Transcript of the best FREE things to do in london 🇬🇧 mini london itineraries that cost nothing

If you think London is too expensive,  well, you're not wrong. But for every   opportunity there is to drop a h 100red  quid, and trust me, there are plenty,   there are also hundreds of opportunities to  experience the city completely for free. [Music] I'm going to run you through eight mini London  itineraries that I've curated that cost nothing.   Once you get there, we're kicking things off  with two nature focused itineraries. First up   is Hamstead. From Hamstead station, enjoy the  high street. Drop into Dawn Books. It's all   very cute. And then head over to the Heath. Side  note, I had to Google what a heath was because   I didn't understand why it wasn't just called  a park. Turns out a heath is an area of open,   uncultivated land with characteristic  vegetation of heather, gor, and coarse grasses.   So walk around the open uncultivated land past the  mixed bathing ponds through the coarse grasses and   up to Parliament Hill viewpoint for a really  beautiful view across London. While you're in   Hamstead Heath, you can also drop into Kenwood  House. This is a neocclassical villa that's free   to browse. It's got a huge art collection in there  and that art is collected by the great grandson of   the founder of Guinness. And it's also the filming  location in Notting Hill in this scene. Gracias.   The next nature focused itinerary is in southwest  London in Richmond. So from Richmond Station,   head towards a street called Paved Court. It's  also coincidentally where they filmed a lot of   Ted Lasso. From there, you're going to head  towards White Cross Pub and wander along the   riverside. From the Riverside, you can then make  your way towards the park. So Richmond Park is   the largest royal park in London and it is also a  designated national nature reserve. So you'll see   a lot of wildlife here including deers which are  beautiful. The next few itineraries are centered   around shopping districts or in the spirit of free  London window shopping districts but really these   are significantly energetic and vibrant places.  So don't be put off by the shopping aspect.   First up is Soho. From Oxford Circus, you're  going to head towards Carnaby Street. This is   a pedestrianized shopping district. It's full of  color, a lot of street art, really cool lights,   particularly in winter time. From Carnaby  Street, check out Liberty. Honestly, this is   such a beautiful department store. It also happens  to house a lot of beautiful brands and products to   browse and wander around. I personally have never  spent a scent in Liberty, but I've been there   multiple times to just enjoy and wander around  because I think it's just a beautiful space to be   in. You can also drop into Selfridges to see one  of London's most popular department stores. Also,   if you're there around Christmas time, their  Christmas section of the store is unreal,   like unlimited. And then also, there is the  corner shop at Selfridges and that hosts   rotating series of creative retail concepts. From  Selfridges, you can walk up to Marabone. To me,   Marabone is just quintessential London. I find  it so beautiful. I love walking around the high   street. You can also drop into Daunt Books.  This is a beautiful building with Eduardian   architecture. It was founded by James Daunt  in 1990. He preserved a lot of the original   features from its previous life as a 1910s antique  and rare bookshop. and that one is believed to   be the world's first customuilt bookshop. And on  that note, James Dawn is also a very interesting   business person. There's a podcast I'll link  in the description if you want to learn more   about how he applied his learnings from Daunt  Books to kind of save water stones in the UK.   The next shopping focused itinerary is Covent  Garden. So from Tottenham Court Road Station,   you're going to go check out. This is an immersive  box with like 360 wraparound screens and sound. It   hosts a heap of free digital art exhibitions,  concerts, and collaborations. So, I think it's   a really cool thing to just pop your head in and  check out. I always do when I'm in the area and   getting off at Tottenham Court Station. From  outer head over to Neil's Yard. This is a very   unsuspecting little alleyway that brings me so  much joy every time I divert from my path to walk   through it. It is full of colorful buildings and  it was actually interestingly transformed in the   1970s to create a space that is kind of like the  center for alternative sustainable and independent   businesses. From Neil's Yard, you can head to  Seven Dials. I had to add this one in because it   is one of my favorite spots in London. So, Seven  Dials is called what it is because there are seven   streets radiating from a central point. I think  it's just a really cool street to wander around.   There's a lot of stores that you can drop into as  well. A lot of great retail stores in particular.   From Seven Dials, check out Covent Garden. This  is a big cultural hub of sorts. Along King Street,   you have like the Glossier. And opposite that is  the outside market area with street performance   and just a general buzz of humans and activations.  From Covent Garden, you can head to the National   Portrait Gallery. This is a really, really  beautiful and free gallery. It is filled with   iconic rooms covered in portraits and there are  a lot of free tours or dropping drawing sessions.   And then outside the National Portrait Gallery  where you're going to finish, you're on the steps   of Trfalga Square. So just another iconic area of  London to check out. Of course, living in Hackne,   I have to share with you my ideal free day. This  is something I'll do when I just want to get out   and about. From Shortage High Street, head to Red  Church Street. That's like a tongue twister. Red   Church Street. This is a hub for independent  shops, creative businesses, street art,   and dining. It's lovely to just walk along, turn  a corner, and check out Arnold Circus. This is a   beautiful street to wander. But also, I learned  recently that it is the site of London's first   council housing estate. From Arnold Circus, head  up to Columbia Road Flower Market, particularly   on a Sunday. This is when there's going to be  a lot of markets selling a lot of flowers and   plants and there's over 60 independent businesses  and traders along that road on a Sunday. However,   it is very busy on a Sunday. Like, if you don't  love crowds, definitely don't go on a Sunday.   It is truly overwhelming. Fun fact, though, the  Sunday Flower Markets is one of the oldest markets   in London. It's been established since 1869. From  Columbia Road, head to Hackne City Farm. This is a   community-driven inner city space to pet animals,  plant vegetables, and generally connect with your   neighbors and promote biodiversity. So, all the  good stuff. They also have a rotating program of   cultural events at very affordable prices.  From Hackne City Farm, walk up to Broadway   Market. This is just a fantastic street. It  feels like a fashion runway of East London.   There's also really iconic shops like Artwords  Bookshop. But once again, this is free. So,   you can just walk and enjoy all of the activity  and the buzz. And they do have markets there on   Saturday and Sunday, which is very energetic. Side  note about Broadway Market. I learned that this   market was actually relaunched by the community  only 20 years ago. So, the community wanted to   bring it back and get a sense of energy back  into the area. And so in 2004, this led to a   resurgence of Broadway Market and its popularity.  From Broadway Market, you're pretty much at London   Fields. And this is a very popular park. In the  height of summer, it'll be 90% humans grazed out   on the grass. I love London Fields. I love the  Leo. It's a beautiful area to walk around. The   next three itineraries are more focused on iconic  London things like think the Royals and Big Ben.   First up is Kensington. So from Hyde Park Corner  Station or Nightsbridge, head to Hyde Park and   walk around the huge beautiful grounds. And you  can also walk around the lovely Serpentine Lake,   which fun fact, Serpentine Lake was one of  the first peoplemade lakes designed to look   natural. And this was then starting a trend  that was copied elsewhere around the world.   You'll also want to drop into the Serpentine  Galleries. There are two, the north and the south,   and they do pull quite significant artists. I'm  often very impressed and moved by the work I see   at the Serpentine Galleries. Now, at this point,  you can go in two different directions, depending   on what you're feeling like. The first is heading  towards Albert Memorial and walking past Royal   Albert Hall. This is obviously an iconic venue. I  think it's pretty cool to see and you've probably   had one of your favorite artists perform there  in the past. And then from there you can check   out all the iconic London museums that are free.  You've got Science Museum, Natural History Museum,   and the VNA. And then from the museum area, you  can also head towards Harrods and check that store   out as well. It's got pretty iconic architecture.  The second option, if you're not vibing that first   route, is to head towards Kensington Palace. And  then you can also check out slightly less iconic,   but still museums that I personally love. You've  got the design museum and the Japan House London   in a different direction. The next itinerary  involves all of the London landmarks along the   temps. So from London Bridge station you can  pop up to London Bridge and from the bridge   get a really good view of the better bridge Tower  Bridge and then you can head to Bar Market which   is a very hectic market. It is very well known,  very popular. It's where Bridget Jones's apartment   is in the first movies. You can then walk along  the South Bank past Shakespeare's Globe. You'll   likely see the Shard from there as well. And then  you can get to Millennium Bridge, which I think is   a really beautiful bridge. It's in Harry Potter.  It's in the split, which is a great TV show. And   then where the Millennium Bridge is is also the  Tate Modern. So I prefer like I do prefer the   exhibitions, but there are a lot of free fantastic  art to see at the Tate. And don't forget about   Tate Modern Lates. This is a monthly program on  Friday evenings where they open late with programs   and free activities. From the Tate, continue past  Oxo Tower and check that out. Then you'll get to   the National Theater, which is this big brutalist  building. And then you're pretty much at Waterloo   and you've seen a lot along the Tempames. And then  you can also see the London Eye and Westminster   across the Tempames around there as well near  Waterlue. So make sure you get to see all the   iconic buildings on this one itinerary. Finally,  I've thrown together some additional culturally   relevant things to see around Hullburn. So, from  Temple Station, head up to the artist garden.   I've spoken about this one before. It's a rooftop  garden that has been repurposed to showcase women   and non-binary artists sculptural pieces or I  think just general artworks. From the artist   garden, you can head to Somerset House. This is  a very iconic building. It's free to enter and   wander around. And then you can head to another  museum, Sir John Son's Museum. And then you can   also check out British Museum, which is just  a huge reminder of Britain's colonization. But   you know what? It's also an incredible building.  And then you can also check out Russell Square,   which is a little park that I once sat in and  thought, "Wow, this is such a nice park. I should   save this to my Google Maps." All right, those are  my eight mini itineraries for doing free things   around London to experience the city. Finally,  there were some things that I didn't get to kind   of fit neatly into one of my itineraries, but I  wanted to make sure to include, so I'm just going   to list them here now. You can go to Sky Garden  or Horizon 22 to get an incredible view across   London for free. You can also drop into Leen Hall  Market. My mom went to all of those and she loved   them. You can also check out Barbin. This is as  an architectural structure worth seeing. It's also   free to walk around. The VNA East Storehouse. This  is the absolute best. This is my number one free   recommendation. Congrats for staying this long on  this video so that you get this recommendation. I   think this is London's most underrated museum. Not  underrated, it's just new and it's in the east,   so a lot of people don't necessarily know about  it yet. So, go check out VNA East Storehouse. I   think it's an amazing space. I talk about it a lot  in other videos. And then also Portoella Road for   the market and the colorful houses around that  area. That's obviously iconic. You can also see   free comedy at the Bill Murray, the Angel Comedy  Club, Camden Head Pub, Top Secret Comedy Club.   There's always some kind of free or five pound  comedy going on around London. And then finally,   King's Cross and Cold Drops Yard. They have a  rotating schedule of free events such as movies,   I think, in the summertime and and other things  going on. Like and subscribe if you enjoyed this   video. It really helps the channel. And I hope you  have a great day or evening wherever you are. Bye.