Things to do in London right now
London rewards people who plan around the sky. The big free museums soak up a wet afternoon, the river and the parks are unbeatable on the first warm day of the year, and after dark the city switches to bars, theatres and lit-up bridges. This list is re-ordered for the weather and the time in London right now.
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Live: knows the sky and the clock in London. Answers only from the 34 places on this site.
British Museum
Bloomsbury
Two million years of human history under one glass roof, free to enter.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Hampstead Heath and Parliament Hill
Hampstead
Wild heathland, swimming ponds and the classic skyline view from Parliament Hill.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Natural History Museum
South Kensington
Dinosaurs, the blue whale and a cathedral of a building, free to enter.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Sky Garden
City of London
A free indoor garden and viewing gallery at the top of the Walkie Talkie.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Free, but book a slot
South Bank walk
South Bank
The riverside from Westminster Bridge to Tower Bridge, with the skyline the whole way.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Tate Modern
Bankside
Modern art in a former power station, with a free viewing level over the river.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Half a day
Free; special exhibitions are ticketed
Borough Market
Southwark
London's great food market, mostly under cover beside London Bridge.
- Under £10
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
Free to wander; budget for lunch
Tower of London
Tower Hill
A thousand-year-old fortress with the Crown Jewels and the Yeoman Warder tours.
- Over £25
- In and out
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Greenwich Park and the Meridian
Greenwich
A royal park with the best view in south London, the Observatory and the Cutty Sark below.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Park free; Observatory and Cutty Sark ticketed
National Gallery
Trafalgar Square
Van Gogh, Turner and Vermeer on Trafalgar Square, free, open late on Fridays.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Primrose Hill and Regent's Park
Primrose Hill
A short climb to the classic skyline view, with the rose gardens and canal below.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Richmond Park
Richmond
The biggest royal park, with herds of wild deer and a protected view of St Paul’s.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Science Museum
South Kensington
Rockets, steam engines and hands-on galleries; the best wet-day museum for children.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Half a day
- Good with kids
Free; Wonderlab and IMAX ticketed
Shoreditch and Brick Lane
Shoreditch
Street art, vintage shops, curry houses and the bars that keep going until late.
Free.
- Free
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
St James's Park and Buckingham Palace
Westminster
Pelicans on the lake, the palace at one end and Horse Guards at the other.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
V&A
South Kensington
Art, design and fashion across seven miles of galleries, with Friday lates.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Half a day
Kew Gardens
Richmond
Three hundred acres of botanic garden with Victorian glasshouses and a treetop walkway.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- A full day
- Good with kids
St Paul's Cathedral
City of London
Wren's dome, the Whispering Gallery and a climb to a view over the City.
- Over £25
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Free to attend a service
Thames river bus
The river
The commuter boat that doubles as the cheapest sightseeing cruise in London.
- Under £10
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Tower Bridge
Tower Hill
Walk the glass floor forty metres above the river, then see the Victorian engine rooms.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
- Good with kids
Free to cross; exhibition ticketed
Westminster Abbey
Westminster
Coronation church of English monarchs since 1066, with Poets’ Corner and the royal tombs.
- Over £25
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Barbican Conservatory
Barbican
A tropical glasshouse hidden inside a Brutalist arts centre.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Free; book a slot, opening days vary
Leake Street Arches
Waterloo
A legal graffiti tunnel under Waterloo station, repainted daily and dry in any weather.
Free.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
London Museum Docklands
Canary Wharf
The story of the river and the port, in a Georgian sugar warehouse on West India Quay.
Free.
- Free
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Brixton Village and Market Row
Brixton
Covered arcades of small restaurants that turn into one big dinner party by evening.
- Under £10
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Camden Market
Camden Town
Street food, vintage stalls and the canal lock, busy from lunch until the pubs close.
- Under £10
- In and out
- Half a day
- Fine in rain
Hampton Court Palace
East Molesey
Henry VIII's palace on the Thames, with the maze, the kitchens and the gardens.
- Over £25
- In and out
- A full day
- Good with kids
London Eye
South Bank
A slow half-hour loop over Westminster in a glass capsule.
- Over £25
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
The Postal Museum and Mail Rail
Clerkenwell
Ride the tiny underground railway that carried London’s post for 75 years.
- £10 to £25
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
- Good with kids
Soho and Chinatown
Soho
Dinner, dim sum, cocktails and the theatres, all within five minutes of each other.
Comes alive in the evening.
- £10 to £25
- In and out
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain
West End theatre
Theatreland
Forty theatres within a few streets; same-day tickets are easier than people think.
Comes alive in the evening.
- Over £25
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Columbia Road Flower Market
Bethnal Green
A Sunday-only street of flower stalls, traders shouting prices and tiny shops.
Runs on Sundays.
- Free
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
God's Own Junkyard
Walthamstow
A warehouse of neon signs from films and Soho clubs, with a café in the middle.
Runs on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
- Free
- Indoors
- Under 2 hours
Maltby Street Market
Bermondsey
A weekend street-food lane under the railway arches, smaller and calmer than Borough.
Runs on Saturdays and Sundays.
- Under £10
- Outdoors
- Under 2 hours
- Fine in rain