London!!??

Historical Landmarks: Tower of London, St Paul's, Westminster Abbey, Parliament, The Pallie, Tower Bridge, Borough's Market, Highgate Cemetary. Now from a practical POV with only 2 days time. Day : Tower first thing in the morning, then walk over to Tower Bridge and see the exhibition inside. (http://www.towerbridge.org.uk/) check the lift times. If you are in London on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday, walk over to the Borough's Market for lunch http://www.boroughmarket.org.uk/. After lunch walk through the Southwark neighborhood over to the Globe Theatre, cross the Millennium Bridge to St. Paul's, tube ride to Covent Garden, cheese shop at Neals Yard, explore either the Theatre or Transport museums, walk over to Trafalgar Square and visit St. Martin's of the Field, then over to the 1.2 price ticket booth to purchase same day tickets for the Mousetrap (well you said historical touristy stuff) and attend theatre that night. Day 2 Highgate Cemetary tour (pre arranged before you go to London) or a stroll around Hyde Park to see the Speaker's Corner, Peter Pan Statue, The Serpentine, The Albert Memorial, Kensington Gardens and Kensington Palace. Hop on the tube to enjoy either the Camden Lock Market or head over Barbican to visit the Museum of London. Back to the Orangery at Hyde Park for afternoon tea, then a tube ride from Queensway to Hyde Park Corner and from there walk through Green Park to see Buckingham Palace, then a stroll on Birdcage walk to Parliament Square to see Big Ben, Parliament and to stand in line for evensong at Westminster Abbey. After the service walk across the Westminster Bridge to ride the London Eye. Special dinner somewhere and your two days in London will be done. Cheers.

Its pricey , but worth every penny, but you must visit Tower of London, there is an included Beefeaters tour and they are interesting and amusing.
I also enjoyed the museums, but with only 2 days you are going to have to pick only one or two. Obvious choice would be Royal British Museum,, filled with artifacts from history , so great for those not just into alot of paintings..

It really will depend on your interests. You could do a hop-on, hop-off bus for a citywide orientation, but with your limited time, I personally would consider that not worthwhile except perhaps at night when other sites are closed. History: what eras? I think the Tower of London is a must for just about everyone. You don't get more "England" than that. If a WWII enthusiast, both the Imperial War Museum and Churchill War Rooms. Elizabethan era? Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Ancient history? The stupendously amazing British Museum. I'm also a fan of the Museum of London, both its main branch and the new Docklands site. Some sites, like the fine Victoria and Albert Museum, have evening hours on certain days. Use them to "expand" your touring day and plan your days geographically to make the most of desired sites that are near each other. Gosh, I haven't even gotten to Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's, or the British Library yet! With only two days, you'll have to make some tough decisions, research well, and make a logical itinerary. Good luck! Enjoy!

London has a WEALTH of awesome touristy stuff to do, not all of it related to art or history or anything "stuffy." I second the vote for the Tower of London. I suggest Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park (northeast corner) which is a great "slice of life" and usually quite a hoot. It's also a lovely walk from there to Buckingham Palace. And how about a pub? The Bag O'Nails (which has Old Speckled Hen) and the Cask & Glass are both around the corner from the Palace, and nothing says "England" more than a pint at a pub. Taking a stroll down Baker Street is fun if you're into Sherlock Holmes. Or head for Abbey Road and get your picture taken as if you were a Beatle, if that's the sort of thing you're into. I liked the Cabinet War Rooms - history with no stuffiness - and the London Eye is wonderful. There is plenty of cheesball touristy-ness at Piccadilly Circus. And what about Madame Tussaud's?

I agree with the Tower of London- it realy is a 'must do'. We also enjoy the markets- Covent Garden, Camden Locks, etc. And we like to stroll and people watch- Covent Garden to Picadilly Cirus, to Leciester Square, down past St. Martin's in the Fields, on to Trafalgar Square, then on to Westminster- Big Ben, Parlement, etc. then the Mall to Buckingham Palace. If you want to add something, I'd do a trip by train to Windsor- it is my favorite castle and the town is lovely- and has lots of shopping. Easy 25-30 min. trip from Paddington Station and you can spend from 1/2 a day to a whole day. And I'd try to catch at least one show- we love musicals and you are spoiled for choice in London.
If you stay within the Circle Line (zone 1) or even in zone 1 and 2 and near a tube station, you'll be close to anything! We splurge a bit on rooms and have enjoyed the Grosvenor (used to be the Victoria Thistle) inside Victoria Station. Great location, especially if you are arriving/departing via Gatwick. If you are going to use the Eurostar, you might want to stay near Kings Cross/St. Pancras.

Another enthusiastic vote for the Tower of London, as well as for the Museum of London. I suppose the Barbican (I've not been to the Docklands branch) is a teensy bit out of the way, but it's well worth it. Personally, I would save the British Museum for a longer trip because – while it's fantastic and absolutely worth anyone's time – it's not especially British (i.e., not much of the collection is actually from Britain). If you do go to the Victoria & Albert as someone suggested, when you're done pop down the road to the Natural History Museum (free) and spend 10-15 minutes admiring the magnificent central hall (main entrance). Additionally, if you find yourself near Harrods, do a quick whiz through the Food Halls. (I wouldn't go out of my way to do this, but most if not all of the hop-on/hop-off buses have a Harrods stop.)

Hello Andrew. As you can see, in the other replies, there are many places to see in London. It is not possible to see all of it in two days. I recommend : Day One - Tower of London (Royal crowns), St. Paul's Cathedral (stay on the main floor), Museum of London (walk to it from St. Paul's), Church of St. Bartholomew the Great (walk to it from the Museum of London). Day Two - Windsor Castle (royal palace). Go to it by riding in trains from Paddington station to the Windsor and Eaton main station. Return to Paddington station in mid afternoon, and visit The Science Museum (near South Kensington "tube" station) or antiques stores at Portobello Road (near Notting Hill Gate "tube" station).
(Edit): I like to have overnight accomodation at a hotel that is not far from Paddington station, such as one of the hotels near the Bayswater "tube" station, or near Notting Hill Gate "tube" station. Transportation from and to London's Heathrow airport : "Heathrow Connect" railroad train from Heathrow airport to Paddington railroad station in London (30 Minutes), or "Heathrow Express" railroad train from Heathrow airport to Paddington railroad station (tickets for that train are a higher price) (15 Minutes). Buy round trip tickets, the ticket for the return trip can be used any day. The ride in a London Underground train from Paddington railroad station to Notting Hill Gate "tube" station is a few Minutes. Walk from it to Vicarage Hotel (a pleasant small hotel, it serves a good English breakfast). That hotel is near two good small restaurants. And the Vicarage hotel is near the Kensington High Street "tube" station.

suggest you take a look at the website for Context London. I've always been happy with their walking tours and have used them in many cities.

Andrew, I suggest finding a hotel along the Piccadilly tube line. That makes it very easy and economical to take the tube from Heathrow with no changes. On our last two trips my husband and I stayed at the London Lodge Hotel - it's a 10 minute walk from the Earls Court tube stop in a quiet residential area, there are tons of very nice and reasonable restaurants and pubs nearby, a grocery store on the way to and from the tube, the hotel is air conditioned, it has a lift, and breakfast is included. With only 2 days in London some highlights to consider - the Tower of London; either St. Pauls or Westminster Abbey; do a Hop-on-Hop-off bus tour and take the Thames River Cruise; either the Victoria & Albert Museum or the British Museum; the Churchill War Rooms; Kensington Palace and have afternoon tea there in the Orangery

Thanks for the great responses so far. I am writing them all down and trying to plan the most efficient way to spend our time. I've taken something from each response to form our plans. My wife and I travel America but this is our first time in Europe and its overwhelming! Your experience and knowledge is very helpful!! Andy

I suggest you take some day bus tours such as a thorough tour London, Bath, Stonhenge, the Cotswold's, etc. The bus companies do a great job.

The London eye at sunset (if youre lucky and it isn't rainy) The London dungeon! I loved this when I went it has history and a ton of fun!
If you like you can do hop on hop off, but it's fairly pricy - it was nice though and included a river tour in addition to the bus You don't really need the hop on hop off if you enjoy walking/have the ability as the sites in London are fairly condensed. Tube is really easy to use there as well. I would suggest booking a week or so in advance on Hotwire- last time we paid 60 USD a night and were a couple short stops from the centre- it was a holiday inn that was really posh! That was for 2 people.

Andrew, I myself have only spent a few days in London, but it was wonderful and I am anxious to go back. I just have a couple of things to contribute to the already great list of suggestions in this thread: 1. Beware of the pubs. Many of them are designed to look absolutely unique but they are, in fact, part of a chain, and have the exact same menu (with rather underwhelming food) as the "absolutely unique"-looking pub down the street. So be sure to make note of the specific pub suggestions that you get here, because you are more likely to get a pub that is "sui juris" that way, and not one that is part of the commercial chain. 2. If you want to minimize on any of your mealtimes so as to have more time for sightseeing, the ubiquitous grocery store Sainsbury's has good pre-made sandwiches and other good take-away stuff as decent prices. Also, there is a chain called "Pret a Manger" (French for "Ready to Eat") that has great freshly-made sandwiches at reasonable (by London standards) prices. Everything there is expensive though. Find a park bench, throw back a sandwich, and then get back to sightseeing. 3. If you like visiting religious sites, Westminster Abbey (Anglican, though originally a Catholic monastery) is spectacular and so is Westminster Cathedral (Catholic). If you like neo-gothic then I highly recommend the Farm Street Jesuit Church (great polychrome marble statuary). There is also the site of the famous "Tyburn Tree" over near the Marble Arch. http://www.tyburnconvent.org.uk/martyrs/martyrs_main.html Someone else here mentioned the great St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral as well. Enjoy!

@Bryan excellent recommends for church visits. However, your generalization about London pubs is just that, a generalization. Yes, many pubs have been taken over by Fullers or Taylor Walker but if you get off the well trodden touristy paths you can find wonderful pubs/gastro pubs. Examples: Near the Kentishtown Tube stop is the Oxford Pub. One of the best meals I've ever eaten in London. The Clifton in St. John's Wood is anything BUT corporate. The Wrestler's Pub in Highgate, the Crown and Goose in Camden, the Compton Arms or The Princess of Wales in Islington, The Lord Tredgar in E. London or The Gunmaker's in Clerkenwall are far from the Madding Crowds. Spots to enjoy a pint and meal like a local.

Claudia: Thanks for clarifying this. Like I said, I was only there for a couple of days myself. Most of the pubs we encountered (which, I suppose, were "on the beaten path") were part of that lame chain. We did see some that were obviously no, near the Buckingham Palace area. In any case, I think the warning stands: keep an eye out for the chain places, and look for the privately owned ones instead for a more authentic experience!

I suggest you do at least one day tour of London. We used Gray Line Tours.com, but they subcontract their tours out in London. The Hop-on- Hop-off bus is great also, but it takes a long time to do the various routes. The day tours do a great job. We also used the day tours to go to Bath, Stonehenge, Windsor Castle, etc.

My husband and I really enjoyed the London Walks tours. We did a history of London tour, the Westminster Abby tour (no waiting in line & discounted admission), the Best of London at night tour AND the Jack the Ripper tour. We really liked their guides obviously. I loved the history of London tour and the Westminster Abby tour. I would do those again if I went back. LOVED them. Also agree that Tower of London is a must. I did the beefeater tour but I think next time I'll do the London Walks version for variety.