Hello from London. I have tourists tell me all the time that they end up booking tickets for things that, at the end of the day, they realize weren’t really worth it, or they had to stand in line for a long time to get in, or they just didn’t really feel like they enjoyed it. .
That’s because a lot of people come here and don’t know about the things you should do, but you also don’t know the things you shouldn’t do while you’re here.
So in this ARTICLE, I'm going to tell you five things that I think you should avoid when you're in London, and also some great options that I think you'll enjoy it even better.
Let's start with the view from the shard.
The Shard, behind me, is the tallest building in Western Europe. You can pay £32 per person for a ticket to visit the Shard, which of course has amazing views over London. It’s obviously the highest place in London where you can get a view, but you’re going to pay that ticket amount and you basically go there, get your pictures and say I’ve got a good option for you.
Instead, go a few floors down in the same building and book a table at Gang, a luxurious Chinese-inspired cocktail bar where you’ll get a view almost identical to that of the Shard. But instead if you’re only paying for the ticket, you can take that money and get yourself a cocktail.
And they have really good cocktails here. But if you’re taking the kids and you don’t want to take them to the bar, that’s fine.
You are instead at a restaurant in the Shard called TING
One can book for a special afternoon tea in the sky. Afternoon tea is amazing here. Highly recommended. Have you ever been on one of those hop on hop off tours? With those big buses, full of open-top tourists who are just lounging around to see the biggest tourist attractions?
Well, you can, but at £41 a ticket, it’s probably going to be a bit steep for you.
So instead, I have a much cheaper option. You can actually hop on one of our public red double decker buses and get a very similar vibe, but for just £1.65 per journey.
In fact, if you take route 11, it passes loads of central London’s main attractions. So you can hop on and hop off as you please, or sit on the bus and walk around until you make a big circle.
Back to the things you should avoid and what you should do instead.
Let's talk about Leicester Square.
It’s interesting that it’s right in the middle of London, between Pig and Dilly Circus, Covent Garden, Chinatown and all these other areas. And it’s an area worth avoiding entirely. It’s a soulless square covered in international food chains, quirky brands, casinos and even an M&M store.
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Instead, step Soho,
Which is one of the busiest, quietest areas in London. Also steps away is China Chinatown, where you can eat really well, drink really well. We’ve actually got a whole video telling you how to spend an entire day in Chinatown, which you can watch later if you want some ideas for what to do there. In short, there are many other interesting areas very close to Leicester Square, so you can avoid it entirely while you’re here. Here are four attractions in London that are often bundled together in this ticket bundle that’s frankly terrible. They are soulless, they are experiences you can have in other parts of the world.
They’re not particularly London-centric, and they’re really expensive. I call them the Frightful Four.
And the dreaded four are the London dungeons,
Shrek’s Great Adventure, London Aquarium and that terrifying wax museum, Madame Tussauds. There are so many better things you can spend your money on in London, so I’m going to tell you four good ways to spend £30 to £40 per ticket for the Frightful Four.
booking afternoon tea.
That’s all well and good, except for one, you’ll have to pay up to £36 per person to get it. Two, even if you have a reserved time slot, you still have to queue. And three, you’re stuck in this capsule with 25 other people for 30 minutes. Instead, a great alternative is the SkyGarden. At 160 meters or 525 feet above the ground, it is actually 25 meters higher than the London Eye.
see some live jazz by Ronnie Scott.
The Skygarden is London’s tallest garden, and one of the tallest viewpoints in all of the city, with 360-degree views of the city’s skyline. And the best part is that it is completely free to visit. You just need to make a reservation in advance, which they book quickly. So make sure you do them soon. Or if you don’t manage to get a reservation, you can try walking in on the day and see if they have any space. I hope this helps you avoid the not-so-good and do better things when you’re in London.
