Going to London
- Thread starter Groof
- Start date
- Status
As some said Natural History Museum is definitely worth giving a visit. You should definitely not miss the British Museum; depending on where you are from you can enjoy seeing a part of your country's history stolen right in front of you!
Also catch a Premier League game if you have a chance
but really it's a nice place with stuff from around the world to see so enjoy it
Also catch a Premier League game if you have a chance
only if Arsenal is playing, the rest of the London clubs are not worth it
Camden Market is a great place to chill. Got some awesome souvenirs there that are out of the ordinary "I went to London, look at this mug/shirt/fridge magnet" shit.
For nightlife; I'd recommend Hammersmith and King's Cross.
Oi, and an Oyster Card is pretty much essential to get around cheaply.
For nightlife; I'd recommend Hammersmith and King's Cross.
Oi, and an Oyster Card is pretty much essential to get around cheaply.
Weekly pass is what I'll end up getting then. Less stuff to think about the better.
Guess I'll be sleeping with one eye open.
Love me some ice cream, keeping this in mind. Any recommended flavours?
Oh absolutely. I think I might've thrown in one too many things in there, but I'll try to be flexible with stuff I will and won't manage. Right now I'm making a basic overview of the stuff I want to do, and boy, after this thread the amount pretty much doubled haha. But hey, if I like it I'll probably go back and see the rest!
The rest of you, thanks a million for all your responses and tips! I now have some pretty solid plans and ideas of where to go for good food and just general touristery. But please keep it coming! I'm always open for ideas!
Agree
D
Deleted member 1235
Unconfirmed Member
goto brick lane and get a curry.
then get real drunk and get a dirty burger.
what else.
did I mention dirty burger? because you should get a dirty burger.
then get real drunk and get a dirty burger.
what else.
did I mention dirty burger? because you should get a dirty burger.
As others have said, there are loads of amazing, massive and free-entry museums all around London, so check out a few of them. Have a look what there is, and choose what you are most interested in.
Have a climb up St Pauls, some of the wooden stairs are... exciting.
If you share what week you are going (I might have missed it), somebody could suggest some more specific events, for example a football game.
Outside of London, York is a popular one. Very easy to get to via train, so you could have a day-trip there.
Have a climb up St Pauls, some of the wooden stairs are... exciting.
If you share what week you are going (I might have missed it), somebody could suggest some more specific events, for example a football game.
Outside of London, York is a popular one. Very easy to get to via train, so you could have a day-trip there.
Don't bother with the London Eye for your birds eye view, it lasts 1/2 an hour and you can barely see anything, go to the Shard, it's twice as high and you can spend as much time up there as you want
http://www.theviewfromtheshard.com/
http://www.theviewfromtheshard.com/
George Oscar Bluth II
Banned
Eh...are you sure this is good advice?
Might have to get a dirty burger.
Oh no I never shared that. I'm going the second week of February.
Man I'd love to head up here, but the price is somewhat steep. We'll see if I can make it up there.Don't bother with the London Eye for your birds eye view, it lasts 1/2 an hour and you can barely see anything, go to the Shard, it's twice as high and you can spend as much time up there as you want
http://www.theviewfromtheshard.com/
This is the one thing I will vouch for. Camden is fucking great and perfect place to hang around a day. Lots to see eat, shop and smoke. Also stables market there has some nice horse statues if you are into that shit.
Honestly London tower and London eye are not great.
If you are there for the 8th, then Chelsea vs Newcastle (Saturday 3:00) or Spurs vs Everton (Sunday 1:30 Televised) seem like the best games. Though I doubt it will be easy to get tickets.
There are actually mid-week games in the Premier League on the 11th and 12th which might be a good option. Also, it can be a bit more exciting under the floodlights. Arsenal vs Man Utd is on the Wednesday, which is obviously a big game. But other options could be West Ham vs Norwich (I imagine you can get tickets for that fairly easily, and people always rave about the night games there). Similarly Fulham vs Liverpool should have spare tickets.
Also, I think the Olympic Park is opening up pretty soon, so you could have a look around there.
So fucking important. I was a regular commuter to Central London for nearly 10 years. Londoners DO NOT like tourists attempting to fuck up their journey to work or home from work.
How things change, I work for London Underground now.
SloaneRangerSW1
Banned
Firstly, Oxford is much nicer than Cambridge. Still rather small place though.
As for stuff to do in London:
Tate Modern (for a bit of art, currently a decent Paul Klee exhibition on) followed by Borough Market (amazing food market) for lunch on the weekend. Do not miss this!
As for burgers, people have been mentioning Meat Liquor in this thread. As for me, NOTHING comes close to Patty & Bun (www.pattyandbun.co.uk) for best burgers in London. Maybe Honest Burgers (www.honestburgers.co.uk).
For japanese food and good ramen, go to: http://www.shoryuramen.com/ (Very close to Piccadilly Circus, where I'm sure you'll end up eventually!.
Other things to do and see:
V&A Museum - http://www.vam.ac.uk/ - they have a great shop where you can pick up souvenirs that aren't overly tacky and horrid.
If you have any questions whatsoever then just ask!
As for stuff to do in London:
Tate Modern (for a bit of art, currently a decent Paul Klee exhibition on) followed by Borough Market (amazing food market) for lunch on the weekend. Do not miss this!
As for burgers, people have been mentioning Meat Liquor in this thread. As for me, NOTHING comes close to Patty & Bun (www.pattyandbun.co.uk) for best burgers in London. Maybe Honest Burgers (www.honestburgers.co.uk).
For japanese food and good ramen, go to: http://www.shoryuramen.com/ (Very close to Piccadilly Circus, where I'm sure you'll end up eventually!.
Other things to do and see:
V&A Museum - http://www.vam.ac.uk/ - they have a great shop where you can pick up souvenirs that aren't overly tacky and horrid.
If you have any questions whatsoever then just ask!
SloaneRangerSW1
Banned
Umm...what?!
There's different kinds of nightlife.
Your area, West End or the City if you wanna go to a nice bar or suave club. Prices start from medium to ludicrously high.
Or hit Camden, Kings Cross or Hammersmith. Prices go from low to medium. Different environment totally but still a good night out.
Why not, I had a blast there; drunk 4 Englishmen under the table, lost to a Scotsman, got felt up by a girl while her sister was kissing me. What's not to like?
Musha_Soturi
Member
While I'm here, all you Brits who aren't in the BritGaf thread, why not???
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=751502
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=751502
Whoa, would love to see Arsenal vs Manchester Utd, but I foresee tickets for that being very scarce at this point in time. Olympic Park sounds like a good idea too! Some of it seems to already be open.
For some reason this post and your avatar cracked me up.
Great!
Man, everyone in this thread comes with such delicious looking burger joint tips. Can't eat burgers everyday though... or can I?
Love me some ramen. Piccadilly I'll definitely be going to and I was thinking of dropping by the nearby Japan Centre as well. So ramen might be fitting! Thanks for the tip.
Ooh, might swing by here after my visit to the National History Museum then. Site looks promising.
Thanks a lot!!
Enjoy the Skyline of the City for 3 punds from The Monument (certificate gift included)
Eat something in the brick lane area or in the borough market
Visit the greenwich observatory, park and the maritime museum
Take a walk in Richmond Park surrounded by deers (30 minute from central london using the underground, then 15 minutes walk from the station. WORTH IT)
CAMBRIDGE >> Oxford
Soundtrack for your London experience
Eat something in the brick lane area or in the borough market
Visit the greenwich observatory, park and the maritime museum
Take a walk in Richmond Park surrounded by deers (30 minute from central london using the underground, then 15 minutes walk from the station. WORTH IT)
CAMBRIDGE >> Oxford
Soundtrack for your London experience
The_Hitcher89
Member
Arsenal ticket prices are already ludicrous, you'll be paying it off well into the next decade if you try and buy a ticket at short notice for their league game against Man Utd
Arsenal ticket prices are already ludicrous, you'll be paying it off well into the next decade if you try and buy a ticket at short notice for their league game against Man Utd
Yeah, the prospects probably aren't good. You could always go down to a pub and watch it live on TV though.
i think you mean london is not a vertical city
in fact for most of its history it's had laws in place restricting the heights of buildings
unless this is a joke in which case nevermind
lies and deceptions. in cambridge you can see the buildings where maxwell discovered electromagnetism, jj thompson discovered the electron, and crick and watson discovered the structure of dna, on the same street.
in oxford you can see?????? the building where boring prime minister x stayed when he studied PPE there?
For some reason, this song spoke to me in so many ways
Arsenal ticket prices are already ludicrous, you'll be paying it off well into the next decade if you try and buy a ticket at short notice for their league game against Man Utd
Yeah, I figured as much... Watching it on TV is probably what I'll end up doing though.
TheHollowNight
Member
That ain't Canary Wharf buddy, that's the financial district near Moorgate & Liverpool street station, and they have some fucking massive sky scrapers in the area, including The Shard down the road which is the tallest building in Europe
I spent a week in London in June (my first time there) and I loved the city.
As many have already said, Oyster card is awesome. The weather was awesome during my stay so I walked. A lot. It might have minimized the amount of time I had to get to different parts of the city to see the sights but at the same time walking from each part of the city was incredibly awesome. Each part has its own look and feel and I found a lot of great little places to stop to drink or eat.
Pubs are awesome. Go to as many as you can.
The parks are awesome. If you get a day with great weather I'd spend an hour or so in a park just relaxing.
Don't bother with the Eye as some have said.
I spent a week prior in Oxford (work-related) but also had some time to look around. I was there during finals week and it was pretty surreal seeing people walking around in their formal dress. Felt like I was on the set for a Harry Potter movie. I really liked Oxford but can't say anything for Cambridge since I didn't visit it. Maybe next time. You should be able to catch about a 2 hourish coach ride to Oxford for pretty cheap. Think it was under 30 pounds when I was there.
Can't wait to go back to the UK and spend some more time there. Weather permitting, you should have a great trip.
EDIT - Oh yea, if you have an unlocked phone or a phone you can put a SIM in, I can't recommend enough Three's The One Plan. For 15 pounds you get unlimited data. It was a life saver for me since it let me use Google Maps and Skype when I was in the UK. Super jealous you UKers have competition in your mobile space compared to what we have to put up with in the US.
As many have already said, Oyster card is awesome. The weather was awesome during my stay so I walked. A lot. It might have minimized the amount of time I had to get to different parts of the city to see the sights but at the same time walking from each part of the city was incredibly awesome. Each part has its own look and feel and I found a lot of great little places to stop to drink or eat.
Pubs are awesome. Go to as many as you can.
The parks are awesome. If you get a day with great weather I'd spend an hour or so in a park just relaxing.
Don't bother with the Eye as some have said.
I spent a week prior in Oxford (work-related) but also had some time to look around. I was there during finals week and it was pretty surreal seeing people walking around in their formal dress. Felt like I was on the set for a Harry Potter movie. I really liked Oxford but can't say anything for Cambridge since I didn't visit it. Maybe next time. You should be able to catch about a 2 hourish coach ride to Oxford for pretty cheap. Think it was under 30 pounds when I was there.
Can't wait to go back to the UK and spend some more time there. Weather permitting, you should have a great trip.
EDIT - Oh yea, if you have an unlocked phone or a phone you can put a SIM in, I can't recommend enough Three's The One Plan. For 15 pounds you get unlimited data. It was a life saver for me since it let me use Google Maps and Skype when I was in the UK. Super jealous you UKers have competition in your mobile space compared to what we have to put up with in the US.
Watch it in a pub in Highbury.
why? lol
Great, great tips. Thanks! I am a bit worried about the weather considering it's early February, but hopefully it'll be fine. I want to walk around as much as I can.
And the SIM thing, that's exactly something I was looking for. I could definitely go for unlimited data for £15. I'll be getting that!
The_Hitcher89
Member
Go to an Arsenal-based pub for a decent experience, prepare for some unreasonable anger and exceptionally foul language though
Fattony12000
Member
British Museum, London (free admission)
Natural History Museum, London (free admission)
Victoria and Albert Museum, London (free admission)
Imperial War Museum, London (free admission)
National Maritime Museum, London (free admission)
Science Museum, London (free admission)
Tate Modern, London (free admission)
National Gallery, London (free admission)
St Paul's Cathedral, London (£16.00 admission for sightseers, £14.50 when purchased online)
National Portrait Gallery, London (free admission)
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London (£14.50 admission at the gates/online)
The National Archives, London (free admission)
Namco Funscape, London
Natural History Museum, London (free admission)
Victoria and Albert Museum, London (free admission)
Imperial War Museum, London (free admission)
National Maritime Museum, London (free admission)
Science Museum, London (free admission)
Tate Modern, London (free admission)
National Gallery, London (free admission)
St Paul's Cathedral, London (£16.00 admission for sightseers, £14.50 when purchased online)
National Portrait Gallery, London (free admission)
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London (£14.50 admission at the gates/online)
The National Archives, London (free admission)
Namco Funscape, London
The_Hitcher89
Member
The architecture of the Natural History Museum alone makes it worth a visit
TheHollowNight
Member
Visit Borough Market & go to Brick Lane/Spitalfields market on Sunday as they have some amazing street food stalls, vintage stores and interesting galleries & little odd-shops. Tons of street art too.
Walking along South Bank is great too, with the skatepark & galleries, more street stalls usually crop up on the weekends as well.
Soho has a great bar scene & nightlife, Chinatown has some pretty great food. In and around Oxford Circus is fun, but extremely busy. Shoreditch/Hoxton Square area are super student-y but have some great clubs and bars.
Covent garden is nice walking through in the evenings, old cobble streets with street musicians and performers drawing crowds all the time.
St. James' Park, Hyde Park...all the parks are lovely too, but y'know when the weather decides to be nice. They are sprawling parks too, it's great to just chill there in the summer and watch life go by. Also you get to feed super friendly squirrels, who doesn't want to do that?!
Damn, I miss London lol. I need to move back ASAP.
Yeah, also fuck the London Eye, it sucks ass.
Walking along South Bank is great too, with the skatepark & galleries, more street stalls usually crop up on the weekends as well.
Soho has a great bar scene & nightlife, Chinatown has some pretty great food. In and around Oxford Circus is fun, but extremely busy. Shoreditch/Hoxton Square area are super student-y but have some great clubs and bars.
Covent garden is nice walking through in the evenings, old cobble streets with street musicians and performers drawing crowds all the time.
St. James' Park, Hyde Park...all the parks are lovely too, but y'know when the weather decides to be nice. They are sprawling parks too, it's great to just chill there in the summer and watch life go by. Also you get to feed super friendly squirrels, who doesn't want to do that?!
Damn, I miss London lol. I need to move back ASAP.
Yeah, also fuck the London Eye, it sucks ass.
Star Falcon
Member
If you are interested in Military History I would recommend a trip to the Imperial War Museum (very close to Lambeth North tube station) and HMS Belfast (next to Tower Bridge).
Soho is great - lots of great little pubs down there that do good Ales, Porters & Stouts. Avoid the ones that have got people piling out the doors and go for the quieter ones - the Glasshouse on Brewer Street is a favourite of mine.
There are so many restaurants, if you are feeling bold and like Chinese food then Wong Kei is pretty hilarious - but the food is good and very affordable for central London. 5 minutes walk from Piccadilly Circus.
As for the usual tourist stuff - i'd personally recommend the Heritage stuff like the Tower of London and Houses of Parliament over overpriced stuff like the London Eye which will be not great at this time of year as its pretty cloudy. If you are going to go up high for some views on a clear day, i'd recommend the observation decks at either the Heron Tower or Centre Point as they aren't as expensive as The Shard.
Well those are just a few ideas on stuff to do.
(source: I live and work in London).
Soho is great - lots of great little pubs down there that do good Ales, Porters & Stouts. Avoid the ones that have got people piling out the doors and go for the quieter ones - the Glasshouse on Brewer Street is a favourite of mine.
There are so many restaurants, if you are feeling bold and like Chinese food then Wong Kei is pretty hilarious - but the food is good and very affordable for central London. 5 minutes walk from Piccadilly Circus.
As for the usual tourist stuff - i'd personally recommend the Heritage stuff like the Tower of London and Houses of Parliament over overpriced stuff like the London Eye which will be not great at this time of year as its pretty cloudy. If you are going to go up high for some views on a clear day, i'd recommend the observation decks at either the Heron Tower or Centre Point as they aren't as expensive as The Shard.
Well those are just a few ideas on stuff to do.
(source: I live and work in London).
Yes and after seeing those building go eat fish and chips on the pub where watson and crick announced the discovery of DNA.
Thanks for all the tips guys! Also, are there any places I should steer clear of or be cautious of at night times and whatnot?
Always up for good Chinese, but what's hilarious about it? Their website didn't say very much, heh.
George Oscar Bluth II
Banned
This this this. The waiters can be ridiculously rude and give you the weirdest seating but it can be worth it.
Some of West London such as Acton, Ealing and some parts of Hammersmith. Some parts of Soho seem a little dodgy too.
Kensington is nice to walk through, Holland Park is there.
I'm from London (though I just moved to Japan). Ok, listen carefully...
There are two type of Oyster Cards, there is the usual Top-Up Oyster Card and there is one that you can purchase to use for one week (you can also get a monthly but you are only staying for one week anyway). One week Oyster card is FAR CHEAPER than a Top-Up Oyster Card, and the only way you can get a one week Oyster Card is by getting a local person to get it for you. Do you have any friends or relatives in London that can do that for you before you arrive?
Also, since you are planing to go around London, MAKE SURE you get a zone 1-4 weekly Oyster Card. It actually goes up to Zone 1-6 but from I imagine you will be doing, you will NOT need that many zones.
Also, MAKE SURE you download and recognise the zones on the London Underground and Bus Route Map. London heavily generate money based on penalising people (e.g. if you go pass your stop or, more likely, forget to press your card on the Oyster machine, then a mean conductor will make you pay a £5 penalty fee or more). Get more info here: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/modalpages/2625.aspx
February WILL be cold so please prepare for that.
Places to visit - put Greenwich on your list on top of the others. Go there on Sunday morning as the market will be open. My highest personal recommendation there is Thai: look out for a Thai stall and get a very large green curry, beef and rice. Trust me, that stall serves the BEST Thai food in South East london. Really trust me as I know thoroughly. That will make your weekend quite solid as you'll be in Borough Market on Saturday and Greenwich Market on Sunday. Not that Greenwich market is VERY small, however, you'll be setting yourself for the day as you'll eat from the stall, see around greenwich park, then move to other places such as the O2 dome, Canary Wharf, travel on the river boat as so on.
- Also remember that party days in London is Thursday, Friday and Saturday night, so on those days especially, make sure you go to the West End (Piccadilly Circus, Oxford Street, Leicester Square) and have a good party time.
Make sure you go to China Town for some really good Chinese food. Golden Corner is a good place which is right on the corner next to the gate near to HSBC bank on the make section. You can't miss it as there are only two gates in China town.
Lastly, if you can, try to stay in london longer than one week as one week is too short for a holiday.
Johnlenham
Member
I would just buy a weekly travel card zone 1-3. Unlimited and you know the cost up front.
Corsica Studios in Elephant and Castle is a great small club.
Fire/Light Box in Vuxhall can be good
Brixton has Plan B but ive yet to go myself.
Village Underground in Old Street is pretty decent.
Corsica Studios in Elephant and Castle is a great small club.
Fire/Light Box in Vuxhall can be good
Brixton has Plan B but ive yet to go myself.
Village Underground in Old Street is pretty decent.
You can get a drink in the pub where Tolkien and C.S. Lewis used to hang out.
Maybe I'm just biased because the only time I went to Cambridge was for a pretty poor interview for an internship and it's a nightmare to get to on the train from the west.
EDIT: This thread is rebuilding my excitement for moving to London later this year.
TheHollowNight
Member
London, for the most part, is very safe. You're unlikely to have the time to wander into some of the rougher suburbs. If you do, don't venture too far into proper Hackney or Aldgate, can get pretty dodgy there sometimes. Camden can get a little crazy at night, but it's alright to be honest, Brixton too. I'd avoid Tottenham, Peckham & Croydon maybe.
Johnlenham
Member
Nah Brixton and Peckham are fine, unless you are roaming around at like 4am with all the other pissed up people!
Brixton also has Brixton village which is aammaaazzzzzzing for food. Bets pizza in london also.
I was staying in Lambeth and was out pretty late some nights and never felt unsafe. You sometimes get some people who are pretty drunk walking around later at night and making a lot of noise but they left me alone.
I do not have anyone in London that I know at the moment, only outside of it, and I don't think they'd be cool with going in just to give me an Oyster card.
A lot of people have been recommending the weekly card. Is there no way to get one online or anything?
This is duly noted. Thanks!
Prepared from my core.
I'll definitely see if I can get to Greenwich for a day. Seems like my trip will be filled with burgers and Asian food at this point, but hey, I'm not complaining. If I drop by there I'll look for the Thai.
Good to know!
Whereabouts is China Town? Love to give that a visit. Also going to check out "Korea Town."
Maybe my next go-round haha. A week is all I have time/money for right now unfortunately.
Snowing?
- Status