As one of the world’s foremost global cities, London needs little introduction. From Buckingham Palace to Big Ben, the UK capital has countless iconic attractions to keep snap-happy tourists amused for a long time.
But for those not so keen on the major tourist attractions and with more of a penchant for cities’ hidden delights, London delivers on every front. So where to start?
Well, even long-time London residents will say that they haven’t even scratched the surface of this magnificent metropolis, but here are a few options to get you started on your exploration of the other side of London.
Camden is a fantastic, bustling little area just north of the city centre and is famed for its excellent markets and lively nightlife. But Camden Town is also where you’ll find Camden Lock, a quaint waterway where you can hop on a waterbus service westwards around Regent’s park – an excellent park that’s home to London Zoo – and onto Maida Vale, a leafy area colloquially referred to as Little Venice, and is home to some excellent shops and restaurants.
London may be a major metropolis, but there is no shortage of green space across the city. Whilst the likes of Hyde Park and Regents Park rank highly on many tourists’ to-do list, Richmond Park is one that often escapes the attention of those on a short stay.
At 955 hectares, Richmond Park is almost three times the size of New York’s Central Park and it’s the UK’s 2nd biggest walled-park.
Richmond itself is a lovely little area, a short train journey from central London, but it’s the park that takes this region to the next level. Wandering through the expansive grassland, it’s easy to forget you’re actually in a massive city, and with over six hundred red and fallow deer in the grounds, Richmond Park is a great place to escape the hustle and bustle for a day.
If you’re really getting into park mode, then Kew Gardens is a short jaunt away from Richmond, and is well worth a visit.
With a series of gardens, glasshouses, a pagoda and an orangery, visitors are transported away from London into a sacred, secluded wonderland. And the icing on the cake might well be the fantastic treetop walkway, which opened in 2008. A giddy eighteen metres high and two hundred metres long, visitors can walk across the top the tree canopy of a woodland glade.
So, whilst London will always be known for its fantastic city life, there is so much more on offer in this vast and varied metropolis. And with so much to do, hotels in London are always in great demand, so be sure to book well in advance.
Paul Buchanan writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.