the same name via the green District line and yellow Circle line
• Chelsea and Sloane Square : one of the most desirable places to live in London with a great nightlife
• Earls Court : with plenty of pubs, affordable restaurants and intimate bars playing live music, Earls Court is a great place to experience London nightlife
• Shepherd's Bush : where you can find "Westfield", one of the largest shopping centres in the world
• Notting Hill : made famous by the film of the same name, starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts, it also boasts the well-known Portobello Road market

North London

• Madame Tussauds waxwork museum : Situated in Marylebone, it is a short stroll to Edgware and then Paddington. From here you can also visit Maida Vale, Warwick Avenue and Little Venice
• Baker Street : home of London's favourite fictitious detective, Sherlock Holmes
• Russel Square : a small city park
• Camden Town : my absolute favourite area. You can spend a whole day here, between strolling through the extensive markets, trying international street food, clothes stalls and extravagant shops. It's a sin not to visit, and I recommend you go to Cyber Dog, a super-cool shop in the Camden Town market (station by the same name) that is called "Camden Lock"

East London

• Old Street : an edgy and cool part of Islington with lots of cafes and bars
• Shoreditch : nightlife and pubs
• Liverpool Street : one of the major train stations in England, Liverpool Street also boasts shopping and cool bars and cafes
• Bank : there is a delicious pancake restaurant in Bank, which you can also find in Sloane Square: "My Old Dutch"
• Tower Hill : Tower Hill and the area by the pier of Millenium Bridge are full of nightlife
• Whitechapel : where Jack the Ripper committed his atrocious murders
• Stratford : here you can find a shopping centre to rival Westfield (in reality they are owned by the same company but located in different places)
• The O2 Arena : check to see if there are any concerts while you are going to be in London an go to see them in the O2 Arena - it has hosted many famous singers and bands such as O2 and Rihanna
• Greenwich : if you didn't visit on the boat trip mentioned above, now is a good time to think about it!

I think this list gives you enough to be starting with, even if it is a bit general. I would recommend you visit every corner if you can, although you might not have the time to do so during your visit.

Source: Photo by original author

We have seen a little bit of everything, trying to satisfy everyone. But something is still missing...

The Stadiums

• Emirates Stadium (Arsenal)
• Stamford Bridge (Chelsea)
• White Hart Lane (Tottenham)
• Wembley Stadium
• Twickenham Stadium
• Wimbledon (even if we have already mentioned it!)

And obviously you shouldn't forget Buckingham Palace! It is between St James' Park, Green Park and Hyde Park; you will see a statue at the centre of the square in front of the Palace called the Victoria Memorial, and from there the long red road leads along The Mall. You can also reach the palace by walking along The Mall from Trafalgar Square - pass through the arches and follow the road along to the Queen's palace. At 11.30am every day during summer, and on alternating days in winter, you can watch the famous Changing of the Guard. I recommend you go a fair bit earlier than 11.30am to get a space, otherwise you risk not seeing anything.

So that is everything... Well, nearly everything. In reality there is so much to do, to see, to experience, and a written guide will never be truly satisfactory. You will just have to go and find out for yourself!

Enjoy your trip!

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