London Things to Do Tips by andrea.d

The British sovereign's grandiose London home was built between 1701 and 1705 by the 1st Duke of Buckingham, but was redeveloped as a palace by King George IV in the 1820s, and became the official royal residence in the reign of Queen Victoria in 1837.
While the palace isn't anything special from the outside, it's interior is a different story. If you have the chance, don't miss The State Rooms.

Admissions (include audio guide):
Adult £15.00
Over 60/ Student (with valid ID) £13.50
Under 17 £8.50
Under 5 Free
Family £38.50 (2 adults and 3 under 17s)

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Address: The Mall, SW1
Directions: Green Park tube
Website: www.royal.gov.uk

Trafalgar Square was laid out in the 1820 as a memorial to British naval hero Admiral Horatio Nelson, who stands there three times life size on the 52m column at the square's heart. Reliefs at the column's base depict four of his greatest naval victories, of which the Battle of Trafalgar against the French in 1805 - where Nelson died - was the most famous.

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Address: Trafalgar Square, WC2
Directions: Charing Cross or Leicester Square tubes

The Trafalgar Square northern flank is dominated by the National Gallery who has one of the world's greatest collection of paintings. It covers the years from around 1260 to 1900, and presents the cream of the nation's art collection, as well as some 2200 works of European art.

The gallery is divided into 4 wings, each covering a chronological period, so it makes sense to visit the wings in this order:

1. Sainsbury Wing -1260 to 1510- rooms 51-66
2. West Wing -1510 to 1600- rooms 2-12
3. North Wing -1600 to 1700- rooms 14-32
4. East Wing -1700 to 1900- rooms 33-46

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Phone: 0 20 7747 2885
Address: Trafalgar Square, WC2
Directions: Charing Cross or Leicester Square tubes
Website: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/

Tower Bridge is on of the London's most familiar landmarks and the views from it's upper walkway are some of the city's best!
The bridge was built in the late 1880s. And did you know? It's made up of over 27000 tons of bricks, enough to built around 350 detached homes!

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Phone: 0 20 7626 3065
Address: Tower Bridge Road, EC3/SE1
Directions: Tower Hill or London Bridge tubes
Website: http://www.towerbridge.org.uk

The Tower of London has always fascinated visitors - even 300 years ago it was a popular attraction - and today is one of the country's top tourist sights. Begun by William the Conqueror shortly after the 1066 conquest, it has survived for over 900 years as a palace, prison, place of execution, arsenal, royal mint and jewel house.

The Tower of London is inculded in World Heritage List, and is concidered to:

- exhibit an important interchange of human values, over a span of time
- be an outstanding example of a building which illustrates significant stages in human history

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Phone: 0 20 7709 0765
Address: Tower Hill, EC3
Directions: Tower Hill tube
Website: http://www.armouries.org.uk/tower/

This cathedral is is a lasting testament to the revolutionary genious of it's architect, Sir Christopher Wren. The cathedral rose from the aches of the Great Fire of London in the 17th century, and later became a symbol of London's unbeatable spirit.
It is also known as the place where the wedding of Prince Charles to Diana, Princess of Wales, took place in 1981.
The entrance to the cathedral is in the west front, between the towers. Interesting thing is that the clock, Big Tom, on the right-hand tower on the cathedral's west front is 5m in diameter and the minute hand is 3m in length!

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Phone: 0 20 7236 4128
Address: St Pauls Churchyard, EC4
Directions: St Pauls tube
Website: http://www.stpauls.co.uk

This is one of the Britain's greatest religious buildings where most of the country's sovereigns, from William the Conqueror in 1066 to Queen Elisabeth in 1953, have been crowned. It is also a place where the funeral of Princess Diana took place in 1997.

Admission price is 10 pounds.

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Phone: 0 20 7654 4900
Address: Deans Yard, SW1
Directions: St James's Park tube
Website: http://www.westminster-abbey.org

Houses of Parliament, officially known as the Palace of Westminster, is country's seat of government. Much of the structure was rebuilt in the 19h century folowing a fire, but Westminster Hall, part of the original palace, dates from 1097.
The Victoria Tower (102m tall) stands at one end and the tower holding Big Ben (98m tall) at the other.

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Address: Parliament Square, SW1
Directions: Westminster tube
Website: http://www.parliament.uk

Strictly speaking, Big Ben is the name of the tower's 13-tonne bell, not the tower itself! How the name was coined is uncertain, the bell may have been named after the heavyweight boxing champion, Benjamin Caunt, or the works commissioner Sir Benjamin Caunt, who supervised the installation.

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After visiting Houses of the Parliament it is best to walk cross Westminster Bridge to the south bank of the river for the best views of the Houses of the Parliament. On the bridge's south side turn left along the footpath beside the river. The huge building to your right is Country Hall that now houses restaurants, hotels, London Aquarium, the Dali Universe and the booking office for the BA London Eye.
On the bridge it can get a "little"windy as you can notice on the pic!

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Address: Waterloo, SE1
Directions: Waterloo tube
Website: http://www.southbanklondon.com/