London, England

experience

Columbia Road Flower Market

This market takes place every Sunday from 8 am, on a street lined with the prettiest shops and bakeries (in case you needed anything more than the gorgeous flowers on display!). I just wish I lived in London, so I could buy ALL the flowers. This is by no means a hidden gem or well-kept secret, so head there very very early. However, crowds or no crowds, it’s a must visit. My favorite was hearing the flower vendors sell in their British accents, “Five sunnies for a fiver”, just like I had stepped into a real-life, modern day ‘My Fair Lady’!

London, England

cafe

Paper and Cup

I recommend coffee and pastries at Paper & Cup, but there are so many options in the area!

London, England

experience

Shoreditch

Shoreditch is a lot of fun to walk around. Plenty of cool buildings, hipster shops and cute cafes to keep your attention!

London, England

restaurants

Honey & Co.

It’s probably a good idea to make a reservation here, because it’s a tiny little place. Leave room for their unique, delicious cheesecake. Our friends who live in London brought us here, and it was excellent. So that’s a local’s recommendation for you!

London, England

experience

Daunt Books

This gorgeous bookstore specializes in travel. Books are arranged by regions, and each region has both guide books, gorgeous photo books and fiction set in that area! It’s so much fun, literally the perfect manifestation of travel inspiration! I could spend hours at Daunt Books, and if you are like me, you might have to skip some of the other things in this itinerary because you lost track of time!

London, England

restaurants

The Wolseley

A quintessentially English tradition – afternoon tea. Afternoon tea in London can range from simple to all out glamorous, and could set you back a pretty penny if you wanted it to. However, it’s completely worth it once in a while. I’ve had afternoon tea at The Wolseley in Mayfair and it was wonderful.

London, England

experience

Sky Garden

Sky Garden is a must. This is a modern garden in the sky, overlooking the entire city. A full 360 degree view over London, even more impressive because you can see the past and the present living in perfect harmony, side by side. They also sell cocktails here, which by New York City standards are actually pretty reasonably priced. Tickets to the Sky Garden are completely free, the only caveat being they sell out almost immediately after they are released. Tickets are released on Monday for the following week. So check out their website to figure out when the tickets for your date are released, and then set an alarm to book them!