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London Tours Meant to Surprise and Entertain
From a Mini Cooper ride around town to a street art survey, new ways to see a classic city.
Winter may not be London’s peak tourist season, but travelers with plans to head to the city in the coming colder weather months can look forward to a lineup of new tours that are far from run of the mill. Whether it’s your first time in London or you’re a repeat visitor, these seven city tours are meant to unearth perspectives on a perennially popular destination that both surprise and entertain.
London is known for being a kid-friendly town so why not book a tour that caters to children but is enjoyable for parents, too? On the two-hour Childhood In Kensington Palace excursion of Kensington Palace and its gardens, each child gets a Snakes and Ladders-type game board and follows the instructions to actually lead the tour. Along the way, children and grown-ups learn about how royal children used to live and play and see their favorite childhood toys, including Queen Victoria’s doll house. (Price: 385 pounds, about $525, for up to six people. Book at family-twist.com.)
Decidedly for grown-ups only is the Gin Making excursion from Airbnb’s Experiences. The host, Mark, makes and sells a brand of the spirit called 58 Gin. Participants visit him in his East London distillery, set unearth a railway arch, and choose botanicals which they will use to craft their own gin — bottling, sealing and naming it is part of the fun. They’ll sip gin and tonics while they work, and Mark will also relay the history of the spirit in London. (Price: $157 a person. Book through Airbnb.com/experiences.)
The one-hour Landmarks of London tour, offered by Small Car Big City, puts travelers in an Instagrammable restored Mini Cooper. The fast-paced excursion is an ideal way to catch a glimpse of many of the city’s most popular tourist attractions, including Buckingham Palace, Covent Garden, Downing Street, Westminster Abbey and at least a half-dozen more. A guide does the driving while guests sit back and enjoy the ride. (Price: 119 pounds, for up to three people. Book at smallcarbigcity.com.)
The four-hour Street Art Tour & Graffiti Workshop is also in the East End neighborhood. This is a part of town renowned globally for its street art, and the tour is an immersion into the colorful and creative world of prolific artists like Banksy, Invader and Shepard Fairey. An art expert guide leads a walk through the streets to view works by these famous names; participants then head to a studio, where an artist helps them create their own (mini) street art. (Offered several times a week. Price: 25 pounds a person. Book at alternativeldn.co.uk.)
It’s hard to figure out if Moriarty’s Game is a tour or a game, but either way, the four-hour excursion through Marylebone, in central London, is likely to keep you on your toes. The experience takes inspiration from Sherlock Holmes novels and has participants solve a series of mini mysteries. (Offered several times a week. Price: 60 pounds for a team of four players. Book at inthehiddencity.com)
Plenty of tourists visit the London Transport Museum, but for a more insiderly look at this popular stop, consider the half-day Behind the Scenes tour of the museum from the local travel company Noteworthy. The museum explores the history of the modes of transportation in London over the last 200 years, and on this excursion, led by both a Noteworthy guide and one of the museum’s directors, guests get access to areas that are normally closed to the public. Among the highlights: They will get to ring the bell on a Stephenson horse tram, made in New York in 1882 for London, and step into a Metropolitan Bogie Stock coach dating back to the late 1800s. (Price: 950 pounds for four people. Book at noteworthy.co.uk.)
The big news out of London, of course, is the engagement of Prince Harry and the actress Meghan Markle. The four-hour When Harry Met Meghan Royal Black Taxi Tour may be the fix for those hankering to know more about the couple. See sights in London related to Harry and Meghan, including Nottingham Cottage in Kensington Palace, where the pair will live after they get married, and Battersea Park, which they visited together. Stops at iconic royal sites like Buckingham Palace and Westminster Abbey are also included. (Price: From $509 a person. Book at viator.com.)
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