We're in London for 4 days next week
What should we not neglect to see?
You might post this under the England site here and perhaps add more information such as what you like such as museums, art, historical buildings, a play, a day trip etc. And you will surely get great responses.
Click on this link and scroll down. Click on the + sign on the right of At a Glance: https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/england/london. You should also check out: https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/London/City_of_London and https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/London,
Depends on what you like.
Art? National Gallery, Tate Britain, Tate Modern,
Museums? British Museum, Wallace Collection, Churchill War Rooms, Victoria and Albert,
Unusual? Take a canal ride. Rail Mail Museum
History and Churches? Westminster Abbey, St Paul's cathedral, Tower of London
Big Green Spaces? Hampstead Heath, Kew Gardens,
and so many other things!
Have fun and be sure to get a cream or afternoon tea. (Cream tea at V&A and afternoon tea at Wallace Collection)
Don’t neglect enjoying pub grub, walking along the Thames path, shopping at Selfridges, the street art of Shoreditch, theatre, the Hunterian Museum. Brick Lane, Tower of London, Hampstead Heath, Highgate Cemetery Tour ( see Karl Marx’s grave), Kew Gardens, Battersea Power Station conversion, Wimbledon Tennis Museum, cocktails at the Booking Office, and the pub cat at the Seven Stars pub after watching a court case at the Royal Courts of London.
Thank you all for your replies.
Some interesting ideas included. We'd like to see historical sites especially the non touristy places.
Which are the best museums?
Quirky ideas?
Would prefer to take our time and see places "properly" rather than rushing around to dozens places to tick boxes. Like to see something of real London.
Beginning to think 4 days isn't enough, but we're so looking forward to it.
No 4 days isn’t enough. I’ve been visiting since 1972. This year stayed for 6 weeks.
London is always changing, always the same. Never fails to provide surprises.
Given your time is limited: make reservations now to see: Westminster Abbey, St Pauls cathedral, Tower of London and The Shard.
Peruse the Whatsonstage website to find a stage production if you like theatre.
What are your interests? There are countless free museums to explore. Street markets, restaurants, parks.
History is everywhere.
As far as quirky or different:
Walk along Regents Canal to Little Venice
Climb the O2
Kyoto Garden
Postal Museum Train Ride
Take Backstage Tours at Barbican Center or Royal Opera House or Shakespeare Globe
Enjoy pub grub: White Cross Pub on the Thames
See the pub cat at the Seven Stars pub after observing a court trial at the Royal Courts of Justice.
Visit the Battersea Power station conversion into a huge shopping mall.
Visit Canary Wharf.
Shop at Liberty.
Enjoy Evensong at St Brides.
Have a great time.
Thanks Claudia
Lots to consider and look forward to....
Having a great time planning.
Great suggestions. Others include ABBA hologram, taking the Thames Clipper to Greenwich and visiting the observatory, National Maritime Museum and town. We enjoyed the Friars pub on the Thames.
Is it better to visit London the week of March 17 of April 6?
Did you find good accommodation in London?
Best museums are Westminster Abbey (rent the audio guide if you’re not familiar with British history). The Churchill War Rooms, British Museum if it rains and the Victoria and Albert Museum.
The Churchill War Rooms should be prebooked because the ticket line can be long, and tickets can sell out. The British Museum is brilliant, but everyone knows how wonderful it is. The ground floor, especially, is massively crowded much of the time. Museum staff folks told me it is worst on weekends, holidays, Fridays and rainy days.
If you’re trying to avoid crowds, avoid the British Museum. It’s hard to even get close to the artifacts to see them properly!
Some favorite things we’ve done that minimize crowds because of ticket sales include touring Shakespeare’s Globe (fascinating even if not a fan of the Bard’s works, which I am not), catching a show in the West End, and Tower of London (so large it never felt crowded).