Preparing for an upcoming trip to London I've been watching some videos including Rick Steves London episode. In the episode he briefly visits Canary Wharf and talks about the parks, dining, and skyscrapers. However it isn't mentioned in the other videos I've seen, nor is it mentioned in his England travel book. I haven't been able to find a lot of info online.
Is Canary Wharf a place a tourist would want to visit? And if so, recommendations on what to do and see?
It’s not a tourist area built in the former docklands - it’s a modern business district with lots of tall buildings, plenty shops and cafes to occupy the 120,000 work force and lots of expensive flats. I find it a bit soulless.
Its relatively quiet on weekends but busy during the week as its a financial hub. Lots of modern buildings. I liked visiting the Museum of Docklands and walking about the Crossrail Place Roof Garden. The Canary Wharf tube station is intriguing. You can Google images.
I think going there depends on your interests.
I’m big on old traditional pubs not yet converted to gastro pubs. It’s a 30 minute stroll from Canary Wharf tube to The Ferry House Pub. Hopefully, it survived the Covid Lockdown. Mud Chute Farm is 25 minutes from Canary Wharf tube.
Essentially all the shops etc there are for the people that work there, the whole area is tailored towards financial workers to shop on their lunch break- tons of Starbucks, Waitrose, suit shops, Tiffany, that kind of stuff. Turns into a ghost-town on weekends. However, the docks are lovely and if you like big impressive buildings and boats then it's worth a wander around, just don't expect to be able to sit in quaint coffee shops and nip into an indie bakery as there aren't any. Greenwich is very close and only a couple of stops on the DLR, strongly recommend checking it out whilst you're there, the museum is actually great there too!
I remember taking a walking tour of the Docklands some thirty years ago when history exuded from every street.
Now, it's a jungle of skyscrapers paying homage to the financial services industry. It that's your thing, visit. But there are a lot more interesting things to do and see in other areas.
It seems like downtown skyscrapers, with free (or paid) skyline viewing platforms, might be a better use of your time. I believe a Tube trip to Greenwich includes a small dose of the new docklands. And Greenwich is a nice visit.
As Tim said, the DLR (Docklands Light Railway) will take you through the heart of Canary Wharf on your way out to Greenwich. We enjoyed Greenwich a great deal on a recent trip. I don't think we would have found as much to enjoy had we gotten off the train in Canary Wharf - as others have said it just seems like a bunch of office towers. The point Rick makes in his episode including Canary Wharf is that you owe it to yourself to see what real modern London looks like. For us, it seemed we got the point sufficiently through the windows of the train.
For an overview you can take the Emirates Cable Car over the Thames
Thanks all. We had been considering Greenwich too, sounds like that's the better plan.
if you decide to go to Greenwich without a Canary Wharf stop, depending on where you are starting from you may well find that a mainline train from London Bridge or Cannon Street does the whole trip in 10 or 14 minutes. DLR is a lot slower.
There's the pedestrian tunnel too - real history there.
The briefly mentioned Museum of London Docklands (part of the Museum of London, and free) is worth a trip on its own.
Another way to go is by river, via the Thames Clipper ferryboats.
Tap in with your Oyster card when you get on; tap out with the Oyster card when you exit the boat.
Route map here:
https://www.thamesclippers.com/plan-your-journey/route-map
The Thames Clipper is an easy way to get around London without using the tube.
You can get on at Westminster pier, and get off at the Tower of London pier.
Or continue on to the east to Canary Wharf and/or Greenwich.
It's fun to see the London landmarks from the river.
The Museum of London Docklands is excellent, and currently has an exhibit about Mudlarks of London and their finds. Mudlarks are people who walk the shoreline of the Thames River at low tide, looking for relics of the past, such as Roman or Tudor coins, rings, pipe stems and more. Some of their finds are currently on display. Most interesting.
The Museum of London Docklands is part of the Museum of London, which is also well worth a visit. They have lots of Roman Britain finds, including complete mosaic tile floors from some Roman townhouses found in London. The bombing of London during WW2 destroyed many buildings, but revealed many remains of Roman buildings that had been under their foundations. Many of these finds were taken to the Museum of London and put on display. They have a good cafe for lunch and refreshments as well as a good bookstore/gift shop.
Definitely do Greenwich instead. Docklands is one of my least favourite areas of London and it really doesn’t feel like London.
