What should I know about visiting London, and what should I do there?

I did that program in Cambridge when I was in college. Pick up the Rick Steves England guidebook.

London musts:
British Museum
National Library
A show in the West End
Pubs – find a local that suits you and get to know the regulars
Get an Oyster card
Look left when crossing
Pick up a packet of wine gums
Try to find some scrumpy
Walk-bus-tube all over town

Get out of town:
Cambridge
Stratford
Bath

Farther afield:
Chester
The Lake District
Edinburgh

Also:
York

Learn the map of the Tube.
Catch a west end show
Follow the pigeons…(to Trafalgar Square)
Go shopping at Camden Markets
Visit the Tower of London!

Enjoy many many many excellent kebabs after pub closing while wandering aimlessly around Picadilly sort of area :)

bring lots of money. It has got very expensive.

Be aware that the crime rate and in particular murder rate in the under 25’s is high.

Okay got that out of the way…

Visit Camden Market on a Saturday or Sunday (see pattern recognition by William Gibson for a discription).

Visit the tate modern on the southbank then walk along to the globe theatre and
see a play 1595 style.

Go to Harrods (but see point 1)

Hang around picadilly circus and Leicester square in the evening and soak up the atmosphere (but see point 2).

Visit Wales you say? Come visit me :D to be honest I’ve only ever visited London twice, once I was in a conference most of the day and the other time I went with school. It’s a busy place but interesting :) if you do get chance do come out of the city however and do visit some of the places PnT suggested as they are really beautiful areas :)

madam tousauds wax musuem is another must see. If you have time go to Nottingham to visit sherewood forest, nottingham castle and the oldest pub in England (over 1000 years old!!!)

London Musts
Saatchi Gallery
Tate Museum
Dover Steet Market :)
A walk in Oxford Street, there is a huge virgin megastore there, go in and buy the cd’s of Everything but the girl, morcheeba, massive attack, oasis, the stereophonics and blur, portishead you’ll be impressed :) You can’t come back without some of the records by the finest British artists of the 90’s
Hyde Park
Notting Hill (close to Hyde Park) in August, the Notting Hill Carnival is a must! And of course Portobello road Market
Fish and chips
Take a train to Manchester and go to a Football match, Machester United Vs. anyone, you will see the finest football ever, and don’t forget to buy the red jersey.

Take a weekend trip to Edinburgh – it’s one of my favorite places in the whole world!

If you’re going to be there in late summer, I’d definitely recommend going to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and seeing as many shows as you can in one weekend – but if not, it’s just a beautiful city to hang out in for a few days (or months!) I’d go see the castle, and sample some of the pubs, and hike to the top of Arthur’s Seat… There’s so many good things to do, but since this question was really about London, I won’t take up too much space here. If you do end up going to Edinburgh, let me know and I can give you a long list! ;)

Lots of great suggestions above. I’ll make a point of seconding Edinburgh, the British Museum, the Tate Gallery, seeing some plays in London and/or Stratford-upon-Avon, getting out to some small town(s), Cambridge and/or Oxford, and fish & chips.

I’d add the Victoria & Albert Museum, doing lots and lots of walking around in comfortable shoes, old book shops, and making friends.

I’ve heard that the food isn’t so great, so i’d watch what I eat.

The food can be great – there’s fantastic pub food, Indian curries, and chippies at the budget end and world-class restaurantsat the expensive end.

If you want a cheap place where to stay over the night,here is it.Take a subway and get out on station call towergate and that go acros the tower bridge in that area are cheap hostels and hotels-premier and some more.

I was going to say make sure and have some Indian food and also experience tea British style.

I totally agree on the British Museum, storehouse to some of the best shameless looting of centuries.

No one has yet mentioned Westminster Cathedral and St. Paul’s Cathedral.

PnT mentioned the Library. You can see incredible illuminated manuscripts there and the Magna Carta among other things. A must-see if you love books.

And original handwritten Beatles lyrics, Lewis Carroll, and more!

I wholeheartedly second sdeutsch about the Fringe Festival. I volunteered there once and it was one of the best experiences of my life. The city gets transformed, with hundreds of little makeshift theatres popping up everywhere to show usually very good, sometimes terrible, always interesting performances.

Also, don’t look like a tourist if you can help it.

Hobbes is right – the locals in Edinburgh (as in most tourist spots) are much friendlier if you seem like you know your way around and aren’t just invading their city for a short time. I was there for three weeks before the Fringe started, and I had an even better time during the Fringe because I wasn’t treated as a “dumb tourist”. Just make the extra effort to do a little research and figure things out for yourself (like how the money works), and you’ll find lots of friendly folks there!

(I imagine this is probably true in London too – I know it is in San Francisco…) ;)

Eat some CRUNCHY Bars and get addicted – them honeywhatsems are GOOD….

I loved a day lolling in Kew Gardens.

The Museum of London was a gem – but because of refurbishment, parts are closed.

The Tower of London, of Course – and the British Library.

*****Take a jaunt to Devonshire SW of London to the moors DARTMOOR to be exact. Eat some scones w/jam and clotted cream.

I also recommend Edinburgh, a great city. Try to get up into the Scottish Highlands as well. Wales really is beautiful and worth the trip. The Snowdonia Region is absolutely amazing. Fairly close to there, you can also tour an old slate mine that it is still in use today.

@Indy: I don’t hear my food, I eat it, and some of the best food that I’ve had was in Great Britain. The two worst meals that I’ve had while traveling were in France, but I don’t condemn French food, I just take it as bad luck.

A good one we found in London was Pret A Manger. (locations). Their “website is”: http://www.pret.com.
As you can see from the map, they are all over London.

They are a good place to stop to pick up something on the way for a day around town.
Don’t worry about food there, it’s very international and you will have the choice of what you like and then some. Best way is to just ask. You’ll make friends that will show you the ropes and will know how to keep within your budget. Have a great time, just ask the locals what they like and you’ll do fine.

if you need a map to find a Pret in London your in trouble as they are everywhere (but they do good sandwiches)

Also try Wagamama’s for Japanese style noodles

Oh and all MacDonalds have free wi-fi

Did anyone already mentioned greenwich?

From the park above the hill (where you actually cross the Greenwich Meridian) you can see a great view of London, it’s definitely my favourite city corner. And be sure to spend time on saturday morning at the market, and the maritime museum, and the naval academy.

You should also visit Windsor, beautiful city and castle just 15 minutes west, and the white cliffs of Dover.

I was in Greenwich at the weekend and the view from the park is spectacular. You can also look at what’s left of the Cutty Sark after some b***** set it on fire.

Loved the Cutty Sark.
@ Lightly: have you ever walked through the the tunnel under the thames river?

Yes many times, mainly before the DLR made it to Greenwich. There’s actually two, one at Greenwich and one at Woolwich