sightseeing in London

We are doing RCI's French/ Dutch cruise this Fall and spending several days in London beforehand. First time in London- what do recommend we should see- will probably do a Viator tour.

How long a list would you like:D

Tower of London is worth a trip, British museum, Buckingham palace, trip on the Thames, the London Eye, to name just a few.

We took the hop on hop off bus. Takes you by all of the major attractions. Westminster Abbey is interesting. IF you can get there try Stonehenge. We also went to the WW 2 museum Very interesting seeing history from a different perspective. I loved London and would love to return some day.

A guidebook will "guide" you to what interests YOU! Very few people will be "into " the same things. Get a guidebook..learn about London. Decide what YOU want to do...and the guidebook will also help with HOW to do those things! Rarely are "excursions" needed to get the most from your "shore" time!

Tower of London - Crown Jewels, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey and Westminster Cathedral, Harrods, Buckingham Palace, the War Rooms, London Eye, Museums and galleries, Borough Market, go to a show in the west end, Covent Gardens, Kew Gardens, London Zoo, shopping, Houses of Parliament, Thames cruise, Globe Theatre, Downing Street, afternoon tea at one of the big hotels.

I like the Thames River boats to Greenwich. Pretty relaxing.

Museums are free, if that's your thing.

Tower of London - Crown Jewels, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey and Westminster Cathedral, Harrods, Buckingham Palace, the War Rooms, London Eye, Museums and galleries, Borough Market, go to a show in the west end, Covent Gardens, Kew Gardens, London Zoo, shopping, Houses of Parliament, Thames cruise, Globe Theatre, Downing Street, afternoon tea at one of the big hotels.

I'll add Camden Town Market to this list.

Imo. Don’t waste your money on hop on hop off bus if you are mobile. Too much too see up close. Use the metro. You will get to know the city much better that way.

About 50 mins out is Windsor castle. Totally worth it and takes a half to 3/4 of a day.

Tudor palace is also great. Kensington palace was cool if they still do tours there.

Fullers brewery has a great tour and is a great London beer. See their website.

If you like fine art try the British museum. Also the natural history museum is well regarded if you’re into that. It has the Rosetta Stone for example.

St. Paul’s cathedral is a cool place to visit too.

The Churchill war rooms is really cool. Of course tower bridge and London n tower are cool and very close to each other. If you like to do stuff for n your own check out the London pass. It can be a good deal if you want to see most of the above mentioned places.

Hit a few pubs. They are great in the late afternoon/early evening.

I highly recommend a hop on hop off tour, there are 2 different companies that do it. There are several routes and they bring you to numerous attractions. Super easy and reasonably priced...go at your own pace and see what you like. Enjoy!

Agree with Windsor Castle and the War Rooms. You could consider a London Pass which gets free entry into many different attractions, depending on how many days you are there it might be worth it.

When we cruised the Baltics, we left from Dover, which gave us time for a pre and post stay in London. There is just so much to see a week doesn't even get to half of it.

If you are mobile, forget Viator and do things on your own and very, very easy, I would also recommend the HoHo buses, There are 2, the Big Bus and the Original Bus, or something to that effect. We used it to get the lay of the land. We stayed on for a complete tour which takes about 2 1/2 hours, but from there we knew where most things were. We bought an Oyster Card which gives you discounts on the Tubes. Their train system is so easy to navigate, a child could do it without ever getting lost. I believe we also got the London Rail Card (again, something like that) which gives you several very good 'buy one get one' offers, like to the Tower of London, The Tower Bridge experience etc.

Depending on where you are staying helps a lot also. We stayed around the Tower of London and did a walk along the Themes which includes the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Glove theater, St Paul's Cathedral, Millennium bridge, the London Eye, all the at to Big Ben and Parliament. We did a river cruise back to the Tower and had just a great day.

Just a great city London.

Go over to the British port of call boards and you will get some great first hand advice on how to do London from the experts.

Cheers

Len

Tower of London - Crown Jewels, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey and Westminster Cathedral, Harrods, Buckingham Palace, the War Rooms, London Eye, Museums and galleries, Borough Market, go to a show in the west end, Covent Gardens, Kew Gardens, London Zoo, shopping, Houses of Parliament, Thames cruise, Globe Theatre, Downing Street, afternoon tea at one of the big hotels.

I'll add British Library to this list. It's not frequently mentioned, yet has a wonderful free exhibit including handwritten music from classical composers, the Magna Carta, and numerous notes/manuscripts from British authors like Dickens, Lewis Carroll, Jane Austin, and the Beatles. They also host a paid rotating exhibit (currently Harry Potter History of Magic) and offer a quaint cafe with lunch and beverages. It's walking distance from the British Museum (home of the Rosetta Stone and more).

Agree with topnole & Giantfan13 above -- no hop on/hop off needed as the tube system is so easy to navigate. If you want the bus "experience" just take a bus instead of the tube to one of your destinations. I'm not kidding -- my then 10yo had the transportation system figured out in no time.

I love London -- can't wait to go back. Enjoy your time there!

I'll add British Library to this list. It's not frequently mentioned, yet has a wonderful free exhibit including handwritten music from classical composers, the Magna Carta, and numerous notes/manuscripts from British authors like Dickens, Lewis Carroll, Jane Austin, and the Beatles. They also host a paid rotating exhibit (currently Harry Potter History of Magic) and offer a quaint cafe with lunch and beverages. It's walking distance from the British Museum (home of the Rosetta Stone and more).

 

Agree with topnole & Giantfan13 above -- no hop on/hop off needed as the tube system is so easy to navigate. If you want the bus "experience" just take a bus instead of the tube to one of your destinations. I'm not kidding -- my then 10yo had the transportation system figured out in no time.

 

I love London -- can't wait to go back. Enjoy your time there!

Yes London is awesome. If you get a London pass with transportation it includes buses and the tube. We just rode the public double decker bus for fun a few times when it made sense on the way somewhere. Also the pass with the transport gets you to Windsor castle and entry all included.

The cost of many of the big attractions is like 10-20 pounds each which is like $20-30 depending on conversion rates. The London pass can be a good deal depending on interests.

I seriously want to go back now just thinking about it.

Exactly how many days is "several" and at which hotel are you staying?

There is so much to see.

I too would get a guide book to plan out each day.

Lots for free in terms of the museums.

If you have an interest also consider going to the theatre.

Keith

I am from London so know it like the back of my hand. Others on this thread have already explained the million different things you can be doing. Here are my thoughts.

Yes there are thousand of things to do and see. Walking route taking you from House of Parliaments to Horse Guards Parade, then through St James Park to Buckingham Palace is one of my favourite routes. Hang out spots to visit include Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, Covent Garden plus you have shopping along Oxford Street.

Now I also understand that a newcomer will be totally lost or confused especially with the transport system. So while I might choose a local bus route which takes in the sights or use the underground system to hop from one area to another, it might not be so easy for a visitor. Plus the list of places to visit can be overwhelming.

So my recommendation is to catch a HOHO bus. There will be several routes and each one will mark out popular attractions. I find this the best way when I visit other cities to get a feel for where to go. I tend to stay on the bus to a quick tour and to get my bearings. I then get off at one of the places of most interest and then use public transport to go from one place to another. Use a taxi if you are not sure.

IMO, there is plenty to see in Central London so I would leave Stonehenge and Windsor Castle for another time.

One final tip. Check where your hotel is and attractions within walking distance. That would be a good start as well as mapping out good places to grab meals.

I would definitely do one of the Ho Ho buses and stay on for the complete tour it would give you an idea of your bearings and what may be of most interest to you.

A good idea is to then buy an Oyster card for travel on the London Underground system and is fairly easy to navigate.

Depending on what time you have I would perhaps suggest

London and Tower bridges Houses of Parliament Big Ben Buckingham Palace Kensington Palace The Tower of London Downing Street London Eye The Shard.

That's not even mentioning the excellent museums most of which are free entry plus the many markets Borough Market is well worth a visit.

Not forgetting the excellent shopping.

Afternoon tea is a real treat especially at the Ritz or other nice hotels.

A work along South Bank in the evening is lovely many with indoor/outdoor pubs restaurants and cafes and you would walk past the Globe Theatre.

If you venture a little further out to Windsor Castle I would allow a day to visit it properly.

London is a great city.

Just as a side note, if you are heading to Windsor Castle, Legoland is really close by.

Yes London is awesome. If you get a London pass with transportation it includes buses and the tube. We just rode the public double decker bus for fun a few times when it made sense on the way somewhere. Also the pass with the transport gets you to Windsor castle and entry all included.

 

The cost of many of the big attractions is like 10-20 pounds each which is like $20-30 depending on conversion rates. The London pass can be a good deal depending on interests.

 

I seriously want to go back now just thinking about it.

I agree. The "London Pass" is great for hitting a number of attractions for a few day trip. We saved a lot of money using it.

Check out The Grapes Pub. It is located on the Thames in Limehouse and is owned by Sir Ian McKellen, who also lives next to it. You would never know who owned the pub unless you noticed Gandalf's Staff mounted on the wall behind the bar. Or happen to stumble in there on a Monday night when Sir Ian hosts pub trivia from time to time.

People have already covered the answers to the question did I just adding that I love this city and always look forward to returning. It is so easy to meet people from all over the world in the pubs in the evening. Great city.

I'll add British Library to this list. It's not frequently mentioned, yet has a wonderful free exhibit including handwritten music from classical composers, the Magna Carta, and numerous notes/manuscripts from British authors like Dickens, Lewis Carroll, Jane Austin, and the Beatles. They also host a paid rotating exhibit (currently Harry Potter History of Magic) and offer a quaint cafe with lunch and beverages. It's walking distance from the British Museum (home of the Rosetta Stone and more).

 

Agree with topnole & Giantfan13 above -- no hop on/hop off needed as the tube system is so easy to navigate. If you want the bus "experience" just take a bus instead of the tube to one of your destinations. I'm not kidding -- my then 10yo had the transportation system figured out in no time.

 

I love London -- can't wait to go back. Enjoy your time there!

Tubes are great for getting around, but obviously you can "see" anything from there. The HOHO is good for a first timer to get their bearings, see where things are and get a feel for what they want to do. Also, if you've just flown in, it's not a bad way to get over jet lag without wasting a day. Agree on what I've read here about Oyster card, and various walks and sites. There is SO much to do, it denpends on your preferencese. Walking, historic sites, museums, etc. I love London

Another Londoner here but also from the US so I get both perspectives!

Depending on how many days you are actually around for, if you have a day, it's worth doing a sightseeing tour outside of London. I have taken two Gray Line Tours in the past with friends and family, and we had a great time. One went to Stonehenge and Bath, and another went to Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon. Both were worthwhile, affordable, and gave you a glimpse of the beautiful countryside England is so famous for.

British Library is another fantastic place to visit as previously mentioned (I'm biased since I work there!).

I know there's a lot of back and forth between HOHO buses. For the price, you can literally travel all around London, all day, for the whole day, getting off and on as much as you like from tube and buses, for LESS than what you'll pay for the HOHO fare. And you'll have infinitely more selection since you can only ride the one HOHO bus line you choose (and they may come every 10-20minutes) whereas buses are more frequent and tube is even more frequent. As others have mentioned, it's very easy to get around the city, so I personally wouldn't recommend a HOHO bus. There's also plenty of people around who will be glad to assist, as I am approached regularly and always point people in the right direction (well, usually, anyway!).

Most of all, enjoy yourself!

Exactly how many days is "several" and at which hotel are you staying?

We will be there for 2 full days, staying at the city continental Kensington london hotel.

Tower of London - Crown Jewels, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey and Westminster Cathedral, Harrods, Buckingham Palace, the War Rooms, London Eye, Museums and galleries, Borough Market, go to a show in the west end, Covent Gardens, Kew Gardens, London Zoo, shopping, Houses of Parliament, Thames cruise, Globe Theatre, Downing Street, afternoon tea at one of the big hotels.

Afternnoon Tea at the Ritz or Claridges is iconic. However you would need to book approx 90 days in advance!!