Three days in London, without crossing town twice a day

Give each of your three days one patch of London and it's plenty: Westminster and the South Bank first, Greenwich by river second, Covent Garden and the West End last. Zigzagging across town is what eats a short trip. Book three things before you fly, namely afternoon tea, the London Eye and a show, and decide the rest on the day.

Weekend afternoon tea at The Ritz goes months ahead, and men are still expected in a jacket and tie. The Goring, a few minutes from Buckingham Palace, serves tea in the Veranda looking over the hotel garden, and it's the calmer room of the two; pick one rather than both. London Eye tickets are timed, so book the slot nearest sunset, which swings from late evening in June to mid-afternoon in December. The show can wait for day three.

Covent Garden, St James's and Westminster make this plan easiest as a base. Somewhere within five minutes of a station, ideally near a Circle line stop, puts Westminster, Embankment and the South Bank a short ride away.

Day one: Westminster, the South Bank and the Eye

Drop your bags and walk. From Parliament Square, cross Westminster Bridge and follow the river east along the South Bank; it's flat and free of traffic, and in about 25 minutes you've passed the Eye, the Southbank Centre and the National Theatre. Have tea mid-afternoon, then come back for the Eye at dusk. A rotation takes about half an hour, and watching the city light up underneath you is the reason to go late.

Keep the first dinner simple. If it's been a long day, some serviced apartments can arrange a private chef.

Day two: Greenwich by boat

Take the Uber Boat by Thames Clippers from Westminster or Embankment pier to Greenwich. It's a commuter service rather than a tour, so nobody's narrating, but you pass the Tower of London, Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf from the water, and Oyster and contactless work on board.

Step off at Greenwich and the Cutty Sark is right there. Walk up through Greenwich Park to the Royal Observatory and stand astride the Prime Meridian, as everyone does. Both are ticketed, and a combined day pass from Royal Museums Greenwich is the cheaper way to see the pair. The National Maritime Museum at the bottom of the hill is free.

Be back in the centre by mid-afternoon to shop. Liberty on Great Marlborough Street is the one department store worth seeing just for the building. Fortnum & Mason on Piccadilly does the food hall and the hampers, and Harrods is in Knightsbridge if you want the full, slightly overwhelming scale of it.

No dinner booking? Sabor on Heddon Street keeps its ground-floor counter open for walk-ins, and Nieves Barragán's tapas are some of the best Spanish cooking in town. Turn up at 5.30pm when it opens and you'll usually get stools.

Day three: Covent Garden and a cheese crawl

Start on Jermyn Street at Paxton & Whitfield, which has been selling cheese in St James's since the 18th century, then walk up through Piccadilly Circus to Covent Garden. Neal's Yard Dairy on Shorts Gardens is stop two, and the staff expect you to ask for a taste of whatever's in season.

Neal's Yard itself, the little courtyard of painted shopfronts round the corner, takes five minutes and photographs well. If anyone in the group is a ballet or opera person, the Royal Opera House runs backstage tours on selected days.

For the show, the long-runners (The Book of Mormon, Matilda, Les Misérables) had seats from roughly £25 on Theatre Tickets Direct this September, with Hamilton nearer £50, though those are the cheap seats. Book a last-day matinee before you travel, and if you'd rather see an evening show, check your flight home first.

Food hygiene ratings for the places in this guide

Official fact Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating Scheme, checked 23 September 2026. 5 is the top rating.

Name	Registered address	Rating	Inspected
The Ritz London	The Ritz, 150-156 Piccadilly, W1J 9BR	5	Feb 2026
The Goring	15 Beeston Place, SW1W 0JW	5	Mar 2025
Harrods	87-135 Brompton Road, SW1X 7XL	5	Jul 2025
Sabor	35-37 Heddon Street, W1B 4BR	5	Sep 2025
Paxton & Whitfield	93 Jermyn Street, SW1Y 6JE	5	Oct 2025
Neal's Yard Dairy	17 Shorts Gardens, WC2H 9AT	5	Oct 2023

Ratings cover hygiene only, not food quality. Matched by name and address; a venue not shown was not found or could not be matched with confidence.

London weather by month

July is the warmest month, averaging 23°C by day. July has the fewest wet days (9) and October the most rain (80 mm). For sightseeing on foot, June scores best on our combined warmth-and-dryness measure.

Month	Avg high	Avg low	Rain	Wet days	Chance a 7-day stay sees a washout	Record high / low
January	8°C	2°C	74 mm	13	53%	16°C / -12°C
February	8°C	2°C	51 mm	10	43%	18°C / -8°C
March	11°C	4°C	45 mm	9	44%	23°C / -7°C
April	14°C	5°C	54 mm	10	44%	26°C / -3°C
May	17°C	8°C	54 mm	9	39%	30°C / -1°C
June	20°C	11°C	58 mm	9	35%	34°C / 2°C
July	23°C	13°C	52 mm	9	34%	34°C / 4°C
August	22°C	13°C	68 mm	9	37%	37°C / 4°C
September	19°C	11°C	62 mm	9	39%	29°C / 2°C
October	15°C	8°C	80 mm	11	47%	27°C / -2°C
November	11°C	5°C	76 mm	12	52%	18°C / -6°C
December	8°C	2°C	69 mm	12	50%	16°C / -8°C

Calculated NOAA GHCN-Daily observations at the Hampstead weather station, north London (records 1960–2015; averages from about 25 years per month). A wet day has 1 mm of rain or more.