London
We’ve compiled the best of the best in London - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Benjamin Franklin House
Covent GardenThis architecturally significant 1730 Georgian town house is the only surviving residence of American statesman, scientist, writer, and inventor Benjamin Franklin, who lived and worked here for 16 years preceding the American Revolution. The restored Georgian home has been left unfurnished, the better to show off the original features, like the 18th-century paneling, stoves, beams, bricks, and windows. Visitors are led around the house by the costumed character of Polly Hewson, the daughter of Franklin's landlady, who interacts with engaging video projections and recorded voices (weekends only). On Friday you can take a guided tour focusing on the architectural details of the building, and a walking tour of the surrounding area lasting up to 90 minutes sets off from the house at noon.
36 Craven St., London, Greater London, WC2N 5NF, England020-7839–2006Sight Details
Rate Includes: Historical experience £9.50; architectural tour £7.50, Closed Mon.–Thurs., Reservations essential -
2. Carnaby Quarter
SohoWant to see the hip street style of today's London? Find it a block east of famed Carnaby Street—where the look of the '60s "Swinging London" was born—an adorable warren of Georgian cobblestone streets now lined with specialty boutiques, eateries, wine caves, and fashion-forward shops. A check of the ingredients reveals one part '60s London, one part futuristic fetishism, one part steampunk, and one part London streetwear swagger. The new London look best flourishes in shops like Raeburn, an ethical boutique crowded with young aficionados who dig their 1950s decommissioned Yugoslav military camouflage puffer coats, joggers, and hoodies. Or scoot around the corner to peruse Percival, Aubin, or END. clothing stores with more than 400 of the edgiest U.K. and global streetwear designers on show.
Newburgh St., Foubert's Pl., Marshall St., and Carnaby St., London, Greater London, W1F 9BA, England -
3. Covent Garden Piazza
Covent GardenOnce home to London's main flower market, where My Fair Lady's flower girl Eliza Doolittle peddled her blooms, the square around which Covent Garden pivots is known as the Piazza. In the center, the fine old market building now houses stalls and shops selling expensive clothing, plus several restaurants, cafés, and knickknack stores that are good for gifts. One particular gem is Benjamin Pollock's Toyshop at No. 44 in the market. Established in the 1880s, it sells enchanting toy theaters. The Apple Market has good crafts stalls on most days, too. On the south side of the Piazza, the indoor Jubilee Market, with its stalls of clothing, army surplus gear, and more crafts, feels more like a flea market. In summer, it may seem that everyone in the huge crowds around you in the Piazza is a fellow tourist, but there's still plenty of office life in the area. Londoners who shop here tend to head for Neal Street and the area to the north of Covent Garden Tube station, rather than the market itself. In the Piazza, street performers—from foreign musicians to jugglers and mimes—play to the crowds, as they have done since the first English Punch and Judy show, staged here in the 17th century.
Covent Garden Piazza, London, Greater London, WC2E 8BE, England -
4. Leicester Square
Covent GardenLooking at the neon of the major movie houses, the fast-food outlets, and the gaudy casino and disco entrances, you'd never guess that Leicester Square (pronounced "Lester") was a model of aristocratic formality and refinement when it was first laid out around the 1670s (it was named after its first inhabitant, the 2nd Earl of Leicester). By the 19th century, the square was already bustling and disreputable, and although it's not a threatening place, you should still be on your guard, especially at night—any space so full of people is bound to attract pickpockets, and Leicester Square certainly does. Although there's an underlying glamour (major red-carpet blockbuster film premieres often happen here), Londoners generally tend to avoid the place, though it's worth a visit for its hustle and bustle, its mime artists, and the pleasant modern fountain at its center. Also in the middle is a famous statue of a sulking William Shakespeare, perhaps remembering the days when the movie houses were live theaters—burlesque houses, but live all the same. On the northeast corner, in Leicester Place, stands the Catholic church of Notre Dame de France, with a wonderful mural by Jean Cocteau in one of its side chapels. For more in the way of atmosphere, head north and west from here, through Chinatown and the narrow Georgian streets of Soho.
Leicester Sq., London, Greater London, WC2H 7JY, England -
5. London Transport Museum
Covent GardenHoused in the old flower market at the southeast corner of Covent Garden, this intriguing transport museum is filled with highly impressive trains, posters, and photograph collections. As you watch the crowds drive a Tube train simulation and gawk at the Victorian steam locomotives and horse-drawn trams (and the piles of detritus that remained behind), it's unclear who's enjoying it more: children or adults. Best of all, the kid-friendly museum (under 18s admitted free, and there's a play area) has a multilevel approach to education, including clear information for the youngest visitors and transit aficionados alike. Food and drink are available at the Upper Deck Canteen café, and the shop has good options for gifts. Tickets are valid for unlimited entry for 12 months.
View Tours and ActivitiesCovent Garden Piazza, London, Greater London, WC2E 7BB, England0343-222–5000Sight Details
Rate Includes: £18.50 -
Recommended Fodor’s Video
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6. Somerset House
Covent GardenThis majestic former Renaissance-era royal palace—rebuilt by Sir William Chambers (1723-96) during the reign of George III to house offices of the Navy Board—has been transformed from fusty government offices into one of the capital's most buzzing centers of arts and culture, often hosting several fabulous exhibitions at once. The cobblestone Italianate Fountain Court, where Admiral Nelson used to walk, makes a fitting setting for 50-odd playful fountains and is transformed into an ice rink in winter; the grand space is also the venue for outdoor concerts and film screenings in the summer. The Courtauld Gallery and its world-class impressionist and postimpressionist art collection occupy most of the north building, facing the Strand. Across the courtyard are the barrel-vaulted Embankment Galleries, with a lively program of fashion, design, architecture, and photography exhibitions. The East Wing has another small exhibition space, and events are also held in the atmospheric cellars below the Fountain Court. The Eat Ten café is a great spot for a low-emission plant-forward meal or snack, while the high-profile Spring restaurant is all wildflowers, zero waste, and biodynamic vegetables. In summer, eating and drinking spill out onto the large terrace overlooking the Thames.
View Tours and ActivitiesStrand, London, Greater London, WC2R 1LA, England0333-320–2836Sight Details
Rate Includes: Embankment Galleries price varies, other areas free -
7. St. Paul's Church
Covent GardenIf you want to commune with the spirits of legendary actors like Vivien Leigh, Noël Coward, Gracie Fields, and Charlie Chaplin, this is the place. Memorials to them and myriad other theater and movie greats are found in this 1633 work of the renowned Inigo Jones, who, as Surveyor of the King's Works, designed the whole of Covent Garden Piazza. St. Paul's Church has been known as "the Actors' Church" since the Restoration, thanks to the bawdy neighboring theater district and St. Paul's prominent parishioners (well-known actors often read the lessons at services, and the church still hosts concerts and small-scale productions.) Fittingly, the opening scene of Shaw's Pygmalion takes place under its Tuscan portico. Today, the western end of the Piazza is a prime pitch for street entertainers, but if they're not to your liking, you can repair to the serenity of the walled garden, entered from King or Bedford streets. Enchanting open-air performances of Shakespeare plays and other works are staged here in summertime.
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8. The Courtauld Gallery
Covent GardenOne of London's most beloved art collections, The Courtauld is to your right as you pass through the archway into the grounds of the beautifully restored, grand 18th-century neoclassical Somerset House. Founded in 1931 by the textile magnate Samuel Courtauld to house his remarkable private collection, this is one of the world's finest impressionist and postimpressionist galleries, with artists ranging from Bonnard to van Gogh. A déjà-vu moment with Cézanne, Degas, Seurat, Monet, and more awaits on every wall (Manet's Bar at the Folies-Bergère and van Gogh’s Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear are two of the stars). Botticelli, Bruegel, Tiepolo, and Rubens are also represented, thanks to the bequest of Count Antoine Seilern's Princes Gate collection. German Renaissance paintings include the sublime Adam and Eve by Lucas Cranach the Elder. The second floor has a more provocative, experimental feel, with masterpieces such as Modigliani's famous Female Nude. Look out for a full program of additional blockbuster one-off exhibitions, and don't miss the little café downstairs, a perfect place for a post-gallery spot of tea.
View Tours and ActivitiesStrand, London, Greater London, WC2R 0RN, England020-3947–7777Sight Details
Rate Includes: £9 weekdays, £12 weekends; additional charge for special exhibitions -
9. The Photographers' Gallery
SohoLondon's first gallery dedicated to photography offers cutting-edge, established, and provocative exhibitions. Open since 1980, the space has shown everyone from Robert Capa and Sebastião Salgado to Nick Knight and Corinne Day. The prestigious Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation Prize is exhibited and awarded here annually. The gallery also has a print salesroom, an archive, a well-stocked bookstore, and an enticing café-bar—a great spot to chat photography and escape the crowds on nearby Oxford Circus.
16–18 Ramillies St., London, Greater London, W1F 7LW, England020-7087–9300Sight Details
Rate Includes: £4–£8 -
10. Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Covent GardenThis is London's most popular auditorium—most commonly known simply as Drury Lane—and almost its largest. Since World War II, its forte has been musicals (from My Fair Lady and South Pacific to Miss Saigon and Shrek), although David Garrick, who managed the theater from 1747 to 1776, made its name by reviving the works of the by-then-obscure William Shakespeare. Drury Lane enjoys all the romantic accessories of a London theater: a history of fires (it burned down three times), riots (in 1737, when a posse of footmen demanded free admission), attempted regicides (George II in 1716 and his grandson George III in 1800), and even sightings of the most famous phantom of the West End, the Man in Grey (seen in the Circle during matinees). Seventy-five-minute dramatized tours, led by actors, take place daily.
Catherine St., London, Greater London, WC2B 5JF, England0844-412–4660Sight Details
Rate Includes: Tickets from £26, tours £12 -
11. Sadie Coles HQ
SohoShowcasing the work of both established and emerging British and international artists such as Sarah Lucas and Martine Syms, this all-white and light-filled art space overlooking busy Regent Street is a major expansion for respected British gallerist Sadie Coles. A second Sadie Coles exhibition space operates nearby at Davies Street in Mayfair, while a third is also found close by across Piccadilly on Bury Street in St. James's.
62 Kingly St., London, Greater London, W1B 5QN, England020-7493–8611Sight Details
Rate Includes: Closed Sun. and Mon.
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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