First time visitor to UK, staying London. Advice from locals requested.

[SweetSallySue]

Hi, my DD (mid-twenties) and I are very excited to be planning a trip to the UK for late May. We will be staying in London. As we (Canadians) are completely unfamiliar with the area, any advice (including suggestions of things to see and do) would be greatly appreciated!

One specific concern at this stage involves booking accommodations for our stay . My daughter has found an ApartHotel that would suit our needs well in the Dalston area. However, we are concerned about safety and wondered if locals can advise as to whether this area of London would be relatively safe for us as female tourists.

I look forward to your comments and guidance!

I would make sure I went to:

brick lane for a curry

spittlefields market on a Saturday for a coffee and a mooch.

Columbia road flower market

the sky garden (book ahead)

the national portrait gallery

also a day trip to Bath/ Oxford / Cambridge (all 3 if your length allows) all completely wonderful

If you don't mind church services then agree with a PP about simply attending Evensong in St Pauls as well as Westminster Abbey. If Buckingham Palace is closed to visitors then there are two small museums behind it, The Kings Gallery for art and the Royal Mews to see the state carriages and horses.

Try and get tickets to see a play at The Globe or The Wannamaker (nextdoor to each other). Have pizza at St Gabriels Wharf beforehand or wander through the streets between Tate Modern and Southwark Cathedral - medieval ruins at Winchester House, Golden Hind, Borough Market, Anchor pub (very historic).

How to look like a local...
Stand on the Right on the escalator when travelling on the Underground / The Tube.
Left hand side is for those in a hurry who walk up or down.

Re shopping: what type of shopping do you fancy -trendy or hipster? Mainstream or market? Different districts are massively different to each other. To get the best think about this carefully.

Re local cuisine: do you mean English English by this? The most popular dish was fish and chips and I always recommend this to overseas visitors BUT our most popular dish now is now an 'Indian' curry. Indian is a bit misleading because it can be Pakistani or Bangladeshi in influence but it's distinctly British and different from traditional authentic dishes from those countries. I also think that there's some great food to be found in Chinatown. Again it's 'British' in the sense that oriental dishes found in other places are different to British fayre. You also want to check out a British boozer - especially if you do fancy a drink - they are often good for 'traditional' English style food. If you do like beer try and find a good craft beer place as although they are less traditional they serve better beer and are culturally particularly friendly.

Re museums. There's lots. Go through a list and choose. There's billions of them. Most of the big ones now, ask you to book an entry slot online even if they are free on entry. Think about this carefully. They can get busy - you want to book the earliest slot available for the one you want to visit most. The British Museum and the Natural History Museum are the ones you should definitely consider this for. They are exceptional and it's easy to spend most of the day in either without trying. The Tower of London is great but expensive. Honestly given what's available for free in London, it's not necessarily the best option. You can see it from the outside from some distance as part of a sightseeing tour.

Re theatre - 100% the booth in covent garden recommended up thread.

The art galleries are also well worth a visit. Again most are free. But again plan to do early in the day and then another activity in the afternoon if you fancy them.

And as much as I'm loath to suggest it, a sight seeing bus / river trip for a day isn't the worst option for finding your bearings and working out what you really want to do.

Don't do the London eye. It's expensive. A good alternative which gives you great views of the city is the IFS Cloud Cable car. It's a fraction of the price and you can do it as part of visiting Greenwich.

Plan, plan, plan. Your homework will pay off with London. It is a VAST city. There really are not many cities in the world with so much to do. And whilst it is an expensive city there's so much to do which is for free, I'd encourage you to think about this as you will still have an amazing time and have more money to spend on eating out.

I'm not from London. But when I do go to London I make a point of making it count and getting the most out of my trips as a visitor. I've been many times and I've not done half the things I want.

Re trips out of London. Oxford is the classic for tourists. Honestly... There's other places that are better. If you can go more rural / further out do so. I find Oxford over rated for what it is. It's not representative of the UK either.

Trust me, you will get overloaded on this thread with the possibilities. So really think about what you want to do and why.

Tube is easy but very busy at rush hour. If you can walk during rush hour it's not necessarily a bad option. Bring comfortable shoes!

So many great suggestions, I have been forwarding them to my daughter and we are both blown away by the response to this thread!

Thanks so much to all who have commented, we now feel much more prepared to start mapping out what we’d like to do, see and experience while in London and surrounding area.

Try NOT to do too much each day.

Have a target of what you WANT to do each day, with perhaps a couple of things you can add in if you have time each day.

And try and group things together in a small area rather than running across London in a single day. Focus on doing different districts on different days to maximise your time.

What’s your budget for accommodation? Dalston is not really central.

@Icanttakethisanymore
sorry to be the bearer of bad news but Le Mercury closed at the beginning of March ☹️

Jack the Ripper Tour , Whitechapel at night in a group , you;ll see the haunts and hear about his unfortunate victims .

Dalston is a great fun area, lots of hipsters and very multi racial. From Dalston you can get the 38 bus which will take you through Islington (much prettier than Dalston), then into the West End, past the British Museum, China Town, all the way to Piccadilly Circus. All for the price of a bus fare.

Or a bus down to the City of London - I recommend walking round the Inns of Court (inner temple, middle temple, Lincoln Inn etc). It’s like stepping back in time.

I love Dalston. It has a cool vibe.
depends what you are looking to do with your time really. Great live music in Hoxton/ Dalston/ Islington
great Vietnamese restaurants along Kingsland Road.
it feels safe around there to me. I’d happily live there

Columbia Road flower market, Brick Lane and a stop at Beigel Bake for a salt beef bagel.

You can go up the heron tower to Sushi Samba for a drink on their rooftop bar. Even just for a coffee or Coke to keep it cheaper but the lychee cocktail is truly fantastic.

up the road is The Ned. They do great live music, again you can just stop for a drink and enjoy it.

Dalston might have a cool vibe but I think as a tourist, there are nicer places to stay, especially if you’re new to London.

The National Portrait Gallery (round the back of Trafalgar Square for a squint at Nelson's Column and the fountains) is free and brilliant for a run through of great British figures all the way from Tudor kings and queens to Bob Marley. Very diverse and some sculpture too. You can get up close to them all.

Also recommend Tower Bridge. Tickets are about £10, book a slot online (lots available even on the day). You walk up inside one tower and across the walkway to the other one. Glass floors allow you to see the road and river far below plus stunning views of the nearby City skyscrapers.

I think the best view of London is from Waterloo Bridge. It's on the bend in the river and you have great views of Westminster, Big Ben and the London Eye to the west and St Paul's and the City to the east. If you can time it for sunset à la The Kinks then even better!

For a good almost circular walk taking in several sights I suggest across Waterloo Bridge, along the South Bank (stop at Gabriel's Wharf for a snack/drink/coffee) past Tate Modern and the Globe, over the Millennium Bridge for a great view of St Paul's, down Ludgate Hill onto Fleet Street. A few yards up a tiny alleyway on the north side of Fleet Street pop into the historic Ye Old Cheshire Cheese pub of Dickens fame (it features in A Tale of Two Cities) for a beer. It was rebuilt in 1667 after the Great Fire of London. Very atmospheric.

Then cut through to Covent Garden (lots of stalls/shopping but quite touristy) and on to Trafalgar Square/National Portrait Gallery.

Enjoy your trip! London is a great city. SO much to see. I second the recommendations to walk and take buses where you can. And the Uber boat to Greenwich is a very good shout.

Open top bus tour to tick off all the main sightseeing in one easy go.

Dont overdo it. Spend some time soaking up the atmosphere. Cafes, pubs, walking in the parks.

If you are there in May you might be there during Chelsea Flower Show. You won’t be able to get tickets but the area around the show will be very vibrant.

Definitely visit Libertys .. you don’t need to buy anything!

You'll need to get out early if you want to catch the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. Generally it's every other day, starting on a Monday. The ceremony starts at 11.00 but the Old Guard gets there about 10.30 and you'll need to be there early to get a good spot.

So, if you're in plenty of time, or you are not going to see the Changing of the Guard, get yourself to the Tower Of London. It's expensive to go inside, but free to walk around the outside and you will have plenty to see.
If you don't have enough time to do this, you can do it on the way back.

Get a bus from the Tower of London (if you you're going there on the way back, go straight) to Trafalgar Square. Don't stop at Trafalgar Square, but walk down the Mall to Buckingham Palace.

After the Changing of the Guard or just seeing Buckingham Palace, spend some time in St James's Park.

Walk back down the Mall to Trafalgar Square and soak up the atmosphere. The National Portrait Gallery is here if that's of interest and it's free.

Walk down the Strand to Covent Garden, turning into Bedford Street. Have a wander around and watch a street performer in the Piazza.

Later, you can make your way back to Dalston, maybe seeing the Tower Of London if you didn't earlier.

Is there any particular reason why you've chosen Dalston? What kinds of things are you looking to do?

get yourself to the Tower Of London. It's expensive to go inside, but free to walk around the outside and you will have plenty to see.

look up the Tower Bridge website. It will tell you when the bridge is going to open. You get a good view from the riverside in front of the Tower.

My favourite London walk is east along the south bank of the Thames, starting at London Bridge. This is the walk I take all of my visitors on and I only start at the Bridge because this is where my bus drops me! It would be nice to start at the Tate Modern.
Starting at Southwark Cathedral walk under London Bridge and stick with the river to your left as close as possible all the way. Drop into Hays Galleria as you pass - there is a fantastical ship sculpture near the river entrance. Once you reach Tower Bridge the crowds seem to melt away and it feels as though you are walking back in time.

Walk down Shad Thames and cross the River Neckinger onto New Concordia Wharf. Oliver Twist was set here (you will also have passed Nancy's Steps on the west side of London Bridge).

Sticking close to the river you will pass Bermondsey Beach with it's houseboats - I think the view back to Tower Bridge from here is one of the best in London. Just along from here are the Salter Family Statues and the remains (well foundations) of Edward III's summer palace. Read up on the Salter family, their history gives a fascinating insight into this area in the early 20th century. Next to these is the first of our two pubs, The Angel, which is mentioned in Pepys diaries. Try to sit on the tiny outside terrace which hangs over the Thames.

Refreshed, keep walking eastwards past the park. Look out for the crooked house. Then along along the King's Stairs and straight ahead onto Elephant Lane and Rotherhithe Street (do not turn right!) to reach our second pub, the very wonderful Mayflower. This pub is an excellent stop and worth the trip. There is a great terrace at the back hanging over the river and you can look across at the Prospect of Whitby and execution dock on the north bank (that's a walk for another day). This is also a good place for lunch but it does get crowded so it is worth booking. From here it's a short walk round to Rotherhithe station which is on the direct line back to Dalston.

I really recommend this walk you see so much of London's history. I've actually walked all the way to Greenwich, but that was a big undertaking. I also love the north bank - London Bridge to the Isle of Dogs, but the views and the Salter Statues and the crazy kitsch of the Mayflower make the Southwark unmissable.

@LollyWillow oh I love that suggestion and shall be screenshottting your post.
It makes my walk along the Thames, West along the north bank , from London Bridge, look a bit puny!!

I agree. Dalston may come across cool & edgy for those who are used to living in inner London but reckon it’ll just look shabby and run down (even if it’s safe) to someone coming all the way from Canada.

My advice would be to step away from this thread.

And understand that London is massive. From where I live South of the river to where my friend lives North takes an hour and a half to get to. Some of the things people are recommending (like the Horniman) are fine places but you wouldn’t waste your short holiday time travelling out to Forest Hill to visit an ok museum.

Ditto, trips to Windsor, Bath, Kew and the like. I’ve spent virtually my whole life in London and still haven’t visited a fair amount of places. You’re going to get overwhelmed. Pinpoint what matters most to you - stick it in to Chat GPT and simplify your life