Solo travel · London · United Kingdom
Solo travel in London
How to enjoy London at your own pace.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Quick answer
London is easy to explore alone: free museums mean you can drop in for an hour, eating at a bar or counter is normal, and hostels and pubs make it easy to meet people. Transport runs late, and contactless payment removes the need for tickets. Many solo travellers base themselves in Bloomsbury and King's Cross.
Key facts
- Base
- Bloomsbury and King's Cross
- Getting around
- Metro
- Emergency number
- 999 or 112 for police, fire and ambulance; 111 for urgent medical advice
- Language
- English
Solo travel tips
- Free and pay-what-you-like walking tours are an easy way to meet other travellers.
- Sit at the bar in gastropubs and restaurants in Soho and around Borough Market for relaxed solo dining.
- Stay around King's Cross, Camden or Shoreditch for well-located hostels and good-value hotels.
- Keep your phone away from the kerb at busy junctions and station exits, where snatch thefts from passing bikes happen.
- Use licensed black cabs or app-booked minicabs late at night; minicabs touting for passengers on the street are illegal.
Where to stay
$$$ · Best for first-timers, budget, culture and solo travellers
Bloomsbury and King's Cross
Bloomsbury's garden squares and Georgian terraces surround the British Museum and University College London, and hotels are often better value than in the West End a short walk south. To the north, the redeveloped King's Cross area has Granary Square, Coal Drops Yard and the Regent's Canal towpath, while St Pancras International handles Eurostar trains to Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam.
- Good
- Walk to the British Museum and Covent Garden; Six Tube lines at King's Cross St Pancras; Good-value hotels by central London standards
- Watch out
- Streets right around King's Cross station are traffic-heavy; Quiet around the squares in the evening
- Nearby
- British Museum, St Pancras International, Coal Drops Yard, Russell Square
Great on your own
Museum · Bloomsbury
British Museum
Pick three or four galleries — Egypt, the Parthenon sculptures and Sutton Hoo are the classics — rather than trying to see everything in one visit.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- History
- Rainy day
- Art
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Castle · Tower Hill
Tower of London
Head to the Crown Jewels first thing before the queue builds, then join a Yeoman Warder tour from near the main entrance.
- Time needed
- 3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Iconic
- History
- Kids
- Architecture
Religious site · Westminster
Westminster Abbey
To experience the abbey without a sightseeing ticket, attend Choral Evensong, which is free and open to everyone.
- Time needed
- 1.5–2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Iconic
- History
- Architecture
Landmark · Westminster
Houses of Parliament and Big Ben
The classic photo is from Westminster Bridge or the riverside path across the Thames; for a closer look, walk through Victoria Tower Gardens beside the palace.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours with a tour
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- History
- Architecture
- Photo spot
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Palace · St James's
Buckingham Palace and Changing the Guard
Arrive at least 45 minutes early and stand on the Victoria Memorial steps, or watch the guards march along The Mall where crowds are thinner.
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Iconic
- Free
- Kids
- History
Gallery · Trafalgar Square
National Gallery
Start with the early Italian rooms in the Sainsbury Wing, then finish on the portico steps looking over Trafalgar Square and Nelson's Column.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Art
- Free
- Iconic
- Rainy day
Meeting people
- Market grazing — Borough Market by London Bridge, the weekend stalls of Maltby Street under the railway arches and Old Spitalfields Market are the places to taste your way through British cheese, bread and street food at lunchtime.
- Sunday roast in a pub — A long Sunday lunch in a historic pub, ideally one with a fire in winter or a garden in summer, is a London ritual; book ahead, as the best fill up by early afternoon.
- Soho — Cocktail bars, late-night restaurants, jazz at Ronnie Scott's and the centre of LGBTQ+ nightlife around Old Compton Street.
- Shoreditch and Dalston — Warehouse bars, rooftop terraces and clubs with a young crowd, busiest from Thursday to Saturday.
Sensible precautions
London is generally safe for visitors, but pickpocketing and phone snatching are common around Oxford Street, Westminster, Covent Garden and on busy Tube platforms. Ignore street gambling games such as the 'three cups' trick on Westminster Bridge.
- Emergency number
- 999 or 112 for police, fire and ambulance; 111 for urgent medical advice
- Staying connected
- Most Tube stations have Wi-Fi, mobile coverage is being extended through Tube tunnels, and eSIMs work well for international visitors.
Questions travellers ask
+Is London good for solo travellers?
London is easy to explore alone: free museums mean you can drop in for an hour, eating at a bar or counter is normal, and hostels and pubs make it easy to meet people. Transport runs late, and contactless payment removes the need for tickets.
+Where should solo travellers stay in London?
Bloomsbury and King's Cross: Georgian squares, the British Museum and Eurostar on the doorstep.