14 HUGE mistakes tourists always make in London

These are the top mistakes that tourists always make when they visit London. I grew up in London suburbia and my mum is a blue badge tour guide to the city. Although I now live in southwest England, I'm still very well versed in what you should and shouldn't do in London. So let's get into it. One of the biggest mistakes that tourists make when they visit London is not using the tube to get around. You might think that the best way to get around central London is by Uber or taxi, but actually this normally takes longer than the tube. So if you are planning a route around London, I'd always recommend seeing if there is a London Underground way to get there first. Obviously if it's late at night or if you're going somewhere that the tube doesn't go, then you might find that other transport options like taxis or even buses are better, but definitely tube first. It's usually faster and it's also a lot more convenient. Another mistake that tourists often make when they're visiting London is paying a full price for theatre tickets. If you want to see something particular, then this hack might not work, but if you don't, you can come here to the theatre tickets booth in Leicester Square on the day that you want to go to the theatre and see what half price tickets they have on offer. Let's go and have a look and see what's on offer for tonight. So this is just by the Odeon. This is the surroundings. We're not going to go to the theatre tonight, but let's see what they have. So this is opening hours. What's on offer? Back to the Future, up to 31% off. The Book of Mormon, up to 26% off. Fawlty Towers, £18. And this is all today? Yeah, yeah. Okay, and you can only buy them for today. I'm just standing in front of Buckingham Palace and one of the top mistakes that a lot of people make when they visit London involves this building. So the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace is world famous. It usually happens at 11am on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, but it can often be called off because of the weather or for logistics reasons. Now, if it is called off because of logistics reasons, then you will usually find something saying this on the website. However, if it is called off because of the weather, that is often a last minute decision. So if it is looking like very bad weather, then I would recommend maybe not coming down here for it. If you are in London for a few days and it is a good day to see the guard change on your very first day, I would recommend doing it just in case it's called off the rest of the time you're here. Yeah, that's where you recommend standing? Yeah. Okay. Or I'll show you where they come out of St James's Palace because that's another. Okay. We'll see the old guard come marching out of St James's Palace. Yeah. And then they will mark up the mall. Oh, okay. So you can sort of march alongside them. Okay. And then the thing to do is once they get to the entrance to Buckingham Palace, peel off to the left through St James's Park and then you can see the new guard forming up. You see that white building? Yeah. They will march to Buckingham Palace. What time do you recommend getting here? If you want to see the start of it, I would get here for about 10.30. 10.30? Yeah. Just standing at the gates to Chinatown now. What if I just wanted to give about British food is that when you're in London or even the UK in general, don't limit yourself to just trying British cuisine because British cuisine is not that great. But I do think London is a fantastic foodie city simply because it is so multicultural. You can literally get food from anywhere in the world here as seen in Chinatown and many other places around the city. It's also really, really important in London to not forget just how busy it can be, especially in peak season. So it's currently January and honestly, I have seen some queues today. Outside Westminster Abbey, it was super busy and also outside the National Gallery. And I mean, even here, we're just outside a place called Dave's Hot Chicken and I don't really know what this place is. But even here, there is a massive queue. I live in rural England now, so I find this very overwhelming. Also, it's always really important to remember how expensive London can be. Make sure you budget accordingly because eating out, especially drinks and activities, can really add up. If you are on a budget, I'd recommend seeing London for a couple of days and then going elsewhere in the UK where it is a lot cheaper. That being said, there are quite a few very good free things to do in London. This includes museums like the Natural History Museum, galleries like the National Gallery, and Sky Garden is a great viewing platform. With a bar, obviously, the drinks are paid for. But do check before you go to any of these free things that you don't need to book in advance. For example, Sky Garden has gotten very popular recently, so you do need to book that in advance, but it is free. Obviously, as well, walking around, seeing all the buildings and seeing the sights of London is always free. Like seeing all these phone boxes. It's also worth pointing out that a lot of London you can see just by walking around. Actually, I saw something on Facebook once that had how long it would take to walk between different tube stations and actually how low it was really surprised me. So you definitely can't walk across the whole of London, but you can walk between a lot of different attractions and you'll see more of the city that way. Another really important thing to be mindful of is pickpockets in London. One of the biggest mistakes you can make is not taking adequate care against pickpocketing. I know so many people who have had phones stolen in the last few months, usually on the tube, but also just like on the street as well. So make sure you're putting any valuables in a zipped pocket of your bag or a zipped pocket of your coat. Don't flash things around too much. Put your valuables in a crossbody bag and I wouldn't really recommend sitting casually with your phone when you're on the tube. I'm aware that I am saying this while walking around busy London on a camera, but I have my wrist strap on it and you will not believe how tightly I'm holding on to this camera. Transport tip I wanted to give is about when you should travel. I would recommend avoiding using Transport for London before 9.30am. This is rush hour, so not only is it very busy, but actually tickets are a lot more expensive. If you can, walk around before 9.30am and schedule your journeys on public transport after that time. Don't think that you can see all of London in one day. London is massive. I lived here for 18 years of my life and I have in no way seen everything. In fact, there's a lot that I haven't seen. There's also so many little hidden gems, like this church that was built by Christopher Wren, the same architect who built St Paul's Cathedral. So in reality, you probably need about four days just to scratch the surface of London. If you really only want to see the highlights, you could do it in two, but really the longer the better and the more you'll get to see, the longer you stay. I'm here now in Piccadilly Arcade and this was built so women who were doing their shopping didn't get their frocks wet when it was bad weather. So it's a good time to talk about London's weather. Don't presume that in London it is always raining. That is not the case. It does rain a fair amount, but actually London is not the rainiest city in Europe. There are quite a few others that have a much higher rainfall than London. You can get all sorts of weather in London, including sunshine, cloud, rain, drizzle, sleet, snow. So prepare for all eventualities, especially if you're visiting in the winter, but do make sure you always pack a raincoat, even if it is the summer. I'm just walking past the Ritz on my left and it reminds me of another mistake that a lot of tourists make and that is thinking that you need to book a hotel in central London. Hotels in central London are extortionate. Obviously if you're going to stay somewhere like here, the Ritz, obviously that's going to come at a super premium, but even one and two star hotels are really pricey in central London. Instead, I'd recommend staying somewhere kind of in the outskirts, but do make sure that it is on a tube line or at least a fast line in central London. A good example is Hammersmith, which is on the Hammersmith and City line. I once stayed at a Premier Inn in Hammersmith and it was actually a really good deal. And lastly, this is one for anyone travelling to London in winter. Don't forget how early it can get dark. This is like a lot of northern Europe, but in our darkest month, which is December, sun sets at around 4pm, which does mean that some of your opportunities to see attractions are hindered. In the summer, it's another kettle of fish and it stays light until past 9pm in June, but definitely remember that for the winter. And I think that is just about it for this video. So thank you so much for watching. I hope you've enjoyed it. If you'd like to leave a tip on my Ko-fi page, join my Patreon or follow me on social media, scan this QR code, which will take you through to the page where you can do all of that. If you're sticking around, I recommend checking out this video about the hidden corners of London that most tourists miss. Tonight, I'm going to be taking the night train back to Cornwall from London, which I'm really excited about. So if you want to watch that video, make sure you're subscribed so you don't miss it. Thanks again, and I'll see you next time. Bye!