London, a city of 1,572 km 2, More than 8 million inhabitants, 170 museums, 11 metro lines with more than 50 stations and almost 9,000 buses, cannot be visited in a day.
The vast majority of times the complaint we hear from tourists is "I haven't had time to see everything."
It doesn't just happen to you. We have been living here for 5 years and we are still discovering things. As experts on the subject, we have decided to make your life easier.
If you are wondering what to see or do in London, without missing anything essential, save yourself a thousand guides, videos or posts, this is the definitive one. Lie back, relax, and grab a piece of paper and a pen because we are going to give you the list of things that you can see in 2 or 5 days, in more or less hurry, but that you need to do before you leave, without making the typical mistakes Time to visit London.
First of all, let us summarize what this city is like, apart from how big it is. For practical purposes, and as a tourist, you will be interested in zone 1 (the center). But you're not going to visit this center quickly either. It is divided into West and East .
In the West, better known as the Westminster area, we find the most photographed building: Big Ben, and to the East, Tower Bridge. To discover the history, origin and evolution of London, you must go east. To discover the most "touristy" part you must go to the West.
We offer two unmissable tourist tours to discover both parts, they are the two tours that we always recommend if you want to leave with everything important seen and explored: London through the centuries (East) , and Essential London (West) or you can also hire a private tour .
That said, we are going to give you the list, by area, of the most important ones to see:
WEST/WESTMINSTER
1. ELIZABETH TOWER AND PALACE OF WESTMINSTER (BIG BEN)
Safety pin. Our favorite building in the city and the most photographed.
The famous clock belongs to the Palace of Westminster, the place where the British Parliament is located.
Can you visit Big Ben from the inside? Since very very recently they have been doing tours in the interior, we went and we highly recommend it. You climb the 344 steps of the tower and are next to "Big Ben" itself, as the bell is called, while the hour chimes (they give you earplugs). It's quite difficult to get tickets. They go out every so often.
To visit Parliament you have to reside in the United Kingdom, so if you come for tourism you will not be able to enter.
Remember that we also do photo sessions , and this is our favorite point.
2. LONDON EYE
The most famous ferris wheel in London.
135 meters high, and approximately 40 minutes to go around, from where you will have views of the entire city.
You have to buy the ticket beforehand , but if you come in low seasons, you can get last minute offers (yes, in January they close it for maintenance).
3. WESTMINSTER ABBEY
One of the most iconic and important buildings in London, considered the "church of royalty" as it is the place where, since 1066, all British monarchs have been crowned (including, in May 2023, Charles III) and it is also where the princes of Wales (William and Kate Middleton, so you understand us) got married.
Apart from being one of the most important and oldest churches in London, there are more statues inside it than in all of London, so a visit is worth it.
We leave you here the link to the Abbey , so you can buy your tickets or check what time the religious services are held.
4. BUCKINGHAM PALACE
The official residence of the British monarchy, and you can go up to its doors. Although Carlos III and Camila do not live there, it is their official "office", so you may find them entering or leaving.
Remember that this is also the place to see the Changing of the Guard, which is what they call the official ceremony through which the guards go to work to monitor the palace.
When and at what time?
It is at 11 in the morning , but we recommend that you get there around 10/10:30 (you will need to be earlier or later depending on whether it is high season or not, but keep in mind that it is usually quite crowded).
If it rains (a lot, if it's London drizzle, it doesn't count), it's cancelled, otherwise it's done on these days:
Summer, every day.
Rest of the year: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday
Here you have the website with detailed information and the best points from where to see it.
5. TRAFALGAR SQUARE
The most central and largest square in London, the point where Kilometer 0 of the city is, and where you can reach several points (Buckingham, Big Ben, Covent Garden, Piccadilly).
It is also the place where the National Gallery , London's pictorial museum par excellence, and the National Portrait Gallery , the largest collection of portraits in Europe, are located. Two different museums, despite the similarity of their name and both free.
We recommend that you reserve your ticket before your visit, to ensure that you will be able to enter (it's free!).
If you are interested in curiosities, we leave you two: one about what painting you have to see in the National Gallery that you are going to see much more on your trip than you think, and another about one of the statues in this great square .
6. LEICESTER SQUARE AND PICCADILLY CIRCUS
One next to the other: the cinema square and the more modern square, New York style, with large advertising screens on its façade. The nerve center of the city of London.
By the way, if you are interested in Harry Potter, we are experts, so you can consult our Harry Potter tour , which begins in this area, since one of the most legendary scenes in the saga was filmed there.
And, speaking of cinema, remember that in Leicester Square you will find bronze statues of film characters. Are you going to find them all? Some are hidden, so it's not that easy.
You will also enjoy high-level street music in this square, Ed Sheraan began his adventures there, so pay close attention because it is likely that there will be some future musical promise.
7. SOHO
A walk through London's Soho is essential. The most eclectic and dynamic part of the city, there you will find Chinatown , the Chinese neighborhood, with a thousand restaurants and places to eat, many local or independent shops, the LGBT neighborhood and Carnaby Street , a beautiful, colorful and central street that yes or yes you must visit.
It also connects with Regent's Street , and Oxford Street , London's shopping streets, if you want to go shopping.
And you can visit some legendary stores, like Liberty . If you want to know more about this store, we leave you information here .
EAST/CITY OF LONDON AND SOUTHBANK
1. TOWER BRIDGE
Tower Bridge, icon and symbol of the city of London.
You can visit inside, purchasing your ticket beforehand , and you can go through the upper corridors, with glass floors (not suitable if you are afraid of heights).
If you want to see it from the outside, and you want to visit it when it opens, you can check the days and time that it will be open, to plan your visit at those times. Whenever we can, we coincide our tour of London through the centuries with the opening of the bridge.
2. TOWER OF LONDON
One of the oldest buildings in this city and a very clear emblem.
When we are asked what activity or monument is worth paying for, we always say the Tower of London.
You can buy your ticket here , inside you will discover a lot, a lot of history and the opportunity for a Yeoman Warder to give you a tour.
If you don't go in, at least come outside and find out a little about what you're seeing (or come on our tour and we'll tell you about it).
3. BOROUGH MARKET
Street markets are the most typical and unmissable thing in London, there are many, some more famous (like Notting Hill or Camden) and others not so recognized, like the neighborhood ones.
So you have to visit yes or yes, and what better than the oldest in London , with more than a thousand years of history, central, photographic and with a lot of good, quality food, from all over the world.
Their schedules :
Tuesday to Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturdays from 9 am to 5 pm
Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
They are closed on Mondays, but you can check their hours here to make sure.
Take the opportunity to see, right next door, the tallest building in London, the Shard .
4. CITY OF LONDON
In truth, this is an entire district, but it is worth getting lost in some alley in the City of London, the financial district and the place where you will find a very typical mix of London: new and old. The city is the place with the most history, since the city of London begins right there. However, with the bombings of World War II (Blitz), much of this area had to be rebuilt.
Stroll through Victorian streets and markets such as Leadenhall Market and medieval churches, or the first British merchant exchange (Royal Exchange), among modern, glass-enclosed skyscrapers.
By the way, in the middle of the entire City you will find St. Dunstan-in-the-East, an old ruined church, and a great place to take photographs or enjoy the silence and peace.
5. ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL
You can't leave either, without having visited the cathedral of this city, and this is a very important one.
You will have seen that in films like Mary Poppins it has a lot of prominence, and despite the constant bombing that this area suffered during the Second World War, San Pablo was practically unscathed and resisted against all odds. It is a symbol of unity and resistance, an icon of the city of London, and one of the oldest buildings still standing in this area.
You can buy the ticket here , but if you don't want to go in, you can visit it from outside and take a photo in the middle of the Millennium Bridge.
Finally,
6. A PARK
We say it like this, in general, because if you are short on time maybe you can only see one, or if you come in winter you won't have much body for parks, but visit one before you leave. Its many green spaces are also typical of London.
We leave you a list with those from the center:
- Hyde Park, the largest in central London.
- Kensington Gardens, adjacent to Hyde Park, is the park where Kensington Palace is located.
- St. James's Park , on the west side of Buckingham Palace, and our favorite . Very well maintained, with views of Big Ben, Buckingham or the London Eye. Full of different animals, including their particular pelicans.
- Green Park , on the east side of Buckingham Palace, as its name says, it is all green, there are hardly any flowers (in our Essential London tour we tell you why it is called that).
7. A MUSEUM
Again, choose one , but visit it, they are free and their collections are very complete! Remember to check if you have to reserve a time in advance, to ensure your entry, and the opening times.
We leave you the list of the most central ones with the links to reserve tickets and a brief description of their collections.
- National Gallery , pictorial art
- National Portrait Gallery , portraits (pictorial art)
- British Museum , large amount of material, covering more than 2 million years of history. From Paleolithic objects to the Rosetta stone or mummies.
- National History Museum , ideal with children, the natural history museum, with a wide exhibition of animal and natural life and a very famous Hall with the skeleton of a whale.
- Victoria and Albert , a little of everything; fashion, furniture, miniatures, painting, sculptures,...
- Science Museum , the science museum, also ideal for children.
- Tate Modern , the modern art museum, right in front of San Pablo and an aesthetic that will surprise you.
- Design Museum , the design museum
- Imperial War Museum , war museum (this museum has annexes such as the HMS Belfast or the Churchill War Rooms , both for a fee).
With all this, you have the essentials covered, the center explored and you can leave with the most legendary photos taken.
Do you have more time left?
You have a thousand more things to explore:
- Notting Hill
-Camden
- Other parks such as Holland Park, Battersea Park
- More remote neighborhoods with small-town vibes like Hampstead, Richmond or Greenwich
- Brick Lane and Shoreditch
- Visit the Harry Potter studios
And a lot lot more. Don't forget to check out all our posts, we have options for plans to do depending on the time of year you visit the city or by type of trip (friends, family, as a couple or alone).
Remember that you always come back to London, so save things to do on your next visit.
We are waiting for you here :)
