4-Day London Itinerary

Hi Marybeth. In terms of number of sites and how you've arranged them geographically, your plan seems possible, but I confess I am not familiar with all the markets you mention or with The Scoop. It looks like you've been planning carefully. I'm assuming there is a specific reason you want to go to the Free Theatre at the Scoop and/or take the Royal Walking Tour. There is some overlap in the walking tour on Thursday and things you want to do later (Speakers' Corner, Churchill Museum, although I assume the tour will simply mention them as you pass by). Is the walking tour something special you want to do? There might be other options.

A couple of things. The Churchill museum is very close to Westminster Abbey. You might be able to combine the two in a single visit. Second, also nearby is the London Eye. It's really a treat. Third, I didn't see the British Library. It's one long block outside the King's Cross station. The rare book and manuscript section is stunning. In this large area, there is a small room with the Magna Carta. Worth seeing. You can be in and out in an hour unless you spot the find the cafeteria. Unusally nice. Fourth, we went by the Speaker's corner a few times and it's there alright but we never saw any speakers. It's just a corner on a large park. Finally, after you visit St. Paul's, walk around the right side to about the middle of the cathedral, turn right towards the river and walk to the river (about 3 blocks). Cross the Millenium pedestrian bridge and have tea in the top of the Tate Modern.

Yep, sounds good. You can see what you get up to and fill in any extra stuff you have heard about if you have time.

If you like markets Spitalfields Market over near Liverpool Street Station is all day shopping and hanging out heaven. That's near Brick Lane.

I'll only add one more comment. I thought the Jack the Ripper walk was disappointing, although I, like every first time visitor, thought it was "essential" to do. Since then, I've been to London three more times and always found better walks. Personally, I'd choose a different one from London Walk for Friday night, or possibly visit the Victoria and Albert Museum which has late hours on Friday.

Have a great trip.

Agree with the Jack the Ripper tour/was disappointing because we had expected to see London as it was and of course this whole araa is now high rises but in the end we were glad we did a tourist thing/be sure to see the memorial in the back of St. Paul's dedicated to all US servicemen stationed in England in WWII who died and the wonderful stained glass windows representing our states and the memorial book

I woule heartily recomend seeing a Shakespeare play at the Globe Theater. A raucus time and you will get a kick out of the standing room stage area. We saw Macbeth and it was a fantastic experience. Next to the Globe is the Tate modern which is worth visitng depending on your taste in art. We lucked out and it was free to enter that day. It only took us a half hour to find the works of art we were interested in. Next to the Tate is a nice eatery with a great view of the Thames where I had a great White beer which was smoother than silk. Oh, next the the Globe Theater is an ice cream truck with the 99p cones.

The Tower of London is at one end next to the Tower Bridge while the London Eye is at the other end near Big Ben. We found taking the river boats a great way to get around that day.

Our trip to Westminster Abbey began after the changing of the guard. We did this on a Friday and eventually walked to Picadilly Circus via Trafalger Sq. On Friday night the National Art gallery is open till 9 PM and full of incredible collections of artwork. Later, we strolled to Picadilly Circus and ate near there in the Covent Garden area. Full of life and energy till the wee hours.

St Paul's Cathedral is a place where you may find yourself spending more time then you planned. The climb up the spiral staircases to each level is bettter than a stair master and the views are well worth it. The dome is so inviting that you will find yourself in a contemplative or spiritual mood when you sit under it and take the whole cathedral in. Once you leave the St Paul's, you can walk across the Millenium Bridge or head in another direction to the Tower of London.

The British Library is near the Britsh Museum and well worth visiting. The museum needs time, the library is short.Seeing original works from around the globe makes these books come alive in history. The room devoted to the Magna Carta is very informative and you will leave the library understanding the power of print.

My advice is to say "pft!" to the huge things you'll "miss" and focus on how awesome it is that you're going to London and all the totally cool stuff you WILL see. :D

That said, I agree with the first poster. My only thought is I don't know how long the walking tours are. Otherwise, go and have a blast.

The British Library is very cool and can be seen in about 15 minutes if you just want to glance at the works and not read about them (its all in one large room). Also, if you have any interest in WWII, WWI or military history in general, I highly highly recommend the Imperial War Museum. It is an excellent museum and offer loads of exhibits, military equipment (planes, weapons, tanks, a german 88 from wwII) and some interesting documents. It is a very cool museum. Other than that though it looks like a great itinerary. The royal observatory in greenwhich is cool too.

Try to see a play or musical while there. My husband loves the Imperial War Museum. I enjoyed the hop on and off bus tour our first day to get an overview of the city. I actually stayed on it the whole trip around. I loved the views from the London Eye. You can walk to it from Westminster Abbey, if interested.