LONDON

Day 1

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1) The Queen’s Walk

2) Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre (book your guided tour slot in advance)

3) St Paul’s Cathedral (advance online booking recommended)

4) Sky Garden (book your free slot in advance)

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Start your day by taking in all the beautiful architecture of London’s most iconic buildings on The Queen’s Walk. I suggest starting the walk from Hyde Park corner station. On the way, stop at the Shakespeare’s Globe by the Thames and do a guided tour of the theatre – it is very interesting! Then continue walking up to the Tower Bride and cross over to the other side. Grab some lunch at one of the many restaurants or street food vendors and then make your way to St. Paul’s. The ticket costs £18 at the door for an adult and you will need about 2-3 hours to fully explore the cathedral. Make sure you pick up a free personal audio guide and stroll through the cathedral at your own pace. Climb all the way up to the Golden Gallery if you can and you have the time – the view of London from up there is brilliant! But don’t worry if you can’t do it. Your next destination is Sky Garden at the Walkie Talkie building, where you will get 360-degree uninterrupted views across the city. The only point to remember though is that you will be viewing the vistas through glass windows here on the 37th floor, so photography is a bit tricky. After Sky Garden, you can simply stroll along the streets & find a good spot for dinner. Do crash as early as possible though because tomorrow should ideally have an early start!

 

Day 2

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1) Tower of London (advance online booking recommended)

2) Borough Market

3) Museum of your choice

4) Hyde Park

5) West End show (book tickets in advance)

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Start the day early for an entrance at 9am (Tue – Sat) or 10am (Sun & Mon) to the Tower of London. Tickets are a hefty £26 for an adult if booked online and £28.6 if booked on the spot. Park aside 3 hours at the least to explore all the exhibits and be sure to take a Yeoman Warder (Beefeater) tour which is included in the price of admission. These tours begin every 30 mins starting 10am (Tue – Sat) and 10:30am (Sun & Mon), they last about 45-60 minutes and are conducted in English only. Spend the rest of the time exploring the castle and of course, checking out the mesmerizing Crown Jewels! From the Tower of London, walk across London Bridge to the lovely Borough Market. Spend some time visiting the beautiful stalls full of fresh produce and grab some lunch & Monmouth coffee to fuel up well for the rest of the day. After lunch, I suggest you hit up one (or two!) of the museums or art galleries of your choice. I personally love the Natural History Museum and Victoria & Albert museum! Spend a couple of hours there and then head over to the iconic Hyde Park in the evening. This park is huge and has a long lake called The Serpentine running through the middle. It is wonderful to stroll around and see the lush greenery, memorials, gardens & fountains or even just relax on the grass if it’s a sunny day. After exploring Hyde Park, head over to London’s West End to catch a musical or play of your choice. There are many legacy shows that are permanently housed here and some new ones every season as well. Some personal favourites are The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre.

 

Day 3

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1) Full English breakfast

2) Shopping streets, Leicester Square, Trafalgar square

3) Afternoon tea experience (advance booking required)

4) Hampstead Heath or Regent’s Park

5) Camden

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Start your day with a quintessentially British experience – a full English breakfast in London. In most places this breakfast consists of bacon, sausages, eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, baked beans, blood pudding, toast and tea or coffee. This should be a proper heavy and satisfying meal that calls for a long walk to burn it off over the next few hours as you head to the shopping streets & some famous areas of London. Start at Oxford Street and make your way through the pedestrianized Carnaby Street, then on to Regent’s Street, and the bustling areas of Covent Garden, Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square. You will see many iconic buildings like Liberty London and monuments like Nelson's Column on the way and have an opportunity to shop at some of the most famous and exclusive stores. You will probably skip lunch after that heavy English breakfast so today is a good day to indulge in another classic British experience – the Afternoon Tea. This is a meal consisting of finger sandwiches, sweet pastries, scones, tea and sometimes other accompaniments like fruit, cookies, etc. It is a must-do for a tourist in London in my opinion and there are many places that serve up a delicious affair for all types of budgets. One of my personal recommendations would be Skylon for their fantastic afternoon tea under £30 per person (vegetarian, vegan & gluten-free versions available) and panoramic views of the river Thames. The other recommendation is the iconic hotel, The Savoy, for a fancy & chic experience at £75 per person for their traditional afternoon tea (vegan & vegetarian versions available). After enjoying this afternoon experience, head over to either Hampstead Heath & Parliament Hill or Regent’s Park & Primrose Hill in the evening for a leisurely walk and beautiful sunset views over London city. End the day by strolling through the eclectic Camden area of London. This place is a mix of colourful & unique markets, independent boutique shops, restaurants & pubs and also has the beautiful Regent’s canal. Grab a few drinks & dinner in this area and maybe catch some live music at one of the many venues in Camden.

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Tips & Tricks:

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1. Always carry a foldable umbrella with you, even if it’s bright and sunny when you leave your hotel! Believe me when I say this, it drizzles/rains for short periods on most days in London and you’ll waste time being stuck & waiting for the rain to cease or waste money buying expensive umbrellas at tourist stalls or other stores.

2. Check operating hours in advance for all tourist places in London, especially over weekends and in winters. You don’t want to miss out on places because of poor planning! I also recommend booking sight-seeing entrance tickets online in advance as you get some discounts and save a lot of time.

3. London can be an expensive place since there are so many things to see and entrance fees can add up to large amounts, especially if you are travelling with multiple family members. However, you can enjoy a lot of museums, galleries and exhibitions free of charge in London. Many of the tourist hot spots like Westminster Abbey are best enjoyed viewed from the outside because queues can be very long, and the experience ruined by large crowds. You can visit all the Royal Parks in London for free.

4. Just like tourist spots, getting around London can also become an expensive affair, if tickets are bought arbitrarily. You will be much better off purchasing an Oyster card with pay-as-you-go credit or a travelcard (for stays longer than 5 days) loaded on your Oyster card. Subject to credit available and/or the fare zones purchased, the Oyster card will allow you to travel freely on the London Underground (tube), London buses, Tram (zones 3-6), London Overground, TfL Rail, and National Rail. So convenient!

5. London is one of the few cities in the world that hosts some of the biggest and best sporting events, music concerts & many other shows all throughout the year. Be sure to check for tickets to your favourite sports matches, music artists’ shows or stand-up comedies in advance and you might get to witness these live events during your trip!

6. Try and find accommodation that suits your budget in zones 1 or 2 only as majority of the places that you will visit as a tourist are in these zones. You will save time and money staying and commuting within these zones.