London: What should I do?

[Callas]

Visiting London for a week soon…

Any suggestions? It will be a sex trip, but I would love any suggestions about anything anywhere. Thanks 🙏🏼 

[Smokey]

For a quirky and unique look at London check out this site:

https://joolzguides.com/

[Callas]

3 minutes ago, Smokey said:

For a quirky and unique look at London check out this site:

https://joolzguides.com/

Thanks! Looks like i need more than a week 🤩

[CuriousByNature]

1 hour ago, Callas said:

Thanks! Looks like i need more than a week 🤩

A week will give you a taste of the city and likely hook you to return again one day.  Much of your itinerary will depend on your interests.

If you like ancient history, it is hard to beat the British Museum.  It's by donation, or no donation if you choose, so you can go multiple times and not break the bank.  The collection is vast, and after a few hours, you may need a break.  I tend to go several times, for a few hours at a time.  Many museums are 'by donation' and effectively free if you so choose.  Nobody will bother you if you walk past the donation box, but sometimes you do get charged a couple of pounds for a museum map/guide.  I always recommend that, because some museums and galleries go on, and on, and on.

If you like art, there are many choices.  The National Gallery is awesome, and the National Portrait Gallery I found to be okay.  I think both are on or very close to Trafalgar Square.  The Tate Gallery is also very good, and there's a Tate Modern across the river - I didn't find that one as good, but I don't have a well-developed appreciation for modern art.

I don't recommend the London Eye - to me it was an expensive waste.  Same with Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.

Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London are both pretty expensive, but I think both are worth it to see once.  If you go to St. Paul's Cathedral or Westminster Abbey for a service, you don't need to pay to enter, but you likely won't have access to as much of the structure.

A day trip to Windsor is nice, to tour the Castle and St. George's Chapel, where many monarchs have been buried - the most recent being HRH Queen Elizabeth II.   

I would use buses as much as possible - they aren't as fast as the Underground, but you get to see a lot more of the city that way.  London is also very walkable.

If you like wartime history, the Churchill Cabinet War Rooms are interesting, as is the Imperial War Museum in Lambeth, just across the Thames from Westminster.  And there's a battleship on the Thames you can tour - I think it's the HMS Belfast, if I'm not mistaken.

Harrods Department Store is interesting for the food court, but if you have to choose, I would go with Fortnum and Masons, where the Royal Family apparently gets their groceries.  Or from where they order their groceries, most likely.

The Natural History Museum is great if you like animals and dinosaurs, and right beside is the Victoria and Albert Museum if you like the history of design.  Both museums are pretty vast, but doable in the same day if you focus on the things that interest you and have enough stamina to last the whole day.   I believe many museums are closed one day each week - often Monday or Tuesday - but a number of them stay open late one night each week as well.

If you like plays or musicals, London always has a lot happening.  The theatre district is pretty close to Covent Garden, where there are lots of restaurants.  

Anyway, just some things to think about...

[Callas]

29 minutes ago, CuriousByNature said:

A week will give you a taste of the city and likely hook you to return again one day.  Much of your itinerary will depend on your interests.

If you like ancient history, it is hard to beat the British Museum.  It's by donation, or no donation if you choose, so you can go multiple times and not break the bank.  The collection is vast, and after a few hours, you may need a break.  I tend to go several times, for a few hours at a time.  Many museums are 'by donation' and effectively free if you so choose.  Nobody will bother you if you walk past the donation box, but sometimes you do get charged a couple of pounds for a museum map/guide.  I always recommend that, because some museums and galleries go on, and on, and on.

If you like art, there are many choices.  The National Gallery is awesome, and the National Portrait Gallery I found to be okay.  I think both are on or very close to Trafalgar Square.  The Tate Gallery is also very good, and there's a Tate Modern across the river - I didn't find that one as good, but I don't have a well-developed appreciation for modern art.

I don't recommend the London Eye - to me it was an expensive waste.  Same with Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum.

Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London are both pretty expensive, but I think both are worth it to see once.  If you go to St. Paul's Cathedral or Westminster Abbey for a service, you don't need to pay to enter, but you likely won't have access to as much of the structure.

A day trip to Windsor is nice, to tour the Castle and St. George's Chapel, where many monarchs have been buried - the most recent being HRH Queen Elizabeth II.   

I would use buses as much as possible - they aren't as fast as the Underground, but you get to see a lot more of the city that way.  London is also very walkable.

If you like wartime history, the Churchill Cabinet War Rooms are interesting, as is the Imperial War Museum in Lambeth, just across the Thames from Westminster.  And there's a battleship on the Thames you can tour - I think it's the HMS Belfast, if I'm not mistaken.

Harrods Department Store is interesting for the food court, but if you have to choose, I would go with Fortnum and Masons, where the Royal Family apparently gets their groceries.  Or from where they order their groceries, most likely.

The Natural History Museum is great if you like animals and dinosaurs, and right beside is the Victoria and Albert Museum if you like the history of design.  Both museums are pretty vast, but doable in the same day if you focus on the things that interest you and have enough stamina to last the whole day.   I believe many museums are closed one day each week - often Monday or Tuesday - but a number of them stay open late one night each week as well.

If you like plays or musicals, London always has a lot happening.  The theatre district is pretty close to Covent Garden, where there are lots of restaurants.  

Anyway, just some things to think about...

Thank you!

[+ Jamie21]

3 hours ago, CuriousByNature said:

I think it's the HMS Belfast, if I'm not mistaken.

Correct. WW2 era cruiser. 

@CuriousByNature’s rundown of activities is a good list of some of the main interests. You could spend weeks  here and just scratch the surface. The famous quote by Samuel Johnson ‘when a man is tired of London he’s tired of life’ is quite true.

You should spend some time just walking around and you’ll come across medieval churches next to modern skyscrapers in the City (London is two cities…London and Westminster…that’s even more for you! 2 for the price of one!) or walk along the river and come across a thousand year old castle at the Tower of London, go further down river (on a boat) to Greenwich Royal Naval college, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Wander through Soho and Chinatown and watch the people. Go in pubs at lunchtime for a drink. If you like sports there’s every top sporting venue, Lords, Wembley, Wimbledon. Visit the parks - Regents Park is best I think. And definitely avoid Madame Tussauds, it’s full of tourists. 

[BSR]

My tips are food-related [Gomer Pyle voice] surprise, surprise.  The best curry I ever had in my life was in London.  I can’t remember the spot, but I’ve had good luck with finding great eats via Google Maps.  Every place I tried that had at least a hundred reviews and a score in the high 4s has turned out terrific.  I also love afternoon tea.  If you search YouTube for best high tea, you’ll get results from super-posh to more affordable.  If I could go to London right now, I’d dine at Cambio de Tercio, the Spanish restaurant where Rafa Nadal used to eat every literally single night that he was playing Wimbledon.  Apparently it’s so good that even non-Spaniards like Novak Djokovic got hooked.  A Spanish restaurant during a trip to London??  Hey, great food is great food.