Day #1 – The London Eye, Parliament, Horse Guards & Trafalgar Square
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- What you will do:
- See the view from the London Eye, take some photos of Big Ben and Parliament, and see the Royal tombs inside Westminster Abbey. Then stand next to the soldiers at Horse Guards and see the statues in Trafalgar Square, before visiting the National Gallery and exploring Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus
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If you’re coming to London for a week then you’ll have plenty of time to do everything, so I recommend spending your first morning walking around Westminster and Whitehall and ticking off some of London’s most famous landmarks. I also think you should make your first morning exciting so how about a ride on the London Eye?
The great thing about the London Eye is that it only takes up an hour of your day. Assuming that you buy your tickets online in advance you’ll spend about 30 minutes in the queue and another 30 minutes on the ride, and come away with a good overview of the city.
When you’re finished cross over Westminster Bridge and take some photos of Big Ben and Parliament. Then look around Parliament Square and stroll across to Westminster Abbey.
Westminster Abbey is one of the most historic buildings in London and contains the tombs of Henry V (Agincourt), Edward V (War of the Roses), Elizabeth I (Spanish Armada) and Edward the Confessor (allow for 2 hours).
Now walk down Whitehall and stop outside Downing Street – the famous front door is halfway down the street on the righthand side, and if you get lucky then you might even see the Prime Minister.
Just past Downing Street is Horse Guards. There’s usually a big crowd of tourists gathering around here, all taking it in turns to go up to the horses and pose for a selfie. Remember to walk through the central arch afterwards and have a quick look at the impressive parade ground.
Keep walking up Whitehall until you reach Trafalgar Square and Nelson’s Column.
Seeing as it’s your first day you might still be tired from getting here, so how about spending a couple of hours inside the National Gallery? If you only visit one gallery all week then this is the one to pick – it’s filled with big names like Rembrandt, Renoir, Raphael, Titian, Turner, Da Vinci and Vincent Van Gogh.
It should be late afternoon or early evening by now so I recommend walking to Leicester Square (3 mins walk) or Piccadilly Circus (another 3 mins walk) for something to eat. This is the heart of the West End so your first night can be spent trying some of the lively pubs and restaurants.
Day #2 – Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, the Square Mile & The Shard
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- What you will do:
- Visit Tower Bridge and do a Beefeater tour at the Tower of London, then walk through Leadenhall Market and see where the Lord Mayor lives at Mansion House. Then walk past The Monument to the Great Fire of London and see the view from The Shard
The second day of your holiday will take in the landmarks across the other side of town. Start at Tower Bridge because every tourist wants to see that. I don’t recommend going inside because the exhibition is a bit bland and the views from the top aren’t all that great.
Spend the next 3 hours inside the Tower of London instead. If you take my advice then you’ll join one of the hour-long Yeoman Warder Tour that you can pick up at the entrance gate. The Beefeater will explain all of the history and then you can explore the inside of the towers afterwards.
After you’ve finished with the Tower head up Great Tower Street and turn into Philpot Lane. Keep going into Leadenhall Market and admire the pretty Victorian arcade – it looks like something from a Charles Dickens novel.
Now walk along Cornhill towards Bank and take some photos of Mansion House and the Royal Exchange.
Walk down King William Street, past The Monument on your left, and stop halfway across London Bridge for a great photo of Tower Bridge and HMS Belfast.
You’ll probably guess where you’re going next because you’ll see it rising a thousand feet above you – The Shard. You can see the entire city from up here. The viewing floors are so high that it almost feels as if you’re coming into London on a plane.
Day #3 – SeaLife Aquarium, Globe Theatre and St. Paul’s Cathedral
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- What you will do:
- Walk across the glass floor at SEA LIFE London Aquarium and then choose between a Globe Theatre guided tour or watching a Shakespeare play. Then visit the Tate Modern gallery and admire the view from the top of St. Paul’s dome
The first thing they make you do at the SEA LIFE London Aquarium is walk across the top of the shark tank on a glass floor, and then you descend down to the lower levels where they’ve got a glass tunnel with all the flatfish gliding silently above your head. They also have a snowy North Pole scene full of penguins (allow for 1½-2 hours).
Everyone enjoys different things so I’m going to give you a choice of two options now, but you’re only going to have time for one.
Option 1 – Globe Theatre
Walk along the river until you reach the Globe Theatre. This is a perfect reconstruction of the Tudor playhouse that stood here in Shakespeare’s day. The guided tour is definitely worth doing, but if you don’t mind messing up the rest of the itinerary then you might like to watch a play instead. You’ll have to get the dates right though, because it’s an open-air theatre and they only hold the plays during the sunny months (allow 1½ hours for the tour, or 3 hours for a play).
Option 2 – Tate Modern
Alternatively you might like to go inside the Tate Modern instead, which is home to the country’s finest collection of contemporary and modern art. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but if you enjoy works by the likes of Rothko, Pollock, Picasso, Dali and Matisse then give it a try (allow for 1½ hours).
Now cross over the Millennium Bridge to St. Paul’s Cathedral. You can’t spend a week in London and not look around Christopher Wren’s masterpiece. The crypt contains the tombs of Admiral Nelson and the Duke of Wellington, and if you brave the stairs then you can stand at the summit of the exterior dome for a fantastic view of the skyline (allow for 2 hours).
Day #4 – Kensington Palace, Natural History Museum, the V&A & Harrods
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- What you will do:
- See the State Apartments at Kensington Palace and Prince Albert’s Memorial opposite the Royal Albert Hall. Then choose between dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum, spaceships at the Science Museum or the Cast Courts at the Victoria & Albert Museum, and end with some shopping at Harrods
Catch the tube to Queensway and walk through the park to Kensington Palace. Tourists know it best as the place where Princess Diana lived, but Brits might know it better as the childhood home of Queen Victoria (allow for 2 hours).
Now walk across Kensington Gardens to the Round Pond, and head over to the Albert Memorial for a quick look at the Royal Albert Hall.
Don’t bother going inside the Royal Albert Hall because I’m going to give you a choice of three different museums now. You’ll only have time for two, so read my reviews to help you decide.
Option 1 – Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is good for both adults and kids and probably has more animals than London Zoo – but all of them are dead (stuffed). They also have a celebrated collection of dinosaur fossils and skeletons (allow for 2½ hours).
Option 2 – Science Museum
The Science Museum has everything from computers, clocks and cars to planes, trains and spaceships. Pick of the exhibits is a full-sized model of the Apollo moon lander and a hangar full of airplanes halfway up the building (allow for 2½ hours).
Option 3 – Victoria & Albert Museum
The Victoria & Albert Museum is for people interested in the history of art and design. It’s worth visiting here just to see the spectacular Cast Courts, which contain full-sized copies of the world’s most famous monuments, and their collection of paintings by the likes of Constable, Turner and Raphael (allow for 2½ hours).
When you’re finished walk up Brompton Road to the world’s most luxurious department store: Harrods. Even if you don’t want to buy anything it’s still worth a visit to see inside the Egyptian Hall and Food Halls (allow for 45 mins).
Day #5 – Greenwich – Cutty Sark, Royal Observatory & Planetarium
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- What you will do:
- Enjoy a boat cruise to Greenwich and walk around the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College. Then choose between the Cutty Sark ship, the National Maritime Museum and Queen’s House, or admire the view from the top of Greenwich Hill and visit the Royal Observatory
I haven’t included a sightseeing bus in this itinerary because when you’re here for a week you have plenty of time to see all of the landmarks anyway, and you don’t want to waste two hours sitting on a bus – but a sightseeing boat is different. Sitting on a boat is fun!
Three are three big boat companies that all leave from Westminster Pier: City Cruises, Thames River Sightseeing (TRS) and Uber Boats, but I always recommend TRS because City Cruises are usually too busy and the Uber Boats don’t have very many outside seats.
The hour-long journey to Greenwich will take you past lots of landmarks including St. Paul’s, the Globe Theatre, Tate Modern, the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, before passing by the skyscrapers at Canary Wharf.
When you pull into Greenwich Pier head straight to the Old Royal Naval College so you can visit the famous Painted Hall. The room is like one big picture, with every wall covered in paintings by Nicholas Hawksmoor. It’s been described as London’s Sistine Chapel, and is certainly one of the most amazing spaces in London. You might also like to have a quick look inside Christopher Wren’s Chapel (allow for 45 mins in total).
There are three more places worth visiting in Greenwich, but you’ll only have time for two.
Option 1 – Cutty Sark
TheCutty Sark is an old clipper ship that used to carry tea back and forth between Britain and China in world-record times. They’ve cleverly suspended the whole ship in the air so you can walk underneath it before exploring all of the cargo decks and crews’ cabins (allow for 1½ hours).
Option 2 – National Maritime Museum and Queen’s House
The National Maritime Museum tells the story of the British Navy from the early days of the British Empire. It has a very good section on the Battle of Trafalgar which contains the actual jacket that Admiral Nelson was wearing onboard HMS Victory.
Queen’s House next-door is an architectural gem by Inigo Jones, and contains the museum’s collection of naval paintings.
Option 3 – Royal Observatory & Planetarium
If you don’t mind climbing up Greenwich Hill then you can visit the Royal Observatory. Flamsteed House was built by Christopher Wren and still contains its original 17th-century decor. The museum has a collection of old clocks and telescopes, but the real fun comes with a visit to the planetarium next-door (allow for 3 hours).
At some point you’ll want to stop for some lunch so I recommend the Gipsy Moth pub next to the Cutty Sark. Or you can walk into the historic town centre and try one of the traditional little tea shops.
Depending on the date and which boat company you sailed with, you should bear in mind that the last boat might leave as early as 4 PM or as late as 9 PM, so remember to check their timetable. Alternatively you could just go from Cutty Sark to Westminster on the tube.
Day #6 – A Day Trip Outside London
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- What you will do:
- Choose between a day trip to Oxford, a day trip to Cambridge, seeing Thomas Becket’s memorial in Canterbury Cathedral, visiting Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths, seeing the State Apartments at Windsor Castle, or going on a day trip to Salisbury Cathedral and Stonehenge
The great thing about spending a whole week in London is that you’ve got enough time to squeeze in a day trip for a change of scenery. There are plenty of great places to choose from, and I’ve included six of the best ones below.
Option 1 – Oxford
Tourists will sometimes try and decide between Oxford and Cambridge but I think Oxford is definitely better. Not only does it have the fantastic old architecture of the colleges and Bodleian Library, but it als has attractions like the Ashmolean Museum and Museum of Natural History – Oxford’s equivalent of the Natural History Museum (allow for 8-9 hours in total, which includes the travel time to and from London).
Option 2 – Cambridge
Cambridge is another university town full of beautiful old cloisters, chapels and squares. The highlight will be a visit to the world famous King’s College – one of England’s greatest gothic masterpieces (allow for 9-10½ hours in total, which includes the travel time to and from London).
Option 3 – Canterbury
Canterbury is another historic old town, but I don’t think it’s quite as pretty as Oxford or Cambridge. If you want to visit here then it will probably be because of Canterbury Cathedral, to see where the Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket was murdered by Henry II’s rampaging knights.
Option 4 – Bath
If you like the idea of Oxford and Cambridge but want a bit of Roman history thrown in, then try the equally beautiful city of Bath. This contains the best-known Roman remains in Britain, the 12th-century Bath Abbey, and the famous Georgian Royal Crescent on top of the hill (allow for 8-9 hours in total, which includes the travel time to and from London).
Option 5 – Windsor Castle
Windsor Castle is the oldest occupied castle in the world. It dates from the reign of William Conqueror and has been home to thirty-nine different kings and queens over the last 1,000 years. Windsor is also worth visiting for the pretty town centre which looks like something on the top of a chocolate box (allow for 5 hours in total, which includes the travel time to and from London).
Option 6 – Stonehenge
One of the most popular day trips is taking a train to Salisbury to visit Salisbury Cathedral and Stonehenge. This neolithic stone circle might be as old as 5,000 years (allow for 6-7 hours in total, which includes the travel time to and from London).
Day #7 – Changing the Guard, Afternoon Tea & a West End Show
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- What you will do:
- Take a photo from the lake in St. James’s Park, and then watch Changing of the Guard outside Buckingham Palace. Then enjoy an afternoon tea in the Ritz Hotel’s Palm Court (or an afternoon tea inside Fortnum & Mason), followed by some souvenir shopping around Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street and Oxford Street, and ending with a West End musical
I’ve saved some of the best things for your last day in London, so you can end your holiday on a high. Let’s start with Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace.
You need to get there by 9 AM if you want to stand right up against the railings, and 9.30 AM for a decent view of the forecourt. This means that you won’t really have much time to do anything else beforehand because most of the attractions don’t even open until 10 AM. So I suggest having a last look around Trafalgar Square before walking down The Mall to Buckingham Palace.
If you go through St. James’s Park then you can get a great photo of Buckingham Palace from the central bridge. If you turn around 180 degrees then you’ll get another great shot of Horse Guards.
When the parade ends at 11:30 AM walk through Green Park and head for the Ritz Hotel on the corner of Piccadilly.
How about treating yourself to one of their famous afternoon teas in the Palm Court? You should be able to make the 1.30 PM sitting easy enough, but they insist that everybody dresses up so make sure to check their dress-code beforehand. You also need to book a table at least 2-3 months in advance.
If you can’t get a booking then try Fortnum & Mason instead, which is just a few doors down. This is second-poshest shop in London after Harrods, and is where Buckingham Palace buy their groceries from – if it’s good enough for the monarch then it should be good enough for you! You only have to book this one a few weeks in advance.
After your afternoon tea has ended (hopefully around 3 PM) walk down Piccadilly until you reach Piccadilly Circus. I’ve set aside the next three hours for you to do some gift shopping. Regent Street is one of London’s busiest shopping streets. Hamleys, Liberty and Carnaby Street can all be found up by Oxford Circus, and Selfridges is at the Marble Arch end of Oxford Street. If you want some corny tourist gifts like cups, mugs and t-shirts, then try the shops around Leicester Square.
I recommend spending your final night around here in the lively West End, and buying a ticket for one of the big musicals. Most of the shows start at 7 PM or 7.30 PM. If you want some discount tickets then check out the TKTS booth in the centre of Leicester Square.
London Squire guidebook – Check out my guidebook available to buy at Amazon, Apple and Kobo. I’ve personally visited 210 London landmarks, attractions and hotels and collected all of my reviews, example itineraries, handy practical info, and advice about using the buses and trains into an eBook, along with 675 original photos
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