I have an extended layover in London. What are the Top 10 things I should do?!?

Question

I'll be able to check into a hotel late Friday night and will leave early Monday morning. But I'll have Saturday and Sunday to enjoy London. I'm not much into nightlife, but enjoy good food, theatre shopping and history. For those of you that have been there or live there, what are the must-see things? Are there any lesser-known / less obvious things that would be great to see? Thanks!

Answer 1

If it’s wet and you want to kill some hours indoors, try the Imax in Westminster. The 3D shows are intense (it’s good fun to see grown men grabbing at 3D items that appear to be over the head of the person in front), and I think it’s one of the biggest cinema screens in the world. It’s worth it to kill a few hours because some of the shows are only about 50 mins, and if nothing else, the sound and light show at the beginning which demonstrates the capabilities of the Imax is incredible.

In fact, even if you don’t want to go to the Imax, I would recommend stopping off at Westminster for the sights such as Big Ben, The London Eye and the Houses of Parliament. My boyfriend was awestruck when I first took him there, and declared that it was exactly what he wanted when he had thought about visiting. But do beware- I have noticed that there tends to be bagpipe players there.

I would always recommend going to Covent Garden. It has an excellent atmosphere during the day with many street entertainers, musicians and shows are often put on in the indoor market place in the centre which houses a nice amount of alternative shops. It’s also a lovely place to have a drink in later on in the evening, and there’s usually some nice ambient music playing, or the last musician putting everyone in a good mood.

Leicester Square is a good place to stop off at, especially in the evening, is a bit like an English Times Square only smaller and…more English. China Town is only a short walk away and, while only small, definitely worth a visit.

Out of all of the museums, I would advise the Natural History Museum, the Imperial War Museum and the British Museum. However! Be wary of the British Museum- only go if you are really interested in ancient history or you are likely to leave extremely bemused, as I did, at being subjected to rooms such as the room full of nothing but spoons dug up from archaeological sites. I have heard that the V&A is good, but I can’t say I’ve ever been myself.

I would advise you to steer clear of Camden Market, unless you want to put up with hoards of fourteen-year-old emos running wild on their first trip to London without mother. The merchandise has always been awful, but the atmosphere used to make up for it. Not any more! I’m not a massive market go-er so I couldn’t recommend any good ones, but steer clear of that and Oxford Street. Well, actually, it’s worth going to Oxford street so that you can say you’ve been to Oxford Street, but I wouldn’t plan to stay there for too long because it’s ridiculously busy. If you do decide to chance it and have some lucky children/nieces/nephews whatever to pick up a gift for, stop off at Hamleys- a giant toy store that I used to go mental about when I was a kid. :]

There are lots of parks everywhere. My favourite is Regents Park, which is also home to London Zoo.

Check out the Globe as everyone recommends, but also go to the West End to see all of the famous theatres. I would certainly recommend going to see the Woman in Black if you haven’t seen it already. Certainly one of the most frightening stage shows, and surely more authentic when performed by English people =P

This is all I could think off from the top of my head- I hope you have a nice time!

EDIT- To the person below- it was one typo. Deal with it. Obviously I can understand, though, that it is clear for everybody to see that from this one misspelling I am actually a fraudster who has never lived in London and obviously doesn't know what I'm talking about, therefore my friendly advice is worth ignoring...

Answer 2

There are millions of things to do. You must go and visit the local pubs for a start. They have a history of their own. Most have names like the "Black Stallion" because back upon their days of  concept people couldn't read but knew pictures like a Black Stallion. Then there is Picadilly Square, SoHo (kind of rough at night), and then there is a very special street called Portabello. Portabello has everything from a shop with nothing but canes (men did not go out after dark without one and a coat and hat) to just about anything you can imagine. They have a very cool Winnie the Pooh shop there and an Alice in Wonderland shop. It's really great. Then you can always go to the Hard Rock Cafe (it's one of the two originals) and have something that you will enjoy eating. Their (British) food is usually pretty bland unless you like Indian food which is probably the best in the world except India. Have fun, I wish I was going with you.

Answer 3

I am omitting extremely well known places.

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- I think people don't think of the South Bank of the Thames. For the millenium they spent a lot of money fixing it up. It's full of pubs and outdoor eating areas (good seafood). There is a new walking bridge across the Thames, and all of the old bridges have been fixed up so that they are more inviting to walk across. The National theater has incredibly good plays for much less than the commercial theaters. There are three stages in the building.

-  The Donmar Warehouse is not as famous outside of London, but it a superb venue. Some of the finest actors in UK are performing there. I see they have revived Piaf for next month; probably because of the popularity of the movie. It was a great play (I saw it on broadway 25 years ago).

-  Carnaby Street is a nice place to shop or go to a pub. It was an icon in the 1960's.

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The 34 one-star Michelin Restaurants

(These are only extremely expensive, 2 and 3 star places are beyond belief)

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British: Richard Corrigan at Lindsay House, Rhodes 24 and Rhodes W1.

French: L'Atelier de Joel Robuchon, Aubergine, Chez Bruce, Club Gascon, Foliage, Gordon Ramsay at Claridge's, Hibiscus, Maze, Mirabelle, La Noisette, Petrus, Roussillon, Sketch Lecture Room and Library, The Ledbury, Tom Aikens, La Trompette.

Modern European: Angela Hartnett's Menu, Arbutus, One Lombard Street, The Glasshouse, The Greenhouse and Wild Honey.

Italian: Assaggi, Locanda Locatelli, River Cafe, Zafferano.

Indian: Amaya, Benares, Quilon, Rasoi Vineet Bhatia, Tamarind.

Chinese: Hakkasan and Yauatcha.

Thai: Nahm.

Japanese: Nobu, Nobu Berkeley, Umu.

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And finally, the Globe Theater, which is well-known but I am including it anyway. Many people go to see this theater, but don't take the time to see a play here. So much of our culture came from places like this, that I hope you will take the time to see something here.

Answer 4

Here are some possibilities for your "must-sees"...

The Tower of London, for the Crown Jewels and a thousand years of history.

The V&A (Victoria and Albert Museum) if you love costume, furniture and design in all its finery.

Parliament Square (the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Bridge, Westminster Abbey, all within yards of one another; plus the London Eye sightseeing ferris wheel just over Westminster Bridge.

Trafalgar Square -- Nelson, the lion statues and the fountains, plus the lovely stroll through Admiralty Arch and down the Mall to Buckingham Palace.

Now for the 'lesser-known/ 'less obvious' things. =D

You love theatre and history... here's a marvellous combination of both: a backstage tour of one of London's oldest theatres, the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. http://www.londontheatre.co.uk/londonthe...

Plus, of course, you should try to get to see a show.

We're promised fine weather for the next few days, so why not try to get to an open-air performance? Shakespeare's Globe or the Open Air Theatre in Regent's Park are both magical (you may have to go through a ticket agency as there probably aren't many seats left.)

http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/

http://www.openairtheatre.org/

You have to do a bit of shopping if you're in London. Everyone tells visitors to head for Harrods. Instead, I'm recommending Fortnum and Mason's on Piccadilly http://www.fortnumandmason.com/The-Store...  (the royal family's favourite grocer =D) Lots of wonderful foodie gifts to take home, plus the option of a meal or English tea at its restaurant, St James's ( http://www.fortnumandmason.com/Our-Resta... ).

Another gorgeous store is Liberty's, just off Regent Street. http://www.liberty.co.uk/fcp/content/fin...

It's an amazing rabbit-warren of a department store: it was built in the 19th century in the Tudor Revival style: masses of carved panelling and painted wood.  

Its specialty is fabrics of every kind. It also does great soaps, stationery and other lovely gifts.

Back on the eating idea -- there are hundreds of great restaurants in town, from Michelin-starred places to little neighbourhood favourites. Here's one of the latter (a personal favourite), over on the western side of central London, but is one of my favourites and always popular with Londoners. It's called The Gate and it's near Hammersmith tube, on Queen Caroline Street (map here: http://www.multimap.com/maps/?qs=W6+9QL&... )

It's a vegetarian restaurant but so good that carnivores are very happy there too. It's a lovely setting, in an upstairs room that was once a church. More info here, including reviews and details of their delicious menus: http://www.thegate.tv/

Markets: if you only visit one, I'd suggest Portobello Road (at weekends, the market spills way beyond that street) -- sells everything from antiques to fashion students' designer clothing. Tuck your purse well away from pickpockets, because you'll get completely distracted by everything there is to see.

Pubs: a true London original: the Lamb and Flag on the corner of Rose Street and Bedford Street in Covent Garden. It's one of London's oldest pubs (about 300 years old). If you go on a weekday, arrive on the early side of lunchtime (before noon if you can) and head upstairs for a "ploughman's lunch" (bread, cheese, pickles, side-salad) up in the Dryden Room. The early arrival is necessary because the Lamb & Flag is always popular.

More here: http://www.pubs.com/pub_details.cfm?ID=2...

Finally, something that I couldn't get over for weeks the first time I visited. 18 Folgate Street, in Spitalfields. This is Dennis Severs' home. He has exactly recreated Georgian life in the 18th century -- furniture, candles, a wig on the back of a chair and an unfinished meal... It's not a museum; it's more a work of art that happens to be a house interior. Totally amazing; a visit is unforgettable. More here: http://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk

I hope you have a fantastic time here: love from a Londoner born and bred.

=)

Answer 5

Ignore the answerer above, can't even spell "Leicester" correctly.  

Take the Big Bus tour for 20 quid.  Tours the city.

Take a ride on the London Eye. About ₤18.  Worth it.

Visit the London Museum and see the stolen Egypt/Greek artifacts.  See the Rosetta Stone.  Free.  Take lots of pics.  

If you decide that the museum is not for you, see the Tower of London, ₤18.  Be prepared to walk your feet off.  Forget the Beefeater tour, get an audio guide instead.  The Beefeaters are unintelligible.  The crown jewels are kept there.  Amazing wealth.

Eat a Cornish pasty.  Have a full English breakfast Sunday.  Egg, rasher, bubble, toast, tinned tomatoes, beans, and mushrooms.

If it's dry, stand at Victoria's fountain in front of Buckingham Palace at 10:30.  Pomp and tradition in action, changing of the guard.  Free.

Forget the Victoria and Albert Museum  it's like a old junk shop.  See the #1 museum in Britain, the London Museum or the Tower.  Everything else pales.  

Get a bus map and a tube map.  Use both buses and tube, quick easy and no hassle with a ₤10 Oyster card.  Don't take any bus that goes down Oxford Street on the weekend.  You'll waste precious time in traffic.  Take the tube instead.

And most important don't eat the beef.  Order chicken or pork.  

- frequent visitor to the UK.

PS:  Personally, I'd take the train through the Chunnel and go to Paris for the weekend.  

Three hours door to door.