Top Things to Do in London in 1 Day: a Travel Guide
I should probably stay in London longer than 24 hours. But, since I work with the short time I have to travel, I try to make layovers count. We had nearly a 24 hour layover in London after our trip to Greece.
Of course we could have taken a quicker trip back to the States, but my mom always dreamed of getting to go to London. So, I opted for making sure we got a full day there so she was able to explore the city.
Perhaps my favorite part about London is taking the Underground. This is so much more exciting than taking private transportation. You get to feel like you’re really a part of the city rather than just an observer. You get to purchase your Oyster card, hear the famous “Mind the Gap,” and rush through the station like a busy Londoner.
So, we flew on Ryanair (gotta save that money!) from Athens to London Stansted airport. Here’s the thing: I have a great friend who lives in London. I planned out what I wanted to do, but he added that local flair to the itinerary. And, he helped us navigate around the city so that we were able to see more!
TIP:
You don’t need a local guide to make it work. But, I would say if you wanted to maximize your time there, you should prepare what you want to do. Learn how the Underground lines work and run. Make sure you understand where things are in relation to each other. This way, you can make a logical itinerary that flows.
Yes, this is a very touristy itinerary of what to do in London. But, if you only have one day and want to visit all of the places you have seen in movies or read about in history books, this is a great start. Hopefully, it will let you see all of the “tourist attractions” so that when (yes, when) you visit London the next time, you can explore lesser known places.
STOP 1: Piccadilly Circus & Chinatown Gate
Think Times Square in New York City – that’s what Piccadilly Circus is on a smaller level. It’s a big intersection and busy road with giant billboards and neon signs. Since it is so famous, there are a lot of restaurants and shops there that you can stop in at. Or, you can just walk through and admire the tall buildings and the modern feel in such a historic city.
Only a short walk away, you will come across Chinatown. It’s worth it to take this path just to get to see the large and vibrant traditional gate right in the heart of London.
STOP 2: Leicester Square
I had never heard of this before going to London. But, my friend and local guide has told me I had to go there both times I’ve been to London. While it’s not a “local secret,” perhaps it’s a lesser known area for many tourists who don’t know a lot about London.
Just a quick search though, and you will see that it is home to many theaters, restaurants, and shops. It even has a LEGO store and also M&M World – which I’ve now gone in both times I’ve been to London.
M&M World is bright and colorful and a dream for anyone who loves M&M’s. If you like aesthetically pleasing things, there is a floor to ceiling display of every color of M&Ms in perfect order. You can fill up your own bag from it! Anyway, enough about M&M World.
Leicester Square also has a small park in the middle if you like greenery in a city. It is essentially just a casual and relaxed place to walk around and grab some food. We ended up grabbing a quick bite at a small cafe on a corner and people watched until we had to keep moving. We were on a tight schedule!
STOP 3: Trafalgar Square
There are a lot of squares in London, but Trafalgar Square is quite famous. With a massive statue and two large fountains, the square is really open with loads of people walking around.
There are artists singing, drawing with chalk, or walking around in costumes just having fun. But, this is also a place where people gather for rallies or protests. It is surrounded by historical buildings and also the massive National Gallery. It has both significance and people watching, what more could you ask for?
STOP 4: Phone Booth & Horse Guards
You can’t come to London without taking a picture in a red phone booth. I don’t care how much you say you don’t want to, you have to do it. They are lining the streets in different areas. We found one on our walk to our tour (which I will explain next), which happened to be right next to the Horse Guards.
You see them on movies, but we just stumbled upon them. And yes, they are as serious as you think. Make sure to check the times of the changing of the guard if this is a must-do item on your list. This way you can plan to see this well-known ceremony!
STOP 5: Red Bus Tour & Boat Tour
I know, I know. I am not one to typically do extremely touristy things in a city. It’s a little cringe-y, but with such a short amount of time here, this was honestly the perfect match. My mom loves history and wanted to really get to see a lot more of the city since we only had 1 day. Also, don’t lie, you know you’ve always wanted to go on a classic double decker red bus.
When you search for “red bus tour and boat tour London,” click on the website for Visit Britain Shop. We did the “Red London Bus Tour.” It only costs $41, which is actually a steal, since it is a 3.5 hour tour!
This breaks down to being around 2 hours on the bus and about an hour on the boat on the River Thames. That leaves about 30 minutes to walk from where the bus stops to the dock where the boat leaves.
On the bus, you drive past many major sites, but the more significant ones are: Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, House of Parliament, London Eye, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and the Tower of London. If you finish early like we did, they will improvise and take you to other areas and noteworthy neighborhoods!
On the boat tour, you will get to see and go under the Tower Bridge, Millenium Bridge, and the London Bridge. It’s fun getting to see a completely different view of the city from the water.
This tour is great for seeing the famous sights in London. But, you also get to learn about the history of these sights and what they’re like now. While it is a touristy thing to do, it is not so touristy to actually start to understand more about London than what you see on movies or TV shows.
STOP 6: Abbey Road
Next up, this was a must-do on our list. It is definitely not in the typical walkable area in London. But, if you take the Underground on a fairly short ride, you will get to the Abbey Road stop. Once you get off on that stop, you’ll just walk a few short blocks to the famous Abbey Road crosswalk from the Beatles album cover.
It’s quite difficult to get a picture here, because so many people want that classic picture crossing the crosswalk, Only one person or group can go at a time, and you have to do it while not getting hit by a car!
Not that the cars will hit you or that it is an insanely busy intersection. But, there will be cars, and you can only make the cars wait so long for you to get your picture. Make sure you either have someone to take your picture or that you ask someone so you can’t get that good shot!
After that, walk down the road a little bit to see the Abbey Road Studios and the Abbey Road Shop. You can see the building of the actual studios where countless musicians have recorded as well as get to peruse through the gift shop and buy the coolest knickknacks and souvenirs to take home.
STOP 7: Fish & Chips
After this, your dinner has to be fish and chips. If you only have one day in London, you simply have to eat fish and chips (and chips = fries if you didn’t already know). Sure, maybe there’s another dish you want, but if you eat at the place I’m about to tell you, you’ll be happy it was fish and chips.
It’s a spot a little ways outside of the city, in Enfield. It’s a hole in the wall, but as you know, hole in the wall restaurants are always the best. I have searched and searched to find the name since then. All I can find is the general address where my photo is tagged. On my Photos on my iPhone, it is tagged at 26 Chalkwell Park Ave, Enfield, England. Go there. You won’t regret it.
You will have to park in a grocery store parking lot and then walk to it, but I’ve never had better fish and chips. Neither had my mom or my sister. It was the most massive plate of food, and I couldn’t even come close to finishing it. We were in heaven, especially after being so active the whole day. I definitely recommend finding this place. And if you do, please let me know the name of it!
Airport Hotel and Home
That night after eating our body weight in fish and chips, we went to our hotel and crashed. Since we flew in to London that morning and had to fly out the next morning, we got the best hotel for our needs. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express London Heathrow T4.
This hotel was super nice, had a complimentary breakfast the next morning, and was connected to the airport which made for such an easy morning getting to our flight.
Sadly, this meant that our whole trip was over now, so we flew out of London and to Chicago, where we picked up our car and drove back to Nashville. It was one heck of a trip, but getting to see London again and getting to see my mom seeing London for the first time made it worth it to add that extra stop!
For an overview of our whole trip, read:
Greece and London Itinerary and Planning a Trip
For more on London, read:
Iceland and London in One Week
