As one of the most popular cities in the world, London is worth a visit. It's not my favorite city by any stretch, but it's easy for anyone to stay entertained and fill well over a week with sightseeing and activities. I've been to visit twice now, and I still haven't checked off everything on the London tourist list.
To best talk about the city, I'll fill you in on the itineraries for my two trips (neither of which were planned out in advance), and then I'll go over the sights one by one. (Future update: I've now briefly been to London two more times, but will just add a few small updates to the below sections.)
My first visit in 2010 was with a group of friends, 8 of us in total, that I was studying with in Northern Ireland. We got ridiculously cheap flights over from Belfast with Ryanair for something like under 10 pounds, although it did mean leaving for the airport at 2:45 in the morning. It was early March and the weather was very chilly. The three days ended up going like this:
Day 1- Green Park, Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, Big Ben, King's Cross Station
Day 2- Changing of the Guards, London Eye (not riding), Camden Town
Day 3- Abbey Road, British Museum, Tower Bridge, night out in Leicester Square
On my recent visit, I was able to fit much more in, especially since I was familiar with the city and was with people who lived there. Lewis and I were staying with my friend Nyah who I'd worked with in Marlborough and her boyfriend James, and we had some Kiwi friends from Wellington who are currently living there as well. It was late August and it was HOT! I was in shorts and tank tops and still warm... and keep in mind you won't find many (if any) places with air-conditioning. Our four day itinerary looked like this:
Day 1- Sightseeing along Thames, Trafalgar Square, friend time
Day 2- Sky Garden, Tower of London, night out in Bexley
Day 3- Camden Town, Brick Lane, Buckingham Palace, London Comedy Club
Day 4- Sea Life Aquarium, London Eye, night out in Shoreditch
Accommodation
On neither of these trips did I stay in a central location (my most recent two trips I stayed with friends in better locations - Chiswick and West Kensington). The first time, our hostel was booked by others in the group on the recommendation of an American girl on campus and I never looked into it. Huge mistake. The place ended up being in Southall, a pretty lengthy commute out of the city (go to Google Maps and scroll west... nope, further west... further... there you go) and not on the tube. There was an over-ground train that went in, but it was not in the slightest way convenient. Plus the 4-bed dorms at the hostel were so small that you could just about touch both walls standing in the middle.
On the bright side, our hostel was only 6 pounds a night, the owners cooked free breakfast every morning for us, and it was in the most heavily-populated Indian town I've ever visited. This of course meant an awesome array of food choices, and we had an excellent Indian meal the first night across the street at "The Classy Junction."
This past time, we stayed with Nyah and James as I mentioned, and they live 45 minutes east of London by train in an area called Bexley, about just as far as Southall but in the other direction. It's on the National Rail line though and trains ran every half hour or so. They have a little apartment and set up the pull-out sofa for us in the living room. It was a nice enough area too with a small town center where we had awesome paninis one day and also had a decent night out at James's rugby club for a pub quiz.
I would not, however, recommend this unless you are also getting free accommodation with a friend. Stay as central as possible, because transport costs will add up and it also seriously cuts into your sightseeing time. On average, I'd say both times we missed out on two hours a day of activities and also were generally unable to go out at night in the city... but I'll get to that.
Transport
Getting around is so convenient and easy. The London Underground is one of greatest transport systems ever. You can get between any locations on the tube in no time at all, and everything is handily color-coded to help you keep track of which line you're on. Different stops connect different lines, so you really never have to get out and walk between stations. Some stops on the tube are also on the National Rail line, so all you need to do then is go aboveground into the station to find your train.
National Rail
The cheapest way to do all this is either with an Oyster card or contactless credit card. I put the 5 pound deposit down for the Oyster card and kept topping it up this last time until Nyah told me I could just use my credit card with contactless. Either way, you go through the turnstiles for both the Underground and the National Rail by just tapping your card. It works on the buses too. Easy.
Airports
Heathrow is easily the best airport to fly into, but it will rarely be the cheapest, so I generally find myself at Luton, Gatwick, or Stansted, although I've flown to all four at various points in my life. Luton is the absolute worst. First, when I was coming back from Italy, I was stopped after security because the plastic bag my liquids were in was ripped. "You'll need a new bag," the girl said. Alright, weird, but easy enough... except Luton doesn't offer free plastic bags. They have machines that dispense them for a pound. A full pound! For two plastic Ziploc bags! I can get an economy sized packet at the supermarket for half that price! I was furious at the whole principle of the thing. I even told her all I had were euros, and after conferring with a colleague, she told me I'd have to go upstairs and exchange my money to come back down and then buy a new plastic bag for my liquids which were already in a plastic bag that just wouldn't close.
After weighing my options and deciding against stopping strangers to ask for their bags and reminding myself that I could be arrested for unleashing my rage on an airport employee, I just went and paid the pound (which I did have) for two bags. I handed her one, she promptly moved my liquids into it, and then without even zipping it or putting it back through the X-ray she handed it back to me and told me I was good to go. What?! Well I don't need the freaking bag anymore, do I?! I pounded on the angry face as I passed the security questionnaire, but somehow I don't think they cared.
Adding to my anger with Luton, this past time when Lewis and I flew into London, I had seen that we needed to take the train to get to Blackfriars Station. Coming around the corner past the currency exchange desk, you could see a line of ticket machines just labeled as being tickets to London. I stupidly assumed that those would be for the train, and so we bought two tickets at 11 pounds each. Heading outside, we were told at the shuttle that our tickets were for the coach, not the train, which had not been at all apparent from the ticket machine and didn't go to the station we needed. I went back inside to discover the ticket desk for the train hidden in a corner next to the door, not at all visible until you were actually headed outside. They told us we'd have to get refunded for the bus tickets and then could come buy our train tickets.
It took about fifteen minutes to wait in line for the help desk for the coach (and we were only second in line), and then they wouldn't refund us. We had literally just put the cash in not ten minutes before and had made a mistake, but they said they'd have to keep 5 pounds for each ticket as some kind of admin fee, so between that and the 15 pounds we paid for the correct train tickets, we were out 20 pounds each before even leaving the airport. Screw Luton. It also takes about an hour to get to the city on the train, so there's that.
Gatwick is alright in comparison, although certain terminals remind me of a warehouse.
However, the day we flew back to Inverness, we left from Gatwick, and the National Rail line from Bexley happened to not be running that day. As a result, we had to catch two separate buses to get to East Croydon where we caught a train, then had to shuttle to the domestic terminal which took us over three hours in total and we only just caught our flight.
But enough of the boring information. There's so much to see in London!
Big Ben & Parliament
Big Ben and the attached Houses of Parliament are gorgeous. Truth be told, there's not much to do but take photos, but if you can get there when the sunlight is hitting it just right and it's all glowing copper, it's really stunning.
In the same square you'll find Westminster Abbey, which I would love to go inside, but tickets are 20 pounds! For a church! As a result, I've passed.
What is on my wish list is a tour of Parliament. Initially, this sounded really boring to me, but I've been told by multiple people that it was one of their highlights in London. One of my best friends isn't even into politics but said how worthwhile it is. Unfortunately I didn't end up having the time, but I'll be sure to fit it in on a future trip.
Getting to Big Ben is quite easy. All of these tourist sites are very near to each other. Coming down the Thames past the London Eye, you can see Big Ben, or otherwise you can walk from Buckingham Palace through St. James Park and see it down the road. This is how I approached it the first time, coming down a street lined with red phone booths, and it's not a view you usually see in photos.
Buckingham Palace
First tip, having gone at night last time, is to definitely go during the day. It was much more impressive in the sunlight as you can see the gold detailing on the gates and appreciate the statue and fountain in the middle of the plaza.
The Palace, to be honest, isn't going to blow you away no matter what time of day you see it. There are better buildings in London.
And I know it's an experience high on all the lists, but truly, the Changing of the Guards is not that impressive. You're not missing out if you don't bother to see it. It's exactly what it sounds like, a bunch of guards marching around behind the gates. There's a little parade out front afterwards, but the whole thing is very crowded and I say that having seen it in early March. I didn't bother this last time, but I can't imagine what it would be like in the height of tourist season.
London Eye
The first time I went to London, I decided against riding the Eye. It's 25 pounds which is excessive for one trip around a ferris wheel, and I was a student at the time. It's nice just walking up next to it and seeing the height from the ground. The whole area surrounding the Eye is full of street performers, and this past time there was a little carnival area with food stalls and bars as well.
In fact, my friends Lauren and Leah said the first time we went that one of their favorite moments was when I spotted a boat anchored on the other side of the Thames which had a bar, and we just had a beer sitting out on the river with a view of the Eye on the opposite bank.
This past time I did ride it though, being that I had a little more spending cash and wanted to see the Sea Life aquarium as well. You can buy tickets for joint activities, and each attraction gets cheaper the more you book. Generally, the Eye, Sea Life, London Dungeon, and whatever else can be combined are 25 each, but we got the Eye and aquarium for 40 pounds combined. Still pricy for sure, but London is a pricy city.
Anyway, I'm glad I rode it, but I wouldn't do it a second time. You go around just once, but the full rotation takes over 20 minutes. It's so slow you can barely feel it moving. You enter a large pod with about 15 other people, but there's plenty of standing space and benches in the middle. It's glass the full way around and you do get some awesome views over the Thames and out to Big Ben.
Parks
Despite being a big city, London has many parks where you can escape that busy atmosphere. As far as I can recall, I've never been to the largest of these, Hyde Park, but I've been through a few others. St. James was the best one. It's right in front of Buckingham Palace plaza and is home to duck ponds, playgrounds, and sandwich stalls so you can throw together a nice impromptu picnic on the grass.
Green Park is another scenic one easy to reach on the right of the Palace if you're facing it.
Shows
One of my biggest regrets from my first trips to London was not being able to see any West End theater shows. I went for a browse through the musicals and plays that were on and was in awe of how many amazing productions were available to see. Lion King, Book of Mormon, Aladdin, Matilda, Harry Potter, Rent, Jesus Christ Superstar, and on and on. Tickets didn't look unreasonable either, but Nyah said to wait until the day of to look for cheap deals. Well, unfortunately, the last day we were there happened to be a Sunday, and it turns out that a lot of the shows aren't on Sundays. I was so disappointed! If I lived in London, I'd be at the theater at least once a month (or more if I could afford it).
The only consolation was that on Saturday night we'd managed to make it out to a comedy show. You can find these by walking around Leicester Square. There's a ticket office, but we happened to be stopped by some guys with flyers, and the show they were advertising was only 12 pounds which wasn't a bad deal. We had to walk twenty minutes or so to a really fancy hotel where it was being held, and we were all led to a small room with red lighting. All of my comedy show experiences at home have been in large halls usually with tables, so I was surprised that we were in a tiny function room with about 30 chairs set up in rows right in front of the stage.
It lasted about an hour, and while the first comedian was terrible, the second had us in stitches. That being said, the reviews online for the London Comedy Club are horrendous, so I suppose it's all down to taste.
Luckily, the last time I went to London I got to make up for my lack of theater-going by attending two shows!! The first night we went to see Moulin Rouge which literally made me cry - by far the best theater production I have ever seen live. We had glasses of prosecco and a bottle of wine, the theater was absolutely gorgeous, and the musical numbers had all been updated from the movie to include much more recent songs. Mindblowing.
I was, unfortunately, a bit disappointed by the Lion King the next night as a result, but if minimalism is your thing, you may like it more. I had overall just felt that none of it had the emotional impact of the cartoon movie.
British Museum
My favorite thing about the British Museum is that it's free. Otherwise, I mostly only went because my friends wanted to go. To be fair, I'm not a big museum person, but most people really enjoy it. The main highlight as far as I'm concerned is the Rosetta Stone, and I didn't even know it was there until after I'd left London, so that was annoying.
We spent a few hours there and managed to see most of it. My favorites were the mummies in the Egyptian section, an Easter Island statue, and the Mayan/Aztec exhibits. Spend as much or little time as you want in the various sections- when there's no admission fee, you can always come back.
Trafalgar Square
Speaking of free museums, the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square is a free art museum. I can't comment on it because I've never been in, but you should wander over regardless because Trafalgar Square is pretty awesome with its fountains and monument and lion statues.
Tower of London
The Tower of London is basically London's castle. Lewis and I paid student prices (I still have my handy, ancient Kent ID with no dates on it) but it still cost us 20 pounds each. I would give at least a couple of hours for it, because we arrived around 3 and were still seeing things after 5 when they started kicking people out.
Around the perimeter of the walls are old living quarters with bedrooms and chapels.
There's a whole room telling you about the menagerie that used to be present at the castle. The royals would be gifted wild, exotic animals like lions, leopards, zebras, and even an elephant. There was a furnished room for the monkeys so people could watch them living in a human setting. They also had a polar bear who was kept tied to a rope near the Thames so that he could jump in and swim.
Of course, the price for being so badass was that this was terribly dangerous (who would have guessed?!). A woman died after being bitten by a lion. The remaining animals were eventually transferred to the London Zoo. The only animals still on the premises are a group of ravens which you can see in the courtyard.
Most people go to see the Crown Jewels, which are very sparkly. There are scepters, crowns, and jewelry. There's also an armory in the center of the courtyard, a room exhibiting torture equipment, and the Bloody Tower which is associated with the death of two princes at the castle centuries ago.
From the tower you can easily see London Bridge (nothing impressive) and the much nicer Tower Bridge.
Tower Bridge
King's Cross Station
There is one major reason to take the tube to King's Cross at some point during your trip- Platform 9 3/4. Enough said.
Sky Garden
One of my favorite things we visited in London was the Sky Garden, which I had only recently heard about. There's a tall, curving building near the Tower of London which has an enclosed garden surrounded by glass walls up on (I believe) the 52nd floor.
There are restaurants where you can book tables, but to just visit the garden itself is totally free. All you need to do is make a booking online in advance and choose a timeslot, then you bring your tickets and none of it costs a thing.
Of course, there is a bar there serving snacks, cakes, and drinks, and while the beer is about the same price as elsewhere in the city, the cocktails are very expensive.
And I'm weak.
You're meant to only stay an hour, but nobody is checking once you're up there. There's a terrace on one side where you can go out and enjoy amazing views of the city.
Camden Market
I'm not a big shopper, but Camden Market is my shopping paradise.
Easily accessible on the North Line of the Underground, it's an alternative area full of goth/punk shops, an outdoor market with endless booths full of amazing jackets, dresses, jewelry, t-shirts, hoodies, and more (and bartering is allowed), and a food market jam-packed with so many stalls from various countries that it took me over a half hour to decide what to eat (I ended up with halloumi fries and Venezuelan street food). Plus it's all just near a cute river where you can take boat rides. Bring money and be prepared to spend it!
Abbey Road
The first time I was in London, I dragged my friends on a time-consuming journey to see the actual Abbey Road. The metro lines of course happened to be down that day, so we took my first ever double-decker bus. Don't expect much as there are no tourist shops or anything there, but you can see the old recording studio of the Beatles and take a photo walking across the same road from the album cover. I stood in the very spot where George Harrison stood and it totally made my day.
Sea Life Aquarium
I love aquariums in general, and while this doesn't at all compare to Chicago or Atlanta, it's still full of interesting fish and underwater life.
As mentioned, you can get your entry in combination with the Eye or Dungeon. When we went in the afternoon, they actually weren't selling tickets at the actual aquarium due to the crowds, but we got ours at the London Eye ticket center and were able to swap it for a time slot at the aquarium. Despite the system of only issuing so many time slots at once, it still is very crowded. It all moves in a forward line through the exhibits, but you may have to wait to get a decent view of some tanks due to the amount of people.
Highlights included the shark tank and underwater tunnel, a gigantic sea turtle, stingray pool, seahorses wrapping their tails around plants to keep from floating off while napping, bright exotic fish, a blue lobster, mini eels that slowly poked their heads out of the sand and then immediately vanished back underground as soon as a fish went by, a crocodile, and penguins.
Brick Lane
If you want delicious Indian food (of course you do), this is the street to visit. It can be a little overwhelming as far as options go, because as soon as you start passing restaurants, you'll be stopped by people offering their menus and promising you a free bottle of champagne if you choose their establishment or a great deal at the next one.
Luckily we were with Nyah and James who used to live on Brick Lane and knew exactly where they wanted to eat. It was a place called Brick Lane Brasserie, and I can highly recommend it. Before we even told the guy out front we were coming in, he had already offered us two free rounds of drinks if we ate there, and Nyah asked if they still had the 15 pound deal on which he quickly agreed to. As a result, we got two alcoholic drinks each, a starter, naan bread, rice, and a main all for £15 each. I had a vegetarian vindaloo and it was so beautifully hot that I had to rinse out my mouth halfway through the meal, and I loved every second of it. There are also many non-spicy options for those not inclined to enjoy that sort of pain. Highly recommend!
Nightlife
I'm sure there is always somewhere to go in London, but I also don't have much experience with the nightlife because of my aforementioned distant accommodation both times I've been. I had one night out in Leicester Square on my first trip and ended up at a club called Zoo Bar. My friends and I were not the least bit dressed for it- we were all wearing tennis shoes, winter jackets, and jeans, but not only did the bouncer let us in, he put us on the guest list and gave us a discount. If you are not part of a pack of 21 year old girls though, this isn't a risk I would take. Dress shoes and decent attire are usually required for entry.
Zoo Bar was crazy and packed full. There was a main floor with the bar and dance music, then two clubs beneath, one of which was R&B and the other house music. There were strobes, lights, and mirrors everywhere.
It was a good night out, but getting home afterwards was a nightmare. We were stuck in the freezing cold for an hour waiting for the bus, and then it took another hour to get to the stop nearest our hostel in Southall. We were too exhausted and impatient at that point to wait for another bus, so we just paid a cab to get home.
This past time, our drinking experiences were a little more chilled out. We checked out two different Wetherspoons, one near Camden and one nice one called the Knights Templar not far from Charing Cross. The prices are significantly cheaper than at other bars!
We also spent our last night in Shoreditch, the hipster area, at a bar our friend works at called Old Street Records. It was easily the best night out I've had in London! There was a band on upstairs who were covering great 90s music, and the girl could really sing. They had cocktails and a few craft beers on offer, the staff were so friendly and fun, and we danced all night.
I've also done a night out in Chiswick where we went to a very cool pharmacy themed speakeasy (which looks completely closed at night, then the glass fogs up when you ring the doorbell and you wait in a false storefront area for them to let you properly in) and then got drunk at a local Irish bar.
Other Sights
Just walking around London, you'll run into so much more.
You might stumble upon cool buildings like this.
Millennium Bridge
St. Paul's Cathedral is very scenic, and I popped my head in, but they were charging £18 admission so we passed on that. It did look very pretty though if you've got that sort of money to drop or time to attend a service (which would get you in free).
I also saw Shakespeare's Globe Theater from the outside and you can do tours there.
Really you could spend weeks in London and probably still discover new areas and things to do. It would also be a great starting point to head out to the rest of England, especially Stonehenge, Bath, or Brighton! So budget yourself five days excluding excursions out of the city and enjoy.