Travel Spotlight: London

Everything to inspire a trip to the British capital.

Hi there, travel loving friends.

If you’re anything like me, you LOVE diving into travel books and magazines over the holiday break. There’s just something about that lazy-hazy time between Christmas and New Year’s that feels like anything could happen. Suddenly timelines that once seemed so distance now feel imminent. I mean, I say “next spring” and you feel that is eons away. But it sure won’t once January 5th rolls around and you already feel like you’re behind the ball when it comes to planning for March break and the May long weekend.

That’s why I wanted to throw a spotlight on one of my favourite travel destinations: London.

Is it expensive? God yes. Has everything imaginable already been written about it? Probably. Is it my favourite city in the world, even after all these years of working as a travel writer, even after my 2022 Parisian love affair? Absolutely. I love London and I never don’t want to be there. I bet you feel the same way.

My last visit (a joyful weekend on the way home from the aforementioned month in Paris) brought one of my favourite discoveries to date. I say “discovery” but in truth, just about everyone but me knows all about it. The London Review of Books (the publication) runs a bookshop by the same name that’s just across the street from the British Museum. To say that it’s now my favourite bookshop in the world is an understatement. It’s so beautifully, carefully curated. The staff picks are so thoughtful and insightful. There is so much excellence in a small space.

And then there’s the cake shop.

It’s one thing to have a coffee bar in a bookshop but a cake shop? This is how life is meant to be lived. Coffee, tea, old fashioned cakes, and a bubbling pot of something savoury and comforting like chili or stew. Go. I know you’ll love it. I love this spot so much, it has topped my list of London’s best bookshops which I blogged about earlier this fall.

Some other London-loves that should be on your radar:

• The Medieval History Academy. Curious about whatever happened to the Princes In The Tower? Or what it takes to be a virtuous woman in medieval England. These wonderful online classes are perfect for anyone who loves life-long learning and would like to get some insight into the courts of London back in the day.

• London Walks. I have enjoying walking tours with this esteemed London company since 2001. I have never once been to London without hoping onto at least one tour and, on my last visit, I did two in two days (Chelsea Odyssey & Covent Garden’s Inside Story) and I regretted being too tired to fit in one more. In fairness to me, I did have 30,000 steps one day! (I also wrote about them years ago when I blogged about how I got a tour at the Tower of London for 55 pence. Really!)

• London’s wild waters. You will look at the city in a whole new way after reading London’s Hidden Rivers by David Fathers or Wild Swimming Walks: 28 Lake, River, and Seaside Days Out By Train From London by the Kenwood Ladies’ Pond Association. My dearest ambition now is to enjoy some wild swimming in London.