Top Five ‘Must Visit’ London Landmarks
- Buckingham Palace – home of the Queen, open in the summer months.
- The Tower of London – a unique slice of the nation’s history.
- St Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey – two great centres of Christianity, and architectural feats in their own right.
- Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament – the UK’s seat of government, it’ll seem familiar even if you’ve never been there before.
- Trafalgar Square – feed the pigeons and admire Nelson’s Column in the heart of London.
Top Five Hidden Delights
- Take a boat down the Thames to maritime Greenwich – pick one up from the Embankment.
- Enjoy a lakeside picnic on Hampstead Heath while listening to a classical concert.
- Celebrate Chinese New Year in Soho.
- Heckle the soapbox politicians at Speaker’s Corner, in Hyde Park.
- Wander through the Victorian funeral splendour of Highgate Cemetery – terrifically atmospheric.
- Take a walking tour around Hidden London – details from Time Out magazine.
Top Five London Museums
- The British Museum – the largest museum in the country, home to such treasures as the Magna Carta and the Elgin Marbles.
- The Science Museum – state-of-the-art interactive displays.
- The Natural History Museum – children of all ages will be thrilled by the sight of its gigantic dinosaur skeletons.
- The Victoria & Albert Museum – elegant collections of the decorative arts, including Renaissance sculpture and Constable paintings.
- The Imperial War Museum – recreates the sights, sounds and smells of life in the First and Second World Wars. You can’t fail to be moved.
Smaller Museums
- Sir John Soane's Museum – house of 18th-century architect, collector and eccentric. Fascinating and wonderfully off-beat.
- The Bank of England Museum, in Threadneedle Street – money talks.
- London Transport Museum, in Covent Garden – much more interesting than it might sound.
- Museum of London, in the Barbican – will take you on a journey through time, from Roman London to the present day.
- Leighton House – opulent interiors and pre-Raphelite works of art in the former studio-house of the great Victorian artist Frederic, Lord Leighton.
Top Five Art Collections
- The National Gallery, in Trafalgar Square – Titian, Rembrandt and Constable are just three of the great names represented here.
- The National Portrait Gallery – a fascinating collection of portraits of the famous.
- Tate Britain, in Pimlico – the national gallery of British art features sculptures by Henry Moore and Barbara Hepworth, as well as a large collection of paintings by Turner.
- Tate Modern – contemporary art and installations in a vast warehouse-style setting. Exhibitions here are always a talking point.
- Hayward Galleries – a plethora of smaller spaces, sometimes featuring summer ‘blockbuster’ exhibitions.
SUMMER EXTRA!
The Royal Academy’s Summer Exhibition – make your own mind up as to the current state of British art at this colourful, thought-provoking event.
Open Air Treats
Go boating on the Serpentine, in Hyde Park. At Regent’s Park, visit London Zoo or, in the summer months, watch a performance at the Open Air Theatre. Elegant St James’s Park has stunning views of Buckingham Palace and Whitehall, while Green Park offers a respite from the bustle of Piccadilly. As you travel away from the centre, the green spaces continue, with Hampstead Heath to the north and the Commons stretching away across south London, in Clapham, Wandsworth and beyond. At the outer fringes of London are Kew Gardens, Richmond Park and Epping Forest, all offering further recreational opportunities.
