There’s a reason why most people visiting the UK head to London first. It’s the place that’s the most iconic, the best known, and where there’s most going on. There’s an incredible amount of things to do in London
Over the past couple of years, cities like Bristol,Glasgow and Manchester have become popular tourist destinations in their own right. But none have ever really challenged the dominance of the capital, which – rightly or wrongly – continues to sap talent, events and commerce from across the UK like no other metropolitan area.
Let’s look at the unmissable activities that combine to make London the world-class city it is…
Unmissable Things To Do In London
1. Visit Buckingham Palace
When the Queen visits her palace in Scotland in the summer, you can buy tickets to view Buckingham Palace. The palace was built in 1837 and has been the home of the Royal Family since Queen Victoria.
One tour you could try is the State Rooms tour, which takes you around the rooms the family uses for welcoming visitors on state visits. Tours have limited availability, so you should book well in advance. If you don’t fancy a tour, you can watch the Changing of the Guards ceremony for free.
2. Enjoy an Evening of Theatre in the West End
The West End is the London equivalent of Broadway, so you’ve probably heard of some its theatres, such as the Apollo and the London Palladium.
While in the city, you can see some truly fabulous shows, including classics such as Les Miserables, which has been running at Queen’s Theatre since 2004, and Grease: The Musical, which is running at the Churchill Theatre, in Bromley (Bromley also being one of the luckiest places in Britain to buy a lottery ticket, incidentally).
Glam yourself up, slip your theatre glasses in your pocket, and get ready to watch superb performances.
3. Try Your Luck at a Casino
London is a casino lover’s paradise. You’ll never be short of a place to have a gamble and a good night out at the same time. You can visit the Hippodrome, the Empire Casino, the Grosvenor Casino, Genting casinos and other big gaming venues.
If you don’t feel like heading out to play at a casino, or you want to get some practice in before hitting the table, the online casino industry presents a whole host of options. Thanks to greater competition among casino sites, and advances in digital technology, today’s online casino games are better than ever.
Some even rival the experience of playing for real – their graphics so engaging, their games so immersive. Whether your favourite game is poker, blackjack, roulette or something else, you’ll be blown away by the experience offered at what many Brits consider to be the best online casino in the UK.
4. Culture up at The National Gallery
The National Gallery is one of the UK’s most respected art museums — and quite possibly, one of the world’s most respected, too. The gallery, which you’ll find in Trafalgar Square, tells the story of European art and houses work by some of the most eminent artists to have ever put a paintbrush to canvas.
Must-see works include ‘Sunflowers’ by Vincent Van Gogh, ‘Self Portrait at the Age of 34’ by Rembrandt and ‘The Entombment (or Christ being carried to his Tomb)’ by Michelangelo, to name but a few. Admission to the gallery is free, but you may have to pay to see some exhibitions.
London clubs Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Chelsea, Crystal Palace and Arsenal all play in the league, so why not catch a game and see the action for yourself? Tickets for a standard tour will cost between £17 and £30, depending on which stadium you visit.
If your schedule doesn’t allow you to watch a game, you can still tour legendary grounds like Stamford Bridge, the Emirates and Wembley Stadium. Getting to and from any of these football grounds is straightforward, since all these stadiums are close to London Underground or London Overground stations.
6. Check out London’s Pubs & Clubs
London is a place for all sorts of people – including partygoers. Huge bashes in the showbiz world take place here – award ceremonies, album launches, after-show parties, you name it. The city is home to the famous Ministry of Sound nightclub, as well as the UK’s biggest club: Studio 338. If you keep your eyes open, you may even bump into some of the world’s biggest stars in London nightclubs.
As anyone who’s been on a night out in London will attest, it’s important to keep a close eye on what you’re spending. To give you an idea of drinks prices in London, the average pint of beer costs around £4.57, but some places charge as much as £22.50.
That doesn’t mean there aren’t cheap places to drink in London. Even in central London, you can get a pint for around £3.50 in some places – and even less in places like Peckham, Battersea and Brixton.
Image: Sarah Koury
7. Browse the Victoria and Albert Museum
Often abbreviated to the ‘V&A Museum’, the Victoria and Albert Museum is a leading museum in the art and design world, and it houses a permanent collection of more than 2.3 million objects. This collection spans more than 5,000 years of creativity in just about every medium.
Originally, it started out as a Museum of Manufactures in 1852, and, in 1899, Queen Victoria laid the museum’s foundation stone. The museum has evolved constantly in pursuit of its mission to be recognised as the world’s leading museum of art, design and performance.
Still looking for more things to do in London?…
London is jam-packed with things to do. In fact, there’s so much to explore that you might wish to come back and see everything you wanted to but didn’t get time to.
Other attractions you wouldn’t want to miss include the London Dungeon, the Tower of London, London Bridge and, of course, the world’s most famous clock, Big Ben. You might also wish to look around St Paul’s Cathedral. Taking a tour on a ‘hop on, hop off’ bus can help you cover some of these sights quickly if you’re pushed for time!
Co-founder of Big 7 Travel, Sarah created the company through her passion for championing the world's best food and travel experiences. Before her career in digital media, where she previously held roles such as Editor of Food&Wine Ireland, Sarah worked in the hospitality industry in Dublin and New York. Contact [email protected]
