Disclosure: I only recommend products, places to stay/ eat, and attractions I would use/ visit myself, and all opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that, at no additional cost to you, may earn a small commission.
This post is going to be set up a little different than my pervious posts if you have been here from the begining.
Hello, London
London was stop one of my first international solo trip, while planning I read all the posts, books, reviews, I wanted to be the most prepared for this trip. When I got off the plane I thought I knew everything I needed to know, I was wrong. So here is what I did and what I wished I would have known before I got there.
Let’s start with my accommodations. I stayed in a hotel, Hilton London Olympia ( 380 Kensington High Street), on the edge of Zone 1 & 2. The room was perfect for what I needed, but it was a little outdated. If you choose to stay here, you should know there are no plugs near the bed, so your phone will be over by the TV. There is a resturant, Society and a Costa Coffee onsite for convience and both are amazing. At Society, I highly recommend the Mushroom Risotto. I added chicken and it was terrific. At Costa Coffee, besides the coffee, the Cheese Tomato Toastie is honestly amazing, and I am super sad I can’t get it in the States.
There are multiple underground stations and an overground station near the hotel. I used the underground station at Earl’s Court, which is about a 15-20 minute walk. The District and Piccadilly lines run through here. Overground Kensington (Olympia) is about a 3-minute walk, and on the weekends, you can get the District line to Earl’s Court. High Street Kensington (underground) is about a 15-minute walk and has the Circle and District lines.
There is a Tesco (grocery store) about a 10-minute walk away and a few other shops nearby. Within about 10 minutes, there are a few restaurants. I did not try any out, but they were busy.
Flat Iron has multiple locations, but I went to the one on Tooley Street; it is a short walk from Tower Bridge. When you are seated at your table, they give you some popcorn, which is a fun little touch. The flat iron steak was fantastic; the sides of crispy bone marrow garlic mash and truffled macaroni cheese were a great match. When your bill is brought to the table, they also drop off these little butcher knife charms that you turn in on your way out for the best ice cream ever; seriously, don’t skip it.
The Vault, while I didn’t stop to get a drink here, I did walk through and check it out; you can get a drink and sit under the Tower Bridge or next to it, and it will be somewhere I stop in the future.
Savage Garden is a rooftop bar at the Double Tree By Hilton London Tower of London. A friend of mine happened to be in London for a few days of my trip, and this is where she was staying, so of course, we had to check out the bar. We made a reservation, but if they aren’t busy, you can just walk in. Learn from our mistake: order off the menu only. Even if you only go to check out the views, it is worth it.
Hop-On Hop-Off Tour because if you have been here for a while, you know how much I love them. City Sightseeing Tours London, I did the two-day pass with a boat tour. Let’s start with the bus tour; there are three lines that run all over the city. I will note that it is not a live commentary. You listen via headphones, which was a little disappointing but still enjoyable and educational. Because I wanted to see it all, I did not hop off other than to switch lines, and I spent the entire day on the bus. It was worth it because I was able to see a lot of the city, but if you have the time, I would recommend doing one line a day. Now for my favorite part the boat tour, this starts at Westminster, first stop at Tower of London, second stop Greenwich, then heads back to Tower of London and Westminster. I got off at Greenwich and walked over to the beautiful Old Royal Naval College.
All about Tower Bridge: To get a less crowded picture of Tower Bridge, go to the south side of the bridge, the opposite side of the Tower of London. Once over there, go to the west side of the bridge past the Vault and down the walkway to the stairs; during low tide, you can walk down and get amazing photos. During high tide, you can not get down there, so be cautious if you make the trip there so as not to get stuck. You can also put Horsleydown Steps into your GPS, which will take you there. The bridge is a drawbridge, and opens around 800 times a year, so if you are lucky enough to catch this sight, enjoy it, because while being a Florida-raised girl and seeing plenty of drawbridges open, the beauty of this bridge is stunning and honestly, one of my favorite memories. You can tour Tower Bridge, which is no secret, but I had no idea that some of the floors are glass, so you had better believe that on my next trip there, you can find me taking the tour.
Some things about the Royals: Let me start by saying that I don’t know much about the Royals other than they stand on the balcony at Buckingham Palace. Because it wasn’t far, I made the trip over to see it, and it was worth visiting but very crowded. I did go into the gift shop to walk around and there was some very royal things inside. You can also do a couple tours there but I did not look into those. Next up was Kensington Palace, which is stunning and sits on the far side of Hyde Park in Kensington Gardens. Again, you can tour, and there is a little cafe there, but I just wandered the gardens, and they were beautiful. You are also able to watch changing of the gaurds just look up when they are happening so you can plan ahead.
London is full of markets, and each is uniquely amazing, so check out as many as you can. I only made it to a few, but I wish I had made it to more. I made it to the famous Bourgh Market to see the strawberries that line moves so quickly. You will find almost everything you could want to eat there. Lendenhall Market, when I went alot was closed except for a couple pubs so I just walked through but it seemed like a good stop. Maltby Street Market: I made this stop around lunch, and it was a great choice, everything looked amazing and smelled even better. This last one was just luck that I stumbled across. This adorable farmers market near Marylebone had more veggies, bread, and cheeses, things you would take home to cook.
Transportation, my favorite way of getting around, was via the underground or overground, but sometimes walking is faster. I recommend downloading the TFL app to get up-to-date information about the lines, but I also checked the maps on my phone because sometimes they were different. Get an Oyster card at the station or use touch pay to get in and out. I opted for an Oyster card because I didn’t want to pull my phone or a credit card out every time to pay. The downfall of the Oyster card is you might leave London with a balance remaining when you leave, but that just means you will have to return to use it again. I wish I had known beforehand that you tap your form of payment in and out. Some tips for the tube: stand right and walk left on the escalators. You will not have service, so be ready for that. Also, they can get crowded, so keep your belongings close. There are also buses that go everywhere you’d want to go. I did not use the buses at all, but they are similar to the tube using an Oyster card. If you feel brave, you can rent public bikes using your Oyster card; I was not courageous enough to bike with all the traffic.
I learned some random touristy facts while I was there. You can take a tour of Westminster Palace, which walks behind the clock face of Big Ben. Most museums are free and there are tons of them, not a museum but the British Library is also free and somewhere you should stop. Make reservations to the resturants you want to try otherwise you will probably have a long wait.
London is a huge city full of tourists who are easy targets because you’re usually distracted by looking for your next destination or taking a photo. Here are the ways I kept myself and my belongings safe. In the hotel, I had a door lock for when I was in the room and an extra TSA lock for my bag, which contained my valuables. I locked it to the bar in the closet. While walking around, I had a cell phone leash and attached it to my bag. I was still cautious when I pulled my phone out, but having the extra protection with the leash was perfect. I also bought these little hooks for the zipper on my bag to avoid being pickpocketed. Honestly, I never felt unsafe or anything like that. Just be aware of your suroundings and keep your stuff close.
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