London is not only the capital of England but of all of the United Kingdom as well, making it quite the historic city to visit. It’s also a booming metropolis, with heaps of commerce and culture just waiting to be experienced. While it would be easy to spend a few days here exploring sights, sounds, and smells, sometimes the cars don’t quite shake out that way. Perhaps you just have a long layover? Or maybe you intentionally booked a stop-over in London, just to catch a glimpse before you jetset to your final destination. Whatever the reason, there’s loads to see and do, even if you only have 24 hours in London.
This past summer Dana and I were looking to use points to catch a flight back home. There was no availability for our dates out of Portugal or even nearby Spain, so we decided to check out some of the other bigger airports in Europe.
When we saw London had ample availability, we decided to book a cheap flight from Faro (check out the Algarve coast blog post here) to London and spent a day exploring a new city. We technically stretched it out into a 33 hour stop-over as we spent two sleeps in London, but this itinerary works just as perfectly for anyone that arrives early in the morning one day and doesn’t depart again until the following morning.
CATCHING ZZZZZZs
If you’re truly just in London for a long layover or stopover, it’s easiest to just stay at a hotel in the airport. This tends to streamline things for you as it’s easy to get to your hotel immediately and easy to fly out of there upon departure.
There are hotels located in all five terminals at Heathrow, and by and large, the most convenient will be whichever is attached to the terminal you’re flying out of. That being said, The Heathrow Express train, which gets you down to Paddington Station, leaves out of Terminal 2 & 3. So regardless of which terminal you arrive or depart out of, getting a hotel near this transportation point will make your adventure day easier.
Best Location
Hilton Garden Inn – Located in terminals 2 & 3… a little spendy but the cost just might be worth the convenience. This hotel is going to be the most convenient for anyone arriving or departing out of terminals 2 and 3, but it also makes catching the train into London suuuper easy. Plus you can watch planes take off from the hotel bar!
Best Value
Premier Inn London Heathrow Airport Terminal 4 (there is one at Terminal 5 as well) — Located in Terminal 4, the price is hard to beat, while still affording the convenience of being in the airport. This is prime for anyone flying out of Terminal 4, but it was also extremely easy to get to from Terminal 2. We found the train to be pretty straightforward to use, with plenty of attendants around to help shepard people in the right direction.
That Cash Money
When looking at European travel, it can be easy to forget that England uses the pound as its currency. This is only worth noting because the conversion rate can be very different from the euro at times, so just keep an eye out. Nothing’s worse than checking your credit card statement to discover you went way over budget!
If you’re just visiting London for the day, there’s no need to pull out cash. Generally speaking, you should be able to see and do everything you’d like, using your credit card.
Transportation
The train and the tube will be your friends!! We stayed at a hotel in the airport to make our departure as convenient as possible when the time came, but taking the metro from the airport into the city was pretty smooth! If you happen to have a longer stay in London, it certainly makes sense to find accommodations in the city, but if your stay is pretty brief, we definitely recommend staying nice and close to the airport.
We stayed at the Premier Inn in Terminal 4, which means we caught a train from Terminal 4 to Terminals 2 & 3. While the intra-airport train is free, you will need to either tap your card (as it’s enabled) or snag an Oyster card to grant access onto the train. The train between the Terminal 5 station and Terminal 2 & 3 station departs every 30 minutes starting at 5:16am, so make sure you show up a little early for your train, otherwise you might find yourself sitting with a long wait for the next train. From the Terminal 2 & 3 station, we hopped on the Heathrow Express and were in Paddington Station a mere 15 minutes later!
Regardless of where you arrive from, you’ll likely want to take a connecting tube ride to St. Paul station, which is where the walking tour begins. If you find public transportation overwhelming, taking a taxi or uber is always an option as well!
Pro tip: If you plan to use the Heathrow Express buy your tickets as soon as your plans are concrete, because the earlier you buy your tickets, the cheaper they are! As an alternative, the Elizabeth line is a slightly slower but also less expensive train service line.
Hot Packing Tips
While this is far from an all-inclusive packing list, we have three packing recommendations to make! London has a well earned reputation for its grey and rainy days, so packing a weather-proof jacket or poncho juuuuust might come in handy. At the very least, you won’t regret having clothes that dry rather quickly.
Secondly, dressing in layers is never a bad move. Even in the middle of summer, I walked around with a jacket all day long, so don’t assume summer means warm and sunny! Third, but perhaps most important, it’s a full day of wandering about, so definitely make sure you have a good pair of walking shoes packed. Depending how many extra detours you make, you will find yourself walking over 6 miles!
THE ONE DAY ITINERARY
St. Paul’s Cathedral
St. Paul’s Cathedral is an illustrious Anglican cathedral in London. It sits atop Ludgate Hill, perched at one of the highest points in the city. You’ll know you’re in the right place when you see the iconic dome and spires. While the church is named after the Apostle Paul, it has celebrated the lives of many prominent Englishmen (and women!)— perhaps most notably the wedding of Prince Charles to Princess Diana.
When you’re squeezing a whole city into one day, there may only be time for one cathedral tour, and the two you’ll really be between are St. Paul’s and Westminster Abbey. Each has their draw, but we doubled down on tickets to St. Paul’s Cathedral because you get both the historical significance as well as an amazing view! It is absolutely amazing to explore this jewel of the London skyline.
Sky Garden
Sky Garden is a short walk down the road, and holds the title for highest public garden in the city! Not only is it home to endless shades of green, but it also makes for a fabulous overlook of the city. The best part? This charming garden is free to visit!!
While they will allow visitors in without a ticket during less popular visiting time, you will want to book tickets in advance to secure entry– especially if you’re planning to roll through during high season. This is the best way to ensure you’ll be able to get in. You can book tickets up to 3 weeks in advance, so we recommend setting a reminder on your phone to ensure you don’t forget!
Tower Bridge
While the London Bridge is heralded in nursery rhymes sung by children everywhere, the Tower Bridge is arguably a more beautiful architectural design piece– with loads of history as well. Not only is the bridge lovely to see from the bank of the Thames, but it’s a pedestrian bridge, so you can wander right across and take in the river as you stroll. The bridge is free to cross, but you can pay to go up into the towers. While this would potentially be a fun vertical detour on a longer trip, there will be other spots you can take in the views, so we recommend taking in the river as you pass to keep on moving and grooving.
Borough Market
The Borough Market is nestled under the railway lines, and makes for a wonderful multi-purpose stop. First and foremost, it should be about lunchtime at this point in the day, so grab yourself a bite! Whatever cuisine you have a hankering for, they almost assuredly have someone selling your desired plate. Even after you’ve had your fill, this vibrant marketplace is teeming with unique stalls to discover— just a cornucopia of cuisine, color, and culture.
Tate Modern
Time for a fun this-or-that option. When you only have one day, it’s hard to squeeze EVERYTHING in– especially if it’s an activity that eats up more time. Option #1… the ever stately Tate Modern! This contemporary museum along the Thames River will have you wandering around with no regard for time. Not only are the exhibits equal parts thought-provoking and awe-inspiring, but the building itself is an architectural delight. The museum is free to enter, which grants you access to some exhibits, but not all. If there’s anything extra that catches your eye, admission tends to be pretty reasonable, so it’s a fun way to explore the art culture and scene here.
London Eye
Coming in hot is our Option #2, the London Eye. When it opened in 2000, the London Eye was the tallest ferris wheel in the world. It has since been surpassed by four other towering, gravity defying wheels— making the London Eye a respectable 5th place holder. Riding this massive ferris wheel makes for both a fun ride as well as a fabulous overlook of the city. Definitely a little touristy, but something you certainly can’t do at home (at least not for most!)
While it would be ideal to hit both the Tate Modern and London Eye in one day, even the most intentional planners might have a hard time squeezing both stops into the itinerary— especially in high season! When visiting the London Eye, you’ll want to account for a certain amount of time spent waiting in line to get up (think 20-30+ minutes)… plus the ~35 minutes it takes to complete the revolution.
Big Ben
As far as renown clocks go, Big Ben pretty much takes the cake. Interestingly, the nickname ‘big ben’ actually refers to the bell in the clocktower. The eye-catch timepiece was previously named the Clock Tower, but was renamed the Elizabeth Tower in 2012 to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. It’s not necessarily a long stop, but definitely worth stopping by to see for yourself!
Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey is an important historical spot, for numerous reasons. The Westminster Abbey was founded in 960 AD by Benedictine monks, and has been an enduring place of worship ever since. This is where the coronation for the monarchy occurs– with King Charles being rather recently appointed. As a matter of fact, the Abbey has been the coronation church for the UK since 1066. You’ll also find 17 previous monarchs settled here for their final resting place. It’s no surprise this extravagant church has been named a World Heritage Site… for any eagle-eyed royal wedding watchers, this is also where Prince William married Princess Kate.
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace is a rather stately embodiment of the monarchy, and so very worth stopping by. If you have time, you might be able to squeeze in a tour! During the high season, this will be hard to squeeze in on the fly, so if you’re feeling rather passionate about wanting to wander the halls of Buckingham Palace, you will need to book a tour in advance. They will sell out!
Even if you’re not itching to see Buckingham Palace from the inside out, watching the Changing of the Guard can be a unique experience. Thus occurs every day at 11:00 am in June and July or Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, August through May. Our walking tour forms a rather oblong ‘U’, but if you do it backwards, the timing should be perfect to catch the guard change.
Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square really makes for quite the smorgasbord of London culture and art. There’s statues, fountains, and sculptures as well as the National Gallery…. plus London’s smallest police station. What more could you want? A bathroom perhaps?? Right about this time in the day, a public bathroom was quite the welcome sight, so just know that’s here as well– you do have to pay to use the bathroom, but it’s very cheap and well worth it if ya gotta go!
Piccadilly Circus
Piccadilly Circus isn’t quite animals and acrobats… think Times Square meets Bethesda Fountain. This massive intersection of streets has become an attraction for its digital screens and billboards, fountain, and nearby shopping. While there’s going to be the expected tourist trap haunches, there’s loads of other shops to wander through, making this a perfect final stop.
Beep, Beep — Back It Up
From Piccadilly Circus, it’s not too hard to backtrack to the hotel. While there’s loads of apps to help navigate transportation, we already had Google Maps downloaded, and felt it did a fab job getting us where we needed to go.
A chock-a-block day, full of sights, sounds, smells, and more than your fair share of walking can leave you feeling pretty tuckered, it’s easy to power through knowing you only have 24 hours in London to take it all in! Cheers to making the most of your layover.
written by Hannah
Hannah has learned the hard way to be careful what you wish for— sometimes happily ever after lands you with a husband and puppy… in the Midwest. Despite leaving Florida to move to Wisconsin, Hannah maintains her bossy big sister role with regular phone calls to keep up with all the little sister shenanigans. Notoriously chatty with her patients as well, Hannah stays busy as a physical therapist, but loves spending weekends exploring newfound hikes.
