How on Earth do you Plan a Trip to London?
London is the UK’s biggest city with a population of nearly 8 million (that’s bigger than Singapore), so it comes as no surprise that there is a lot of different things to do here… When planning to travel around London, it’s always good to have a rough idea of the different things you want to do. But with so many things to do and places to go, this can be quite overwhelming. In this post, I’ve listed different categories of things to do, so it’s a good idea to try and do at least one different thing from each category.
Shopping
London has so many different places to shop, both in Central and outside of Central… Here, I’ve listed a few of my favourite places to shop here.
Top places to shop in Zones 1 & 2:
- Westfields Shepherds Bush
- ICON Outlet in North Greenwich
- Selfridges and John Lewis on Oxford Street
- Piccadilly Circus and Soho
Top places to shop outside of Zones 1 & 2:
Parks
If you’re tired of the rush of London and need somewhere to recuperate, don’t forget to visit these amazing green spaces in Central London. These are a few of my favourite parks to visit…
- Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens
- St James Park
- The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
- Hampstead Heath to see incredible views of the entire London skyline
- Regents Park & Primrose Hill, both of which are only a short walk away from each other
Sightseeing
Take the time to walk around the City of London and the West End to see the various landmarks and architecture. It’s also a great opportunity to try out some photography. The best ways to sightsee are to go to viewing decks such as Sky Gardens, going on bus rides with your Travelcard, and getting around on foot (the best option).
- The South Bank– the London Eye, Westminster Bridge, and the Houses of Parliament
- Charing Cross– Trafalgar Square and the West End
- Take a walk in time through the City of London– Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, the London skyline, St Pauls Cathedral
- Canary Wharf– photograph the skyline from afar, and also take a walk amongst the skyscrapers too
Eating out
London has an abundance of restaurants and cafes to eat at, each offering something unique and exciting. Whatever cuisine you are looking for, London probably has it! Eating in the West End can be quite expensive, so its usually better to venture outside of Central to eat out, plus it’s a great chance to explore a new area too.
Museums & art galleries
There are so many different museums and art galleries in London that its impossible to list them all here. So, I’ve listed a few of my favourite museums here. Many of them are open during the day, and on some days of the month, some museums have extra opening hours too.
- The Imperial War Museum in North Lambeth
- The British Museum in Bloomsbury
- Tate Modern in the City of London