London Tours, what to choose?

I've done quite a few LondonWalks over the years, and always enjoyed learning unexpected things. I think if a title sounds interesting, go for it!

I've done 3 different "pub" tours with them, and even though I'm not much of a drinker, they were among my favorites.

It's been a few years, not sure if EatingLondon existed then, but a food tour of East London had quite a variety of food, not just "traditional."

I'd personally never take a tour because, well... there is just so much latitude to find out and explore on your own if you're not stuck with a bunch of people who might, or might not, be on your wavelength. THAT SAID. I live here, so I am not a tourist.

Rick Steves folks seem to adore London Walks. I don't think I have ever heard a bad review here, so that is saying something. :-) I also think their tour titles are rather genius, since they give you a gestalt and a flavor, and not just a block by block litany of exact locations. Could just be me IMHO, of course.

Folks on this board also seem to really like the Westminster Verger's Tour, so that sounds sound!

Yes - do some research. Check out a map and see how weirdly close together things are that you might have previously thought were far flung. It's... tiny! In some ways, that is, just talking about central/tourist London.

Also please rest assured that this city is packed - PACKED - with absolutely bonkers amounts and layers of history. Just walk slowly and look around you! There is so much to see!

Check out Joolz Guides, if you can. He has an amazing YouTube channel, that can be really helpful.

Traditional British food can be AMAZING! OMG. (Bubble and squeak. Stargazy pie. Cockles. FIsh 'n' chips. Oysters. Ploughman's lunch. But also black dal and chicken tikka masala and amazing lamb dishes, etc..) But you do probably need to check out what the tour will be covering, and decide if it is in your wheelhouse. Good luck - and have fun!

Start the Tower of London with a Yeoman Warder’s (Beefeater’s) tour, which is included with your entry price. You’ll get some history and an explanation of some of the parts of the castle and its features, before being turned loose to explore further on your own. They’re all witty, and dispense their information with some humor thrown in for good measure. Do your earliest available entry, then catch the next available Beefeater Tour. Fit in the Crown Jewels while you’re there.

I think the thing about the London Walks walks is that they may be given by different guides and they may take slightly different routes based on that guide's expertise.

I have done the walks on The Blitz and the Westminster at War. I would take either one of them again they were that good. The Wren Churches one looks excellent as well. You can certainly get into any of the churches they have listed on your own but it's interesting to have some context as well. The Walks website also mentions several other churches in the area and one, in particular, has been on my "to-do list " since before Covid, lol. It's St James Garlickhythe.

https://stjamesgarlickhythe.org/our-history

There are also walking tours given thru the City of London guides including one of Wren Churches. I have not taken a walk with them but only because I never had time. They have several that are very interesting to me.

https://www.cityoflondonguides.com/tours/city-in-spires-a-tour-of-wren-churches-tuesdays-thursdays

https://www.cityoflondonguides.com/tours

BTW, I have had some "locals" on some of my Walks of London. I chatted with a very nice couple from St Albans as we waited for a tour to start and on another the guide recognized another person as a frequent walker. She lived in London and was interested in getting to know other neighborhoods.

With the Verger's tour of Westminster Abbey you are allowed in to the small chapel where Edward the Confessor is buried. On my tour the verger said the floor is not up to handling a huge number of visitors so that is why it's restricted.

It's probably me, but I don't find the London Walks titles and descriptions very helpful in terms of what we'll see.

The majority of the London Walks aren’t focused on a specific site. Rather they are organized around a theme. For example, if you take the Beatles walk, you will see various sites affiliated with the Beatles. If you take the Hampstead walk, you won’t see a lot of famous sites (except for the Heath) but you will walk through some lovely residential areas and learn about some of the history and famous residents who have lived there. When choosing a London Walk, pick a theme or neighborhood that is of interest to you.

I’ve probably taken about 50 London Walks over 30+ years, many twice. I take a couple every time I visit London. I am partial to the ones that take me to a neighborhood that I might not otherwise explore.

I do enjoy the London Walks, and they can be a lot of fun. The pub tours are especially enjoyable. The last time I went on one (the Hidden Pubs of Old London Town), the tour consisted of me, a few other people and a large group of Vancouver pilots. We all had a blast!

I did not see any real value in the Tower of London's Yeoman Warder’s tour, although my grandson enjoyed it. There was a huge crowd of people around the guide, and we didn't really get to see inside many places. Most of it was outside. I think I would have preferred going through on my own with an audio guide or something similar. That said, the Tower is not one of my favorite sites, so that probably had something to do with it.

I think the Verger tour is well worth taking, and you can usually count on the first one starting about 30-60 minutes after it opens, and pretty regularly after that. Just go over and sign up as soon as you make your way in, then wander around while you're waiting. I guarantee you will find plenty to see!

For Westminister Abbey, I like the Verger tours. I don't think you need a London Walks guide for this as the Verger will give you better information. Back awhile we had the Verger who got to "assist" the royals during the Queen Mum's funeral so we got some inside scoops.

If you are interested in UK government, I loved the Westminster at Night walk(don't know if they still offer it). We walked around Westminster and saw the last remaining gas street light-pretty amazing and quite different to the bright lights of today. Ended up by Parliament and we could go in and watch the House of Lords debate late into the evening.

The pub walks are great because the usually focus on a neighborhood and it's more history than drinking. They used to stop at two pubs and you could either get a drink or use the facilities and just look around. Never any pressure and they took us to some very neat pubs.

My favorite probably has to be the neighborhood walks. It's a shame they don't offer the Hampstead pub walk as there were some neat little pubs, we saw where some of the posh stars lived and if opened, caught a glimpse of a celestial body at the Hampstead Observatory. I even caught a rare glimpse of Jamie Oliver before he saw our group and quickly left.

I highly recommend the verger tour at Westminster Abbey. I especially enjoyed seeing the shrine of Edward the Confessor. It's behind the alter and only accessible through the tour. As another poster mentioned, the vergers can provide some interesting first hand accounts. The verger guiding my tour was involved in the coronation and gave us some really neat details about the day.

I also recommend London Walks. I've been on a number of the walks, and have one booked for this summer.

Happy travels!

It sounds like a Verger tour at Westminster is the way to go. I'm guessing we can do the tour and then stay and visit more. How much time do people spend at Westminster abbey? A couple hours?

@Liz and Heather, thanks for your thoughts on the pub tours. I'm not much of a beer drinker, but they probably have full bars? And I really don't need to have a drink if nothing appeals. Now I've found the Rock & Roll Pub Walk, I think my husband would LOVE this. Unfortunately, it runs the same day and time as the Hidden Pubs. The pub tours seem to be in the evening, which is perfect. Do people get food at the pubs? or do folks eat before or after?

@Volvo, I'm looking forward to Sticky Toffee Pudding! I've looked a bit at Joolz Guides, on Youtube, and they do look both helpful and fun to watch. And it sure looks like we will not be bored in London!

@ Heather, I would sure love to get a glimpse of parliament during our stay. It doesn't look like anything is posted for September, yet.

@Laura, makes sense. I probably don't know many of the neighborhoods by name.

@Laura and Stacie, Wow, you do love London Walks!

@Cyn and Mardee, thanks for your thoughts on the Beefeater tour. Maybe we can decide day of depending on the number of people.

@Mardee, I like the idea of meeting and talking to other people on the pub tours. I'm sure my husband doesn't tire of me on trips, but sometimes I like other people to talk to. ;)

@Pam, I really appreciate your input on the walks we are thinking of doing. I'm glad you loved the Bliz and Westminster at war tours. Looks like the Wren's City Churches is in the middle of the night for U.S. folk

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed with the vergers tour. Book your entry to Westminster Abbey as soon as it opens. You have to buy the tickets for the vergers tour as soon as you get there. The day I went, they didn’t offer the 10:30 tour so I had to wait until 11:00. I toured the abbey on my own and had tea in the cafe until the tour began.

Enjoy your time in London!

Not to pile on the London Walks pile, but some of it may come down to whether they offer the walk on the day you want to do the walk. That's how I ended up on a Canterbury Tales themed walk - not a subject I was previously interested in, but it was a great learning experience and a route through a neighborhood I wouldn't probably have gone to otherwise. I've also done the Westminster Abbey tour on a Saturday - the guide was great but the place was mobbed. In hindsight should have done a verger tour on a different day of the week.

As each guide has a bit of latitude to choose the walking route (especially in light of events, traffic, etc), that's why they don't put street by street details in their synopses. And just to confirm, if you click on the title of a walk, there is a more expanded page with further details and reviews, not just the shorter blurb. The Blitz walk even has a video description: https://www.walks.com/our-walks/the-blitz-london-turned-crimson/

I've done quite a few LondonWalks over the years, and always enjoyed learning unexpected things.

Same. No matter what tour you join, you will see unexpected corners and will learn new things.

I am partial to the ones that take me to a neighborhood that I might not otherwise explore.

This, too. But for you, every neighborhood is new, so you can't go wrong!

London Walks piling on…as others have said, they’re a great way to explore neighborhoods your might not explore on your own. Last year I did the William Morris and Friends tour. While it was not my favorite LW tour of the ones I’ve taken, it was a great way to visit Hammersmith and see the river from a different vantage point.

I recall earlier suggestions on the forum for visiting the Tower of London that said it was best to get the first entry time, go immediately to the crown jewels before that area gets packed and then take the Yeoman Warder's tour. I have been there at all recently, so I don't know anything about current conditions.

For the Tower of London, I would try to get an early ticket, go straight to the Crown Jewels and then catch the next Yeoman tour.

For Westminster Abbey I found the Verger Tour to be the best and then look around yourself afterwards.

What I love about London Walks is that most of their tours are more about a neighborhood or a person rather than touring an actual attraction. I think I only had one Walking tour that was less than satisfactory because the guide was obviously having a bad day and their voice couldn't carry to hear her.

I've done most of the neighborhood walks and all were excellent as were the pub walks and any excursions they have. They don't seem to have it anymore but I did a Battle/Rye tour with them taking a bus through small villages that had the remaining thatched roofs. Plus we saw the 1066 Battlefield as well as the beautiful town of Rye. One special thing about London Walks that set them apart from most other city walks is that the majority of their guides are actors, which makes them better at putting people at ease and making the tours enjoyable rather than just a distillation of facts.