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Travel advice for England
From travel safety to visa requirements, discover the best tips for traveling to England
Book your individual trip, stress-free with local travel experts
written by Rough Guides Editors
updated 7.02.2023
Historic, sprawling, sleepless: London is a wonderful place to visit. Monuments from the capital’s glorious past are everywhere, while you’ll also find cultural and culinary delights from across the globe. Accommodation in London, however, is expensive. But with a little savvy you can get some great deals – just don’t expect a mansion for the price of a garret. Start planning your trip with our guide to the best area to stay in London.
The information in this article is inspired by The Rough Guide to London, your essential guide for visiting London.
20 days / from3018 USD
The Great British Road Trip
Get ready to explore Britain on this unique self-drive road trip. Choose the car of your liking before you hit the road: from the Cotswolds and its picturesque villages over the Beatle's favorite hang-out in Liverpool to Scotland's capital Edinburgh: this trip includes many highlights to be explored
customize ⤍5 days / from643 USD
Refreshing English Countryside Break
Outside of London, England is known with a countryside full of history, picturesque villages, patchwork hills, and winding country roads. Explore the countryside with its castles, parks, and historical cities such as Oxford.
customize ⤍14 days / from3248 USD
Walking around vintage England and picturesque Scotland
Visit two traditional capitals, London and Edinburgh, and enjoy a trek through the Loch Lomond national park. This trip will let you discover peaceful Scottish islands by foot, with several days of detailed walking tours included in the trip.
customize ⤍12 days / from2894 USD
Hiking in out-of-the way Northern Cornwall
Northern Cornwall is a hiker's paradise and this itinerary includes the most scenic parts. You will start your journey in London with some unique activities to get to know the city, before setting off on a 5-day walk across Cornwall. End your trip in Bath and explore the backdrop of Bridgerton.
customize ⤍12 days / from2686 USD
A walking holiday on the Jurassic Coast
Walking the Jurassic Coast is one of the best ways to truly appreciate the spectacular scenery. Walks range from easy to challenging. 6 days walking are included in this itinerary, as is an extensive pre-program in London and a last night back in the capital.
customize ⤍11 days / from1298 USD
England Historical Highlights
Discover the highlands of England: From busy London and its Buckingham Palace over historical Oxford to the mysterious Stonehenge. England has plenty to offer and this self-drive itinerary allows you the freedom and flexibility to choose activities to your liking.
customize ⤍The monuments and buildings in Westminster include some of London’s most famous landmarks: Nelson’s Column, Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey. You'll also find two of the city’s top permanent art collections here – the National Gallery and Tate Britain – as well as its finest architectural set piece, Trafalgar Square.
This is one of the easiest parts of London to walk around. That said, for the most part there are only a few shops or cafés, few residential areas and little commercial life. Like the idea of walkable cities? See our guide to the best areas to stay in Amsterdam.
Find more accommodation options to stay in Whitehall and Westminster
Trafalgar Square © maziarz/Shutterstock
Together St James’s and Mayfair make up one of the most exclusive areas where to stay in London. Even today in St James’s, regal residences overlook nearby Green Park and the stately avenue of The Mall. Gentlemen’s clubs cluster along Pall Mall and St James’s Street, while jacket-and-tie restaurants and expense-account shops line St James’s and Jermyn Street.
Shops, offices, embassies and hotels outnumber aristocratic pieds-à-terre in Mayfair nowadays, and Piccadilly may not be the fashionable promenade it once was. Nevertheless, the social cachet of the area has also remained much the same.
London is a perfect destination for a weekend break. You will find more ideas and options in our list of the best weekend breaks in the UK.
Mayfair - a nice place where to stay in London for unique experiences © Alexey Fedorenko/Shutterstock
Soho is very much the heart of the West End. It has long been London’s red-light district. This area is known for its narrow streets that have an unorthodox and slightly raffish air that’s unique to the city centre.
London’s artistic cliques still gather here today. The media, film and advertising industries have a strong presence. The area’s most recent transformation has seen it become London’s most high-profile LGBTQ+ quarter, especially around Old Compton Street. It's also home to an ever-growing selection of excellent restaurants.
Fitzrovia, the quieter Soho spillover north of Oxford Street, also has innumerable bars, cafés and restaurants.
Find more accommodation options to stay in Soho and Fitzrovia
Theatre sign in Soho, the West End © Lance Bellers/Shutterstock
Covent Garden has come full circle. What started out in the seventeenth century as London’s first luxury neighbourhood is once more an aspirational place to live, work and shop.
Boosted by buskers and street entertainers, the piazza is now one of London’s major tourist attractions. The streets to the north – in particular, Long Acre, Neal Street and Floral Street – are home to fashionable clothes and shoe shops.
It’s an undeniably lively place to stay, and perfect if your top priorities are a central location. Spend your time here wandering around watching the street life, sipping coffee and a bit of shopping.
London can be extremely expensive — but it doesn't have to be. Don't miss our guide to the best things to do in London for free.
Covent Garden Market © dade72/Shutterstock
Dominated by the British Museum and London University, and famed for its literary connections, Bloomsbury is London’s most learned quarter. With its formal Georgian squares, it has an unhurried, easy-going vibe.
To the north, around King’s Cross, an exciting new city district is emerging. Squares, restaurants and galleries are all being sculpted out of the industrial landscape that once characterized the area. London can be expensive, but there are still things to do here that won't break the bank — that's why it made our list of the best cheap city breaks in the UK.
Get ready to explore Britain on this unique self-drive tailor-made British road trip. Choose the car of your liking before you hit the road: from the Cotswolds and its picturesque villages over the Beatle's favorite hang-out in Liverpool to Scotland's capital Edinburgh: this trip includes many highlights to be explored
The imposing British Museum © Claudio Divizia/Shutterstock
If you're looking for where to stay in London for an upscale experience, stay in Clerkenwell. Situated slightly uphill from the City, Clerkenwell is a typical London mix of Georgian and Victorian townhouses, housing estates, old warehouses, loft conversions and art studios.
It remains off the conventional tourist trail, but since the 1990s, it has established itself as one of the city’s most vibrant and fashionable areas. It is home to a host of shops, cafés, restaurants and pubs that bustle with activity during the week.
Converted warehouse in Clerkenwell © Eugene Regis/Shutterstock
Just as the traditional image of the old “East End” conjured romantic notions of togetherness and community, today’s east London is more about the people than the urban fabric. The area has a self-perpetuating buzz, with creative goings-on in warehouses, art previews, edgy nightlife and a never ending stream of word-of-mouth soft openings.
Outside of London, England is known for its countryside full of history, picturesque villages, patchwork hills, and winding country roads. Explore the countryside with its castles, parks, and historical cities such as Oxford on this tailor-made refreshing English countryside trip.
Brick Lane, East London © S J Francis/Shutterstock
The South Bank holds some of London’s most popular tourist attractions, including the London Eye and, further south, the impressive Imperial War Museum. The wide, traffic-free path by the river makes it a wonderful place where to stay in London to explore it by foot. There are often events and festivals going on.
Heading on to Southwark, further east, you’ll come to the Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and the soaring Shard. As the streets become more residential moving southeast, attractions become largely epicurean. Borough market is the biggest draw for gourmets, but Bermondsey and Maltby streets are both de rigueur destinations for foodies in the know.
The London Eye and South Bank © Lukasz Pajor/Shutterstock
As well as being home to London’s top museums – the V&A, Natural History and Science museums – South Kensington includes some of the world’s most expensive slices of real estate. This is the heartland of London’s wealthiest families and also the stamping ground of the international rich and famous.
Chelsea, to the south, was once at the forefront of “Swinging London”, with the likes of David Bailey, Mick Jagger and George Best hanging here in the 1960s. Today, however, it’s far from cutting edge and has become a byword for posh London, though some of its residents like to think of themselves as a cut above the purely moneyed types of Kensington.
Find more accommodation options to stay in Kensington and Chelsea
Natural History Museum © Pajor Pawel/Shutterstock
Despite the presence of royalty in Kensington Palace, the village of Kensington remained surrounded by fields until well into the nineteenth century. The village has disappeared entirely now in the busy shopping district around Kensington High Street, and the chief attractions are the wooded Holland Park and the exotically decorated Leighton House.
Bayswater and Notting Hill were for many years the bad boys of the borough, dens of vice and crime comparable to Soho. Gentrification has changed them beyond all recognition, though they remain more cosmopolitan districts. This area has a strong Arab presence and vestiges of the African-Caribbean community who initiated and run the Notting Hill Carnival.
Notting Hill in London © andersphoto/Shutterstock
Needless to say, London is the perfect place for a family holiday, with plenty of entertainment and activities to suit all tastes. Depending on your preferences, you can tour the many London museums, go to the London Eye, visit the West End Theatre Quarter or simply spend time picnicking in one of the beautiful parks.
When it comes to where to stay in London in comfort for the whole family, we've tried to pick a couple of appealing options for you:
An interior shot of the Science Museum in the Natural History Museum complex © Shutterstock
Ready for a trip to London? Check out The Rough Guide to London or The Rough Guide to England. If you travel further in England, read more about the best time to go, the best places to visit and best things to do in England. For inspiration use the England itineraries from The Rough Guide to England and our local travel experts. A bit more hands on, learn about getting there, getting around the country and where to stay once you are there.
If you prefer to plan and book your trip to England without any effort and hassle, use the expertise of our local travel experts to make sure your trip will be just like you dream it to be.
We may earn commission from some of the external websites linked in this article, but this does not influence our editorial standards - we only recommend services that we genuinely believe will enhance your travel experiences.
written by Rough Guides Editors
updated 7.02.2023
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