London travel guide

Plan your trip, step by step

• Where to stay
  Choose a base district and a hotel vs a rental.
• Things to do
  Decide which tickets, tours and theatre to pre-book.
• London in 3 days
  Follow a plan that groups Westminster, the City and the museums sensibly.
• Estimate your trip cost
  See what a London trip costs and set your style.
• First-timer mistakes to avoid
  Sidestep the errors that trip up first-time London visitors.
• London on a budget
  See what a lean, comfortable or generous day really costs.

The neighborhoods at a glance

Covent Garden & Soho (West End)

Known for theatres, restaurants, the piazza street performers and the densest walk-everywhere stretch of central London.

Westminster & St James’s

Known for the Abbey, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace and the royal parks — the postcard government-and-monarchy quarter.

South Bank & Bankside

Known for the riverside walk from the London Eye past Tate Modern and Shakespeare’s Globe to Borough Market.

Kensington & South Kensington

Known for three free national museums on one street (Natural History, Science, V&A), Hyde Park and grand white-stucco terraces.

Shoreditch & the East End

Known for street art, Brick Lane, Columbia Road’s Sunday flower market and London’s liveliest bar and food scene.

King’s Cross & Bloomsbury

Known for the British Museum, the regenerated canal-side Coal Drops Yard and the Eurostar terminal at St Pancras.

Deciding where to base yourself? The where-to-stay guide turns these areas into a lodging decision.

When to go — month by month

Average daytime high (bars) and rainy days per month, from 5-year climate normals. Greener months are the most comfortable to visit.

Best months to visit: May–Sep

Destinations with a similar climate

Like London’s weather? These places have the closest year-round climate in our data — tap through for each one’s best time to visit.

• Antwerp →
• Bruges →
• Brussels →
• Paris →
• Cologne →
• Amsterdam →

Know before you go

Currency

Pound sterling (£). Contactless card and phone payments are the default everywhere — many cafés and market stalls no longer take cash at all. Displayed prices include VAT; what you see is what you pay.

From the airport

From Heathrow: the Elizabeth line (~£15.50 contactless, ~35 min to central), the Piccadilly line (£5.90, ~55 min) or the Heathrow Express (£26 walk-up, from £10 booked well ahead, 15 min to Paddington only). From Gatwick: Thameslink trains (~£12–15) or the pricier Gatwick Express to Victoria. Check which airport you actually land at — they are far apart.

Getting around

Tap a contactless card or phone on the Tube, buses and Elizabeth line — no ticket needed, and daily charges cap automatically (Zone 1–2 cap ~£8.90; buses are a flat £1.75 with free changes within an hour). Use the TfL Go or Citymapper apps. Central districts are closer together than the Tube map implies — walk when you can.

Best time

May–September brings the mildest weather (roughly 17–25°C) and the biggest crowds and prices, with June–August the peak. December is expensive but festive; January–February are the cheapest months. Light rain is possible in any month — pack for drizzle, not downpours.

Eating & tipping

Most sit-down restaurants add a 12.5% service charge to the bill automatically — check before tipping on top. Pubs don’t expect tips at the bar. Supermarket meal deals (~£4–5) and market stalls keep lunch cheap even in Zone 1.

Museums & money

General admission to the national museums — British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Modern, Natural History, Science Museum, V&A — is free; only special exhibitions charge. The big paid sights (Tower of London ~£35–37, Westminster Abbey ~£30, St Paul’s ~£27, London Eye from ~£29 online) are cheaper booked online in advance.

For the best months to visit and a day-by-day plan, see London in 3 days.