London may be one of the most expensive cities in the world, but there are a lot of beautiful places that you can visit for free. In today’s post we’ve made a list of ten of them, but we assure you that there are dozens of places that you can visit without paying anything.
We are fascinated by London since we were little, especially Dorina who developed a small obsession for this city. Now that we had the chance to visit it, we can say that is ten times more beautiful than we expected and that at times it seemed we were on a movie set. Even if you don’t visit anything in London, just wander on the streets you will be impressed by their gorgeous houses, huge parks, the incredibly friendly people, the multitude of colorful flowers hanging from every window, double deckers, their adorable taxis, everything it’s charming here. Well, excepting the weather and the prices 🙂
Although we plan our visit in June to avoid the cold and rain, we didn’t know that weather here is extremely unpredictable. Now may rain and be very cold and half an hour later the sun will shine and be over 20 degrees. Our advice is to always have a rain coat with you because it suddenly starts to rain almost daily. Umbrellas don’t resist, we broke two in only one day due to extremely strong wind. And don’t forget to put some warm clothes in the luggage (or at least a scarf and a long sleeve blouse), no matter the forecast for the next period.
Another practical issue which you really need to know about before traveling to London is the transport. We didn’t read anywhere about it and we had a bit of trouble at first 🙂 For the bus & Tube (subway) you need to buy an Oyster Card that costs you £ 5 and then put different amounts of money on it depending on how much you use it. And the most difficult part is that there are no fixed rates, payment is made depending on the area. Prices for a journey are starting from a pound or so and reach three pounds. And what is very important: never forget to also validate the card when you exit the subway, otherwise you will pay a „fine” of almost 8 pounds. Oyster Card can also be used for buses and a journey here it’s cheaper, it cost 1.5 pounds. At the end of your visit to London, you can return the Oyster Card and you will receive 5 pounds back, but you must meet some conditions (you will find an employee at every station and it will tell you exactly what to do).
But now let’s move to the ten places that we liked the most in London. There are many more places that are free, so many that you don’t have time to visit them all in a week. Here are our choices:
1. Parks
First attraction that we visited in London was a park: Regent’s Park and we began with Primrose Hill, where you can see a part of the city. On the other days we visited Hyde Park, St. James Park and Kensington Gardens, all very beautiful, we also meet some very friendly squirrels 🙂 What shocked us since the early hours when we arrived in London is that locals have picnic, run, read on the banks … in the rain. In Primrose Hill we saw some kids with kites, some that were on a picnic, other elderly people were walking and we didn’t know how to run faster when the rain began. They aren’t bothered by the rain, are already used with this and they dress extremely thin- most of them were in shorts and flip flops and we shivered with jeans and sneakers.
2. Queen Mary’s Rose Gardens
Here we saw the most beautiful roses in our lives. The garden is part of Regent’s Park, but you’ll see that the park is huge and there are separate entrances for each section (for Primrose Hill, too). This garden is home to the largest collection of roses in the UK, over 12,000. We had heard of the famous English roses before, but what we saw and felt here is impossible to describe in words. As you enter the street where the garden is, you feel the roses perfume, there are a lot of colors and varieties, mixed with other colorful flowers, a true delight!
3. Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace
Before seeing this ceremony, we really didn’t know what to believe, we heard a lot of opinions about this: some said it’s very exciting, others that it’s very boring and they not see the point of such parades. You don’t have to listen to everything other tourists or bloggers say because you might like something that others would not even consider to visit. We have different tastes and cultural baggage, so it’s impossible to have the same opinions. We must confess that this ceremony worth every minute of waiting, it’s impressive and we will remember it for many years to come.
The ceremony takes place daily at 11:00 during summer but if you want to see it you must be at the Palace at least an hour before because there are thousands of tourists who come to see this moment. It’s best to place right in the middle, near the fence, where the gates open, but those places are the first „occupied”, so anywhere near the fence it’s good 🙂 The ceremony lasts about 40-45 minutes, but we enjoyed every minute of it, it was very impressive.
4. Museum of London
This was the smallest museum that we visited in London, but by far the most beautiful and spectacular museum that we have seen so far. If we had to recommend you only one museum to visit in London, then this would be. Here you can find an amalgam of history, art, traditions, gadgets and all sorts of innovative things that exemplifies the history of the British capital so that anyone can understand it. Here you can find anything you can think of related to London from telephone booths to cars, clothes, a mini cinema or Paddington, the adorable teddy bear with the red hat (we saw that is very loved all over London, not just by Dorina, we found several souvenirs with him, as you’ll see in photos. We are looking forward to the second part of the film, we recently found out about it 🙂
5. Victoria & Albert Museum
Is a spectacular museum that impressed us, our second favorite after Museum of London. We thought that at Victoria & Albert are exposed only costumes, but we were very wrong. V & A is the largest museum of art and design in the world and here are exposed over 4.5 million objects. You need a few hours to go through all the rooms and after you’re done visiting, don’t miss the chance to go in the museum garden, it’s great!
6. Natural History Museum
Is the most interactive museum that we have seen so far, we even experienced an earthquake in an „Asian supermarket” – this area of the museum it’s so realistic and so „well equipped” that we believed it’s a real store 🙂 It’s a must see museum!
7. Trafalgar Square
Apart from the huge monument with the column of the famous English admiral Nelson and the gorgeous fountain at its base, here you can find The National Gallery and The National Portrait Gallery, two museums with free entry. At The National Gallery you can find thousands of paintings, including some very well known signed by van Gogh, Monet, Titian, Rubens, etc. Near this museum you can find The National Portrait Gallery, also an art museum that is dedicated only to portraits.
We also visited British Museum (free of charge), but we didn’t like it so much, maybe because we visited the V & A before 🙂
8. Tower Bridge
Before reaching the Tower Bridge, we got to London Bridge 🙂 We heard that many tourists do confuse them because they are located near one another, but we assure you that in terms of appearance you can’t mess them. Tower Bridge is spectacular, the only drawbridge in London and we were fortunate enough to catch the exact moment when a tall ship was passing under it. It’s impressive, it doesn’t seem real when you see such a huge bridge bending like a toy. You have to pay to visit the bridge inside.
9. Nothing Hill
All the houses in London are pretty, but in Nothing Hill you can find the most chic and colorful houses. Not all of them are colorful, you have to walk down the street to find the pastel colored ones, but it really worth the effort, they are a visual delight. And we will give you a tip: look for St. Luke’s Mews street. You will think you’re dreaming when you will see how it looks. We found it by accident, but then we read on the Internet that there were filmed some sequences of the Love Actually movie. It’s a dreamy place, that seems designed specifically for movies, but we saw people coming out of the houses, so there are some lucky people who actually stay there.
10. Portobello Road
Is a street in Nothing Hill neighborhood, where you will find lots of antique shops with clothes, decorative items and souvenirs. We heard that on Saturday is also a fair, we were during the week but even so we liked it very much. And here you can also find plenty of colorful houses and all kinds of shops with more or less strange objects 🙂
Other than that, of course we visited the well known attractions: Big Ben, London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, Kensington, etc. Before leaving home we had made a list of museums and various galleries to visit but we didn’t have time to see them all, so we have to go back to London again 🙂
♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
Londra e faimoasa pentru preturile extrem de mari, insa exista o gramada de locuri superbe pe care le puteti vizita gratuit. In postarea de azi am facut o lista cu zece dintre ele, insa va asiguram ca sunt zeci de locuri la care aveti acces fara sa platiti nimic.
Suntem fascinate de Londra inca de eram mici, in special Dorina care in timp a dezvoltat o mica obsesie pentru acest oras. Acum ca am avut ocazia sa il vizitam, va putem spune ca e de zece ori mai frumos decat ne imaginam noi si ca in unele momente aveam impresia ca suntem pe niste platouri de filmare, parea un decor realizat pentru o pelicula. Chiar daca nu vizitezi nimic in Londra, doar sa cutreieri pe strazi si tot ramai impresionat de casele superbe (noi ne-am fi oprit din 5 in 5 metri sa mai facem o poza), de parcurile atat de mari de te ratacesti in ele, de oameni care sunt incredibil de amabili, de multimea de flori colorate atarnate la fiecare geam, de autobuzele supraetajate, de taxiurile lor adorabile, totul e fermecator aici. Bine, mai putin vremea si preturile 🙂
Desi am fost in iunie tocmai pentru a evita frigul si ploile, nu am scapat de ele. Vremea la ei e extrem de imprevizibila: acum poate sa ploua torential si sa bata vantul ca iarna, iar peste o jumatate de ora sa apara soarele si sa fie peste 20 de grade. Sfatul nostru e sa aveti mereu o pelerina la voi pentru ca mai mereu incepe sa ploua din senin. Umbrelele nu rezista, noua ni s-au rupt doua intr-o zi (una era imensa, barbateasca) si am renuntat la ele din cauza vantului extrem de puternic. Si nu uitati sa puneti haine groase in bagaj, indiferent de ce anunta prognoza pentru urmatoarea perioada. Sau macar niste esarfe si niste bluze cu maneca lunga, daca sunteti ca noi si nu vreti sa carati prea multe 🙂 Noi am fost nevoite sa ne cumparam esarfe si umbrele de acolo, am vrut sa ne luam si pulovere, dar nu am gasit decat unele de iarna, asa ca am renuntat la idee si am cam tremurat…
Un alt aspect practic despre care trebuie neaparat sa stiti e transportul. Noi nu citisem nicaieri despre asta si am avut batai de cap la inceput 🙂 Am inteles ca inainte se putea sa circuli la metrou/Tube cum ii spun ei cumparand doar o calatorie, insa acum trebuie neaparat sa iti faci Oyster Card care te costa 5 lire si pe care trebuie sa incarci diverse sume de bani, in functie de nevoi. Si cea mai dificila parte consta in faptul ca nu exista tarife fixe ca la noi, ci plata se face in functie de zona, iar diferentele intre zone sunt destul de mari, de pana la doua lire. Preturile pentru o calatorie incep de la o lira si ceva si ajung pana la trei lire si ceva. Si ce e extrem de important: nu uitati niciodata sa validati cardul si cand iesiti de la metrou, altfel veti plati o „amenda” de aproape 8 lire. Oyster Card se poate folosi si la autobuze, iar acolo calatoriile sunt mai ieftine, doar 1.5 lire, insa de multe ori trebuie sa schimbati autobuzul si tot cam la pretul de la metrou ajungeti, iar metroul e mult mai rapid. La finalul vizitei in Londra, puteti returna Oyster Card-ul si veti primi cele 5 lire inapoi, insa trebuie sa indepliniti anumite conditii (o sa va spuna exact angajatii care se ocupa de asta).
Dar sa trecem de la vremea deprimanta la ceva mult mai pozitiv: zece dintre locurile care ne-au placut cel mai mult. Sunt mult mai multe de vazut gratuit, atat de multe incat nici nu ai timp sa le vizitezi pe toate intr-o saptamana. Se organizeaza si tururi gratuite, insa nu am mers in niciunul pentru ca fie erau departe de zona unde ne aflam noi, fie incepeau la o ora aiurea, cand noi eram deja in alta parte si tot asa. Dar daca va doriti sa mergeti insotiti si sa aveti si ghid gratuit, chiar merita incercate aceste tururi.
- Parcurile
Primul obiectiv pe care l-am vizitat in Londra a fost un parc: Regent’s Park, mai exact am urcat pe Primrose Hill, de unde poti vedea o parte din oras. In celelalte zile am vizitat si Hyde Park, St. James Park si Kesington Gardens, toate sunt foarte frumoase. Nu sunt amenajate ca la noi cu tot felul de banci, monumente, straturi de flori etc., doar copaci si iarba, uneori ai impresia ca esti in padure si partea buna e ca poti merge si pe iarba unde ai sansa sa te intalnesti cu veverite extrem de prietenoase 🙂 Ce ne-a socat inca din primele ore cand am ajuns in Londra e ca localnicii stau la picnic, plimba cateii, alearga, citesc pe banci… in ploaie. In Primrose Hill erau tineri cu zmee, altii la picnic, alti oameni in varsta se plimbau agale pe potecile parcului si noi nu stiam cum sa fugim mai repede ca incepuse ploaia. Pe ei nu ii mai deranjeaza, sunt deja obisnuiti, de asta se imbraca si extrem de subtire- erau in pantaloni scurti si slapi si noi tremuram cu jeansi si adidasi.
2. Queen Mary’s Rose Gardens
Aici am vazut cei mai frumosi trandafiri din viata noastra. Gradina face parte tot din Regent’s Park, insa o sa vedeti ca parcul e imens si sunt intrari separate pentru fiecare sectiune (si pentru Primrose Hill se intra tot separat). Gradina adaposteste cea mai mare colectie de trandafiri din Marea Britanie, am inteles ca sunt peste 12.000. Auzisem de faimosii trandafiri englezesti, dar ceea ce am vazut si simtit aici e imposibil de descris in cuvinte. De cum intrai pe straduta dinspre gradina se simtea parfumul imbatator si erau o gramada de culori si soiuri, amestecati si cu alte flori colorate, o adevarata incantare, nu am fi mai plecat de acolo.
3. Schimbarea Garzii la Buckingham Palace
Inainte de a vedea cu ochii nostri aceasta ceremonie, chiar nu stiam ce sa credem: auzisem o gramada de pareri in legatura cu aceasta ceremonie: unii spuneau ca e un moment extraordinar, altii ca e o porcarie, ca e plicitisitor si ca nu vad rostul unei astfel de parade. Nu trebuie sa ascultati tot ce spun alti turisti sau bloggeri, pentru ca voua e posibil sa va placa ceva ce altii nici nu ar lua in considerare sa viziteze. Avem gusturi si bagaje culturale diferite, asa ca e imposibil sa avem aceleasi pareri. Va spunem sincer ca noua aceasta ceremonie ni se pare ca a meritat fiecare minut de asteptare, e impresionanta si o sa ne ramana in memorie multi ani de acum incolo. Ceremonia are loc zilnic de la ora 11:00 (ora se mai schimba de la an la an, am inteles ca pana acum era la 11:30) in sezonul cald, iar in sezonul rece parca se tine o data la doua zile. Daca vreti sa vedeti ceremonia, trebuie sa ajungeti neaparat cu cel putin o ora inainte pentru ca sunt mii de turisti care vin sa vada acest moment. Cel mai bine e sa va plasati exact langa gard, in partea de mijloc, unde se deschid portile, insa locurile alea se ocupa primele de obicei, asa ca oriunde langa gard e bine 🙂 Ceremonia dureaza vreo 40-45 de minute, insa noi nu ne-am plictisit absolut deloc, ne-a placut foarte mult, a fost de-a dreptul impresionant (o sa va aratam si in vlog cateva fragmente).
4. Museum of London
A fost cel mai mic muzeu pe care l-am vizitat in Londra, insa de departe cel mai frumos si spectaculos muzeu pe care l-am vazut pana acum. Daca ar fi sa recomandam un singur muzeu pe care sa il vizitati in Londra, atunci asta ar fi. Gasiti aici un amalgam de istorie, arta, traditii, gadget-uri si tot felul de sisteme inovative, ni se pare un muzeu care exemplifica istoria capitalei britanice pe intelesul tuturor. Inauntru gasiti orice va trece prin cap legat de Londra de la cabine telefonice in marime naturala, la masini, haine, mini cinema sau pe Paddington, adorabilul ursulet cu palarie rosie (am vazut ca e foarte iubit in toata Londra, nu doar de Dorina, am gasit in mai multe locuri suveniruri cu el, dupa cum o sa vedeti si in fotografii; abia asteptam partea a doua a filmului, am aflat recent ca se lucreaza la ea 🙂
5. Victoria & Albert Museum
E un muzeu spectaculos care ne-a impresionat, e al doilea in topul nostru dupa Museum of London. Nu stim de ce, noi aveam impresia ca la Victoria & Albert sunt expuse doar costume si haine vechi (ne gandeam doar la expozitii de design vestimentar), insa ne-am inselat amarnic. V&A e cel mai mare muzeu de arta si design din lume si aici sunt expuse peste 4.5 milioane de obiecte. Trebuie sa va rezervati cateva ore pentru a parcurge toate incaperile si cand terminati de vizitat, nu ratati ocazia sa mergeti si in gradina muzeului, e minunata!
6. Natural History Museum
E cel mai interactiv muzeu pe care l-am vazut pana acum, am experimentat chiar si un cutremur intr-un supermarket din Asia- sectiunea din muzeu era atat de bine amenajata incat noi initial chiar am crezut ca e magazin 🙂 Trebuie sa mergeti neaparat si aici!
7. Trafalgar Square
In afara de monumentul cu coloana imensa a celebrul amiral englez Nelson si fantana superba de la baza ei, in Trafalgar gasesti si National Gallery si National Portrait Gallery, doua muzee cu intrare gratuita, deci impusti mai multi iepuri dintr-o singura lovitura 🙂 La National Gallery gasiti mii de tablouri, inclusiv unele extrem de cunoscute semnate de van Gogh, Monet, Titian, Rubens etc. Langa el gasiti The National Portrait Gallery, tot un muzeu de arta unde sunt expuse doar portrete.
Am mai vizitat gratuit si British Museum, care nu ne-a impresionat asa tare poate pentru ca vizitasem V&A inainte 🙂
8. Tower Bridge
Inainte de a ajunge la Tower Bridge, am nimerit pe London Bridge 🙂 Am inteles ca foarte multi turisti fac confuzie intre ele pentru ca sunt situate unul in apropiere de altul, insa va asiguram ca din punct de vedere al aspectului nu ai cum sa le incurci. Tower Bridge e spectaculos (de cate ori am folosit cuvantul asta in postare? 🙂 , e singurul pod basculant din Londra si noi am avut norocul sa prindem exact momentul cand trecea o nava, astfel ca am vazut cum se ridica si cum se coboara. E impresionant, parca nu iti vine sa crezi ca e real cand vezi o astfel de structura uriasa cum se ridica de parca ar fi de jucarie. Se poate vizita si in interior, insa cum Cristina are rau de inaltime si abia a vrut sa mergem pe pod, nu ne-am avantat si in interior.
9. Nothing Hill
Toate casele din Londra sunt splendide, insa in Nothing Hill le gasiti pe cele mai cochete si colorate. Nu toate casele din cartier sunt colorate, trebuie sa mergi pe stradute sa le gasesti pe cele pastelate, insa meritul efortul, sunt o adevarata incantare din punct de vedere vizual.
Si sa va mai dam un pont: daca ajungeti in Nothing Hill cautati straduta St. Luke’s Mews. O sa credeti ca visati cand o sa vedeti cum arata. Noi am gasit-o intamplator, dar am aflat ulterior ca acolo s-au filmat niste secvente din filmul Love Actually. E de vis straduta aia, pare amenajata special pentru filmari, dar am vazut oameni iesind din case, deci exista niste norocosi care chiar stau acolo.
10. Portobello Road
E o strada care face parte tot din cartierul Nothing Hill, unde o sa gasiti o multime de magazine de antichitati si kitch-uri inutile, cum numim noi obiectele astea mici de decor sau suvenirurile (nu le zicem asa doar la cele urate, ci si la cele frumoase, dar care nu au nicio utilitate practica) 😀 Am inteles ca sambata e si targ pe strada, noi am fost in timpul saptamanii, dar chiar si asa ne-a placut super mult. Si aici gasiti o multime de case colorate si tot felul de magazine cu obiecte care mai de care mai ciudatele 🙂
In afara de astea, bineinteles ca am vizitat si obiectivele arhicunoscute: Big Ben, London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, Kesington, etc, dar pe alea nu le-am mai mentionat pentru ca le stie toata lumea.
Noi ne facusem o lista cu muzee si diverse galerii inainte de a pleca de acasa, insa nu am ajuns sa le vizitam pe toate, asa ca trebuie sa revenim neaparat in Londra 🙂
St. Luke’s Mews
Nothing Hill
Museum of London with Paddington 🙂
Portobello Road
Tower Bridge
St. Luke’s Mews street
Victoria & Albert Museum {garden}
Westminster Abbey corner 🙂
Queen’s Mary Gardens
Faine pozele! frumoase amintiri!
Un articol util pentru cine vrea sa viziteze locul! Momentan, stam departe…din pacate…
Daaa, si noua ne plac tare mult pozele! <3
Ne bucuram ca iti place :*
Well ce altceva as putea spune decat faptul ca aveti niste poze minunate? 😀 Si da, Londra e intr-adevar un oras foarte scump, dar asa cum ati spus si voi, orasul are de oferit o multime de locuri si atractii turistice care sunt gratuite si care chiar merita vazute. 🙂 Mi-a placut orasul la nebunie si am avut norocul sa avem parte de vreme frumoasa, ceea ce a facut orasul sa fie si mai frumos. 🙂
Pupici
http://flashforwards.blogspot.ch/2017/07/pastels-in-wind.html
Multumim frmos, Andra! O sa mai mergem cu siguramta sa mai vizitam Londra, deoarece ne-a placut extrem de mult totul si sa speram ca o sa prindem si noi vreme buna ca totul sa fie perfect ::)))
Pupici!
Abia acum am reusit sa citesc postarea :D. Imi e tare dor de Londra, o sa tin cont de sfaturile voastre daca vom ajunge pe meleagurile lor. Chiar imi doresc.
Dupa fiecare obiectiv povestit nu ar da bine puse imediat pozele reprezentative? Am observat ca le puneti la sfarsit tot timpul dar eu sunt curioasa sa vad care e mai exact gradina Mary nush cum :D. Zic si eu.
Foarte frumoase oricum, si voi si pozele!
Da, i-am zis si eu Dorinei sa le puna asa, o sa vedem cum o sa facem sa arata bine, dar de obicei trecem mereu sub poza si unde e facuta poza ca sa fie mai usor de urmarit 😀
Ne bucuram mult ca iti plac! Multumim! <3