It is increasingly common to take solo trips, but we have to say that London is one of the best places if what you are considering is visiting a city without companions, embarking on an adventure and discovering new places.
In London you never feel alone, and you can go wherever you want without feeling watched. Personally, I had barely gone out to eat before living in London, and now it's something I not only do a lot of, due to my job, but I really enjoy it. London is the perfect place to learn to enjoy being with yourself. Be careful, it can be addictive!
We leave you here ideas of things to do or how to discover this city if you travel alone:
1. VISIT A MUSEUM. Many times appreciating the beauty and cultural interest of a Museum is done much better when you go alone (like shopping for clothes). So what better than to take advantage of the opportunity to be alone in London, with the enormous cultural offering that this city offers, to discover one of its museums. Take all the time you want, enjoy what you like most, without schedules and without rushing. We leave you here the list with our favorite free museums.
2. BIKE RIDE. Discover the city with a solo bike ride, stopping wherever you want. Are you coming in summer? Then it is ideal to take a walk and have a picnic in one of the several central parks in London. Here we tell you which are the most central, and above all we tell you about our favorite, St. James's Park.
Walking around London by bike is quite safe, but if it scares you, remember that you have many cycle paths in the center, and in the parks you always have an area to cycle.
3. GIVE YOURSELF A CULINARY WHIM. Go to dinner or eat somewhere you really like. Try the best ice cream in London, go for an authentic Brunch, or sit in a cozy pub with a book. Enjoy the feeling of being with yourself, in a beautiful place and with good food.
4. BUY A BOOK. In London you have many beautiful bookstores where you can spend hours, discovering all the books that exist and exist, it is a wonderful experience to enjoy the smell of books and floor-to-ceiling shelves full of books. You can even find sofas and areas to sit in many London bookstores. I have always loved reading fragments of different books, in a perfect and relaxed atmosphere, I have come to find people taking a nap between the shelves of some bookstores. If you've been to London, you know that the city can be exhausting at times.
You've got London's oldest bookstore, Hatchards, to discover, or Waterstones, our favorite bookstore chain. Many have cafes and the one in Piccadilly Circus is the largest and most extensive in London. You can also explore Daunt Books, or independent bookstores like John Sandoe Books. In this post we talk to you about our favorites.
5. BOOK A WALKING TOUR. Discovering the city with the help of someone professional who knows its history, its secrets and its details and has prepared a tour designed for you to learn and enjoy is the best way to explore it. Without worrying about combining concepts, about consulting the map, about knowing schedules of anything.
We create tours with a lot of dedication and love, for us the experience of a tour has to be like going to the theater. Only you have to walk, instead of sitting in a chair. You can check all our group tours here.
6. ACTIVITIES TO MEET PEOPLE. London is a very big city, where many people arrive and leave daily, from all over the world.
7. FILM OR MUSICAL. If you have never been to the cinema or the theater, this is the best city to do it for the first time.
Choose your favorite movie or show, sit in a comfortable armchair and enjoy, because the cultural and theatrical offering that London offers is spectacular. We always recommend checking your tickets on TodayTixx for deals, even last minute deals. You will not regret.
8. GIVE A MASSAGE OR SPEND A DAY AT A SPA. It is an unconventional plan, and it does not involve discovering the city, but pampering yourself and taking care of yourself is always pleasant. Treat yourself and book a massage or a relaxing day. In the Treatwell app you will find many offers, you can also check on Groupon.
In London there are several spas, for all budgets and tastes, you can include a massage in your day to enjoy the experience of traveling alone.
Banya London, for example, offers very comprehensive massages for £55.
9. HAVE A PICNIC IN A PARK (WITH A BOOK). You can do this plan right after a bike ride or after spending a morning discovering bookstores. It is one of the greatest pleasures in London. Sit on the grass in one of its parks, especially if it is a sunny day (yes, they exist). Of course, it is the ideal plan for spring and summer. If you come in winter, you can walk through the parks, but we don't think you'll want to stay having a picnic or eating in the cold.
In winter, you can change this plan to eat at a street market. It's not so cold and the London experience is going to be practically the same.
10. FIND A TREASURE IN NOTTING HILL. Discovering the antique market and the Notting Hill neighborhood will make you feel like you're in a movie. In Notting Hill I bought my first decorative antique camera. But you will also find books, jewelry, decorative objects and a wide variety of food. It is the perfect place to get lost, take photographs and enjoy the essence of this city.
You can also visit where the Notting Hill movie is filmed.
If you want to discover this neighborhood and, at the same time, know how to make the most of your camera, you can sign up for our photography tour in Notting Hill. It is ideal for doing a fun, dynamic and creative activity with new people in one of the most beautiful neighborhoods in London.
11. GET A PHOTO SESSION. You can choose to have the photo session done for you instead of doing them yourself. As a professional photographer, I offer photo sessions in London, so you can take home your best memories. And few cities offer as much play with photography as this one. Take a photo with the mythical Big Ben and the telephone booth or choose your favorite place in London. I will give you ideas to make your photography look like a magazine. And in addition to taking home the memory of a beautiful day, you will have the photos to always remember it.
12. DISCOVER BOROUGH MARKET. Street food market par excellence. We have already talked a lot about it, but apart from having a wide cultural offer, it is a place with a lot of life and movement. You will love getting lost in the smells and colors it has. Enjoy several culinary treats, some good tacos, accompanied by a Colombian coffee and some very famous strawberries with chocolate.
13. EXPLORE HAMPSTEAD. If you feel like leaving the mythical or tourist areas, I suggest you discover a more remote neighborhood, with the aesthetics of a small English village.
Not very touristy and with a lot to discover. Its beautiful streets, its flower shops, cafes and bookstores will make you fall in love and you can take a walk through its extensive park, where movies like Notting Hill or Hampstead (or “A Date in the Park”) have been filmed.
From the highest point, you will have views of all of London.
14. BUY SOMETHING SECOND HAND (VINTAGE) ON SHOREDITCH. Another neighborhood that is well worth discovering and where hours will pass without you realizing it. Alternative neighborhood full of art, mixes and a lot of cultural diversity. From its famous graffiti on the walls, to vintage clothing stores or independent artists selling works that you will only find in London, to the most famous and viral Bagel shop in London: Beigel Bake.
15. SIT IN TRAFALGAR SQUARE AND ENJOY PEOPLE WATCHING. If you are one of those who likes to sit and observe, the perfect place in London is Trafalgar Square, it is the most central square in London, and therefore the one that always has all kinds of movement. A moment of reflection and tranquility, seeing many people, enjoying its statues, museums, views and the constant movement of the square, watched over by Admiral Nelson's column.
16. WALK THROUGH LITTLE VENICE. Another unmissable walk. Ideal for doing something different from the mythical tourist tours of the center (which you will have already done with our tours). Get lost in the canals of London, known as “little Venice”. You can walk from King's Cross (If you like Harry Potter, remember to visit the station where the famous Hogwarts Express leaves) and get to London Zoo (where Harry Potter was also filmed, by the way).
17. SEE LONDON FROM THE HEIGHTS. Book your ticket to Horizon 22, Sky Garden or the Shard Observation Deck and enjoy views of the city of London from their highest points. Remember to take a notebook and a pen or a book to take advantage of this experience alone and be able to write down all the ideas that occur to you from that point, observing a city that evolves and changes with every minute that passes.
18. TAKE A ROUTE ON A BUS. Sit on London's famous red double-decker bus, and enjoy, without rush or schedule, a pleasant ride, seeing the city from the comfort of your seat. Ideal to do on a rainy day too (since you can't have a picnic, this idea will make up for it a lot).
Remember that lines 9 and 15 make ideal routes to go through the most tourist areas.
But we give you an idea that you will love, and that is that, given the fame of these two routes, they can be done with an authentic vintage bus. You can book your ticket here. For 7.5 pounds, you can get on and off as many times as you want during a day. Buses run every 20 minutes.
