6 May 2023 is a very special day for the United Kingdom – we are going to be celebrating the first Coronation of a monarch for over 70 years. London is going to be buzzing. Visitors are flying in from all over the globe seeking exciting things to do in London. Moreover, we have the pleasure of an additional bank holiday on the Monday after the Coronation.
The Coronation of King Charles III is an occasion that only the British can perform with the pomp and ceremony expected for such state occasions. In the weeks leading up to the event, rehearsals have been taking place during the early hours of the morning to ensure that the carriage ride to and from Westminster Abbey is timed with the precision necessary for moving King Charles and Queen Camilla, plus hundreds of representatives from the different troops that will be accompanying them.
The Coronation may be taking place in London, but it will be celebrated the length and breadth of the United Kingdom. To know more about how you can join in with events, Buckingham Palace has published a comprehensive Coronation website that will give you all the information you need.
In the meantime, us Londoners are very excited to be having a deluge of new visitors coming into our amazing city and to help them make the most of London both over the Coronation weekend and moving into summer, we’ve created our own list of the Top 10 Things to do in London.
Well, of course, we are going to top the list with our very own Jack the Ripper Tour. You can’t get anything more ‘London’ and iconic than walking in the footsteps of one of the world’s most famous serial killers. Our experienced and knowledgeable Ripperologists will plunge you deep into the terrifying shadowy darkness where women are disembowelled and abandoned on the streets of Whitechapel.
We believe that our walking tour is one of the coolest things to do in London and offers excellent value for money, particularly if you have children. You can book your walking tour here.
As long-time London tour operators, we know the best of the best, so the following suggestions truly are the cream that will give you different things to do in London once the Coronation celebrations have died down.
How would you feel if you were to walk out of your hotel to see a 300-foot Martian opening fire on Buckingham Palace or where get scooped up into a balloon ride that takes you to Mars? This immersive experience uses multi-sensory technology to plunge you into the middle of a Martian invasion. Let your emotions and senses be shaken, stirred, and amplified by Jeff Wayne’s unique musical score.
To bring you back into reality, no trip to London is complete without stepping onto the London Eye and allowing yourself to be carried up high to get the most unhindered view of the city’s various landmarks. Make sure you book in advance, though – it’s a highly popular attraction.
The beauty of London is that you don’t have to spend a fortune. In fact, some of the most interesting things to do in London are completely free of charge. The Tate Modern, The Natural History Museum, The British Museum, the Natio6. al Gallery, The Victoria & Albert Museum, The Science Museum, Tate Britain – there is a world of fascinating history, which is completely free of charge to you and your family. This great city ensures that there are plentiful things to do in London this summer that won’t cost you a thing.
Deepen your knowledge and understanding of the Coronation and bask in its afterglow by booking a tour of Westminster Abbey. This historic building is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, steeped in Royal, literary, architectural, and military history that has shaped the country over the centuries.
While a tour of Buckingham Palace may not include a seat at one of the state banquets, it does give you an opportunity to take a sneak peek behind the curtain and imagine how the young Kate Middleton must have felt before she became Catherine the Princess of Wales.
Our Ripper Tour may be one of the best walking tours in London, but we are very happy to highlight the fact that there is a myriad of other walking tours of London that will take you into corners that you will never even know existed. Some, like our own, have historical themes, while others are more literary, such as the Harry Potter or Sherlock Holmes walking tours.
It might be located a few miles out of central London, but we can’t make a top 10 London attractions list without mentioning Harry Potter. So we’re mentioning Harry Potter.
Undiscovered courtyards, little lanes, tucked away public gardens, the twists and turns of London have grown and evolved into an intricate web of tiny but beautiful gems that only Londoners know about. A curious mind and nose for the undiscovered will take you into corners that few know exist, feeding a fertile imagination that will smell out the lives that have come and gone in these hidden spots.
The best way to understand London’s position on the world’s gastronomic stage is to take a walking tour and visit its rich and varied street food locations. From Borough Market to Leather Lane, you’ll need to walk for several days to work off the calories taken in by when sampling the myriad delicacies you are not going to be able to resist.
We hope that our brief countdown gives you a broader idea of what you can do in London both over the Coronation weekend and throughout the summer. In the meantime, we will look forward to seeing you here in Whitechapel.