Even if you live in London on daily basis, seeing everything worth seeing, trying everything worth trying, visiting everything worth visiting can represent a serious challenge. That’s why I can’t stress enough on how important it is to take your time for London instead of rushing to cross all those musts out of your list. You won’t see everything in one go, you may just as well enjoy London at a slower pace. Nevertheless, there is a set of essentials that will make you discover the most iconic and famous spots of this amazing city. As well as some of the truly London experiences.

So, if you are a first-timer in London here are several suggestions on what you can begin with. Then we will see how we can explore London differently. :) At the end of the post, you will find a Google Map with all of the stops mentioned in the article + our favorite places and restaurants.

Check out: 13 Things to Know Before Going to London

Soho

Watching the Guard Change at Buckingham Palace

Let’s start with the classics, and namely with the official royal residence in London since 1837. If you at some point in your life had to study English, then you will definitely recognise the place from your school textbooks. The Buckingham Palace is among the top touristy spots of London, so getting through the crowd might be a little tricky, especially during the famous change of guards taking place at 11 am.

Still, leaving London without seeing it would be a crime. Don’t be deceived by its somewhat modest look (modest in comparison to Versailles), and if you happen to visit London in summer, absolutely seize the opportunity to visit it. Unfortunately, taking pictures inside is forbidden, so we couldn’t photograph that splendeur. We can only promise that you won’t regret it.

Buckingham Palace

Feeling Royal on The Mall and St James’s Park

Straight from the Buckingham Palace and Victoria Memorial starts the Mall – the road built for the royal ceremonies. It leads from the Palace to the Trafalgar Square passing through the St James’s Park. We took it hundreds of times both on foot and by bicycle, and it was always a pleasure no matter season of the year. If you dream to see the Queen, you are most likely to see her from here. Take some time to walk through the park up to the Horse Guards Parade and to marvel at the squirrels and pelicans.

Stairs of Duke of York Column

NOT Feeding Pigeons on Trafalgar Square

Another star of our English textbooks, Trafalgar Square with the Nelson’s Column and four giant lions is a must of every first-timer in London. The view on the Big Ben is fantastic, the National Gallery can swallow you for several hours and the whole atmosphere is brilliant. You will see numerous signs asking not to feed the pigeons – what used to be a part of Trafalgar Square charm is not exactly welcome these days.

Trafalgar Square

Being a frequent subject of confusion, I united three of them in one point, but it’s time to understand what is what. Houses of Parliament, known also as the Westminster Palace, is the iconic place of London, recognisable all over the world. As its name indicates, it is the headquarters of the British Parliament. The Houses of Parliament can be visited within the specific dates, all the information can be found here.

Big Ben is the huge bell inside the famous Clock Tower of the Palace, which is currently under reconstruction. Fortunately, we managed to see it before it got covered with the scaffolds. We were surprised to see that Big Ben on a busy crossroad, but the best view on the Houses of Parliament with Big Ben appeared to be from the opposite bank of Thames or from the London Eye.

Big Ben in 2017

Westminster Abbey (don’t confuse with the Westminster Cathedral!) is the Gothic 13^th century cathedral which is situated not far from the Westminster Palace. You won’t miss it, but a proper visit is a must for the true amateurs of the history.

One of our favorite walks, as well as of many other Londoners, is the Thames path through the city. As the London’s part is long enough to require a separate day of walking, most often people stay only on the South Bank. Beautiful views on the left like Somerset House and St Paul’s Cathedral, and interesting things on the right: you will pass by the famous London Eye, South Bank Centre, Shakespeare’s Globe and a book market.

I would suggest though walking at least until the Tower Bridge. You will pass by the Borough Market and London Bridge. There are plenty of stands with street-food and drinks, a lot of animation and always a great atmosphere.

Millennium Bridge & St Paul’s Cathedral

There is certainly no lack of pubs in London, but what would bring your pub experience even further would be going to the one with a history. Having a pint sitting on the bench that knew the warm butt of Charles Dickens or some sailor who was just about to sell off to explore the New World or even pop in the pub mentioned in Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” – you can have it all. You will find the old pubs with descriptions under this link, but our personal favorite as for now is The Mayflower – that’s why I do insist you taking a longer walk along Thames to have a well-deserved reward. Otherwise, the George Inn will be on your way too (almost).

Our Local Pub “The Hope”

Two iconic London’s places are situated close to each other. Impossible to leave London without seeing both of them. It is hard to believe that the Tower, so well preserved and so neatly placed in the heart of London has seen the darkest of times through the entire Middle Ages long before London became a world’s capital. It can be hard to embrace its historical value through the crowds of tourists, but once you get in, its whole power knocks you down. While you are there, check as well the Tower Bridge lift times!

Tower Bridge

Tower of London

In our article about the things to know before going to London, we told that one shouldn’t expect the City of London to look like any other European city centers. Even if historically it is the sole and unique heart of London, the flow of time featuring the Great Fire in 1666 (there is a monument commemorating this tragedy!) and a several wars transformed it into a business center, whose architectural interest resumes to the modern skyscrapers with the historical buildings squeezed in-between. However, absolutely visit the little green oasis in the middle of glass and cement – Saint Dunstan in the East Church Garden.

The City

Having said that, those skyscrapers are gorgeous and the City’s atmosphere after the end of the working day, when everybody gets out for a pint, is fantastic. Absolutely visit the Sky Garden for a beautiful view over London – make sure to book your free visit well in advance though!

View from the Sky Garden

London’s street food markets is an obligatory foody experience in the city, so whether you go to Borough Market, Maltby or Camden, don’t miss it!

Covent Garden

Camden Market

Camden Town is the alternative culture (i.e punkers and rockers) spot, which turned into a real touristy Mecca. To be honest even if Camden Town is on every lists of top things to see in London, we never actually came to like it. It’s always overcrowded and vendors often get aggressive about taking pictures. Still, the street-art and Camden Market are worth a visit (avoid weekends though!).

However, the best part about Camden Town is the Regent’s canal, and if you follow those gondolas, you will have an amazing walk. Some people actually live in those boats along the canal!

Regent’s Canal

Even if you are not a Harry Potter fan (no idea how it might be the case), and the platform 9 ¾ means nothing to you, the Kings Cross and namely St Pancras International Train Station is, according to us, one of the most beautiful buildings in the city. So if ever you planned to walk in that area, don’t miss it. As for Harry Potter, London has plenty of young wizard’s spots and if you happen to be a fan, you will definitely enjoy it.

The British Museum is in the top-two of our favorite museums – its main showpiece is the Rosetta stone, though I am not sure if the biggest part of tourists queuing in front of it have little understanding of what it is. The museum has a huge exhibition of artefacts from all over the world and at some point, you start wondering whether they really should be there. Just like anything in London, you won’t be able to explore the British Museum in one go only.

Soho has a surprising concentration of theatres, and going to one of the shows is compulsory. Les Miserables, the Phantom of the Opera, the Book of Mormon and much more – believe me, even if you are not into theatres and have never heard of those shows, you will love it. I guarantee it. If you have a specific show in mind, book in advance, but if you are open to any suggestions – try the TKL booth on Leicester square for the last-minute deals. China Town needs no introduction, I suppose. If you happen to be there on January or February, you might want to check the schedule for the Chinese New Year festivities.

Soho

West End Theatres

China Town

The Brits are notorious for their love for books, but only after living in England did we realise how huge and important local book industry is, and what creativity they put into it. English bookshops are a true fairy tale land, where you are doomed to lose yourself and very likely – a fortune. Still, you can’t refuse yourself this oh-so-British experience.

Kings Cross Area

South Bank Book Market

People tend to underestimate the Hyde’s Park size, because it is gigantic. If you get one of those Santander bikes, you still can explore bigger part of it. If you are on foot, I suggest you visiting Kensington Palace close to the Pond and the Albert Memorial (don’t forget to see the Royal Albert Hall!). A picnic in the Hyde Park on a sunny day is always a perfect idea.

The Albert Memorial

Royal Albert Hall

Thanks to the movie with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant, Notting Hill area got quickly famous. It is beautiful indeed with those splendid pastel-coloured houses. You will definitely have fun in Portobello Market and enjoy the beauty of the mews.

Notting Hill

It’s difficult to believe how different the area can be during the Notting Hill Carnival – an annual Caribbean festival taking place the last weekend of August.

South Kensington is another lovely area, but its true gem are the museums situated close to the Tube station. Science Museum, Victoria & Albert Museum and, the most beloved one, The Natural History Museum with an unbelievable exhibition on animals. All three of them are free and all three of them are fantastic.

That looks like an intense schedule for the first time in London, but once again – take your time. London deserves it. We shall meet then in the post about Alternative places to visit in London, right?

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