As the home of the Queen, the palace is usually closed to visitors, but you can view the interior for a brief period each summer while the Windsors are away on their holidays. Read more.
Designed by Charles Barry, the Palace of Westminster – which comprises the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben - is now a wonderful mish-mash of styles, dominated by Gothic buttresses, towers and arches. Read more.
Designed by architect Charles Barry as part of the Palace of Westminster, The Clock Tower was completed in 1859. Read more.
The cultural significance of Westminster Abbey is hard to overstate. Its popularity can only have increased since the wedding in April 2011 of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. Read more.
The passing of three centuries has done nothing to diminish the magnificence of St Paul's Cathedral, Christopher Wren's masterpiece and London's most famous cathedral. Read more.
On a clear day the London Eye, the world's largest observation wheel, offers views as far as 25 miles away. Read more.
Opened in 1894 and originally powered by steam, the drawbridge is now opened by electric rams when big ships need to venture this far upstream. Read more.
There's plenty here to fill a whole day, and it's worth joining one of the highly recommended and entertaining free tours led by the Yeoman Warders (or Beefeaters). Read more.
The world's largest maritime museum contains a huge store of creatively organised maritime art, cartography, models and regalia. Read more.
The British Museum began from the collection of naturalist Sir Hans Sloane which he left to the nation on his death in 1753. Now it houses 7 million objects including more than 100 Egyptian mummies.
Every year a Norway Spruce is erected here and decorated as part of the Christmas festivities. The tree is a gift of thanks from the Norwegians for Britain's support during the Second World War
Marie Tussaud, born in Strasbourg in 1761, made her first wax figure of the great French philosopher Voltaire in 1777. She opened a museum in London in 1835.
Opened in 1881, the museum facade uses terracotta tiles which were resistant to the soot of Victorian London. The largest of the famous dinosaur skeletons in the central hall is a diplodocus.
Much of the collection was inherited from the Museum of Patents (est 1858) and includes early locomotives such as Stephenson’s Rocket and Puffing Billy, and the first jet engine.
Made famous, of course, by The Beatles. Don't forget to walk over the crossing and savour the moment.
Set in a stunning park, and sitting precisely on the Prime Meridian of the world, the Royal Observatory is a great way to spend an afternoon in South London.
TRAVEL FACT: These well-known groups of standing stones are one of the Seven Wonders of the Medieval World.
This mother church of English Roman Catholics was completed in Early Christian Byzantine style in 1903. Since that day Masses have been sung here everyday without interruption.
