Category Archives: London Tourist Attractions

London Tourist Attractions

Big Ben

Big Ben is probably the world’s most famous clock and one of London’s best-known landmarks,  Big Ben is a four faced clock located at the north end of the Palace of Westminster / Houses of Parliament.

Big Ben looks most spectacular at night when the clock faces are illuminated. You even know when parliament is in session, because a light shines above the clock face.

big ben london clock

The four dials of the clock are 23 feet square, the minute hand is 14 feet long and the figures are 2 feet high. Minutely regulated with a stack of coins placed on the huge pendulum, Big Ben is an excellent timekeeper, which has rarely stopped.

The name Big Ben actually refers not to the clock-tower itself, but to the thirteen ton bell hung within. The bell was named after the first commissioner of works, Sir Benjamin Hall.

Unfortunately the clock is not open to the public.

London Tourist Attractions, Things to Do With Kids in London

London Zoo

london things to do

London Zoo is a great place to spend a day in London. Located at the north end of Regents  Park, the 35 acre site has over 750 different species of animals.

Founded in 1828, London Zoo is the oldest scientific zoo in the world. One of the most popular attraction is the Monkeys walkthrough. The enclosure houses a breeding group of black-capped squirrel monkeys in a habitat designed to recreate the Bolivian rainforests. Well as close as is possible in the centre of London!

London tourist attractions
Getting up close and personal with the giraffes.

TIP:  London Zoo is very popular and its queues can be very long. The fastest way to get into the Zoo is by buying your ticket in advance.

Location: Regents Park (North Side)  London NW14RY
London Zoo Opening Times:
London Zoo is open every day of the year except Christmas Day
From 6th March until 16th July 10.00 – 17.30
From 17th July until 5th Sept     10.00 -18.00
From 6th Sept until 30th Oct     10.00 – 17.30

Last admission is one hour before closing time

Nearest Underground Tube Station: Chalk Farm (Northern Line)

London Tourist Attractions

Madam Tussauds Waxworks

london tourist attraction waxworks

Madame Tussauds is a waxworks museum that contains wax sculptures of famous celebrities, world leaders.and cultural icons. Set up by wax sculpture Marie Tussaud in the late 19th century, it is over 100 years old and is one of London’s favourite tourist attractions.

The wax sculptures are lifesize and range from Princess Diana to Hollywood A list stars like Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig to David and Vctoria Beckham and Adolf Hitler. One of the most popular sculptures is of High School Musical’s Zac Ephron.
london tourist attractions
Madame Tussauds is a great palace to take some fun selfies!
TIP:  The queues for entry can get very long, so its best to buy your tickets in advance.

 

Location: Madame Tussauds is on the Marylebone Road , Central London.

Nearest Underground Tube Station:  Baker Street.

Madame Tussauds Opening times: Open every day of the year.

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Free Things to Do in London, London Tourist Attractions

Piccadilly Circus

picadily circus london

Piccadilly Circus is one of London’s most famous landmarks and sightseeeing attractions.

Situated at the junction of five busy streets in the centre of London, Piccadilly Circus is dominated by huge neon advertising signs.

At its heart is a bronze fountain topped by a figure of a winged archer. The statue is popularly called Eros, the pagan god of love, but it was in fact designed in the 19th century as a symbol of Christian charity – a monument to Lord Shaftesbury, a philanthropist.

Piccadilly Circus is often wrongly spelt as Picadilly Circus or Picadily Circus

Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus (Piccadilly Line)

London Tourist Attractions

Tower of London

london sightseeing tower of london

The Tower of London is a Royal Palace and Fortress, a UNESCO world heritage site and one of London’s oldest buildings. The Tower of London is a fantastic place to visit, full of history and artefacts. If you want to get a sense of London’s history and monarchy this is a super place to spend a day.

The Queen’s Royal Jewels are kept here, guarded by the Tower’s Beefeater guards in their famous red and black uniforms.

It is located on the north side of the River Thames and within walking distance of Tower Bridge.

 

 

 

 

London Tourist Attractions

Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is probably the world’s most famous bridge and certainly one of the most photogenic. With its two spectacular towers it dominates the River Thames.

Opened in 1894, the bridge is 800 feet (244 meters) in length with two towers each 213 feet (65 m) high, built on piers. The central span of 200 feet (61 m) between the towers is split into two equal bascules or leaves, which can be raised to an angle of 83 degrees to allow river traffic to pass.

london bridge

To learn more about the history, design and building of Tower Bridge, the people involved in its construction and why it was needed, visit The Tower Bridge Exhibition which is situated inside the bridge’s towers and is open daily.

Location:Tower Bridge, Tower Bridge Rd, London SE1
Nearest Tube: Tower Hill

Free Things to Do in London, London Tourist Attractions

Trafalgar Square

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No visit to London is complete without a visit to Trafalgar Square. The capital’s largest and most iconic square.

Trafalgar Square is a large open space dominated by Nelson’s Column – a 145 foot tall stone column, that has on its top, a statue of one of Britain’s greatest military heroes, Admiral Horatio Nelson.

Admiral Nelson led the British Navy to victory in a the naval sea battle against the French and Spanish fleets in 1805. Although the British won the battle Admiral Nelson was killed during it and hence the column and the square itself commemorate his life and contribution to British history.

At the base of the column are four large bronze panels that depict some of Admiral Nelson’s many naval battles. Surrounding the column are four huge lions that tourists can be seen attempting, and often failing, to climb.

Heritage wardens are on duty in Trafalgar Square to provide help to visitors including answering queries about local attractions and the square’s heritage.

Opening Times:  Always open
Nearest Underground Tube Station: Charing Cross
Admission:  Free

London Tourist Attractions

Helicopter Tours of London

Helicopter tours of London can be found running from a number of nearby small airports such as Redhill Aerodrome in Surrey or the more central Battersea Helicopter port.

Flights are approx £2000 for a 30 minute tour. It’s not cheap but it will be the ride of a lifetime.

London Tourist Attractions

Sherlock Holmes Museum

Sherlock Holmes, the worlds greatest fictional detective, lived at 221b Baker Street, according to his books, between 1881-1904, and you can actually visit his home, because 221b Baker Street has been converted into The Sherlock Holmes Museum.

With the BBC series starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes, the Hollywood Blockbusters with Robert Downey as Sherlock and the American series that moves Sherlock to New York and has Lucy Liu as a female Dr Watson, Sherlock Holmes has never been so popular, so why not visit his original home?

The four storey building is protected due to its “special architectural and historical interest”, and the 1st floor study, overlooking Baker Street, is faithfully maintained to look as it would have been Victorian Times when Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson would have lived there.

A  Victorian policeman guards the entrance to the museum which is accessed via the shop, on the ground floor, which sells an abundance of Holmes related books and memorabilia.

There are three floors of exhibits, including some great traditional Victorian pieces and well chosen artifacts representing Sherlock Holmes\’s detective days. For example, you can see the stick that was said to belong to Dr Mortimer in the Hound of the Baskervilles and the club that was used to kill Colonel Barclay in The Crooked Man.

Sherlock Holmes House and Museum Opening Times:
Open every day of the year (except Christmas Day) from 9.30 am – 6pm
Admission:  Adult £6  Child £4 (under 16 years old)

Nearest Underground Station:  Baker Street

Location:  The Sherlock Holmes Museum, 221b Baker Street, London NW1 6XE

London Tourist Attractions

St Paul’s Cathedral

St Paul’s Cathedral is London’s greatest cathedral and its elegant dome is one of the most recognised symbols of London. Christopher Wren’s masterpiece has squatted imposingly in the City of London for the past 300 years. It famously withstood the bombardment of the Blitz and has become something of a monument to the determination and resilience of London and Londoners in general.

You can visit the cathedral to admire its architectural splendour, its crypt – including Nelson and Wellington’s tombs – and marvel at the uncanny acoustics in the famous Whispering Gallery.


opening times cathedral domesaint pauls cathedral

St Pauls Cathedral Opening Times
Mon – Sat:   8.30 am – 4pm
Last tickets are sold at 4pm and the cathedral closes for sightseeing at 4.30pm.
Sunday:  Open for worshippers only. No visitors.

Nearest Underground Station: St Paul’s (Central Line)

Address:  St. Paul’s Churchyard, London EC4M 8AD