Sights

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Saint Paul’s Cathedral
THE CITY OF LONDON
St. Paul’s Churchyard
}020 7246 8350; www.stpauls.co.uk
It’s something of a challenge to enter St. Paul’s Cathedral and not take the Lord’s name in vain. The church is epically…
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The Temple
THE CITY OF LONDON
Between Essex St. and Temple Ave.
}020 7427 4820
The Temple is a stunning complex of medieval, Elizabethan, and Victorian buildings, first established by the Knights Tem…
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Museum of London
THE CITY OF LONDON
150 London Wall
}020 7001 9844; www.museumoflondon.org.uk
The Museum of London is an exhaustive celebration of the city, tracing its history from the pre-Roman days to the presen…
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Courtauld Gallery
THE CITY OF LONDON
Somerset House, Strand
}020 7872 0220; www.courtauld.ac.uk
Courtauld Gallery is a very small gallery in a very large house. The famous £KGB double agent, Anthony Blunt, was direct…
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National Gallery
THE WEST END
Trafalgar Sq.
}020 7747 2885; www.nationalgallery.org.uk
The National Gallery presides over Trafalgar Sq. and is perhaps even more impressive than the square itself. Founded in …
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National Portrait Gallery
THE WEST END
St. Martin’s Pl.
}020 7306 0055; www.npg.org.uk
In London, it’s easy to get lost in history. You have to remember names of monarchs, gossip stars, the insanely wealthy,…
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Westminster Abbey
WESTMINSTER
Off Parliament Sq.
}020 7222 5152; www.westminster-abbey.org
London has no shortage of lovely churches steeped in history. But Westminster Abbey stands out as the best combination o…
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Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms
WESTMINSTER
Clive Steps, King Charles St.
}020 7930 6961; www.iwm.org.uk/cabinet
The Cabinet War Rooms opened in 1939, just a few days before the outbreak of WWII. They were used as a shelter for impor…
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Tate Modern
THE SOUTH BANK
53 Bankside
}020 7887 8008; www.tate.org.uk
It’s hard to believe that you can see all this incredible art for free. Located in George Gilbert Scott’s old Brutalist …
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Imperial War Museum
THE SOUTH BANK
Lambeth Rd.
}020 7416 5000; www.iwm.org.uk
Housed in what was once the infamous Bedlam insane asylum, the Imperial War Museum is mad for history. The exhibits star…
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Victoria and Albert Museum
KENSINGTON AND CHELSEA
Cromwell Rd.
}020 7942 2000; www.vam.ac.uk
The V and A is one of the most all-encompassing museums out there, with a truly memorable collection of beautiful things…
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Saatchi Art Gallery
KENSINGTON AND CHELSEA
Duke of York Sq.
}020 7811 3085; www.saatchigallery.co.uk
It’s rare to find a free gallery of this caliber. The rooms are cavernous and bright, providing ample space for each ins…
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British Museum
MARYLEBONE AND BLOOMSBURY
Great Russell St.
}020 7323 8299; www.british-museum.org
Ah, colonialism. It’s a bummer about the whole exploitation and oppression thing, but, man, does it make for some awesom…
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British Library
MARYLEBONE AND BLOOMSBURY
96 Euston Rd.
}020 7412 7676; www.bl.uk
Though it was castigated during its long construction by traditionalists for being too modern and by modernists for bein…
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The Regent’s Park
MARYLEBONE AND BLOOMSBURY
}020 7486 7905; www.royalparks.org.uk
In 1811, the Prince Regent commissioned John Nash to design him a private garden; the park was opened to the public in 1…
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Hampstead Heath
NORTH LONDON
Hampstead
}020 7332 3030
Hampstead Heath was initially much smaller than its present 800 acres. After Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson tried to develop a…
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Whitechapel Gallery
EAST LONDON
77-82 Whitechapel High St.
}020 7522 7888; www.whitechapelgallery.org
In business since 1901, the Whitechapel Gallery was originally an effort by hoity-toity uppity-ups to bring art to the c…
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Geffrye Museum
EAST LONDON
136 Kingsland Rd.
}020 7739 9893; www.geffrye-museum.org.uk
At first glance, the Geffrye is yet another house-turned-museum, but if the thought of looking at upholstery for an hour…
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Hampton Court Palace
WEST LONDON
East Molesey, Surrey
}0844 482 7777; www.hrp.org.uk/hamptoncourtpalace
If you’re a fan of the Tudors (either the historical figures or the saucy Showtime television series), the lavish Hampto…
Tower Bridge
THE CITY OF LONDON
}020 7403 3761; www.towerbridge.org.uk
Erected between 1886 and 1894, Tower Bridge was built when London Bridge became too crowded—and, perhaps, as a little in…

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