British Museum
Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG
Tel: +44 [0]207 323 8605
Open: Mon – Sat 10.00 – 17.00; Sunday / Bank Holidays (not 25/26 Dec) 14.30 – 17.00
Displays include Parthenon Frieze (Elgin Marbles), Sutton Hoo treasures, Lindow ‘bog’ man etc.
Trafalgar Square
Where Admiral Nelson looks down on Central London. Down The mall to Buckingham Palace; Down Whitehall to Downing Street and on to big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. Behind is the West End with it’s Would famous theatres centred on Leicester Square and Shaftsbury Avenue.
National Gallery
Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DN
Information Line: +44 [0]207 747 2885
Website: www.nationalgallery.org.uk
Open: Monday to Saturday 10.00 – 18.00, Sunday 14.00 (Not Dec 25/26) 14.00 – 17.30.
Displays include a huge permanent collection of paintings and sculptures – special exhibitions.
National Portrait Gallery
St Martins Place WC2H OHE
Tel: +44 [0]207 306 0055
Website: www.npg.org.uk
Open: Monday – Saturday 1000-1800 Sunday 1200-1800 Closed 24-26th December, 1st Jan, Good Fri, May Day Bank Holiday.
Permanent collection of portraits of famous men and women form the Middle Ages to the present day. Lectures and tours held regularly. Also Children’s holiday activities are available.
Madame Tussaud’s
Marylebone Road, NW1 5LR
Tel: +44 [0]207 935 6861
Web: www.madame-tussauds.com (on-line booking to beat the queues!)
Open: Daily till 5.30 pm.
World famous collection of lifelike waxwork models of celebrities.
London Planetarium
London Planetarium is located next door; visitors can experience a virtual reality trip through space.
Tower of London
EC3N 4AB
Tel: +44 [0]20 7709 0765
Website: www.hrp.org.uk
This historic building, guarded by the famous ‘Beefeaters’ spans 900 years of British history and has served as a palace, prison and execution site. It is the most famous fortress in Europe and houses the priceless Crown Jewels, Royal Armouries and the ravens.
Tower Bridge Experience
Rd., SE1 2UP
Tel: +44 [0]207 403 3761
Website: www.towerbridge.org.uk
Open daily till 6 pm
Completed in 1894 this piece of Victorian engineering has become an international symbol of London. Visit the inside to learn about the bridge’s history and enjoy spectacular views from the walkways.
Big Ben & Houses of Parliament
The UK’s seat of power and contains House of Commons and House of Lords. This superb neo-Gothic building replaced the original which burnt down in 1837. The 4-faced clock is the largest in Britain and includes the famous 14-ton bell called ‘Big Ben’.
Westminster Abbey
Deans Yard, London SW1P 3PA
Website: www.westminster-abbey.org
Westminster Abbey (right) is close to Parliament Square. Many famous people are buried in Westminster Abbey.
London Eye: Millennium Wheel
County Hall Westminster Bridge Rd SE1 7PB
Tel: 0870 500 0600
Website: www.Millennium-Wheel.com
British Airways London Eye is the world’s highest observation wheel
and offers passengers amazing views of Britain’s capital city. The Eye
takes guests on a 30 minute flight, rising to 450 feet above the river
Thames, in 32 high tech fully enclosed capsules.
London Aquarium
County Hall Westminster Bridge Rd SE1 7PB
Website: www.londonaquarium.co.uk
Tate Gallery
Millbank, SW1P 4RG
Tel: +44 [0]207 887 8000
Website: www.tate.org.uk/britain/
Open : Mon-Sat 1000-1750, Sun 1400-1750. Closed Good Fri, May Bank Holiday, 24-26 Dec, 1Jan The Tate Gallery holds the national collection of British painting from 1500 to the present day, the national collection of 20th century painting and sculpture and the Turner Collection.
Natural History Museum
Cromwell Rd SW7 5BD.
Tel: +44 [0]20 7942 5000
Website: www.nhm.ac.uk
Beautiful cathedral-like building opened in 1881 and contains some of the finest natural history collections of the world. The new Earth Galleries bring to life the four billion year old story of our planet with simulated earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Also spectacular dinosaur exhibition.
Open: Daily until 5.50 pm
Science Museum
Exhibition Road, SW7 2DD
Tel: +44 [0]207 938 8000
Website: www.sciencemuseum.org.uk
Open: Mon-Sat 1000-1800, Sun 1100-1800. Closed 24-26 Dec.
National museum of science and industry. Special interactive gallery for children, Wellcome Museum of Medicine, Flight Lab, Food for Thought Gallery an Space Gallery. Tube: South Kensington Science Museum: World famous museum covers the history and development of science and technology with interactive educational displays. From the first steam locomotive to man’s first flight in space. Includes Flight Gallery, Challenge of Materials Gallery and the actual Apollo 10 capsule.
Victoria & Albert Museum
Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL
Tel: +44 [0]20 7942 2000
Website: www.vam.ac.uk
Open: Tue-Sun 1000-1750, Mon 1200-1750. Closed 24-26 Dec and New Year’s Day and Good Fri.
The Victoria & Albert Museum in London is the world’s largest museum of the decorative arts and is home to 145 galleries, including national collections of sculpture, furniture, fashion and photographs.
London Zoo
Regent’s Park, NW1 4RY
Tel: +44 [0]207 722 3333
Website: www.londonzoo.org
Open: daily Mar-Sep, 1000-1730; Oct-Feb, 1000-1600. Closed 25 Dec.
The world’s most famous zoo with over 8,000 animals. Daily program of events including Animal Encounters, which give visitors the opportunity to learn more about the animals from their keepers.
St Paul’s Cathedral
EC4M 8AD
Tel: +44 [0]207 236 4128
Open Mon – Sat 9.30 am-4.00 pm.
Rebuilt by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire in 1666. Among its attractions are the Whispering Gallery, the Stone Gallery, and the Golden Gallery from which there are superb views of the Cathedral.
Cutty Sark
National Maritime Museum, Greenwich
Greenwich Royal Observatory & Meridian Line
See www.greenwichengland.com
Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre
New Globe Walk, Bankside, London, SE1 9DT
Tel: +44 [0]207 928 6406
Website: www.shakespeares-globe.org
Open: daily 1000-1700. Closed 24-26 Dec.
The fascinating story of the re-creation of Shakespeare’s Globe, the most important public theatre ever built. Unique opportunity of seeing an Elizabethan theatre building reconstructed using material, techniques and craftsmanship of 400 years ago
Tate Modern
Bankside SE1 9TG
Tel: +44 [0]207 887 8000
Website: www.tate.org.uk/modern/
Tube: Southwark.
Housed in the former Bankside Power Station, Tate Modern displays the Tate collection of international modern art from 1900 to the present day, including major works by Dalí, Picasso, Matisse, Rothko and Warhol as well as contemporary work by artists such as Dorothy Cross, Gilbert & George and Susan Hiller.
Imperial War Museum
Lambeth Road, SE1 6HZ
Tel: +44 [0]207 416 5000
Website: www.iwm.org.uk
Open : daily 1000-1800. Closed 24-26 Dec.
Museum tells the story of 20th century war from Flanders to the Gulf Special features include the Blitz Experience, Operation Jericho and the Trench Experience. Interactive videos and children’s activities.
Museum of London
London Wall, Barbican London EC2Y 5HN
Tel: +44 [0]207 600 3699
Website: www.museum-london.org.uk
Open Tuesday to Saturday 10.00 – 17.30. Sunday and bank holidays except Xmas and Boxing Day 10.00 – 17.30.
Displays include the Thames Before London (Prehistoric exhibits), Roman London (including an excellent mosaic floor), a Fire of London display and the museum overlooks some of the original Roman Fort.
Buckingham Palace
London, SW1A 1AA
Website: royalresidences.com
Changing of the Guard: Queen Victoria was the first Queen to live in the palace in 1837 and it has been the London home of the Royal Family ever since.
The Changing of the Guard: takes place everyday at 11.30 am from May to July – lasts approx 40 min. From Aug to April the ceremony takes place at the same time on alternate days.
Buckingham Palace: Open Aug/Sept only
Royal Botanic Gardens
KEW GARDENS (ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS) Kew, Richmond, Surrey
Tel: +44 [0]208 940 1171
Website: www.kew.org.uk
Open: daily from 0930 – please call for closing times.
300 acres which once belonged to the Royal Family; contains living collections of over 40,000 plant species and varieties. Also six glasshouses, two art galleries, an audio-visual exhibition and visitors’ centre.
Hampton Court Palace
Hampton Court Palace
East Molesey, Surrey
Tel: 0208 781 9500
Website: www.hrp.org.uk
Boats: From Westminster, Richmond, Kingston-upon-Thames during summer.
Open: April-Mid Oct, Mon 1015-1800, Tue-Sun 0930-1800; Mid Oct-Mid Mar, Mon 1015-1630, Tue-Sun 0930-1630. Closed 24-26 Dec
Henry VIII’s magnificent Tudor palace, set in extensive gardens and park land on the banks of the River Thames. Tudor kitchens, tennis courts, maze and state apartments, King’s Apartments.
Chessington World of Adventures
Chessington Surrey KT9 2NE
Tel: 0870 444 77 77 (Groups)
Website: www.chessington.co.uk
London’s largest and most popular theme park
Open: Easter – Halloween