Whether you’re new to London or have been living here as long as you can remember, you’ll want to add these to your bucket list.
We’ve put together a great selection of picture-perfect places around London, close to some of the best cafes and restaurants for a light bite or sit-down dinner if you get hungry along the way. If heading out for drinks is more your style, impress your friends with these immersive drinks venues, we’ve got you covered.
The best things to do in London
Columbia Road Flower Market
This market is really special if you do get the chance to visit as it’s only open on Sundays, the streets are lined with beautiful flowers and boutique shops filled with hand-picked gifts and London keepsakes along the neighbouring streets. A perfect place for a Sunday stroll and to pick up a bouquet of fresh flowers as a gift for yourself – the gorgeous colours and scents are hard to resist. It’s an early one, only open from 8am-3pm, so don’t forget to set your alarm.
Columbia Road Flower Market, Columbia Rd, London E2 7RG
Seven Dials
In the heart of Covent Garden, the iconic area of Seven Dials is definitely one to add to the bucket list. With a star-shaped layout, each of the seven points of the star provide something different to experience. Head down to Neal’s Yard for a colourful backdrop of beautiful shops and cafes. Be sure to visit the Seven Dials Market too, where you can take a stroll down Cucumber Alley and discover the Banana Warehouse where you’ll find plenty of independent experts in an interesting variety of cuisines.
Seven Dials, neighbourhood in the St Giles district of the London Borough of Camden
Notting Hill
If you’ve ever watched the movie and wondered what it would be like to wander the same market as Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts, this is your chance. Portobello Road Market is what you’re looking for, and it is bustling with vintage clothing, antiques and market sellers peddling their fresh fruit and veg. If you’re in Notting Hill for a longer day trip, why not treat yourself with a trip to the Coronet or Tabernacle Theatre? Who knows who you’ll bump into while you’re there.
Notting Hill, a district of West London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
The must-visit places to eat in London
Beigel Bake
A well-known spot to drop in at any time of day (yep, it’s open 24 hours), Beigel Bake’s bagels come in all manner of flavours, with dozens of filling combinations to boot. Join the queue and you’ll have plenty of time to decide what you’re going to go for. And don’t forget to pick up your bread and a couple of sweet treats for the road.
Beigel Bake Brick Lane Bakery, 159 Brick Ln, London E1 6SB
Bread Ahead
All your carby dreams will come true at this Borough Market institution. Bread, pastries, cakes and doughnuts are made fresh in this bakery 6 days a week and its afternoon tea menu is perfect for when friends and family come to visit. Hone your skills at home with baking courses available online and in person, and if doughnuts really are the way to your heart, you can brush up on your doughnut-making skills too.
Bread Ahead Bakery, Borough Market, Cathedral St, London SE1 9DE
The Cheese Bar
We have two words for you: Fondue Thursdays. You’ll find several Cheese Bar locations across London including one Cheese Barge on The Regent’s Canal playing host to a seasonal cheese-focused menu, from a whole half kilo Baked Baron to the infamous Westcombe Curried Cheese Curds. Expect cheese plates with innovative pairings and small producer wines at The Cheese Bar, and don’t forget to drop in for Raclette Wednesday – it really is very easy to be this cheesy.
Pick & Cheese – The Cheese Bar, Seven Dials Market, Short’s Gardens, London WC2H 9AT
The Cheese Barge, The Cheese Barge, Sheldon Square, London W2 6DL
The must-visit places to drink in London
STEREO
STEREO is a great spot with a mix of live music, cocktails and dining. Inspired by the late-night culture of New York and London mixed with Parisian chic, this spot, tucked away under Covent Garden Market offers killer cocktails, local beers and a snack menu served until 1.30am. Never short of live music and events, you’ll love the live bands, rotating series of resident DJs and curated one-off artist performances.
STEREO Covent Garden, 35 The Piazza, London WC2E 8BE
Incognito
Take a trip a little further out of the bustle of London to Kingston Upon Thames where Incognito Bar is hiding in plain sight. Each drink (or libation, as they are listed on the menu) is a theatrical performance straight from the imagination of ‘owner’ Chadwich Smithfield. If you love your drink order with a life story and potentially one too many ingredients, the “opulence and extravagance” of this “secret” bar should be right up your street.
Incognito, The Griffin Centre, Kingston upon Thames KT1 1JT
Before you go
Whether you’ve just moved to London or now consider yourself a local, we hope this has given you some new ideas of places to add to your bucket list.
London always has new things to explore, you can work your way around by area and with the tube being so convenient it becomes so easy to do. All of these recommendations (except Kingston of course) are around 30 minutes from South Bermondsey and Peckham, with Bread Ahead in Borough Market only 20 minutes from Peckham, that is why at YourTRIBE we stand by our carefully picked locations that puts our student accommodation in London right in the heart of where you want to be.