I’m travelling to the UK next week, and after I’m done with a meeting on Wednesday afternoon I’ll be in London until I return to the US on Saturday. So, UK dopers and/or others who know the city, what should I do with 2 1/2 days in London? FYI, I enjoy museums and history a great deal, like a wide variety of foods, and am always in search of the perfect pint.
Well i’d recommend the London Eye (although everyone calls it ithe milennium wheel). It costs around £8, and you may need to book in advance - phone to check.
Also the big museums - the Natural History and Science museums are very good. And they’re free!
Theres quite a unique pub called Waxy O Connors which is a couple of streets from Leicester Square. The place is like a rabbit warren. Maybe not a place to go though if you’re a real ale snob - it just does the standard beers.
Can’t really recommend many restaurants as i don’t eat out that much. I’m sure someone else can help there.
For history I’d recommend the Museum of London, The V&A and the British Museum, all free.
The London tourist board site has details, advice for getting around etc.
What sort of beer do you prefer? Real ale-type or lager-type?
See a show! There’s all kinds of great theatre and you can sometimes get cheap tickets if you buy the same day as the performance.
The Tate Modern is fantastic. They have great shows at the Barbican. Also cool are “London Walks” where people show you around the old parts of town and tell you their history - I went on the Jack the Ripper walk which was really neat.
On Greek Street in Soho is a Buddhist vegan buffet for five quid (six on the weekends) - it is delicious if you’re into that sort of thing, and even if you’re not, I think it’s still pretty good.
Great small and friendly jazz pub: the Lincoln Lounge, by King’s Cross Station. I couldn’t go often enough.
I second the V&A! I saved it for my last couple of hours in London last year, and could have shot myself for doing that; one could easily spend a couple of days in there. Much more interesting than the Tower of London. (Then again, my grandparents were antique dealers, so I’m a big sucker for the decorative arts.) It’s all a matter of taste, of course.
The Museum of London ( located near the Barbican ) is also very good. It traces th history of London from Roman times to the present day. For some reason this museum always seems to be missed out when people list the "must sees ". The section about the Great Fire of 1666 is particualaly interesting.
If you like old magazines/newspapers, hit the gift shop at Westminster Abbey. They sell original items as old as the 1700s, and not terribly pricey!
If you have a nice, sunny day (!), go to Victoria Embankment and get a boat ride up the Thames to Hampton Court. Lovely ride up, and Hampton Court itself is a treat.
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[li]Lean against the wall whenever you get tired[/li][li]The Lexus is a good car to have, but whenever you don’t hear sirens, change cars. [/li][li]After the first half, you are a cop and the cops don’t chase you. [/li][li]Whenever somebody says “Stop, I need your details!” don’t [/li][li]Drive on the sidewalk when possible. Also, the turn signal can be premature sometimes. [/li][li]She’s not going to get back in the car while cops are still alive, so you might as well get out and kill them too. [/li][li]Tuck and roll under the lasers, tuck and roll![/li][/ul]
My apologies to anyone who wasted their time reading that and has never played “The Getaway”. And if you have played “The Getaway”, I’m sorry to you too.
I’m a huge museum buff, and London is probably my favorite city (after Florence–maybe) for art. With just two days, you may want to hit the big ones–I’d go for the British Museum and the National Gallery (both are free). If you’re into Pre-Raphaelite paintings, though, you must see the Tate Britain (also free!). If you have an interest in early 19th-century interiors and eclectic collecting, you may like to see John Soane’s House nearby Lincoln’s Inn (and, yes, it’s free as well–notice any pattern here?).
Other must-sees for a first time visit: Westminster Abbey (wonderful architecture, full of illustrious tombs), St. Paul’s (ditto on the architecture and the famous dead), Soho (great for restaurants)… I’d also recommend a walk along the banks of the Thames for some nice views. But on a nice sunny day, nothing beats the parks of London. Definitely see St. James’s Park; Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens are also beautiful. Regent’s Park is astonishingly beautiful when everything is in bloom.
I’ll second (or third) the Victoria and Albert museum.
Get the Time Out magazine for current events listings.
Eat a good curry at one of the (infinite number of) good Indian resteraunts.
Hang arround Licester Square and Soho.
Look up Cafe Valerie (use web resources now, to get addresses/maps) and have some good French patisserie.
If you like posh things, try to get Tea at the Ritz (I have never done this, but am told it is still the buisness). If you like clothes shopping, try King’s Road in Chelsea.
Cheers, Bippy (who hasn’t been back in London for over two years [except via Getaway game], and is very envious)
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. This is actually my second visit, but the last time I only had a day and a half and tried to cram too much in. This time I expect to concentrate on a museum or two, as well as the food and drink portion of the festivities. From a number of comments, it seems like Leicester Square, the British Museum, the Victoria and Albert, Westminster Abbey, the Museum of London, and National Gallery should be on my short list.
Sir Doris, I’m much more of an ale fan, and tend towards the bitter end of the spectrum. Here at home I usually drink the American-style IPAs, which I gather are hoppier than the original British style.
Eve, I’ll definitely be heading to the Westminster gift shop. My wife was a newspaper/wire service reporter for many years, and an original 18th century newspaper will make a killer gift.
Bippy, not very interested in posh, but a good curry is definitely on the list, and Patisserie Valerie looks great.
Mooka, definitely the London Eye, if I can get in.
Velma, I have a coworker who will be in the city at the same time, and she is checking out the show situation.
cowgirl, if I went on the Ripper walk my son would kill me from envy, but I may try to do it anyway.
Eva Luna, I did the same thing with the British Museum last time I was there, and 2 hours was definitely not enough.
Rayne Man, dig up copy of Pepys for pretentious plane reading in preparation for Museum of London, check.
Bruce_Daddy, haven’t played the game, but from the ads I have to wonder if they’re paying royalties to Guy Ritchie.
Skopo, if (and I understand that can be a big if) one of the days is sunny, I’ll definitely hit the parks.
Bollocks to Leicester Square. , IMO. Unless you want to see a show and want tickets from the cheap ticket booth.
Hooray to the London Eye, the V&A, the British Museum, the National Gallery, Tate Modern and Tate Britain.
Pubs. My copy of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide recommends these central pubs and others:
The Moon Under Water (Charing Cross Road) - big pub, used to be the Marquee Club. Near the Charing Cross Road bookshops.
Coach and Horses (Greek Street, Soho)
Star and Garter (Poland Street, Soho)
Dove (Upper Mall, by the river in Hammersmith) - historical
Morpeth Arms (Millbank, Pimlico, near Tate Britain)
Or have a look at www.pubs.com
You might even get some London Dopers together for a couple of beers!
Tansu your right about Leicester Square, damn I am losing touch, I meant Covent Garden and Soho.
Here’s a thread I started on the same dsubject last year, I got some good tips.
So, what is there to do in London?
Tower of London and Westminster Abbey were both very cool.
See a play at The Globe. There’s nothing like milling about as a groundling in the rain and cold watching a play just like they did in olden times.
I don’t think they’re doing performances at the Globe yet (I just checked the schedule).
My favorite restaurant in London is Joe Allen near Covent Garden. Reasonable prices, great food and atmosphere.
Top 3 museums: British, V&A, Tate Modern
London Walks is essential. Here’s their site.
Definitely St. Paul’s & Westminster if you’ve never been.
There’s a great little Greek restaurant near the British Museum that I highly recommend. Good food, friendly staff, decent prices, and since you’ll be going to the British Museum anyway you might as well! It’s called the Konaki Greek Restaurant, and it’s at 5 Coptic Street.
Thanks to Melandry for reminding me of the name and address in another thread some time back…it makes me feel like a worldly sophisticate to be able to recommend restaurants in foreign capitals. 
You might enjoy visiting the Highgate Cemetary. It looks like something out of a movie, and some famous people like Karl Marx are buried there. I was chiefly interested because it’s the cemetary where Lucy Westenra was buried in Dracula*. It’s called the Kingshead Cemetary in the book, but based on the description of its location it must be based on Highgate. I worked this out with a copy of Dracula in one hand and London A-Z (a very useful book, BTW) in the other. Because I’m just that big of a geek.
Re: pubs–my personal favorite, at least for ambience, is the Princess Louise on High Holborn:
http://www.professorharbottle.co.uk/pub/londonwestend/louise.html
I don’t recommend it for the beer–all they have is Samuel Smiths–but for the beautiful Victorian interior, which almost makes up for the lack of a decent bitter.
Gawk at the Rosetta Stone in the British Museum.