is london an expensive place to visit
yes it is
but if you know where to look there are
free activities
everywhere and today i'm going to talk
you through 50 of them
so get ready because we're getting
started right now
for a great introduction to the capital
start with a south bank walk along the
river thames it starts right opposite
the historic tower of london
and takes you all the way to the london
eye and houses of parliament
and that's our second location you can
admire the big ben clock tower from the
outside but if you're a uk resident
you can also enter the palace of
westminster for free
all you have to do is contact your local
mp's office they have limited numbers of
free tickets for constituents
next up we have tower bridge you
currently need to pay 10 pounds 60 to go
inside it but crossing it is free and
it's arguably even more beautiful from
the outside
if you're interested you can look up the
times when the bridge opens
which is absolutely fascinating and then
go watch it then nearby you will find
sky garden it's hard to believe that
this lush
tropical rooftop garden is completely
free all you have to do is book your
tickets in advance because spaces are
limited
number five is as british as it gets
it's the changing of the guard at
buckingham palace where the queen
resides
it takes place on certain days from 10
45 a.m and lasts about 45 minutes
our next category is parts did you know
that london is the world's
first national park city besides 8.9
million people
it's also home to 8.3 million trees and
14 000 different species of wildlife
hyde park is london's most famous green
space
don't miss speaker's corner the
beautiful rose garden in the summer and
serpentine lake you can even go swimming
in there but the annual membership costs
20 pounds
right next to hyde park you will find
kensington gardens the setting of one of
james barry's peter pan books
and home to the famous albert memorial
richmond park is very different to these
two
it's a national nature reserve far from
the busy city centre and
it's full of deer and then there's
ornament gardens they're not widely
known even within london but i think
they're well worth a visit
you get great views of the london
skyline and there are alpacas
they also have 60 acres of gardens a
library and a museum but mostly yep
alpacas if you're interested in learning
more about london and my life here
i have been in the uk on and off for 10
years now
and i share loads of that content on my
channel so don't forget to
yes our next category is markets food
furniture flowers
the whole shebang portobello road market
is one of my favorites
located in the colorful neighborhood of
notting hill where you'll also find the
annual notting hill carnival
put on by the local caribbean community
but if you're hungry
i'd recommend the nearby aklan food
market where you can get some really
great international grub
my favorite are the arepas borough
market is probably the most famous food
market in the capital
it's very central just a short walk away
from london bridge and the shard
there's been a market in this spot since
at least the 12th century
making it one of london's oldest as well
as biggest but it doesn't have to be all
about food columbia road flower market
is a great spot for fresh flowers
succulents and just a bit of photography
it's only open on sundays so bear that
in mind and get there as early as
possible to avoid the crowds
if like me you love harry potter leaden
hall market might seem a little familiar
it was used as a filming location in
harry potter and the philosopher's stone
look at it the new nimbus 2000
camden market has a little bit of
everything art music
vintage fashion and of course some great
food i have a bit of a soft spot for it
because i used to live nearby
and it's right on regions canal and in
my opinion you just can't be
being right next to the water while
you're there check out a shop called
cyberdog
i don't want to give anything away i'll
just tell you now that it's
pretty crazy and finally there is
bricklaying the best day to visit is
sunday
when the whole street turns into an open
air market but brick lane is well worth
visiting any day of the week it's the
center of east london's bangladeshi
community
so you'll find loads of curry houses and
sweet shops even the street names are
written in bengali and some people refer
to the area as bangla town
next up we've got street art just two
entries here but both are well worth
your time
the first is shortage a trendy
neighborhood full of beautiful murals
and
it's right next to brickline so no
excuse for not visiting
and second we've got the league street
arches in waterloo it's basically a 300
meter graffiti covered tunnel
and the city's largest legal wall the
art is constantly changing so it's a
place you can keep visiting over and
over
without ever getting bored so that was
street art now let's move on to more
traditional art
and museums the british museum is a
great place to start
although be careful you could literally
spend weeks here the museum is all about
human history and culture
with a permanent collection of some
eight million works making it one of the
largest museums
in the world the british museum is
actually the uk's most visited
attraction it had some
6 million visitors in 2019 alone
it was closely followed by tate modern
our next entry
many of london's best museums are
completely free and the tape modern is
no exception
it focuses on modern art and it's a very
short walk away from shakespeare's
famous
globe theater although that one is not
free if you left the outdoors you might
enjoy the natural history museum
it has five incredible collections but
my favorite part is the skeleton of a
female blue whale called hope
that is displayed in the main hall right
next door to the natural history museum
you'll find the victoria and albert
museum
more commonly known as the vna there
you'll find ceramics jewelry sculptures
and lots of other design elements from
different eras the second
is the science museum it has loads of
interactive exhibits
as well as the oldest surviving steam
locomotive the first
jet engine and the apollo 10 command
module
our next category is shopping and there
is no place more famous for it than
oxford street i'll be honest not many
locals
love shopping there because it's
normally rammed with visitors
but if this is your first time in london
it'll be rude not to go
right next to oxford street you will
find regent street
again it's a busy shopping destination
and
you can probably tell i don't love
shopping but even i like coming here
around christmas time specifically to go
to hamley's which is the largest
and oldest toy shop in the world if you
want to do a bit of luxurious window
shopping
definitely visit harris it's a very very
fancy department store
in knightsbridge and that's one of the
most expensive areas of london
and it's especially popular among rich
visitors from the gulf region
fun fact howard's is now actually owned
by the state of qatar
selfridges is another fancy department
store and the second largest shop in the
uk
right after howard's the last luxury
department store on our list is
liberty i've never bought anything there
but i do like visiting because it's in
the west end which is an area known for
its culture and theaters
and liberty has a beautiful mock tutor
facade and the interior design
is on point if you want to browse
somewhere more affordable i recommend
one new change
not only does it have high street
fashion shops like h m and zara
it also offers an incredible view of st
paul's from the rooftop and yes that's
completely free
carnaby street is a pedestrianized
shopping street in soho which is known
for its independent fashion boutiques
and quirky floating decorations
especially around christmas
right next to it you'll find kingly
court a three-story alfresco dining spot
with restaurants from
all over the world and finally there's
neil's yard it's a small
colorful courtyard with lots of
independent shops and restaurants this
one would be my recommendation because
it's one of those hidden gems that
you're going to remember for a long time
all right let's move on to london's most
famous squares some european cities have
a central square but london isn't really
like that
but if i had to pick one i'd say
trafalgar square with the famous
national portrait gallery which is also
free
other famous squares include covent
garden which easily could have been
in the shopping section it's definitely
one of the best spots for retail therapy
in all of london but it also has
incredible restaurants
theaters and possibly most importantly
really really good bus skirts
lester square and yes that's how it's
pronounced is one i personally avoid i
don't really like it i don't get the
appeal but visitors
do seem to enjoy it so go give it a try
but if i can i would like to sway you to
go to nearby chinatown instead
you'll find lots of authentic chinese
restaurants mainly from the cantonese
part of the country
but some great beijing and weaker spots
as well i also like the ornithing
dynasty gates that really make you feel
like you're in china
a short walk away you'll find piccadilly
circus which is basically the london
equivalent of times square
it has giant advertising screens as well
as the famous statue of eros
which has become a popular meeting spot
alright let's get into some
london history now did you know that
london has roman walls that date back to
280.
you can find them directly to the north
of the tower of london
and you can access them completely for
free near london wall you'll find saint
dunstan in the east
a serene oasis in the heart of the city
it used to be a bit of a hidden gem but
has gotten pretty popular in the last
few years because of
instagram and i'm sure you can see why
next we've got st paul's cathedral which
is one of the most recognizable
buildings in the city and my personal
favorite
entry costs about 17 pounds unless you
go to worship there on sundays which is
free
you can do the same with westminster
abbey which has hosted 16 royal weddings
including prince william and kate's also
more than 3 000 people
are buried in there which is a bit
spooky for a wedding but there you go
and that brings me back to the final
location in this category which is
highgate cemetery approximately 170
000 people are buried there including
the singer george michael
writer douglas adams who wrote the
hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy
and german political theorist karl marx
okay now let's talk about views london
has so many of those bus tour companies
that take you around them but there
is a workaround if you're on a budget i
know it's not free but for one pound 50
you can hop on the 24 bus from
westminster to hampstead heath and enjoy
some really incredible views of central
london from the top floor
speaking of hampstead heath it's home to
parliament hill which has incredible
views of the london skyline
it's also generally a great place to
visit with a huge park and
some wild swimming spots which is pretty
cool nearby perimeters hill has some
incredible views as well and it's a
great spot for a picnic
and if the weather turns don't worry
there's so many bars and restaurants
that you can hide inside
just around the corner and finally there
is greenwich you can get a really unique
perspective of central london from the
top of greenwich park
and there's a lot to see here in general
the national maritime museum
during observatories astronomy center or
the queen's house
and yes they are all free to visit our
final category is pop culture
london obviously has tons of film and
literally locations but i'm just going
to mention three here
the first of them is abbey road which is
popularized by the beatles and their
famous album cover of course
next we've got 221b baker street the
london address of fictional detective
sherlock holmes
and finally our last entry on this long
long list
platform nine and three quarters at
king's cross
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thank you for watching this is a long
list i appreciate you sticking around
and i'll see you next friday for another
video
and do let me know which of these
locations is your favorite bye