First Timer to London!!!

So first thing, if there\'s a post for this topic already Im sorry for double posting XD!!! Now on to the fun topic!

Im planning my first trip to London for me and my sister\'s college graduation (Im already done but we\'re waiting for her to finish her last semester). I\'ve never traveled by myself and so...Im pretty much clueless. Im only going for 2 weeks and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions of sites to see or where would be a good area to stay. Does anyone know if the London tours are worth the money or would it be more fun to grab a map and pick a direction? Im not sure what else to ask (sorry!!!) but if anyone has anything else to add, I would love to hear it! Thanks in advance!!!! Reply to this

London is my favorite city in the world. I simply love everything from the cab to the supermarket.

There is a lot to do.

This is a list of things to do I think you have time to do in 2 weeks.

Museum:

British museum: one of the best archaeology museum in the world FREE
Natural history: love the dinosaurs and the kid style fun in there FREE
British National Portrait Gallery and tate britain and modern: if you like art they are all nice place to visit FREE

Park and square:

Hyde Park
St. James
Green Park: those three parks are great and are the main parks of the city. You can go through them going going from one sight to the other.

Trafalgar sq. : a lovely square full of people. There is always something going on over there and the pub around them are surprisingly cheap and good.
Piccadilly sq and Leicester sq.: the most night buzzing spot in central London... where some of the best clubs are. I recommend doing a pub crawl.

area:

Soho and Camden have to be seen for their great market and general funky ambiance.

Market:

covent garden: love that place. a bit touristy but the street act are good and the pub nice.

borough, portobello, camden town

sight:

tower bridge: icon and worth seeing at least.

The monument: only 50p and you will have an amazing view of the city

walk the south bank to see many great sight from outside.

Buckingham palace: do I need the say why.

big ben: from outside is an icon. st stephen tavern right in front is great.

tower of london

st Paul cathedral and Westminster abbey are great church and you have to see them during service because it is free otherwise you pay 19 pound for them.

do:

eat fish and chips
drink in fashion in lescester or covent garden
take a picture in a red booth and use the red imperial bus
mind the gap

tour:

free tour by new europe

out:
go to Stonehenge and bath

if you have other questions message me.

Nick
Reply to this

I (Chris) am a born and bred Londoner and I completely agree with everything on Nick's list.

I'd probably also add the Victoia and Albert museum and maybe the Wallace Collection (both free).

I would highly recommend Borough Market and Camden Market.

Soho is an eye opener as it has several sex shops/shows but in terms of nightlife it is pretty cool, be careful of pick pockets though, they prey on tourists in that area.

St Pauls, Tower Bridge, Big Ben etc ALL worth seeing, I've always lived in London and I often go to visit them with my camera.

If you have any questions nearer the time or when you arrive send me a message and if I know the answer to your question I'll tell you.

Chris Reply to this

Hi there,

I lived in London during my degree and loved it so much Ive never left! I'd agree with all of Nick's suggestions but definately have a few of my own to add too!

For me, the Saatchi Gallery just off the KIngs road in Chelsea has some of the best contemporary art in London, and like the others it's also free too. The space is brilliant and the exhibitions always change so it's always really topical and current art works.

Got to agree with Chris as well for Borough Market- I used to live close by and it's some of the best and cheapest street food about! Especially good if you're travelling on a budget as theres loads of free tasters as well as being a fantastic photo oppurtunity.

My favourite tourist thing to do is hands down the Tower of London- well worth splashing out on the entrance and the price also includes seeing the crown jewells too!

London is full of beautiful areas..but as a tourist I would really reccomend basing yourself as central as possible as this will also keep transport costs down! You will undoubetdly have to use the tube, so buy an oyster card on arrival and top up. If you buy the daily cards you will spend a fortune. I think you can actually buy a 2 week unlimited travel thing too which might work out cheaper.. you can check tfl.gov.uk site for prices!

I recently had a city break in Barcelona and used a Secret Hotel (normally 4/5 star hotel at a heavily disocunted price) I got a 5 star in the centre for 50quid, so might be worth checking out for london accomodation too. theres a few sites but I used secrethotels.org cos their descriptions were more detailed than the others. Id make a list of all the things you want to do and then work out which area would be best for visiting them..then you wont spend your whole time on the tube! Also remember that sometimes the buses are quicker but use the tfl website above to check routes!

For food..besides borough market id really reccomend Soho for cheap eats. There's loads of noodle bars and its a really fun atmosphere too, especially in the evenings!

Have fun 😊 Reply to this