The First-Timer’s Master Itinerary for 7 Days in London

As those who follow my Instagram know, I spent the first week of November in London. It was my first time in the city, and it blew me away; the museums, the tube, the architecture(hell, even the food) was phenomenal. I loved every minute of it, and as I found it incredibly daunting to plan my week-everyone had differing opinions about what was important to see, what was worth the price of admission, where to prioritize, and when to go. I pieced together my trip as I went, mostly, and found it hugely enjoyable to have the flexibility to change things as I felt the need to as the week went on. This isn’t going to be my only London article, but I thought I needed to cover all my bases in my first go!

If you haven’t read my post about solo travel (inspired by my trip) check it out here!

Day 1-Hostel, Hop On/Hop Off bus and wandering through evening Soho

I flew in late at night to the Gatwick airport and found my way from the airport easily to my hostel in under two hours. It was fairly inexpensive and saved me a good chunk of cash to take the train into the city as opposed to landing at Heathrow. A good podcast later I arrived at Swiss Cottage hostel, my home for the next few weeks. Housed in a beautiful old mansion, Swiss cottage is just a short walk from the subway station for which it’s named (shocker), which allowed me to get around the city quickly and efficiently during my stay. With breakfast, internet, and a fantastic staff, it was a pretty good set up-but I might spring for a room with fewer people in it next time. It turns out, 28 people in a dorm was a little much for me.

The hostel itself was set up beautifully. Decorated in the same eclectic manner it holds, and with plants throughout the space, I spent a little more time drinking coffee in the common areas that I had planned. Oops?

Day one in a new city is always focused on getting my bearings. In the case of London, I purchased an oyster card and got comfortable(or attempted, at least) to the tube. Given that my background experience in Toronto(which has two lines) and Glasgow(nicknamed the clockwork orange for its singular, circular line), London was a little intimidating at first. After taking not 3, not 4, but 5 wrong trains, I felt like a pro. In terms of getting a grip on the above-ground situation, I got on the bus-the tour bus. Open-air and double-decker, with someone narrating the stops, city tours are great ways to get an idea of the layout of a city(and areas you’ll want to visit later).

As the sun began to set, I hopped off the tour bus in Soho, obsessed with the rows and rows of flower-covered restaurant fronts (and in search of a glass of wine).

Soho was fully decked out for nightlife; most of the side streets illuminated by fairy lights, the scent of incredible food wafting from doorways, people drinking and chattering on the streetside patios. It was an atmosphere of enjoyment and wasn’t hard to feel like part of the crowd.

Sitting with a glass of wine, I took a moment to relish the life I get to live. I couldn’t help but be thankful for everything that has allowed me to find a place in my life where I can sit down in a bar in Soho with a glass of wine and feel entirely at home in myself and the world around me.

That night, I went home to the hostel, planning to turn in for the night, until making a couple friends in the hostel bar and tagging along to their evening of bar hopping. We ended up at a pub in Camden and wandered the streets of London, at 2 am, young, free, and drunk on the city lights.

Day 2-Boat tour and Tower of London

The morning of the second day started with breakfast on the glassed-in patio of the hostel’s bar. It was a bit of a slow start, but enjoyable nonetheless. I find while travelling, I have to take time to collect my thoughts to truly enjoy the experience in an organized fashion. I ended up settling with the idea of spending a second day getting my bearings-this time by boat. River cruises up the Thames are incredibly popular, so I subwayed down to the main port the ships left from and spent two hours going up and down the river.

I enjoyed the boat tour for the change in perspective of the city. I got a better idea of the layout and categorized what I wanted to do by place.

One of the things London is known for it its bridges-everyone has heard the nursery rhyme. But I found the boat cruise was a fantastic way of seeing the bridges without taking on the hectic traffic that seems neverending in the city.

We also got a good view of the London Eye and some of the riverside attractions, making it easy to plan the next few days in my mind.

I stayed on the boat until the sun was setting, and even though Big Ben is under construction, the view was magnificent. It was a little chilly, but as a proud Canadian, I just bundled up and enjoyed the ride.

I got off the boat right near the Tower of London. This stop was one of my absolute favourite parts of the trip. Maybe our guide was playing it up for Halloween, or perhaps they’re always that enthusiastic-either way, given the depth of history, the fantastic tour, and the breathtaking architecture, the tower is not one to miss.
I left the tower late and spent the night in the hostel-my travel exhaustion, and the shenanigans of the night before seem to have crept up on me, and I slept like a baby.

Day 3-British Museum and Chinatown

Day 3 was a misty, gloomy day. And to be honest, I couldn’t have been happier-it gave me an excuse to spend the entire day in the British Museum. Given that half of my major is in Archaeology, it was amazing to see all the artifacts I had studied in school(and some I hadn’t, of course).

Stunningly set up, the museum was an absolute dream, and precisely what I needed. It was lowkey, intellectually stimulating, and I could’ve spent 10X the time there than I did.

I spent that night wandering Chinatown. When I’m in Toronto, I love in the Chinatown area and was hoping to find a good(and inexpensive) bowl of soup. I ended up stumbling on a little hole in the wall and paid ten quid for more food than I could possibly eat.

I wandered through Chinatown more afterwards, and into the theatre district. I was hoping to catch an inexpensive ticket for a show but came up unlucky. I headed back to the hostel, defeated, but was glad to see karaoke in the bar. I don’t remember much after my first few drinks, but let’s just say there were some seriously good throwbacks being sung, and it was quite a lot fo fun.

Day 4-Science museum, Harrod’s and wandering South Kensington

Day 4 was a Saturday, and I made the mistake of not taking that into account during my planning. The initial plan was to spend the day in the natural history museum(there was supposed to be raining all day), but when I arrived, there was a 3-hour wait to get in. Because I didn’t have all the time in the world, I decided to wander the area instead.

The most impressive part of the area was the food displays in the windows-you better believe I picked up a cone of Jamon Iberico scraps. At 4.5 quid, it was a pretty good price for Lunch.

I ended up ducking into the Science museum, but quickly realize it was much more kid-friendly that what I was looking for, and given my lack of patience with screaming, I enjoyed a quick tour through their display about security and secret intelligence agencies before deciding to head over to Harrod’s.

The walkthrough south Kensington had my jaw on the ground the entire time-beautiful buildings, picturesque fall neighbourhoods. I was in love.

I mean, honestly! Who knew a street could be so cute??? London, I think you stole my heart.

Finally, I arrived at Harrods. To say it’s intimidating is to say the least-with neverending shops, stalls, and floors(and next to no signage) the place is a maze of temptations and beautiful things.

Shockingly, my favourite part was the food hall. Who can pass up a scotch egg that perfectly cooked, or walk by the rows and rows of fresh pasta being prepared to order?

I capped off the night with a pint at the hostel bar, reconnecting with some of the guests I had met the night before. I turned in early, as I knew my next day was going to be full.

Day 5-Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and even more wandering

Day 5 was focused on all the ‘must-dos’ that wasn’t necessarily a high priority. Things I wanted to see but were less invested in seeing. I started off at Buckingham Palace. As pleasant as it was to see the iconic place, the hoards of tourists and bitter police throughout made the whole thing feel a little overblown.

The walk through the park to Westminster abbey, however, was wonderful-between the fall foliage, the river, and the dampening of the city traffic noise, it was a beautiful way to start the morning.

It was so lovely to be able to get out of the built space for a breath. The park was busy, but everyone seemed a little calmer than they did on the streets of the city. I walked through the park slowly and enjoyed a coffee while I walked.

Stop 2 was Westminster Abbey. Though not a religious person, I couldn’t help but be in awe of the abbey. The majority of my historical knowledge tends to be pre-Christianity, but the breadth of events is evident from the moment you set eyes on the building.

I decided to attempt to nose around and found an area that was open to the public. The extensive artwork, stonework, and attention to detail made the abbey a place of wonder.

The cloisters were pretty quiet, something I definitely enjoyed after a morning of densely populated sites.

I walked a little around parliament square, took in the architecture, and reflected(with yet another coffee in hand) on how grateful I was to be there.

Anyone who knows me well would know that I was going to end up at a bakery at some point. As a follower fo the Dominique Ansel brand for years, it was a no-brainer.

It was so. Damn. Good.

I finished off the day with a glass of bubbles on a rooftop bar-the best way to get a nighttime skyline view of a city.

I have SUCH a hard life.

Day 6-Natural History Museum, The Globe, and drinks at the Shard

Day 6 was exactly the level of nerd I was craving. With 5 hours in the natural history museum, I geeked out HARD over the human origins exhibit, getting to see darwin’s finches and a plethora of other fantastic exhibitions. I also picked up my only souvenir, a Charles Darwin Christmas tree topper.

That afternoon, I toured the globe. While it isn’t the actual Globe, the building recreation and the tour was a really phenomenal experience-I definitely recommend it. Unfortunately, there were no shows on due to the winter season. However, that has certainly been an addition to my bucket list!

I wandered over to the shard afterwards, enjoying the view of the Thames.

The Shard has a fantastic viewing platform, complete with a bar. For my last night in London, I sipped a glass of champagne overlooking the city. The dim lighting and the 360 views lent itself to a night view, and it was a perfect bow on top of my trip.

Day 7-Platform 9 3/4 and Camden Market

Day 6 was focused on sightseeing near my hostel. While my flight was late at night, I didn’t want to wander too far to ensure there would be no issues with getting home. I spent the morning at Platform 9 3/4, and my middle school heart was bursting. I didn’t get any photos of the platform, as the access is pretty heavily monitored, but it was fun to see.

I then meandered my way up to Camden Market. In Toronto, I live right next to the Kensington market, so I thought I’d be prepared-but god was I wrong. Camden is like Kensington on steroids.

Twisting pathways, stalls upon stalls selling everything you could be looking for.

The weather was perfect, and I couldn’t have been happier for the casual wander through Camden to finish off the trip.

I ate possibly the best areipa I’ve ever had and just took in the market around me. It was the perfect end to a fantastic trip – and I couldn’t have been happier.

I returned to Glasgow that night and worked my way back to the day to day life here.

I was a little sad to miss the V&A, Kew’s Botanical gardens, and the harry potter experience, but given my budget, priorities, and location, I just realized I’d have to do that next time.

This isn’t going to be the end of my London articles, just a run-through of everything I did. If you made it this far, good for you! Let me know your favourite thing to see in London in the comments, or if you’ve ever been!