How to walk around London like you used to live there

Canary Wharf to Greenwich

Canary Wharf is one of my favorite London bases for work and the eastern side of the city. The offices empty in the evening and the docks become quiet. I like that on a longer stay. I would not send a first-time visitor there just to be central.

Start at Crossrail Place Roof Garden, the free covered garden above the Elizabeth Line station. From there you can make the walk as short or long as you want.

The food and drink here are mostly practical. Sticks'n'Sushi is the chain dinner I return to. There are also normal London chains like Slug & Lettuce, and that is fine. A chain pub in the Wharf after work is normal for the area. For a group, the hot tub and BBQ boats in the docks need to be booked ahead.

Then walk south through the Isle of Dogs toward Greenwich. The route is not packed with famous sights. You pass the towers, old dock edges, small parks, Mudchute Park and Farm, and The George if it is time for a pint.

The Greenwich Foot Tunnel opened in 1902 so dock workers could cross the Thames without relying on ferries. Walk down the spiral stairs or take the lift, cross beneath the river in the tiled cast-iron tunnel, then come up beside the Cutty Sark.

On the Greenwich side, do the free National Maritime Museum, walk up through Greenwich Park, and look for the deer enclosure if you want the quieter park loop. The DLR runs back from Cutty Sark or Greenwich, so you do not have to walk back.

Bankside and the South Bank

For a first visit, start at Borough Market and walk west past Tate Modern, Shakespeare's Globe, the river food pop-ups, Southbank Centre, and the London Eye. I still enjoy the market when it is crowded, but check the current schedule if you are going for one trader.

I like the Eye. Queues can be long and admission is expensive. Sky Garden gives you another high look over central London without an admission charge.

If I want to sit down near the market, I go to Lobos Meat and Tapas, the Spanish place next door. Flat Iron Waterloo is useful when I want a simple steak without turning dinner into a project.

You get the skyline, the river, food, and museums without losing access to the Tube when the weather turns.

Covent Garden, Chinatown, and Seven Dials

If it is your first London trip, walk the West End at least once. Start in Chinatown, drift into Leicester Square and Covent Garden, then keep going through the shopping streets and Seven Dials Market.

I have a soft spot for Covent Garden, even though it can be a lot. I would walk it, enjoy the chaos, and leave when the crowd starts costing you patience.

Seven Dials Market is useful because everybody can find something. My favorite expensive-but-fun move nearby is Pick & Cheese, the conveyor-belt cheese restaurant. Have a glass of wine, eat a few plates, then go somewhere else before cheese becomes the whole dinner budget.

There is a Sticks'n'Sushi in this part of town too, but it is cramped and hard to get a table. I would not build the evening around it.

The London Transport Museum is also here. It is paid, but if you like maps, buses, Underground history, station design, or the way public systems become city identity, it belongs on the list.

Camden and the canal walks

Camden Market is touristy, but it still has energy. The newer Hawley Wharf side and the food-court pieces around the back locks have made it easier to wander without feeling trapped in the old market crush.

The better reason to go is the canal. From Camden Lock you can walk west along Regent's Canal toward Regent's Park and Little Venice. That version is calmer and greener. Or walk east toward King's Cross, Coal Drops Yard, and Word On The Water, the bookshop on a narrowboat.

Coal Drops Yard uses the old rail sheds and coal-drop buildings for shops, restaurants, events, and public space. Word On The Water is the narrowboat bookshop nearby.

Stratford, Olympic Park, and Hackney

Another walk I like starts around Stratford, Westfield, and the London Stadium. From there, cut into Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and follow the water and green space toward Hackney Wick.

The route runs through post-Olympic landscaping, canals, warehouses, new apartments, breweries, studios, and leftover industrial edges. Hackney Bridge is my food and drink stop along the way.

If you keep going, you can connect toward Victoria Park, Regent's Canal, or farther into Hackney. I save this walk for a longer stay after the central routes.

Sky Garden, Tower Bridge, and the Thames east

Sky Garden is the free public garden at the top of 20 Fenchurch Street, the Walkie Talkie. Book a timed slot ahead. Go up, get a cider or a drink, and get the high view without buying a London Eye ticket.

From there, walk down toward Tower Bridge. On the south side near the bridge, there is a lawn-bar setup with an excellent look back at the bridge and fairly ordinary food.

The bridge itself is free to approach and photograph. Going inside the towers and upper walkways is the paid part.

If you face the water and turn left, you can keep walking east. The Thames Path eventually pulls you toward Wapping, Canary Wharf, the Royal Docks, ExCeL, and the engineering side of London. Or you can hop on the Uber Boat. It is not cheap compared with the Tube, but it is fast and fun, and some boats have an onboard bar.

For the infrastructure version of the day, keep the Thames Barrier in mind. It is one of those big engineering works that is more interesting in person than it sounds on paper. The IFS Cloud Cable Car across the Thames is also fun, especially if you are making a loop between Canary Wharf, Greenwich, the Royal Docks, and ExCeL.

Crossness Pumping Station is open only on selected days. The restored Victorian beam engines and decorated ironwork justify the trip when the calendar lines up, but this is a planned outing rather than a casual stop.

Southwest of the center, Battersea Power Station is another piece of infrastructure turned into public space. The building from the Pink Floyd Animals cover now contains shops, food, and offices. The reuse is surreal and very polished. I often end up at its LEGO Store because it is calmer than the central London branches.

Museums and transport-nerd days

The British Museum, Tate Modern, the V&A, the Natural History Museum, and the Science Museum can each absorb most of a day. I choose one or two rather than rush through all of them.

Imperial War Museum is the museum I would add to that group. Its strongest galleries are about what war does to people and societies, not only weapons and campaigns. A friend left one visit saying it felt more like a museum about the impact of war, which is a better description of the experience.

I keep recommending Royal Air Force Museum London in Colindale. It is free, usually calmer than the central museums, and reachable on the Northern line. The hangars hold a Lancaster, Battle of Britain aircraft, Cold War jets, and far more than you can see in a quick hour.

The London Transport Museum in Covent Garden covers Tube maps, buses, signage, station design, and the growth of the network. It is paid, unlike many of the national museums, but I always make room for it.

For beer people, check CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, before you go. Their events can be wonderfully specific: beer festivals, pub crawls, tastings, and sometimes heritage railway days. I went to an Epping Ongar railway event once and it was exactly my kind of strange.

Where to eat

Everywhere I have saved in London, from proper dinners to practical chains. Filter by price or cuisine, or sort by what I rate highest.

Brighton from London

Brighton is directly connected with London by trains from Victoria, London Bridge, and St Pancras. From the station, walk downhill through the North Laine and the Lanes toward the Royal Pavilion, Palace Pier, and the sea.

My Brighton guide covers the pier arcade, shingle beach, Royal Pavilion, and the cheap shellfish stop I use by the water.