'ello all.

I'm going to be arriving in London on the morning of November 4th with my boyfriend. It'll be both of our first times there and we'll only be there until early morning of the 7th when we leave for my second time in Amsterdam. I would have loved to spend more time in London but my dilemma is the money issue because everything there is twice as expensive as it is here and the 'dam is a bit cheaper than London so it made more sense money-wise to spend the better part of our trip there. Ah well, nontheless I am going to be there for 3 days (including for Guy Fawkes Day/Bonfire Night which makes me really excited to be able to take part in a celebration I've never gotten to see before) and I was wondering if anyone had any opinions of things that are "must see" and "don't bother seeing" since we'll only be there a few days. I'd rather not go some place because it was "supposed" to be a good place to go and have it turn into a real bust that wasted any of our time.

Thanks in advance. :)

Obviously depends on your tastes.

There are some great art galleries, many free to enter (but not the big touring exhibitions). My personal favourite is the Tate, particularly the Clore gallery where the Turners are displayed.

The big shows - plays/musicals - are a draw to many but as you are from NJ you have similar choices close to home. However, the Globe - Shakespeare's plays in an authentic environment - would still be different.

If you want a condensed dose of old buildings, history, etc then try the Tower of London.

The London Eye - a big Ferris wheel with great views - is a good way to see the city.

Museums are free too.. British museum has the best collection of plundered antiquities in the world.
London would take a life time to see thoroughly. Pesonally, I think seeing the changeing of the guard at the palace to be a complete waste of time. Tower of London is good but costs 15 pounds pp to get in.
Personally, I like to just walk around all day more than anything.

Killer,
When my friends from Sanfrancisco were over to see me in Oct 2001 i took them up onto The London Eye at night time where the lights stretched for miles,alternatively during the day if there are no clouds you can pick out the places of interest much easier but i have to say at night time it was spectacular. "The Eye" is walking distance from Waterloo Station on The Tube.

After the eye we hooked a right and walked towards westminster along The River Thames with the houses of parliament and Big ben (or described by my American friends amusingly as "The Clock") in front of us We hooked another right 5 mins later which took us past Tony Blairs house on Downing street towards Trafalgar Square,we then walked another 15-20 mins towards Piccadilly Circus and ended up in Soho.My friends were just staying 1 night so i wanted to show them a lot of the sights and it surprised me how much you could see in an hours walking. I,m sure theres plenty you will be able to do,travelling on The Tube is easy but make sure you get a daily travel card which you can use on the buses and trains because single journeys will cost you a fortune.

Have a great time.

Personally, I love Camden. Nice place to spend the day. No, there are no museums there, but a lot of real people and a bunch of unreal to. The subway will get you there from the centre in about 10-15 minutes.

Chivaz

Generally I agree with the other posters, it's a fascinating place to walk around with huge variety. Camden is pretty good, especially at weekends, Covent Garden, and so on. Put some time in on foot, don't use the tube too much as you will not see how one area connects to another.

A boat ride to Greenwich is good.. Very historic place, Greenwich.

simon0's london eye / walk to the west end deffo hits the spot.

also if you're there 4th nov and want to see some fireworks and a beautiful night view over london head for alexandra palace in north london.

Thanks for the tips to all who replied.

We are totally up for as much FREE stuff as we can get... haha. So walking around will probably be the thing that occupies us the most. I did also find a list of free museums (Which actually blew my mind - a museum, for free? You won't find any of those around here!)

I hadn't even thought of the London Eye at night! We had decided to check it out but for some reason going at night hadn't occured and now that you mention it, it does sound like a nicer plan so we'll be doing that.

Also will have to check out those fireworks on the fourth.

Thanks again. :)

-killer

The London Eye can have long queues at the ticket desk and to board. However, if you buy your tickets in advance by credit card you can collect them from a machine and so miss one of the queues.

And don't eat where tourists eat. It will be expensive and shit...

if you want free stuff mate this guide is invaluable -

http://www.londonfreelist.com


enjoy!


ANYDAY.