The English capital city of London is probably most famous for its landmarks. Every year, tens of millions of tourists descend upon the city to see sights such as the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace. With 32 boroughs, thousands of years of history and 1500 square kilometres to cover though, it can be difficult for guests of Hotel Montcalm London to know where to start.
Tours are a great way to get a sense of the city and its unique character in a curated and time-efficient manner. Led by professional tour guides and experts in the given subject matter, London’s many walking, driving and sailing tours offer guests of spa deals London a way to tick off some of the best landmarks or alternatively, spend a few hours engaging with their favourite cultural movement, film franchise or period in history. Below are some of the exciting tours – both old and new – that visitors can expect from London in 2023, and why they’re so unmissable.
Jack The Ripper Tour With RIPPER-VISION
The many Jack The Ripper tours of London can be hard to sift through. Some are brilliant and others less so, but for a truly modern experience that’s immersive and as in tune with the modern world as it is the Victorian, the Ripper-Vision tour is a must-try for true crime lovers. This tour takes visitors through the lanes of Whitechapel by night, and uses handheld projectors to evoke the atmosphere of Victorian London. Through archive footage, artistic moving image interpretations and professional storytelling, this is a Jack The Ripper tour like no other.
Harry Potter Studio Tour
The Warner Brothers Studio in Leavesden is indeed a working film studio, but one lot has been in constant use for years now. That is the Harry Potter Studio Tour, opened in 2013 but still going as strong 11 years later. The tour provides immersive set recreations of Harry Potter locales such as Diagon Alley, the Great Hall at Hogwarts and Privet Drive. It’s not all show though, the tour provides a deep dive into the technologies and conceptual motives behind some of the most memorable designs and scenes from the 8-film series.
The Tower of London Storytelling Tour
With a boat trip to the riverside tower included, the Tower of London Storytelling Tour is an immersive, enthralling introduction to London’s longest standing castle. The everchanging tower has many identities, and the Tower of London Storytelling Tour will engage locals and guests of luxury Hotels near Hyde Park alike. You’ll meet the famous Beefeater guards in their traditional garb and learn about the many stories and legends of the Tower of London. Once a prison, royal treasury and even an exotic animal menagerie, the Tower of London is full of surprises, many of them grisly.
Westminster And the Churchill War Rooms
From the well-renowned to the downright covert, the Westminster and Churchill War Rooms walking tour takes you through the English heart of power and all the way to the underground war rooms where Winston Churchill himself made key decisions to beat the Axis forces in World War Two. The Westminster leg of the tour will focus on key locations relating to the wartime Prime Minister, such as Downing Street and the Cenotaph War Memorial. With a designated blue badge tour guide at the helm, you’ll be in engaging and informative hands during your tour.
National Gallery
The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square is a free to visit London museum that holds the nation’s official art collection. From European Masters to Renaissance and Mediaeval works, there are several different tours of the National Gallery, providing in depth insights or general overviews. The flexibility of the tours on offer means that you can pick depending on the time you have to hand.
Gangster walking tour of London’s East End
If you’re a fan of Guy Ritchie films, then this is the tour for you. London’s East End is rife with gangster stories and a history of organised crime. As you’re led down the alleys and streets of Shoreditch and Whitechapel by the charismatic Vas Blackwood of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels fame, you’ll learn about the film locations and real locations of London’s criminal underworld.
London Bridge Secret Food Tour
From infamy to foodie fame, the area of London Bridge is best known in the modern day for its legendary food market. Led by Time Out Magazine, the London Bridge Secret Food Tour will have you sampling Britain’s best street food and learn about the city’s two thousand year old culinary culture.
Hidden London Tours
Spearheaded by the London Transport Museum, there are several tours a season for adventurous guests of hotels near Park Lane to book onto. These are especially riveting if you have a keen interest in engineering and the London Underground, but the atmosphere and excitement felt when heading to these abandoned locations will be infectious for all. Each of the Hidden London tours focuses on different aspects of the city’s engineering past, taking you through abandoned underground stations, service halls for trainyards and much more. At present, Hidden London tours include a Secrets of Central London tour beneath and around Covent Garden and an Access All Areas tour of Charing Cross station.
Thames Rockets
The Thames Rockets might usually be reserved for use as lifeboats, but a select few have been repurposed for high octane sightseeing trips along the Thames. With half hour and hour long trips, the tour will take you from Central London towards the Thames Barrier, amounting to a whistle stop tour of London’s famous riverside landmarks.
East End Street Art Tour
London’s street art scene is second to none, and is especially prevalent in East London. The Street Art Tour of East London takes visitors through the alleys and markets of East London, highlighting the many pieces of Street Art that often go unnoticed amidst the hustle and bustle. Led by real pro street artists, this tour shows a different side of the city, one eponymous with the underground creative community that has always thrived there.
