Check out these unconventional things for your next trip to London
Have you always dreamed of visiting London off the beaten path, while still enjoying the great classics the capital of the United Kingdom has to offer? If you want to make your vacations an unforgettable memory, you came to the right place.These tips will enable you to experience London to its fullest and the experiences will leave you with great memories and awesome stories to share.
1. Alexandra Park
Alexandra Parkis located in the north of London. To get there, get off at Alexandra Palace railway or Wood Green Underground Station and from there take the bus for about five minutes. You will end up in what is, in our opinion, the most beautiful park in London. In the middle of the park you will find the Alexandra Palace. It is the ideal spot to spend moments of pure relaxation after a packed day of sightseeing!
2. Hackney City Farm
An urban farm in the middle of London, Hackney City Farm is located in the heart of the trendy neighborhood of Hackney. It’s an urban farm where you can relax among roosters, cows, pigs, goats but also a fun place for kids and adults. Stop for lunch at the small restaurant inside the farm and enjoy the sunshine in London on the lakeshore. This unique location will delight you and it will make it hard to leave.
3. The Peckham district
Looking for the new fashionable neighborhood in London? The Peckham, located in south London, is the place to be for young Londoners and artists. Formerly, it was plagued by endemic poverty, but today the neighborhood is changing with the arrival of artists who set up their studios, small coffee shops, and cheap bars and restaurants. Stroll around the neighborhood through the artistry studios to discover the most unique part of London.
4. The Corsica Studio
The Corsica Studio, located at the Elephant and Castle station, is the nightclub where Londoners go out for a night on the town. Whether alone or with friends, you will get out of The Corsica Studio with at least 20 new friends to continue the party with in the next club.
5. Kingsland Road
Our last night stop is Kingsland Road, a street full of pubs and bars. Exit at Dalston Kingsland station in the heart of this street and you will be able to find the best venues in London. We do have our favorites: The Shacklewell Arms, The Alibi and Efes Pool club and bar. You won't be able to choose just one!
6. See a musical
Want a shot at seeing Billy Elliot the Musical, for a lower price? For some people, it’s unthinkable not to see a musical when you're in London! To get tickets at a lower cost, follow our method: buy a ticket for a show on the same day you are supposed to go see it. To do this, go to Leicester Square Underground. Outside of the subway station, there are small kiosks where people sell tickets for the evening shows. If you ask for a ticket for that night, you will receive amazing discounts that can go up to 50% to 70% off the regular price, so that you can go watch Billy Elliot for example for 20 pounds (middle row) or 35 pounds if you want to be in sixth row.
7. Play street games
Get an adrenaline rush with Fire Hazard street games! Fire Hazard is a small group based in London, organizing unusual games in the real world (from warehouse burglary in Hackney to zombie apocalypse in the dark on Hampstead Heath). Enjoy a fun day full of activities and adrenaline. Be your own action hero, join one of Fire Hazard games and see London in a different light!
8. Play London skittles
Skittles has long been played in the Inns of England. Similar to bowling, players take turns to throw wooden balls (called cheese) down a lane at the end of which are several wooden skittles (bomb-shaped pins) in an attempt to knock them all over. The cheeses are thrown in order that they hit the skittles directly without touching the floor first. Stop at Freemasons Arms in Hampstead to enjoy a night in the name of “beer and skittles” as Dickens wrote in the Pickwick Papers!
9. Hang out with the Knights Templar
Which mysteries does the Temple Church hide behind its walls? Visit the Temple Church located between Fleet Street and the River Thames and wonder about the Knights Templar mysteries, like the Holy Grail or the Ark of the Covenant. For the Da Vinci Code fans, this is the perfect location to show off your best Tom Hanks impression while looking for clues to solve the famous riddle.
10. Visit Platform 9¾
A trip to Hogwarts? If you or your kids are big Harry Potter fans, you can’t miss the platform 9¾ at King’s Cross station! Magically concealed behind the barrier between “muggle” (non-magic people) Platform 9 and Platform 10, this Platform is where Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry students board the Hogwarts Express to attend school. Don’t be shy to ask the station workers where platform 9¾ is located, everyone here is a Harry Potter savvy!
11. Speakers’ Corner
Step up and speak out at the Speakers’ corner
Have you always dreamed of giving a public speech in front of a big audience? Here you can!
The Speaker Corner, located in the north east corner of Hyde Park, was proclaimed by the Parliament as a place where people could vindicate their right to meet, speak, resolve and resort. Born out of the struggle for civil liberties in Victorian Britain, its establishment was a significant mileston in the development of democratic institutions.
12. Take part in the Ceremony of the Keys
Follow the Chief Yeoman Warder and take part in the secret ceremony of the keys. The Ceremony of the Keys is the a 700-year-old tradition that takes place every night at the Tower of London. The ceremony involves the formal locking of the gates and people are allowed to escort the warden as far as they apply in advance. The locking itself is crucial to secure the fortress because the Crown Jewels reside here with many other valuables. Photos are not admitted and the secrecy of the ceremony makes attendance even more appealing.
13. Be in two places at once
Master your ubiquity superpower in Greenwich, London! Have you ever dreamed of being in two places at the same time? Well, now you can at the Prime Meridian of the World based at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, in London.
The Prime Meridian is a line of longitude, at which longitude is defined to be 0°, that divides the Earth in two hemispheres: the Eastern Hemisphere and the Western Hemisphere. Travelers come from all over the world to stand with one foot of either side of the brass dividing line and to be in two places at one!
14. Explore the tube
The London Underground, also knowns as the Tube, is the oldest underground railway. Its first line opened in 1863, making the tube home to some stunning architecture. Don’t miss the modernism of Southwark and Westminster’s modernism, the old brick platform of Baker Street, Southgate and Gants Hill station and their art deco design by Charles Holden.
15. Fly To Neverland
Second star to the right and straight on till morning! If you're a big Peter Pan fan, you can’t miss the Peter Pan Statue in Kensington Gardens. The statue was placed in 1912 by the author, Sir James Matthew Barrie, on the spot where Peter Pan lands when he first flies out of his nursery (as written in “Peter Pan in the Kensigton Gardens”). Climb up the statue and try to catch some pixie dust, and don’t forget to snap a selfie with Peter Pan!
