DAY TRIPPER; INSPIRATION FOR THREE DAYS OUT IN LONDON.
One of the great things about living where I currently live is that London is only an hours train ride away which makes heading to the capital for a day out really easy. This year I've been trying to make an effort to visit London a bit more as there as so many things to do and lots of places to explore that I've never been before. So that's where the idea for this post was born!
I've come up with three different ways to spend a day in London with the hope that there will be something for everyone. If you live in the UK and are looking for things to do in London or if you're visiting from further afield & you're stuck for something to do or you're not sure where to start then I hope this blog post will come in handy.
So for the first day I wanted to talk about something that I love doing when visiting London– browsing the vintage shops and markets around Shoreditch and Brick Lane. If you're looking for an area to explore that's full of unique vintage shops, the coolest coffee shops, lots of graffiti and street art then I'd definitely recommend visiting Shoreditch & Brick Lane. Honestly you could probably spend more than one day around here because there is so much to see! I'd say to start from the Old Street tube station and walking through Shoreditch towards Brick Lane so you don't miss anything.
Once you've got off the tube at Old Street you could start the day with a coffee at two of the nicest coffee shops I've been to in London– Shoreditch Grind & Ozone Coffee Roasters– both of which also have amazing breakfast/brunch menus– so a perfect way to start the day!
Brick Lane is just the perfect street to wander down and find some bargains & unique bits and pieces– there are so many shops to choose from but I'd definelty recommend checking out The Brick Lane Bookshop for the best books, obviously! Comfort Station for jewellery and gifts and Here After Vintage, Search and Destroy and the Brick Lane Vintage Market for all of the best vintage gems! But honestly that list could go on and on, there's just so much to discover on Brick Lane. They also have a street market that is on Sunday's and you can find even more vintage bargains then!
// Comfort Station
Just in case two coffee shop recommendations for one day wasn't enough, here's another one! Brooklyn Coffee is just around the corner from Spitlefields market & Liverpool Street Station and is the perfect place to grab one last coffee before heading back to get the tube.
For the second day trip I wanted to feature some of the things that we did when we visited London back in the summer– if you are looking for one of the best places to have breakfast, to visit a museum for a culture filled afternoon & for maybe a couple of bookshops too then keep reading!
// Eggbreak
I would 100% recommend starting in Notting Hill for breakfast at one of the nicest places I've visited in London– Eggbreak. They do great coffee and amazing food & it has such cosy atmosphere...I'd heard so many good things about it and as soon as we got there I could see why!
From Eggbreak there are so many different things you could do, Portabello Road is just around the corner with all kinds of unique shops, one reason we wandered down there though is to see The Notting Hill Bookshop which is obviously the one featured in the film Notting Hill, definitely worth a visit as they have a really great selection of books too!
The other thing I'd recommend is jumping on the tube towards Kensington and the V&A museum. When we visited in the summer we went mainly to see the Frida Kahlo exhibition they had on but once we had got there we realised how much there was to see at the V&A. Admission is free as is true of a lot of the museums in London and if you like all kinds of collections including paintings, photography, fashion and architecture then I would say it's definitely worth the visit, I can't wait to go back to see more of what they have on offer. And if you feel the need for a coffee after the V&A then check out Fernandez and Wells which is basically just across the road from the museum on Exhibition Road.
// Fernandez and Wells
That could very easily take all day but if you do have anytime left then I'd also recommend having a wander down Kings Road off of Stone Square as there are some beautiful streets for taking pictures and also another bookshop recommendation– John Sandoe Books which is such a beautiful bookshop to browse.
For the last day trip recommendation I thought I would include something we did really recently and something that would be great for people looking for something a bit more relaxed and with more of an outdoors/nature feel– deer spotting in Richmond Park. So to start your day I would recommend heading to Richmond tube station and from there having a wander down the high street towards the park.
Of course I have a coffee shop recommendation on the way– Coffeeology which is in a really gorgeous building & is a lovely place to stop and have a coffee before walking on towards the park.
The walk to the park is lovely, there are lots of beautiful streets off of the high street to wander around and you can take in lots of sights of the local area especially if you walk along the Thames. The park itself is such a beautiful place and it's perfect for taking your time to wander around and take in the views as well as spotting the deer. If you're really interested in looking for the deer, like we were then have a look at the park website for the best tips and recommendations of how to find them, I've linked it here... Or you can just search online for the locals tips on how to find them!
And that's in for my inspiration for how to spend three days out in London. I really hope you've enjoyed this post and found in anyway helpful, it's been one of my favourite posts that I think I've written and I hope to include posts like this on the blog more often!
I'd love to know, if you've visited London, what your favourite thing to do is...so feel free to let me know in the comments below!
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