Pictures of London

a Historic City in the county of Greater London

The river Thames, Houses of parliament and Big Ben, London

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About London

London is one of the World's most exciting, cultural destinations where visitors can walk with history whilst enjoying all that is best of modern day facilities, shops, theatres and restaurants.

This is a city of contrasts where you can witness Pomp and Circumstance as the Queen glides through the gates of Buckingham Palace in the splendid Irish state coach to follow the grand processional route of the Mall, Horse-guards Arch, and on into Whitehall for the state opening of Parliament. Or you can wander amongst the green lung's of London's Royal Park's, which centuries ago were the former hunting ground of Monarchs. These themselves attract over 30 million tourists each year, they start with St.James's Park and lead past the palace to join with Green Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens. The deer and horses have long since gone, giving way to lush flower and water-filled expanses of tranquillity where weary office workers and travellers can rest.

London is a sprawling conurbation combining two cities, each with distinctly different beginnings, and separate roles, characters and styles. The City of London is the crowded centre of Britain's trade and finance; Westminster is the home of Court, government, high society, churches, and houses full of treasure. Linking both is the River Thames, England's greatest water thoroughfare, which has played a continuous role in the building of the city, borne silent witness to so much history and is the reason why the capital is where it is.

By day visitors can shop in a metropolis offering a huge mix of retail outlets ranging from Harrods to Asprey's, Designer Boutiques to Marks and Spencer, fruit shops, multi-cultural delicatessens, tobacconists and chocolate shops. Visitors can take in any one of a number of lively markets, many of which began in medieval times. London is justifiably proud of its markets, each is unique, with its own character, flavour and specialisation - such as Columbia Road Flower Market open every Sunday morning. This is somewhat off the beaten track but is worth the effort it takes to get there - for late risers there are plenty of places to have brunch! Others include the world renowned Covent Garden, Camden, Greenwich, Portobello Road, Petticoat Lane and Bermondsey Antique Market-certainly the place to go to grab a bargain. Travelling around is easy, you simply hail any one of the thousands of famous Black Cabs, or board a bright red double-decker bus. The under-ground offers a network of tubes, ideal for getting quickly from one area to another.

If it is the cultural experience you want, then after seeing London's great architectural gems, you can take you choice of over 200 museums and art galleries, or visit Madame Tussaud's, Kew Gardens, and the Royal Courts of Justice. London has some of the finest theatrical venues in the world, with a theatre-land unsurpassed by any other country. Theatre's range from the Drury Lane Theatre dating from 1812 to the Barbican which opened its doors in 1982, included too is Nash's famous Haymarket Theatre of 1821. In all London offers 40 theatres showing plays, musicals, ballet and opera, leaving visitors completely spoilt for choice.

After-noon tea is a quintessential English tradition that no visitor to London should miss. One of life's "must do's" is to drop in to either Brown's Hotel or the Ritz to enjoy after-noon tea served in the most elegant of English surroundings. Another unforgettable experience is to view London from the dizzy heights of the London Eye, on a clear day the vista can stretch as far as Heathrow Airport and Windsor Castle. Sporting enthusiasts have Wimbledon, Wembley, and even a golf course or two can be found within easy reach of the city centre.

London by night is an amazing experience, pubs on every corner, great buildings and bridges lit up against the night-time sky, add this to numerous clubs and restaurants serving cuisines of more than 70 countries, and this will leave you in no doubt that London has a cafe society second to none, beating that to be found in any other European capital.

In London the romance of the past is everywhere but it blends very well with the present. It is a cherished place where you are overwhelmed by its sheer scale, and yet pleasantly surprised by the warmth of its welcome. A century ago London was the largest and gayest capital city in the world, today it remains a vibrant multi-cultural city of romance that is the most historic and remarkable capital in all of Europe

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Planning a visit? Please see below for other recommended towns, attractions and recommended hotels nearby.

Distances and directions below are approximate. For true driving distances please visit the AA Route Planner

Did Richard III Kill The Princes in the Tower?

by Cheri Thomas

Recommended attractions near London

National Gallery London	(0.1 miles, 0.1 km)	Pictures
Trafalgar Square	(0.1 miles, 0.2 km)	Pictures
Admiralty Arch	(0.2 miles, 0.2 km)	Pictures
Cleopatra's Needle, London	(0.2 miles, 0.3 km)	Pictures
London RAF Memorial	(0.3 miles, 0.5 km)	Pictures
Royal Opera House	(0.3 miles, 0.5 km)	Pictures
The London Transport Museum	(0.3 miles, 0.5 km)	Pictures
The London Battle of Britain Memorial	(0.4 miles, 0.7 km)	Pictures
Somerset House	(0.5 miles, 0.7 km)	Pictures
London Eye	(0.5 miles, 0.8 km)	Pictures
London Aquarium	(0.5 miles, 0.8 km)	Pictures
Green Park	(0.5 miles, 0.9 km)	Pictures
Westminster Abbey	(0.6 miles, 0.9 km)	Pictures
Big Ben	(0.6 miles, 0.9 km)	Pictures
The Old Curiosity Shop, London	(0.6 miles, 1.0 km)	Pictures

All attractions in London
All attractions in Greater London
Complete A to Z of attractions in England

Recommended towns near London

Piccadilly, in the county of Greater London (0.6 miles, 1.0 km)
One of the Capital's most noted places, Piccadilly sweeps uphill with handsome houses on one side and Green Park on the other.
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Westminster, in the county of Greater London (0.8 miles, 1.2 km)
Of all the jewels in the City of Westminster, none shines more brightly than Westminster Abbey, stunning setting for the coronation of almost every English monarch since William the Conqueror was crowned there in 1066.
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Mayfair, in the county of Greater London (1.0 miles, 1.6 km)
Mayfair has it all, it is the haunt of the rich and famous, with elegant houses and apartment buildings that are the sole province of the wealthy.
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Marylebone, in the county of Greater London (1.2 miles, 2.0 km, direction NW)
Marylebone is one of London's more affluent area's, it is home mostly to the well to do, and yet only a couple of centuries ago a large workhouse was built here to give shelter to the poor and homeless, often foundlings were discovered on the workhouse doorstep.
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St Pancras, in the county of Greater London (1.3 miles, 2.0 km, direction N)
The name of the area is taken from the boy martyred in AD 304. Pancras was the orphaned Christian son of a Phrygian nobleman who was brought up at the court of the Emperor in Rome.
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Camden Town, in the county of Greater London (2.2 miles, 3.6 km, direction N)
Camden town is a vibrant cosmopolitan region of London.
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Chelsea, in the county of Greater London (2.6 miles, 4.3 km, direction SW)
Chelsea is a district in London which in recent times gained fame as the 'home' of the 'swinging sixties' . The swinging sixties was defined on the Kings Road, which runs the length of the area and both the Beatles and the Rolling Stones lived here at one time.
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Kensington, in the county of Greater London (3.0 miles, 4.9 km, direction W)
The attractive Royal borough of Kensington has many special places. Most prominent is Kensington Palace, birthplace of Queen Victoria.
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Notting Hill, in the county of Greater London (3.4 miles, 5.5 km, direction W)
This area of London is known throughout the world as the scene of London's biggest annual street party.
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Stoke Newington, in the county of Greater London (4.0 miles, 6.4 km, direction NE)
Stoke Newington offers visitors a diverse cultural experience, it has restaurants of all types of cuisine, plenty of pubs, clubs, shops and markets, and is sufficiently close to all the historic attractions at the heart of the City of London.
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Fulham, in the county of Greater London (4.4 miles, 7.0 km, direction SW)
It is the home to both Fulham Football Club and Chelsea, both play at Premiership level, thus some of the football's most talented and highly paid stars can often be spotted strolling along Fulham's streets.
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Hammersmith, in the county of Greater London (4.4 miles, 7.1 km, direction W)
Hammersmith developed around the River Thames, which is crossed via a graceful suspension bridge designed by Sir Joseph Bazalgette.
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Stamford Hill, in the county of Greater London (4.5 miles, 7.2 km, direction NE)
Stamford Hill lies in the north of the London Borough of Hackney. It is a popular residential area, and home to one of Europes' largest Orthodox Jewish communities.
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Greenwich, in the county of Greater London (5.6 miles, 9.0 km, direction E)
The might of british sea-power and the historic town of Greenwich are inseparable. Two famous English sea-faring vessels are here, one is the Cutty Sark, a famous old clipper that shipped tea from China in the 19th-century, and the other, from the 20th-century is Gypsy Moth 1V, sailed round the world by Sir Francis Chichester.
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Kew, in the county of Greater London (7.2 miles, 11.6 km, direction W)
Kew is just downstream from the delights of Richmond, and is best known for the Royal Botanic Gardens, or as they are more popularly known 'Kew Gardens'.
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All towns in Greater London
Complete A to Z of towns in England

Nearby travel help

Charing Cross Station	(0.0 miles, 0.0 km)
Charing Cross Tube Station	(0.1 miles, 0.1 km)
Embankment Tube Station	(0.2 miles, 0.3 km)
Waterloo Station	(0.8 miles, 1.3 km)
M1 Junction 1	(6.1 miles, 9.8 km, direction NW)
M4 Junction 1	(6.9 miles, 11.0 km, direction W)
London City Airport	(8.0 miles, 12.9 km, direction E)
London Heathrow Airport	(14.2 miles, 22.8 km, direction W)

Hotels & Accommodation in London

Hotel Name	Approximate distance from London center
Thistle Charing Cross	(0.1 miles, 0.1 km)
Club Quarters Trafalgar Square	(0.1 miles, 0.1 km)
St Martins Lane	(0.1 miles, 0.2 km)
Thistle Trafalgar Square	(0.2 miles, 0.3 km)
Radisson Edwardian Hampshire	(0.2 miles, 0.3 km)
Citadines Apart'hotel Trafalgar	(0.2 miles, 0.4 km)
Thistle Royal Horseguards	(0.2 miles, 0.4 km)
Thistle Piccadilly	(0.3 miles, 0.4 km)
Strand Palace Hotel	(0.3 miles, 0.5 km)
Best Western Premier Shaftesbury Hotel	(0.3 miles, 0.5 km)
All hotels in London