London is the proud owner of the 7th place in the Top 10 World’s Most Expensive Cities list. While you can find low-cost flights to/from London, when it comes to accommodation, prepare to part with quite a bit of money. And that applies to food, too. Plus, you probably wouldn’t want to ride world’s most expensive taxis either. But you can certainly compensate that with the many free things to do in London. Sure, I wouldn’t call London a “budget” destination, but depending on your travel style, it may very well be an affordable one.

British Museum

It is one of the best museums to visit in Europe and best of all, most of it is free to visit. Some temporary / special exhibits require you to pay a fee, but you can easily spend 4-5 h in the museum visiting the free part.

While it certainly takes first place, it is not the only free museum to visit in London. Here is a list of other interesting (and big) museums you can visit here:

• Natural History Museum
• Science Museum
• National Gallery (paintings)
• Tate Modern (international modern and contemporary art)
• Tate Britain (British art from 1500 to today)
• Victoria and Albert Museum (museum of art and design)
• Museum of London
• Horniman Museum (natural and cultural world)
• Museum of London Docklands
• Royal Air Force Museum

Of course, there are also plenty small museums which can be visited for free. And let’s not forget the art galleries either.

Walk in the parks

St. James’s Park, Regent’s Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens (which is home to the Peter Pan Statue and the Diana Memorial Playground)…are the biggest and most important parks you can visit in London. Even in mid-March we were happy to see flowers in bloom (in Kensington Gardens).

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Speaker’s Corner

Situated at one of Hyde Park’s corner, I must admit this spot hasn’t done much for me. But, apparently, during the summer there’s always some sort of free entertainment to see here.

Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace

Sure thing, anyone wants to see the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace. Despite the cold weather, the tourists were there, all right and the show was interesting. The hotel staff helped us find the schedule when there will be a ceremony as during winter they run on day on / day off schedule. During summer, it takes place every day at 11:30 a.m.

And PS: the red coats are the summer attire; during winter they are…gray.

South Bank

After you get scared of the Big Ben (as you exit the tube station at Westminster), cross the bridge and enjoy London’s South Bank with London Eye there to attract you, too (but do remember this one is an expensive affair).

Trafalgar Square

Nelson’s Column and the National Gallery are the two main sights here but depending on when you visit you’ll find some more, like a Christmas tree during the holidays or a countdown to the start date of the Olympics (that’s what we found here!)

Westminster Abby

You can only visit it for free if you go to a service, otherwise, you have to pay (quite a hefty). However, you can take photos from outside and there’s a small chapel near the Abby which is free to visit.

Other things

Visit London at the right time and you get to visit street markets, see performances, listen to concerts or go to festivals…of course, all free of charge. The British Library also houses a lot of exhibits which can be visited for free (why didn’t I know about this until now?).