Bucket List, schmucket List. There are so many things to do in London. But what’s amazing is how many of us haven’t done so many of the great classic London adventures. Take Big Ben – how many people do you know who’ve actually been up it? What about a speedy ride down the Thames in a RIB? Exactly. Here’s a current list of 21 things you really should have done if you are in London.
Go inside Big Ben
This is one of London’s most famous tourist destinations. However, Londoners have the privilege of getting an inside view of this majestic building. You can book tours to the top of Elizabeth Tower with your Member of Parliament. The waiting times are long – usually a few months – and the hours are weird, but if you’ve got some spare annual leave rolling around, it’d be a great day out.
Address: Westminster, London SW1A 0AA Tel: 0207 833 0338
Website: www.parliament.uk/visiting/visiting-and-tours/tours-of-parliament/bigben Nearest tube station: Westminster
Run along the Thames
No matter if you’re an avid runner or not, a run along the Thames is a must for a Londoner. You can choose to do the London Sightseeing Tour and take in some of the most popular sights in London.
These include the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, the London Eye, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. This tour is best run early in the morning or in winters to avoid tourist traffic. Website: www.thames-path.org.uk/
Run at the Four Parks
This is a fairly long run, about 6.5 miles or 10km. But what a cracker it is! The four royal parks of London, St. James’s Park, Green Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, are each so beautiful. But all together, they make for a really special London event. While you peacefully jog around shaded paths, ponds, the Serpentine, Italian Fountains, the Princess Di Memorial, Speaker’s Corner and some luscious gardens, you can also take in sights like Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, Horse Guards Parade and The Mall.
Location: St. James’s Park, Green Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens
Website: www.strava.com/local/uk/london/running/routes/257 Nearest tube station: Hyde Park Corner
Play Board Games
In London, playing board games is a preferred nerdy pastime but no one can deny that they are loads of fun. You can take a trip down to Draught’s at Haggerston if you’re looking for a night of cocktails and board games. If travelling to Haggerston is inconvenient for you, check out the London On Board Meetup group to find the board game meeting nearest to you instead.
Address: 337 Acton Mews, London E8 4EA Tel: 0207 254 1572
Website: www.draughtslondon.com/ and www.meetup.com/LondonOnBoard
Nearest train station: Haggerston
Climb the O2
With an elevation of 52 metres at the top, climbing the O2 is an adrenaline-pumping climb for a break from the mundane. You will have to traverse along a suspended walkway that’s 380m long, but the stunning view makes it all worth it. Check out Up at The O2 climbing expeditions to view London from a whole new angle.
Address: Basecamp, Peninsula Square, London SE10 0DX Tel: 0208 463 2000
Website: www.theo2.co.uk/do-more-at-the-o2/up-at-the-o2 Nearest tube station: North Greenwich
Ice Skate at Somerset House or the Natural History Museum
When the winters arrive in London it brings with it some fun activities to explore. This includes one of our favourite activities, ice skating! If you’re visiting in winter, be sure to head down to Somerset House for one of the prettiest and most quintessential ice skating evenings in London.
Address: South Building, Strand, London WC2R 1LA Tel: 0207 845 4600
Website: www.somersethouse.org.uk/ice-rink or www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/exhibitions/ice-rink.html Nearest tube station: Monument or South Kensington
Take a Selfie from the Shard
The Shard opened fairly recently, so there’s a fair chance you may have missed out on seeing this exhilarating view of the city. Some say it is even better than the view from the London Eye. As London’s highest viewing platform at the top of western Europe’s tallest building, The Shard is the one place to capture a large part of London’s history all at once.
Address: Railway Approach, London SE1 9SG Website: www.theviewfromtheshard.com/en/ Nearest tube station: London Bridge
Climb the Monument
Sir Christopher Wren’s flame-topped Monument to the Great Fire of 1666 is the tallest isolated stone column in the world. The Monument stands 202 ft high and is positioned 202 ft from the spot in Pudding Lane on which the Great Fire is believed to have started. Every year, over 100,000 visitors climb the 311 spiral steps to enjoy the exhilarating views across the capital. You can be a part of this as well.
Address: Fish Street Hill, London EC3R 8AH Website: www.themonument.info/ Nearest tube station: Monument
Attend a Trial at the Old Bailey
Perhaps the most famous court in the world, the Old Bailey has an illustrious history as old as the city itself. These are working courthouses built on the site of Old Newgate Prison. The public galleries are open for viewing of trials in session. With free entry, this courtroom is a place to watch some of the most high-profile cases unfold.
Address: The Old Bailey, London EC4M 7EH Tel: 0207 248 3277
Website: old-bailey.com/visiting-the-old-bailey/ Nearest tube station: St. Paul’s
Visit London Zoo
What better way to spend quality family time than to visit a zoo? London Zoo offers daily activities for kids to be amazed by wildlife. They also cater to adults with an adults-only entrance every Friday night during summer.
Address: Regent’s Park, London NW1 4RY Tel: 0344 225 1826
Website: www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo Nearest tube station: Camden Town
Kayaking down the Thames
Traverse the Thames in your kayak, because a passenger boat or a motorboat is just too mainstream! With a tidal difference of 7 metres between high and low tides, you need to choose your time and talk to people who know.
However, several kayak clubs actively paddle on the River Thames to give inexperienced kayakers expert guidance. This is possibly the best way to see some of London’s fantastic locations. Website: www.kayakinglondon.com/
Shakespeare’s Globe
The Globe Theatre also known as the Shakespeare Globe Theatre is famous for being the play house where Shakespeare performed many of his greatest plays. Capturing the ambience of Elizabethan Theatre perfectly, the Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre takes you back in time. If you haven’t experienced this yet then you must book your tickets in advance, especially for high season!
Address: 21 New Globe Walk, London SE1 9DT Tel: 0207 902 1400 Website: www.shakespearesglobe.com/
Nearest tube station: Southwark
Cheer on Oxford and Cambridge at the Annual Boat Race
If you haven’t been among the crowds sinking a few glasses of Pimm’s and shouting their heads off at the annual Boat Race once in your life, then you just haven’t lived! More than 250,000 gather to watch this spectacle every year. You can watch these races from the official viewing areas that have big screens, beer and food stalls, or hang around in a pub or hotel.
Website: theboatraces.org/about-the-race
Attend an Intelligence Squared Debate
Satiate the intellectual within you with these debates on topics highly relevant to today’s day and age. Intelligence Squared organises highbrow debates about history, economics, politics and sociology. Tickets to watch these debates are generally £30, half price for students. You can also view these debates online, but getting there and experiencing it live is a special thing.
Website: www.intelligencesquared.com/
Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace
Immaculately turned out guards, precision drill and bands playing stirring music all combine to make the Changing of the Guard one of London’s most popular attractions. While so well known, it’s actually a special experience. Insiders know the horses come from the barracks in Hyde Park and work their way down to Hyde Park Corner and down to Buckingham Palace. Check out the site to find out the dates, times and details of the regiments and bands scheduled for the Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace.
Address: London SW1A 1AA Website: www.changing-the-guard.com/dates-times.html Nearest tube station: Victoria
Shoot Clay Pigeons
At English Shooting you can indulge in the favourite pastime of Londoners over the years. It is located on the site of the original Royal Hunting Grounds, which were used for hunting by Elizabeth I, Henry VIII, Edward VI and James I. Today the English Shooting School offers clay pigeon shooting to families from all backgrounds. Fabulous fun for groups of people.
Address: Rectory Farm, The Ridgeway, Enfield EN2 8AA Tel: 07971 162048
Website: englishshooting.com/englishshooting/ Nearest train station: Crews Hill
Witness the Magic Hour
The Magic Hour has enjoyed enormous success as one of the most talked about things to do in London. Turn back time and enjoy magic performances as they were done in the Victorian age. This is a great alterative for doing something different in London. You can enjoy this spellbinding sleight of hand in the evocative Victorian drawing room of the Grand Royale Hyde Park.
Address: 1-9 Inverness Terrace, London W2 3JP Tel: 0207 313 7900
Website: www.grandroyalelondon.co.uk/ Nearest tube station: Queensway
Abseil at Olympic Park
While the Orbit at the Olympic Park doesn’t make for a pretty sight, it does make for a great venue for abseiling. At 262 feet above the ground, this is the highest freefall abseil in the UK and offers a breathtaking view of London. Tickets for this cost around £85 per person and can be booked online.
Address: 3 Thornton Street, London E20 2AD Tel: 0333 800 8099
Website: queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk/
Nearest tube station: Stratford
Get on a Thames RIB
Explore London through super-fast speed boat trips across the Thames. Take a Thames RIB boat tour of the famous modern and historic London sights with an exhilarating roller-coaster experience on water. With James Bond music blasting on the subwoofers in the background, this is a sure adrenaline-pumping way to discover London.
Address: Embankment Pier, Victoria Embankment, London WC2N 6NU Tel: 0203 613 2311
Website: www.thamesribexperience.com/ Nearest tube station: Embankment
Enjoy our London bucket list!
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