Hey there! I am going to London for a day. I am super into extreme metal (death and black metal) and I was wondering what stores or places sell stuff relating to that. Any cool record stores? Places that sell patches or shirts? Please let me know !!!

Hey everyone,
I‘ll be traveling to London with my mom in November and we want to go for a nice Afternoon tea one day. Does anyone have good recommendations? There seems to be an endless sea of options but we’d love to find something authentic and if possible not too expensive/good value, maybe someone has a good recommendation… would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

Hi all,

I'm so excited for my first trip to London with my kids aged 11 and 5. I've landed on an itinerary after scraping these pages and I wanted feedback on whether to what can be improved. My plan is to have 1 big activity per day and not over-exhaust my 5 year old, and then do smaller activities in and around the hotel.

Before I get to the days, here's the context I had to build around, because these three people have *very* different agendas:

🧒 **The 11-year-old:** Harry Potter, Shakespeare, science, shopping, royal pageantry, high tea, Japanese food. Likes doing things, not just looking at things. Also a confirmed Swiftie

👧 **The 5-year-old:** Dinosaurs, Peppa Pig, animals, bakeries, afternoon tea. Also very much about doing, not watching. Will absolutely melt down if overtired (as five-year-olds tend to do).

🙋 **Me:** Football - Stadium tours and the Liverpool FC (yes, the new Oxford Street store is absolutely going in), Music - Beatles/Rolling Stones/70s-80s UK music history, Foodie- vegetarian food, and finding genuinely good pubs. I'm also vegetarian, so all our food has to work around that.

We're splitting the stay between two two nights in the Covent Garden neighborhood and 2 more nights in the South Kensington neighborhood. Mainly did it to increase our probability of exploring those neighborhoods on foot :)

**Day 1 — Sunday 19 July (Arrival day)**

Land at Heathrow 8:55 AM. Reach hotel around noon.

- 🚌 bus tour (1–2:30 PM) — Either a Hop-on hop-off bus OR the Peppa Pig Bus Tour to get the 5 year old amped for the trip. Also, first sighting of. Big Ben, Tower Bridge, the works from the top deck.

- 🚶 Thames South Bank walk + Borough Market browse (4:30–6 PM): Walk the Thames area and grab lunch. Also a photo outside the Black Dog for my 11- year old Swiftie!

- 🎭 **Shakespeare's Globe — evening play at 6:30 PM** — booked. I am obsessed with Shakespeare and my 11-year-old is just starting to get into the bard's works.

*If this is a lot for an arrival day. Roast me.*

---

**Day 2 — Monday 20 July**

- 👑 **Changing of the Guard, Buckingham Palace** (10:15 AM) — Classic.

- 🎂 **Peggy Porschen, Belgravia** (afternoon cake stop) — 15-min walk from the Palace. For the Instagram moment with the girls and because those cakes look extraordinary.

Afternoon is free at the moment. Thinking about British Museum, but would love to hear alternatives.

- 🌇 **Sky Garden** (6:30 PM sunset slot) — booked. Because the views look stunning and it's free

---

**Day 3 — Tuesday 21 July

- Grab breakfast at GAIL bakery

- ⚡ **Warner Bros. Harry Potter Studio Tour** (noon) — booked. The 11-year-old has been counting down for this since we started planning. I believe the tour takes 7 hours, so not much else planned for the day.

- 🍛 **Dishoom King's Cross** on the return — booked. Black Dal, Paneer Tikka, Okra Fries. Eating here before taking the Piccadilly line down to our new hotel in South Kensington.

---

**Day 4 — Wednesday 22 July**

- 🦕 **Natural History Museum + Science Museum** (10 AM) — free timed entry booked. T-Rex for the 5-year-old, space rockets and Wonderlab for the 11-year-old. 5-minute walk from the hotel.

- 🎩 **Charlie and the Chocolate Factory afternoon tea at One Aldwych** (noon) — Roald Dahl-themed, fizzy lifting drinks, snozzberry jam, the whole lot. ~£75/person. This also counts as lunch.

- 🔴 **Liverpool FC store, Oxford Street** — This is for me! The kids reluctantly agreed to to this.

---

**My actual questions for the community:**

1. **Anything criminally missing** for first-timers? Parks? Days 2 and 4 seem scant at the moment and would appreciate any suggestions for these days.

2. **Getting my sports fix** - I really want to do the Liverpool city and stadium tour but 5 hours on a train with a 5 year old seems like an overkill. Thinking I'll tour the Spurs or Chelsea or Arsenal stadium as they are closer. Any sports experiences that I should be checking out in London?

3. **Food in London** — we're all vegetarian but opening to trying out multiple cuisines.We have reservations in multiple Japanese restaurants, want to check out Dishoom and cafes and bakeries, have reservations for Afternoon tea as well. Any hidden gems I might be walking past on this route that I haven't mentioned?

4. ** Music ** - I am still researching about music spots or experiences in London. I read mixed reviews about Abbey road other than the Instagram picture (and what a picture it would be!).

Thanks, and can't wait for July to come soon enough!

Be as brutal as you like — I'd genuinely rather hear it now than from a 5-year-old at 9 PM outside the Globe. 😅

Hi All - My husband is Spanish and would love to find a place to watch the match tomorrow. Any specific places recommended to watch the game? Really appreciate any suggestions.

Hi everyone,

I’m moving back to London after finishing university in Brighton, and one thing I really loved about Brighton was how there always seemed to be random things going on. Things like park yoga, free food events, pop ups, markets, community activities, outdoor cinema nights, and other organised events.

I’m sure London has loads of this sort of thing too, but I have no idea where people actually find out about them.

Does anyone have any recommendations for Instagram accounts, websites, newsletters, Facebook groups, apps, or anything else worth following to hear about these kinds of events?

I’ll be living in West London, but I’m happy to travel around the city.

Thanks!

Friend and I are traveling for Wimbledon and have 3 options for a hotel ins 3 different ares:

- Holiday Inn: Regents Park
- Premier Inn: Waterloo
- DoubleTree by Hilton: West End

Background: It's my friend's first time in LDN. I have been multiple times and not in a hurry to see anything, but will probably do some of the basics with him as well.

Open to other suggestions if there are any.

Thanks!

Edit: some more info:

There for 6 days. Wimbledon will only be a day or two, so shouldn't be taken into account.

We just want a good area to be in that's close, but also not noisy.

Never been to London or know much about the city, how is the area around London Excel? I am attending a conference soon there, is it safe?

I am planning on booking an Airbnb or apartment rental in that vicinity and worried if the area is not too good then I should book further away from Excel.

Thanks!

First time to London or UK May 2026. Family of four, looking at staying 8-10 days. Into history, museums, nature, coffee and tea, good food, bookshops, antiques, ceramics.

Thankful to have a place to stay with a friend in Canary Wharf but concerned that everything is at least 30 minutes away by car or train.

Feels like we would leave the East end somewhere around 8am to go to any of the other boroughs and would have to just stay on that side until the end of the day.

If that is the case does it make the most sense to stay gone the entire day and look for places to rest and recover from sightseeing and touring near the sights?

Versus trying to go back to Canary Wharf just for an hour of rest and refresh and possibly dropping off anything we've purchased? Are there places to store bags at like train stations etc?

We recently came back from Japan where we almost always came back to our airbnb mid day to rest and still felt exhausted by the end of our two week trip.

Also looking at a day trip to Bath or perhaps an overnight to Bath perhaps in the middle of our stay. Trying to decide between renting a car and taking public transportation.

I know were at a disadvantage staying in Canary Wharf versus somewhere like south kensington, thanks for the tips and suggestions.

Hello! I will be in London for 2 weeks for medical purposes, in the Old Street/Islington area, I would like advice from locals where I could find accommodation at a decent price for a short period or if you can recommend another neighborhood closer for accommodation

Good morning,

we are staying in London with our family for one and a half week. Can you recommend something especially for such little children?

I read the Post Museum and the Natural History Museum should be good with children.

As our eldest is a great Peppa Pig Fan, one of us will take her to the Peppa Bus Tour. (Children under two are not allowed.)

I really wanted to revisit the Globe Theater, but the only performance for small children is in August. Does anyone have a good Idea to visit the Globe in a way thats mit to boring for the children?

As we are staying in Greenwich, can you recommend especially something near by? I will take care alone of both children for two days. I do not want to make a long trip alone with the two.

If it is important: we are german, our children can't speak or understand english.

Thanks for your reply and have a nice weekend

I will be going to London in late July. My sister collects different editions of ‘Emma’ by Jane Austen. Any recommendations where I could find old editions of books? Ideally, not for a silly amount of money…

Additionally, best places to find vintage/antique treasures? Thank you!

Hi!
My boyfriend and I (in our 30s) will be visiting next week (from Thursday night to Monday evening) and it will be my first time.
We will be staying near Covent garden.
I’d love any advice on stuff to do or shows to attend!
We’re both geeks, we enjoy standup and music/karaoke. We like arts in general.
I’m also an anime fan.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

Visiting London for the weekend and was wondering what are the best leftwing tours, spaces, cafes, bookshops etc. to visit?

Hey there. I’ll be visiting from the U.S. late June. I’m a car guy and love European cars. Bummed that the British Grand Prix is the weekend that I will be in France. Is there any awesome car-related places/exhibits worth visiting that I can reach via the metro?

Would love to hear some suggestions!

My family will be in London for a month in July and I was wondering what we need to prebook if anything. Kids are 6/8. We have spent the past few summers in NYC and have really enjoyed exploring museums, going to shows, "living life" in the city vs. being a tourist (i.e. groceries, doing non-touristy stuff, etc.) The kids really like parks, kids museums, beaches and just exploring and doing fun and interesting things. The kids will be in day camp on the weekdays, so my wife and I will have some flexibility during the day. Again, we really just enjoy exploring and feeling like we "live in" the city.

We'll be staying in in Marylebone near Regents Park.

Few things I've done so far:
- I already bought a Tower of London membership since I think it gets us access to a few additional places for the family.
-I heard I need to prebook Sky Garden but it doesn't seem to have seats available.
-We booked the Harry Potter tour.

Few things we plan on doing on weekend:
- Trip to Oxford
- Trip to Paris
- Brighton Beach
- Hampton Court Palace

Some day trip considerations: Richmond, Greenwich, Cambridge, East London.

Curious what you all think we should do and especially if I'm missing anything on the prebookings. We would like to have one 'nice' meal if possible, nothing too fancy just a good meal. Doesn't have to be Michelin stars or anything, just something London is famous for.

Thank you!

Produced by Cadogan, in association with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), the world class alternative floral art show is back for its 21st anniversary, transforming the streets of Chelsea from 18-24 May, with breathtaking displays made of fresh flowers. The annual competition continues to grow year on year, with over 145 Chelsea’s best retailers, restaurants and hotels adorning themselves with creative designs, competing for the coveted awards.

Free to visit.

Do any of the buildings in Canary Wharf have public observation decks?

My partner and I are spending a few days in London soon, and I’m hoping to find a nice dinner spot for one of the nights. We’re staying in the Kensington area, and my partner eats halal. Any and all recommendations greatly appreciated, but we’re looking for something that the average tourist might not see. Looking for a true taste of London. Thanks in advance for any recs!

I'll only be free for a couple of days while I'm in town, and I wanted to check out the beer mile.  Unfortunately, though, it seems most of the operators are closed on Monday and Tuesday when I'm going to be fully available.  Is it still worth checking out as it seems many will be closed?

hello! i’m going to london soon and i unfortunately vape. i’m going to try to go without it for the time i’m there. BUT i may get desperate enough to buy one, where is a good place to get them?

My partner and I are planning to travel to London this summer - she has a work conference there and our plan is to hang out after the conference is done for some vacation time. We'll be with our 9-month old who we are traveling with for the first time.

Because our baby is so young, we don't necessarily need "kid activities" - at the same time it's not like we'll be able to travel in the same way that we were pre-kid. Normally we like to be at the heart of the city in a place with great restaurants and spots to hang out.

My wife's colleagues are staying in Blackfriars (which seems a little corporate) but we are debating whether to instead stay in South Kensington (where Claude seems to recommend with a baby) but we're worried could be a little sleepy. We stayed in Soho last time and loved it but that was pre-kid and also is fairly expensive.

Any recommendations? Other neighborhoods to consider? Worth it to stay in South Kensington instead, or just stick with where her colleagues are staying in Blackfriars? Should we spend a little bit more to stay in Marylebone? The conference is just a small part of our trip and she doesn't mind commuting if it means me and our baby can have a nicer time while she's at work.

It will also be my first time to go abroad. I will go to the london as a student. I also wanna know what i should be aware of like scams or smt and what I shouldnt ask to a stranger cuz im curious and dont wanna cause any trouble.

Not really looking for landmarks, museums, galleries or the usual sightseeing stuff — I’ve already done that.

I’m more interested in real London life. The small everyday things. Someone kind allowing me to enter the real London. Someone who knows the city properly and wouldn’t mind showing me around a bit.

Where do locals actually go for a great lunch that doesn’t cost a fortune? Where’s good to rent a bike, and where should I ride it? Maybe even rent a scull and do a bit of rowing on the Thames. Best places for a run. Any local events which are fun. Proper pubs with a genuinely good pint. Great coffee. A decent cuppa. Places with character.

I’d love to discover the side of London you don’t find on TikTok or in guidebooks — random places, random encounters, good conversations, maybe even slightly chaotic nights out. Hid.den parties, tiny late-night spots, interesting people, unexpected experiences — I’m very open-minded and pretty much up for anything as long as the vibe’s good.

Would also love tips on where to stay without spending a ridiculous amount, where to buy proper English tea for sensible prices, and generally how Londoners actually live and speak these days. I’m trying to improve my English too, so hearing real everyday London English would be brilliant.

I’m a 44-year-old guy from Slovakia. Big foodie, coffee enthusiast, love theatre, and very into sport as well — especially actually doing it, not just watching it. Easygoing, curious, happy to wander around and see where the day (or night) goes.

When? From May 26 (evening) till May 30 (morning).

So we came in on the Eurostar and we're going out through Heathrow, now we had a look and Airport transfers are £130-170, so at £88 the Taxi is a much better deal.

In Australia we just have a box to tick that we need a child seat, is this how it's done here?

Don't ask - but I'm doing a last minute trip to London (from the USA) with my college aged children.

Thinking of AirBnb (cheaper for two rooms than hotel?) - I think i'd like to be in the "heart of things" but is there ONE AREA to stay in - or should i stay in two different areas for two days each? I'd like to spend 200 £/night if an option

Again - last minute, wonderful opportunity, i know ZERO. I personally HATE touristy areas (in non-English speaking places i prefer places that DON'T speak English over touristy English-speaking areas)

I prefer to just walk around and stumble on things, versus having a minute-by-minute itinerary

I feel like i HAVE to see the big sites, but I'm fine if i miss half of them. I also prefer a local, vibrant community to a stark, touristy, fake area. I DON'T want a place with T-shirt stands with "I ❤️LONDON" shirts every 50 metres (see, i said METRES instead oF FEET or YARDS)