Visiting London, What Should I See?

[ac106]

Heya all

I will be in London in February and would like suggestions as to what to see. London Aquarium? Best pub? Maybe some non-tourist type stuff.

I will be staying at either the Ritz or le Meridian.

where should i avoid?

 

[Fella]

Will you be wanting to visit some fish stores too? Because there are some great nes in and near to London.

Are you usually based in the US then Ac106?

 

[chardonnay1000]

If you have never been before, i would recommend the open top bus tour, I think its called the big red bus tour or something similar. you can hop on and off buses at your leisure and its a great way to see as much of the touristy stuff as you can in one go. you also get a cruise thrown in too.

 

[ac106]

Will you be wanting to visit some fish stores too? Because there are some great nes in and near to London.

Are you usually based in the US then Ac106?

Yes and Yes

I keep hearing these urban legands about Wildwoods and other fish shops in London that have giant squid and chupacabras and such. Cant wait to check them out

I live in Boston MA, my wife will be going to London for business and i am going to go wtih her and leech the expense account.


So, what fish shops should i hit? is the London Aquarium worth checking out? what are good local pubs where i cant get a pint?

 

[andywg]

If you are staying in the centre of London then getting out to Wildwoods and any of the other fish shops will be a nightmare.

Plenty of good pubs in London, all depends on where you are. If you see a Sam Smith's brewery you won't need to remortgage the house to buy a pint (The Ivy and the Bricklayer's Arms are both a short walk from Tottenham Court Road Station).

Otherwise there is the Seven Dials down in Covent Garden for a nice feel. If you are in the West End area, you cn't really go far without seeing a drinking establishment of some sort, just depends on what you want.

I, myself, really enjoyed the London Aquarium, though it does feel a alittle steep for how long it lasts (just like almost everything in London).

My best hint is, if you are in London between about 5 and 6, do not go on the Central Line between Liverpool Street and Tottenham Court Road. That can get mighty busy, hot and smelly at those times.

 

[nmonks]

I'm going to disagree with AndyWG about Wildwoods and Wholesale Tropicals. Both can easily be reached by public transport, and both are within an "all-zones travelcard". Wholesale Tropicals is about 5-10 minutes ride on a number 8 bus from Liverpool Street station (on the Circle and Central tube lines). Ride the bus towards Bethnal Green, and get off after about a mile, at the stop by a post office (look for the big red/yellow post office sign). Wholesale Tropicals is on the other side of the road.

Wildwoods is about 10 minutes walk from Crews Hill railway station. The quickest way to get there is by Victoria line tube to Finsbury Park, and then go up to the mainline railway and take a commuter train north (the trains going to Hertford North). From Finsbury Park it's about 25 minutes or so, about 10 stops. Not terribly exciting but you'll get to see lots of suburban London, not to mention Alexandra Palace. Once you're at Crews Hill, you go out the station, walk east past all the garden centres (and several other fish shops) and around a corner, for about ten minutes. On the east side of the road is Wildwoods. Wildwoods is definitely worth a visit, but perhaps not for the whole family unless they're really into fish as well!

OK. As for proper London things, here are my three hidden gems:

Sir John Soanes Museum. Utterly bizarre collection of paintings, architectural nick-nacks, fossils, Egyptian stuff, and more. This was an 18th Century collector who was also an important architect. The highlight is the Hogarth gallery, which has moving walls. Free.

http/www.soane.org/

The Horniman Museum. Old school museum in some ways, but with a modern and very good aquarium. Contains a bit of everything. Originally a private museum, has important collections of things like animals, musical instruments, and ethnic art. Free.

http/www.horniman.ac.uk/

The Wallace Collection. Originally a private art collection, then left to the state on the proviso nothing was changed. The result is an enchantingly diverse collection of artworks without the fluff typical of modern "interactive" museums. Lots of famous paintings, as well aa a very important collection of arms and armour. Free.

http/www.wallacecollection.org

All these three places are, for some reason, unfamiliar to the mass of tourists who traipse around the Natural History Museum and such instead. So they are much more fun to visit, and you have the plus of being able to tell your friends back home you did something un-touristy. The Soane Museum in particular is so bizarre and so quaint that every American I've taken there has gushed about it afterwards. It is exactly what you expect an Olde Englishe museum to look like, but more so.

A few other interesting places well worth considering are Samuel Johnson's house, the Design Museum, and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The Cabinet War Rooms and Imperial War Museum are also excellent and very interesting for people who enjoy history or militaria. The Royal Air Force museum in Hendon is another museum off the beaten track but well worth seeing if you like aircraft. Greenwich is also a good day trip, with some excellent museums and things to see, but also a tourist trap as far as snack bars and gift shops go, so be prepared.

Cheers, Neale

 

[connorsbala]

Will you be wanting to visit some fish stores too? Because there are some great nes in and near to London.

Are you usually based in the US then Ac106?

Yes and Yes

I keep hearing these urban legands about Wildwoods and other fish shops in London that have giant squid and chupacabras and such. Cant wait to check them out

I live in Boston MA, my wife will be going to London for business and i am going to go wtih her and leech the expense account.


So, what fish shops should i hit? is the London Aquarium worth checking out? what are good local pubs where i cant get a pint?

Hey,just a question.Whats the big deal about Wildwoods.I hear alot about it and my dad thinks he knows where it is Is it near all the garden centres like crews hill. Is there a big variety of fish there? I cant wait to go on saturday if its as big as its made out to be

 

[James B]

london aquariums a good place to go and see london eye if the weathers good if yoiu can get on it i went with the family on the london duck tour its a tour of london on an old russian duck boat/ car thing was a different experience going by car and then onto the river

 

[nmonks]

The "big deal" with Wildwoods is that [a] it's big, and it has a lot of fishes that other places don't get. So beside cichlids, L-number catfish and so on, it's a good place to find seriously odd oddballs, like electric eels, needlefish, stingrays, gobies, snakeheads, and so on. There's usually a good selection of unusual cyprinids and characins, too. The downside is you won't have tankspace for everything you see! Wildwoods has to be comfortably in the top 5 aquarium shops in the UK. Another good thing with Wildwoods is that it keeps stocklists online, so you can see what they have before you go. The only other shops in London that I know of that are in the same league are Maidenhead Aquatics in St. Albans and Wholesale Tropicals on the Gt. Portland Street. Both of these are very good store, and choosing between the three is difficult, as each has its strengths. Wholesale Tropicals must get the nod for small oddballs, "rare" livebearers, and killifish as no-one else really carries these. The MA in St. Albans is new and very big, and the manager is doing an excellent job getting a reputation for the place in terms of oddball fish, and like most other MA stores it is a solid shop worth visiting, with clean tanks and good prices.

By the way, at Crews Hill there are something like 5 aquarium shops. The Maidenhead Aquatics is certainly worth a look, and does have some nice stuff in from time to time. Home Marine is a very nice shop, particularly for marines.

Cheers, Neale

Hey,just a question.Whats the big deal about Wildwoods.I hear alot about it and my dad thinks he knows where it is Is it near all the garden centres like crews hill. Is there a big variety of fish there? I cant wait to go on saturday if its as big as its made out to be

 

[ac106]

heya all

If anyone is interested, I am in the middle of my trip

Caught the red eye on Sunday night and arrived around 6am.

Day one:

Explored Mayfair, Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park,

Day two

Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard then walked to the Guards Museum which was ok, Parliament Square, Big Ben, etc, down Milbank, over the Lambeth Bridge to the Imperial War Museum which was terrific, got a haircut, then back the Mayfair, all on foot

Day 3 today:

Lunch at a pub, I got Toad in Hole (!) the I walked to the Soane House as per Neale Monks which was simply wonderful. Then saw the Bush House, Roman Baths and walked down the Victoria Embankment to Cleopatra's Needle

Tomorrow will either be the London Aquarium, British Museum or maybe the Tate Modern and a trip to Harrods in the evening

Wife is at Nobu tonight with co-workers so I might go to another pub for something local

Friday I will do a bus tour with the wife. Thanks for everyone’s suggestions!

 

[The-Wolf]

Best pub?

dunno about best pub
but the one of the oldest pubs in London can be found in Southwark (near London bridge)
the George Inn

I used to luch there every day when I worked in the city, great pub well worth a visit

 

[chishnfips]

forget london, come to inverness and help me setup my brackish tank, it's a nice drive

 

[kanzaris]

forget london, come to inverness and help me setup my brackish tank, it's a nice drive

Hi Chishnfips

I totally agree with you. You can’t visit Britain without taking a trip to Scotland.
My friend used to live in Elgin. Beautiful part of the world.

Sabby

 

[chishnfips]

cool I work in elgin every week, the land of butteries and furry boots. lol