If you know me personally, then you already know “I used to live in London,” yes, I can be that annoying girl. However, if you have never lived somewhere else (or should I say not lived somewhere else that you KNEW was where you belonged) then you will not understand the feeling it gives you. ANYWAY – here are some spots I recommend for friends visiting the UK for the first time, hope you enjoy!
First off – buy an oyster card and take advantage of the amazing transportation services in the UK. The tube is amazing, buses provide a cool view but take some time, and walk as much as you can to take in the beautiful city!
Below I have divided up what to see and do into sections BUT if you have limited time you can also scroll to the bottom to see my must see/do’s for a short stay.
Touristy London
Big Ben, go visit my best friend Ben! Take plenty of pictures
Westminster Abbey
London Eye, if you don’t have a fear of heights ride this ferris wheel like no onther
Tower of London, take a tour and learn about the history
Tower Bridge
Buckingham Palace, pay your respects to Queeny
Kensington Palace
Hyde Park
St. Paul’s Cathedral, my favorite cathedral with a great view if you brave the climb to the top
Piccadilly Circus
Trafalgar Square
Primrose Hill, a walk up a steep hill in Regents park provides a beautiful view
The Shard, the tallest building with a view of EVERYTHING, go to the 36th floor for a cheaper ticket at the cost of a cocktail 🙂
These are the traditionally the biggest must-see spots for your first time in London, also, all of them are free to see! You could take the tube to get around or walk but definitely have your walking shoes on!
MY favorite things to do when in London
Walk through Regent’s Park
Visit Camden Town
Have a pint at the World’s End
Have a glass of champagne with a view of the Tower of London, I believe it’s called HMS Belfast, it’s connected to the ship in the middle of the Thames.
Enjoy High Tea – at Kensington Palace, SKETCH is really cool, and i also love just grabbing a tea and scone
Visit Hampstead Heath: A good friend of mine recently moved to Hampstead Heath and was kind enough to show Sarah and I around. We bought a bottle of Champagne at Tesco and made mimosas in the middle of the park, while soaking up the sun and the scenery. You could spend an entire beautiful day exploring this park.
What to eat
Fish and Chips – a favorite spot of mine is Poppies, huge portions and consistently tasty, the golden chippy is also very popular
Full English – An old favorite of mine was Patisserie Valerie, and a very popular spot is the breakfast club – but recently Half cup became a favorite spot of mine
Steak Pie – The Volunteer had great pub food
A Sunday roast – most pubs will do this on Sunday, if you get the opportunity definitely have one! The Freemasons arms does a good one, had my first ever Sunday roast here!
Borough Market – a food market with all sorts of fun things to try!
Indian food, after living in London and visiting so many times I have still not tried Indian food in London, so do us both a favor and find a good place to tell me to try
Shopping
Harrods, duh
Selfridges
Marks & Spencer
Portobello road market
Camden market
Brick Lane market (a more hip outdoor market)
Covent Garden
Liberty
Harry Potter Fans
Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross
Oxford to see the great hall
Millennium Bridge
Warner Bros Studio – this (should) and could take hours so make sure to dedicate the time
Leadenhall Market
Music lover London
Abbey Road – The beatles
The 100 club – Sex Pistols
KOKO
Camden Town
Dublin Castle – Amy Winehouse
23 Heddonstreet – Bowie
Street Art
Shoreditch
Leake Street Arches
Banksy – there are some Banksy spots hidden around London, one is on Bruton Lane, another in Hackney and one in Shoreditch – I have not been lucky enough to come across a Banksy IRL in London but if you do, take a photo for me!
Have some drinks
Worlds End, my favorite pub ❤
One New Change, my favorite view while having a cocktail, see for yourself 😉
Cahoots
Waxy O connors
Sky pod at the Sky Garden: an awesome view but make sure you make a reservation in advance
The Shard, if you go to the 36 floor you could get a great view for the price of a cocktail, make sure to wear nice shoes!
Duck and Waffle
Madison
Sushisamba
Aviary
Rumpus Room
The Churchill Arms
Museums
The British Museum
Victoria & Albert Museum
Natural History Museum
The National Portrait Gallery
The TATE modern art museum
Madam Tussauds wax museum
London Aquarium
London Zoo – my favorite zoo ever!
Kew Gardens
Shakespeare’ Globe Theater
Beautiful Walks of London
My favorite is a walk along the southbank near the London Eye
The canals of Camden
Regents Park
Hyde Park
Jack the Ripper walking tour
St. James Park
Hampstead Heath
London has SO much to offer, I’ve only covered a portion of it in this post (and I have like 5 past posts about London as well) and combined they don’t even scrape the surface of what London offers. It really is my favorite city in the world and at the age of 30 I’ve visited quite a few places. If you’re limited on time here is what I recommend you must do.
Visit Big Ben, you can see Westminster Abbey RIGHT THERE, and walk the short walk from there to the London Eye
Enjoy Fish and chips and/or A full English (both if you have the time)
Chug a pint in a traditional pub, who cares what time it is
Walk through a park
Have a cup of tea
Visit a museum/church/ or tower of london
**** if you’re me, you also always need to find time to visit Camden
Runaway Blond 