highlights london city walks - lonely...

Experience the best of London

Discover

LondonPULL-OUT MAP

HIGHLIGHTS

LOCAL EXPERTS

CITY WALKS

I SBN 978 -1 -74220 -585 -4

9 781742 205854

99125

2ND EDITIONPublished June 2012First Published Jan 2011

USA $21.99UK £14.99

Clerkenwell,Hoxton &

Spitalfields(p163)

Kensington &Hyde Park

(p141)

The City(p93)

The East End &Docklands

(p179)

Greenwich(p217)

The West End(p47)

Hampstead &North London

(p195)

TheSouth Bank

(p119)

Our promiseYou can trust our travel information because Lonely Planet authors visit the places we write about, each and every edition. We never accept freebies for positive coverage so you can rely on us to tell it like it is.

Experience the best of LondonWestminster Abbey, Tate Modern, the Tower of London – we’ve selected the most iconic sights and the top experiences so you can enjoy the real London with the minimum of fuss.

puts the streets of London in your pocket

PULL-OUT MAP

recommend what not to miss

LOCAL EXPERTS

CITY WALKSlet you discover the city on foot

reveal the must-see attractions and unbeatable experiences

HIGHLIGHTS

LondonD

iscover

WITHPULL-OUT

MAP

discover-london-2-cover.indd 1 8/03/2012 1:01:10 PM

IContents

This edition written and researched by

Damian Harper,Steve Fallon, Emilie Filou,

Vesna Maric, Sally Schafer

Experience the best of London

London Discover

00-title-contents-dc-lon2.indd 1 1/03/2012 12:54:54 PM

The City (p 93 ) Almost two millennia of history plus many of Lon-don’s must-see sights.

Don’t Miss: Tower of London, St Paul’s Cathedral

The West End (p 47 ) Where your London adventure begins.

Don’t Miss: Westminster Abbey, British Museum, Buckingham Palace, Houses of Parliament

The South Bank (p 119 ) The roll-call of riverside sights includes Shake-speare’s Globe and Millennium Bridge.

Don’t Miss: Tate Modern

Clerkenwell, Hoxton & Spitalfi elds (p 163 ) Great food and an even better night out.

Kensington & Hyde Park (p 141 ) Superb museums and beautiful parks in a high-class setting.

Don’t Miss: Victoria & Albert Museum

Discover London


Greenwich (p 217 ) The home of world time is steeped in maritime history.

Don’t Miss: Royal Observatory & Greenwich Park

Hampstead & North London (p 195 ) Wild expanses of heath and bustling markets guarantee a glorious day out.

Don’t Miss: British Library

The East End & Docklands (p 179 ) This diverse neighbour-hood is undergoing massive regeneration courtesy of the Olympic Games.

Clerkenwell,Hoxton &

Spitalfields(p163)

Kensington &Hyde Park

(p141)

The City(p93)

The East End &Docklands

(p179)

Greenwich(p217)

The West End(p47)

Hampstead &North London

(p195)

TheSouth Bank

(p119)


Contents

The West End 47Highlights ..................... 48Walking Tour ................ 50Westminster Abbey ... 52British Museum .......... 54Buckingham Palace ... 56Houses of Parliament .. 58Sights ........................... 60 Eating.............................77Drinking & Nightlife ..... 83Entertainment ..............87Shopping ...................... 88

The City 93Highlights ..................... 94Walking Tour ................ 96Tower of London ........ 98St Paul’s Cathedral ...102Sights ..........................104Eating........................... 113Drinking & Nightlife .... 115Entertainment ............ 116Shopping ......................117

The South Bank 119Highlights ....................120Walking Tour ...............122Tate Modern ..............124Sights ..........................128Eating...........................135Drinking & Nightlife ....136Entertainment ............ 137

Kensington & Hyde Park 141Highlights ....................142Walking Tour ...............144Victoria & Albert Museum......................146Sights ..........................148Eating........................... 157Drinking & Nightlife ....159Entertainment ............159Shopping .....................160

Clerkenwell, Hoxton & Spitalfi elds 163Highlights ....................164Walking Tour ...............166Sights ..........................168Eating........................... 172Drinking & Nightlife .... 174Entertainment ............ 177Shopping ..................... 177

The East End & Docklands 179Highlights ....................180Walking Tour ...............182Sights ..........................184Eating...........................189Drinking & Nightlife .... 191Entertainment ............192Shopping .....................193

Welcome to London .....6

Highlights Map .............8

London’s Top 25 Experiences ...10

Top Days in London .. 32

Month by Month ........40

What’s New ................. 42

Get Inspired ............... 43

Need to Know ............44

Plan Your Trip Discover London


Hampstead & North London 195Highlights ....................196Walking Tour ...............198British Library ..........200Sights ......................... 202Eating.......................... 206Drinking & Nightlife .... 211Entertainment ............213Shopping .....................214

Greenwich 217Highlights ....................218Walking Tour .............. 220Royal Observatory & Greenwich Park ........ 222Sights ......................... 224Eating.......................... 226Drinking & Nightlife ... 228Entertainment ........... 229Shopping .....................231

Day Trips 233

London Today ............ 244 History ........................ 246 Family Travel .............. 252 Food & Drink .............. 254 Architecture ............... 258 Literary London ......... 262 The Arts ..................... 266 Shopping ..................... 271

Sleeping ......................274Transport ................... 280Directory .................... 284

Behind theScenes .......................289

Index ..........................294

Map Legend ..............303

Survival GuideIn Focus Survival GuideIn Focus


Welcome to London

London’s energy and dynamism can be felt

on every street

corner

The British capital is a buzzing byword for variety and entertainment – its iconic sights are outstanding, its royal splendour and historic grandeur are unmatched, and its nightlife is second to none. London’s energy and dyna-mism can be felt on every street corner.

London is a city everyone seems to know before visiting. Its instantly recognisable icons – the red postboxes, the double-decker buses, the guards at Buckingham Palace – are all present and very correct, but the city usually surprises first-time visitors by being anything but the stuffy, ordered capital of popular rumour. Instead, an exciting metropolis with rich veins of culture, art and commerce awaits exploration. A tireless innovator, London is a city of ideas and the imagination, with a stimulating backdrop of creativity and modernity.

For sightseeing, it’s often hard to know where to start. Sights are largely jammed together centrally, so you could virtually spin a bottle and take your pick. The Roman-founded square mile known as the City of London is a natural choice, home to the imposing Tower of London, historic St Paul’s Cathedral, numerous ancient churches, cobbled side streets and hidden treasures.

The West End is London’s contempo-rary heart. It will have sightseers doing cartwheels, shoppers in seventh heaven and gastronomes not far behind. Royal Mayfair and political Westminster next door are the playgrounds of the city’s elite, packed with impressive stately homes and the world’s most famous parliament building.

Find time for the little things that make London great. A pint in a pub, a plate of fish and chips by the river, a day out with friends in one of London’s expansive wooded parks, a rocking night out in Shoreditch or Soho or a canal-side walk in north London. This is one of the world’s great cities and your only prob-lem may be wishing you had time to see it all.

Traditional red phone booths near the Houses of Parliament (p 58 ) KMIRAGAYA/DREAMSTIME ©

6

01-welcome-to-dc-lon2.indd 6 1/03/2012 1:18:21 PM

01-welcome-to-dc-lon2.indd 7 1/03/2012 1:18:24 PM

highlights london city walks - lonely...

Documents