Places to Visit in Central London for Tourists
London may be home to only 9 million souls but it receives 21 million visitors every year who come to see its historic architecture and cutting-edge attractions. The tourism industry in London alone raises around 80 billion GBP annually, contributes significantly to the GDP, and employs nearly 1 million people. It houses four World Heritage Sites and there are hundreds of world-renowned and revered attractions with state-of-the-art venues and record-breaking cultural events.
We could not blame you if you decided to swing by and visit this magical place. However, it pays dividends if you plan your visit ahead of your arrival. You should consider every aspect of your travelling and plan accordingly. That includes understanding the best time to visit London, choosing the right airline, and arranging the right sort of transport for airport transfers. You must plan the places that are worth visiting and ideally arrange the attraction visits to your convenience. Here are some of the best places to visit when you are in Central London.
Tower of London
A World Heritage site, a feared fortress, a royal palace, an execution place, an arsenal, a royal min, a public record office and even an infamous prison. Tower of London served in many capacities and has a fair share in the illustrious and turbulent history of the United Kingdom.
Located on the banks of the river Thames, the Tower of London is a major tourist attraction that hosts over 3 million visitors every year. Visitors find many attractions there both strange and marvellous such as the six ravens that are always present at the tower, the crown jewels that are always kept in the tower, Beefeaters guarding the crown jewels, a visit to the White Tower, and the Fortress London.
Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew
Nearly 2 million visitors come to the most biodiverse place on the planet which has a botanic collection that represents centuries and contributes in significantly to research and development. Not to forget that it is also a World Heritage site. If you are interested in horticulture and like to watch a diverse and unmatched collection of rare and impressive botanical collections then this is the place for you.
There are so many attractions in the Royal Botanic Gardens that you should not miss when visiting this marvel of a place. You can visit the Temperate house to discover rare and threatened plants in the world’s largest Victorian glasshouse, or explore the Agius Evolution Garden to discover the largest collection of diverse plants, Arboretum has a collection of 14000 different trees, a children’s garden to keep your kids busy in climbing, jumping and learning experience and so on.
Buckingham Palace
If you are a visitor to London then chances are that Buckingham Palace is at top of the list of places you have planned to visit. This is supposedly one of the biggest cultural landmarks of the United Kingdom. Home to the monarchs, Buckingham palace is always the place to visit when you are in the Capital.
Buckingham Palace drips with history and grandeur and represents the importance of the monarchy. Originally built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 and then was acquired by the monarchs. You can explore the Palace with the help of Exclusive Guided Torus and in the summer, you can even access the state rooms inside the palace as well.
The National Gallery
If you happen to be an art lover then The National Gallery is the Mecca for art exhibitions. You name any name that has ever produced a breath-taking piece of art and chances are that you would find an artefact belonging to that artist. It houses a collection of around 2300 western European paintings that include the work of Leonardo da Vinci, Turner, Van Gogh, and Rembrandt.
You can visit the gallery all year round and the best thing is that those pieces of art are considered public property and hence is free to visit. You can visit the gallery for free during visiting hours however you may have to pay for the several art shows that are on display at the time of your visit.
The British Museu
Founded in 1753, the British Museum was founded to benefit and educate the masses about the world’s culture and history and is the oldest public museum in the world. it covers over two million years of human history and culture and more than 6 million visitors go through its doors every year.
There is a mind-blowing collection available in The British Museum from all over the world. when you visit the museum, you should make sure that you do not miss the Rosetta Stone, Sophilos vase, The Parthenon Sculptures, Crouching Venus, Bust of Ramesses the Great, and Hoa Hakananaiá.
London Eye
You can satisfy your inner child by boarding the 135 feet high Ferris wheel that is erected tall on the banks of the river Thames. Oh, and we forgot to mention that this is one of the best ways to take a bird’s eye view of London from above. There are 32 observation capsules with lavish seating arrangements that provide 360-degree views of the entire city.
This attraction is open all year round and you can take a ride between the opening hours from 11 am to 6 pm by buying the tickets. We can ensure that this is the most fun investment that you can do while visiting London.
Madame Tussauds London
Madame Tussauds is a world-famous and first-of-its-kind interactive wax museum with more than 190 life-like wax figures to entertain its visitors. You can enjoy a walk among royalty, take pictures while getting closer to your favourite A-list celebrities, put your arm over the shoulders of sporting legends and rub shoulders with historical figures in this museum.
You can visit the Madame Tussauds Museum all year round during the opening hours. Keep in mind though that you can only visit by booking in advance with a timed entry slot. So do plan in advance and book the slot carefully.
Sea Life London
If you are visiting London with your family then you must plan to keep the children occupied with something that interests them. They can explore the marine world by walking in a tunnel of glass with sea creatures, enter the sea kingdom, see piranhas and crocodiles at work and walk on a glass floor with sharks underneath.
Sea Life London is situated a stone throw away from the London Eye and you can visit both attractions in a short time span. The aquarium is open from 10 to 3:45 7 days a week and tickets must be booked in advance.
There are many amazing places that you can visit while exploring Central London and we have taken 8 most important of them. If you plan carefully then you can incorporate many of them on the same day and then plan for whatever interest you the most. The best way to explore all those amazing places is by hiring a reputable luxury vehicle service whose locally employed chauffeurs know the area like the back of their hand and not only can show you every hidden gem in Central London but also keep you away from the busy streets and save your valuable time.