3 Days in London: The Perfect First-Time Itinerary
London packs centuries of history, world-class museums, and buzzing neighbourhoods into one walkable city. This three-day itinerary hits the iconic landmarks without exhausting your legs or your wallet. You'll cross the Thames, eat your way through markets, and catch a West End show — all on an Oyster card budget. Each day covers one distinct area to keep backtracking to a minimum.
Westminster, South Bank & the London Eye
Start at Westminster Abbey (£27 adult) where every coronation since 1066 has taken place. Allow 90 minutes for the nave, cloisters, and Poets' Corner. Walk past the Houses of Parliament and snap Big Ben from Westminster Bridge — the best angle puts the clock tower against the river.
Cross to the South Bank for the London Eye (£32 online, £37 on the day — save by booking 24 hours ahead). A rotation takes 30 minutes and on clear days you can see Windsor Castle. Continue east along the Thames Path to the Tate Modern in the old Bankside Power Station — entry is completely free and the Turbine Hall installations are extraordinary.
Grab lunch at Borough Market underneath the railway arches. A raclette cheese toastie from Kappacasein costs £8, fresh doughnuts from Bread Ahead are £4 each, and a pint of local ale at the Rake runs £6. End the afternoon at Shakespeare's Globe (£17 guided tour, or £5 standing tickets for a performance). For dinner, head to a Soho noodle bar — bowls at Bone Daddies cost £10-13.
Evening: catch a West End show in Theatreland. Day seats at theatres like the Old Vic start at £20 if you queue when the box office opens at 10am. The TKTS booth in Leicester Square sells same-day tickets at 25-50% off for dozens of shows.
British Museum, Covent Garden & the West End
The British Museum opens at 10am and is entirely free. Head straight to the Egyptian galleries — the Rosetta Stone, the mummy collection, and the Parthenon Marbles are the highlights. Two hours is enough for the essentials, though you could spend an entire day here. Pick up a free map at the entrance; the building is enormous and easy to get lost in.
Walk south through Bloomsbury to Covent Garden. The covered market has street performers, independent shops, and the Apple Market selling handmade crafts. Duck into Neal's Yard — a tiny, wildly colourful courtyard hidden behind the main piazza with cafés and cheese shops. Lunch at Homeslice: a massive 20-inch pizza to share costs £22 and feeds two comfortably.
Afternoon: the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square is free and unmissable. See Van Gogh's Sunflowers, Monet's Water-Lilies, and Botticelli's Venus and Mars without spending a penny. The gallery overlooks Nelson's Column and the fountains of Trafalgar Square — spend 20 minutes here watching London pass by.
Evening: walk through Chinatown for dinner — dumpling plates cost £8-10 at places like Dumplings Legend. Then explore Soho's bars and cocktail spots. A craft beer in a Soho pub averages £6.50, while cocktails at Experimental Cocktail Club or Swift run £13-16. If you skipped a show on Day 1, the TKTS booth is right here in Leicester Square.
Tower of London, Borough Market & Camden
Arrive at the Tower of London (£33.60 online) right at opening time — 9am in summer, 10am in winter. Early arrivals beat the tour bus crowds and can see the Crown Jewels with minimal queuing. Walk the ramparts, explore the White Tower's armoury collection, and catch a Beefeater's guided tour (included with entry, running every 30 minutes). Budget two hours.
Cross Tower Bridge — you can pay £12.30 for the glass walkway experience 42 metres above the river, or simply walk across the road level for free. Both offer excellent photos. Head back to Borough Market for a proper second visit — try a scotch egg from Ginger Pig (£4.50), Portuguese custard tarts from Nata (£2.50 each), and fresh oysters from Richard Haward (£2 each).
Afternoon: take the Northern Line up to Camden Town. Camden Market is free to wander and sprawls across several interconnected markets: food stalls, vintage clothing, vinyl records, and handmade jewellery. Jerk chicken platters cost £8 at the food stalls, and a canal-side pint at the Lock Tavern runs £6. Walk along Regent's Canal toward Primrose Hill (20 minutes) for the best free sunset viewpoint in London — the entire skyline stretches out before you.
Final dinner: treat yourself to a proper Sunday roast at a pub like The Bull & Last near Hampstead Heath (£18-22 for roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, and all the trimmings), or keep it budget at a Camden kebab shop for £7-9.
Where to Base Yourself
For this itinerary, the best areas to stay are South Bank (walking distance to Day 1 attractions), King's Cross/Bloomsbury (central, near the British Museum for Day 2, and well-connected by Tube), or Shoreditch/East London (cheaper accommodation with quick access to the City and Tower of London). Avoid hotels near Heathrow or in far-flung suburbs — the Tube commute eats into your sightseeing time and daily transport costs increase when you travel through more zones.
London 3-Day Budget Breakdown
| Category | Budget | Mid-Range | Comfort |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation (per night) | £25-40 hostel | £90-130 hotel | £180-250 boutique |
| Food (per day) | £20-30 | £40-60 | £80-120 |
| Transport (per day) | £8 Oyster cap | £8 Oyster cap | £15-30 Uber |
| Attractions (3 days) | £0-30 (free museums) | £80-110 | £120-160 |
| 3-Day Total | £160-250 | £400-550 | £750-1,100 |
- Use contactless payment on the Tube — it auto-caps at the daily Oyster rate of £8.10 for Zones 1-2, no deposit needed.
- Most major museums are free: British Museum, National Gallery, Tate Modern, V&A, Natural History Museum, Science Museum.
- Book West End tickets via the TKTS booth in Leicester Square for same-day discounts up to 50% off face value.
- Pubs stop serving food at 9-10pm — eat earlier or switch to kebab shops and late-night Chinatown restaurants.
- Pack layers and a waterproof jacket. London averages 8-15°C most of the year and rain appears without warning.
Extend Your Stay
Got a fourth day? Head to Greenwich (DLR from Bank, 20 minutes) for the Royal Observatory, the Cutty Sark, and the zero-degree meridian line. Or spend a morning at the V&A Museum in South Kensington (free) followed by the Natural History Museum next door (also free). Both are world-class and could fill an entire day. The Notting Hill and Portobello Road Market area (Saturday mornings) is another excellent addition — antiques, vintage fashion, and street food in colourful Victorian terraces.
Getting Around
London's transport network is one of the best in the world, but it's also one of the most expensive if you use it wrong. The golden rule: never buy a single paper ticket. A single Zone 1-2 journey on paper costs £6.70 — the same journey on contactless or Oyster costs £2.80. Use any contactless bank card or phone (Apple Pay, Google Pay) directly on the yellow card readers at every Tube gate and bus door. The system automatically caps your daily spend at £8.10 for Zones 1-2, equivalent to roughly three journeys, after which the rest of the day's travel is free within those zones.
The London Underground (the Tube) covers the entire city with 11 colour-coded lines. For this three-day itinerary, you'll use primarily the Central, Jubilee, Northern, and District lines, all operating from approximately 5:30am to 12:30am Monday to Saturday, and from 7am on Sundays. Night Tube services on Friday and Saturday nights run until 5am on the Central and Victoria lines — useful if you're heading back to Shoreditch or Brixton after a late show. The Elizabeth line (the purple line) connects Heathrow to Paddington in 21 minutes for £12.70, the cheapest and fastest airport transfer option.
Buses deserve more credit than they get from first-time visitors. At £1.75 per ride (with free transfers within one hour), the bus lets you sightsee from the upper deck at a fraction of Tube costs. The number 15 bus follows the embankment past St Paul's and the City. The number 11 passes Big Ben, Whitehall, and Trafalgar Square. The RV1 connects South Bank cultural institutions from Tower Bridge to Waterloo. If your destination is within 25 minutes on foot, walk — the architecture, markets, and street life you encounter along the way are part of the experience.
Cycling is genuinely practical for shorter journeys. The Santander Cycles docking scheme (known locally as Boris Bikes) charges £1.65 for a 24-hour access pass and then each ride under 30 minutes is free — longer rides cost £1 per additional 30 minutes. Docking stations are dense across Zone 1 and Zones 2 around Hackney and Brixton. A cycling map is available from any docking station. The canal towpath from Paddington through Little Venice to Camden is a traffic-free 3.5-mile route that completely bypasses the Tube and costs nothing.
