What to do in London
We arrived in London after a train ride from Brussels. We stayed at Guoman Hotel – The Tower where our room had a partial view of the Tower Bridge. We opted for a room with breakfast that not only offered a full English breakfast but also a variety of bread, pastries, yogurt, and muesli. Coffee and tea were served at the table.
Do you prefer to stay in a hostel during your visit to London? Safestay Holland Park is one of the best hostels in London.
The best way to explore London is by using the subway or Underground. These 11 top tips on surviving the London Underground will definitely help.
London has a lot of incredible landmarks to see and visit. Here you will find a few but this list is not complete but gives a nice overview of what you can do in 2 days when you first visit this big city. If you have more time in London, check out this itinerary for 5 days in London.
Take a tour bus
As real tourists, we took the hop on hop off but to explore the city. You can enjoy the views while listening to some interesting facts and history about the city.
Watch the changing of the guard
A few times a week at 11 am you can go to Buckingham Palace to watch the changing of the guard. We were there well in advance and had a good spot but it was so busy.
Watch London from the London Eye
To have a nice view over London we took a ride on the London Eye, the giant Ferris wheel on the South Bank of the Thames. The view over London was amazing and we didn’t have to wait a long time.
Go to Hamleys
Hamleys is the oldest and largest toy shop in the world and can be found on Regent Street. Seven stories of toys will keep you busy for a while, especially when you have kids 🙂
Go to the British Museum
All the museums are free in London, a nice idea to do when it is raining. They have an amazing collection with mummies, African art, The Rosetta Stone, and Greek statues.
Take a boat tour on the river Thames
A boat tour was included in our hop on hop off bus ticket. The guide on the boat was so good and funny, telling a lot of interesting things about the city.
Have high tea
When in London, and you have time, you must do a high tea. At Hotel Café Royal, you can enjoy a luxurious high tea.
Embrace the inner photographer
Love taking pretty pictures? Definitely check out the guide to the prettiest streets in London.
In need of some good places to eat while in London? Check this out.
If you are planning on combining a visit to London with a visit to Paris, check out this blog.
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The Natural History Museum is so impressive! I’m not a science person at all, but I loved the place, and, like you said, it’s great that all museums are free. You should definitely check it out next time you’re in London.
We were planning on going there but the line outside was so long, we decided to skip it. But next time, we will go for sure
I can thoroughly recommend the British Museum. Been there three or four times, so far. It is part of humanity’s heritage, and I’d go again in a flash.
My number one tip would be to get an Oyster Card. I got one on my first visit in 2005 and I keep it topped up. Seeing London from the top deck of one of those iconic London buses is a buzz. I don’t need the canned commentary of a far more expensive HOHO bus. And if I want to get somewhere in a hurry, there’s the Tube. Oyster automatically selects the best far for you at the time, and caps it off at a reasonable price for the day.
Or just walk. There’s a tonne of things to see and discoveries to make. You won’t get tired of London before your holiday runs out!
Next time we will probably buy an Oyster card, because we will definitely go back one day. Because we haven’t seen it all yet 🙂
Enjoyed this post. We also passed on the Natural History Museum – the lines were so long. We headed to the V & A instead.