Views of London

London, England

LONDON BABY!! This was each Mac’s and my second time in London. Mac visited way back as a wee lad in high school on a rugby tour, and I came for a three day weekend with my cousin in 2012. We both saw most of the main attractions on our first go, so this time around we opted to see some views of London from a different perspective! …Literally!

Views of London

Tate Modern

Mac & I both love a good view, and London has loads of places to get them. We started off our Views of London tour from the Viewing Gallery at Tate Modern. The gallery is free to enter (fun fact: all museums and galleries are free in London!), and the viewing gallery is on the top floor. Here, you can work your way around the platform to get a 360 degree view of London.

While you’re there, and if you’re into modern art, stay a while and check out the exhibitions at Tate Modern.

The Shard // Gong Bar

Affectionately known as The Shard, London’s highest building stands at a whopping 95 storeys. A common attraction is to check out the 74th storey viewing platform (The View from the Shard), but tickets don’t come cheap – especially to two unapologetically frugal, long-term backpackers! Instead, we opted to go to the next best option: the Gong Bar. Located at a still staggering height – 54 stories! – the Gong Bar in the Shangri-La Hotel is an attraction in itself. Let’s just say that Mac and I in our sweaty quick-dry t-shirts, comfortable hiking shoes, and functional day pack did not fit in at this swanky hotel bar. Nonetheless, we received top notch service, and our drinks – expensive as they were – came with some incredible views of London and the cityscape below.

Even though my bottle of sprite was £5 and Mac paid an insane £10 for a teeny bottle of beer, it was still a quarter of what we would have paid if we chose to go to the 74 storey platform!

Notable Mentions

Walkie Talkie building – Londoners sure do love a good nickname for a building! This curved skyscraper on the north bank of the Thames comes complete with a garden terrace (SkyGarden) with sweeping views of the south side of the river. Tickets are free, but you do need to book in advance online! You can’t just rock up to the entrance all excited, having planned your entire morning around this activity, and expect to waltz right in… not that I’d know anything about that…

Greenwich Park – It’s a bit of a trek outside the city centre, but we were told that the views of London from the hilly Greenwich Park are pretty stellar. While you’re there, why not do as the Brits do and have yourself a BBQ picnic?!

St. Paul’s Cathedral – Mac and I both visited this architectural marvel on our first trips in London, but I’d be remiss not to give it an honourable mention. If you can stomach winding staircases and open-air balconies, it’s definitely worth paying to go up to the top!

South Bank – Almost an attraction in itself, walking along the South Bank of the Thames River is an activity not to be missed. We enjoyed checking out the area at different times during the day to see how the light completely changed the vibe of the city.

Graffiti Tour

We’ve done a handful of Graffiti Tours on our travels (most notable are the ones from Bogota and Valparaiso), so we were quite intrigued to discover that London has a thriving arts scene as well! The Shoreditch neighbourhood in East London is home to many street art installations. We continued our Views of London adventure by going on a Street Art tour. Our guide Carlton narrated and provided context as we walked through the colourful streets and alleys. He taught us about various styles of graffiti (free hand, stencil, drip painting, sculpture, etc), as well as the stories behind some of the artists.

If you’re looking for an alternative tour in London, I’d definitely recommend this one by Strawberry Tours!

Our time in the big city was brief, but we definitely got to see some fantastic views of London! We really embraced our relaxed attitude and made sure to take it slow in a city that is always bustling and so full of life. Sure, there were many more things we could have seen and done, but they’ll just have to wait until our next visit!

Have you been to London? Are you a sucker for a good view like me?

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