If I could visit one city every weekend, it would be London! My first visit to London was September 2017 where we visited every major tourist spot and then some! If you missed my posts on things to do / see in London, check those posts out here:
- Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Bath Day Trip
- Travel With Me: One Day in London
- Travel With Me: Sky Garden London
- Travel With Me: High Tea in London
- Travel With Me: Harry Potter Studio Tour in London
September 2018, just one year later, I found myself with a 17 hour layover in London on my way home from Asia. Our flight had us getting into the city of London around 5pm so I went against my planning nature and just left our plans up in the air. We got as far as: “Let’s pub crawl.” We ended up finding a hotel in a great location on Strand Street near the London Eye and all the theaters. I highly recommend checking out Wilde Aparthotel! Over dinner, we pulled up Google Maps and created sort of a rough walking route with 2 pubs we knew we wanted to check out and leaving it open to stumbling across other pubs along the way.
The Ship and Shovell
Technically this was our second stop but if I were planning this route again, I would stop here. This was a pub that we stumbled across! I swear London has the coolest pubs in the coolest spots. We happened to find this one down an alley way! The pub was two spots: one on each side of the alley. We stopped in for a beer. They were serving Badger Beers on tap. Since most places outside the U.S. don’t make IPA’s, I am always venturing out of my comfort zone to try something new. I am happy to report I really enjoyed the Badger Red Ramble Beer!
Sherlock Holmes Pub
This is an iconic pub and one that will appear on those “Pubs you must visit” lists. About the Sherlock Holmes Pub: “Its Victorian-style interior is loaded with references to the many books and films featuring the beloved character, and upstairs you will find a detailed recreation of Holmes’ famous Baker Street flat. There’s even an exhibition upstairs that takes the Sherlock Holmes theme further by replicating his famous living quarters.” The exterior is as inviting as the interior. Take a few minutes and enjoy a beer here!
The White Swan
I swear after a while all these pubs start to look the same. The classic dark exterior with flowers and vines covering the front. This one was no different but we HAD to stop here because it was on a side street filled with people drinking on the sidewalks!
Lamb & Flag
Besides the Sherlock Holmes Pub, this was the other pub that we had planned to visit. We watched a YouTube video about a year ago that highlighted this pub as one you must visit in London. It is down a long alleyway all on its own! I couldn’t believe how many people were visiting this pub and that you were allowed to stand outside in the alleyway to drink your beer.
The Coal Hole
We visited this one because it was about a block from our hotel. We made sure this was our last stop of the night since we would have the shortest walk back to our room! It is a cute older bar with high ceilings! The exterior is black and if the weather is nice, there is even some outdoor seating!
We will be in London again in May and are planning to have a casual pub hopping day. Are there any other pubs that you recommend we check out?
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