In addition to the usual "must see" sites in London (Westminster, Big Ben, 10 Downing Street, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace, etc), tours of London, both walking tours and guided tours by cab, are two ways to experience aspects of London that are usually missed by most tourists. In the booklet that you will see in my flat titled "Welcome to Trinity Square", there are several walking tours that I lead you through step by step from beginning to end. There  are also a large number of tour guides in the flat that you are welcome to take out into town with you and use throughout your day. If you want guided tours, there two very good options: Taking a guided walking tour organized by "London Walks", and taking a guided tour by cab led by John, a professional tour guide who has been giving such tours for around 25 years.

Walking Tours

The first is a company called London Walks, which offers several dozen walking tours if various parts of London all centered on various themes, such as Victorian London, intelligence history (the history of spying), architectural history, the Harry Potter tour (for those with children who like the Harry Potter books and/or movies), and the Jack the Ripper tour (which begins at the entrance to the Tower Hill tube station, which is 100 yards from my building). The Jack the Ripper tour is led by 2 or 3 different guides, depending upon the night, but my favorite is Donald Rumbelow. Donald is internationally recognized as the world's leading authority on the Ripper murders having authored The Complete Jack the Ripper, is the former Curator of the City of London Crime Museum,was the historical consultant of the Johnny Depp and Heather Graham movie on the Ripper murders, From Hell, and generally makes you feel as if you are in late 19th century London's east end as you track the Ripper. The photo above is of the Ten Bells pub, which has been in operation since the mid 18th century and is likely to have been a location at which the Ripper's victims spent time and possibly even where the Ripper sat viewing potential victims over a pint. The Jack the Ripper tour ends at the Ten Bells, so you can experience the pub yourself.

The tours cost £8/person and £6 for seniors and full time students. Further information on all of the tours, the tour schedules, etc, can be found at http://www.londonwalks.com

This is Donald, giving a tour on a spooky autumn Friday evening in London's East End.

This is Donald's book on Jack the Ripper. I've read it and it is an excellent book.

Your Man in London: Historical cab tours of London and the surrounding area

John, who has been giving such tours to friends of mine for at least a decade, knows the history of London and England like an Oxford don and gives incredible tours of various aspects of London, English and British history (and there is a distinction between "English" and "British" history), depending upon your interests. If you're looking for an experience of London that most tourists do not have and want to get the most out of your experience of London history while here, this is one of the best ways to do it.

John can give you a private tour of London or of areas surrounding London and throughout southern England. One of his favorite daytrips, for example, takes you to Chartwell (about an hour and a half outside London), home of Winston Churchill, and Hever Castle, home of Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII's second wife, with a stop for lunch in a nice little pub conveniently located between Chartwell and Hever Castle. Hever Castle was purchased and restored and used as a private residence by the American millionaire William Waldorf Astoria in the early 20th century, bringing an American connection to this important piece of British history. John also does a daytrip that will take you to Stonehenge and Bath, with its ancient Roman hot baths, with appropriate stops throughout the day for good English ale and food. John has many other planned trip options, and  if you have places in London and southern England that you would like to see and think that a private tour to these places would be worthwhile, John can also tailor a tour to match your interests.

John once brought a chunk of English cheese all the way across the Atlantic in order to keep a promise to a friend of mine in the United States who had taken a tour from him, so you can be sure that if you take one of John's tours, John will show you great personal care and do everything to ensure that you have a wonderful, educational experience.

John can be reached on his home telephone at +44 (0)20-8642-7768, on either of his mobile phones at +44 (0)7836-749-602 or +44 (0)7850-843-420, or via email at yrmanldn@aol.com

Days Out Guide

The Days Out Guide is a must-see for anyone visiting London as it has great offers, including over 100 2 tickets for the price of 1 offers on everything from theatre shows in the West End to various palaces, museums, art galleries, historical exhibits, etc. It is a one-stop shop in many ways for ideas on what to see and how to get discounted tickets to the things you want to do. http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/ 

Bookstores

London is well-known for its wonderful bookstores. For those who would like to take advantage of their time here to peruse some great stores, here are some suggestions:

Daunt Books: A bookstore specialising in travel. There are five branches around London. It is praised for its "lovely, naturally lit areas", "soothing atmosphere" and "superlative collection".
The main branch is near the Baker Street tube station, at 83-84 Marylebone High Street, W1.
Tel: (0)20-7224-2295.
Hours: Mon-Sat, 9am-7:30pm, Sun, 11am-6pm.
Website: http://www.dauntbooks.co.uk

The European Bookshop: Contains a great selection of French and other literature from throughout Europe. All the major European languages (and some minor ones) are stocked here.
Location: 5 Warwick Street, W1
Tel: (0)20-7734-5259
Hours: Mon-Sat, 9:30am-6pm
Website: www.eurobooks.co.uk

Foyles: After its £2 million refit things are much improved at Foyles, surely one of the last multi-departmental independents. An added bonus is Ray’s Jazz Café on the first floor, a nice place to have lunch.
Location: 113-119 Charing Cross Road, WC2, near the Tottenham Court Rd tube station
Tel: (0)20-7437-5660
Hours: Mon-Sat, 9:30am-9pm, Sun, 12pm-6pm.
Website: http://www.foyles.co.uk

Grant & Cutler: This is the established front-runner for foreign language bestsellers.
Location: 55-57 Great Marlborough High Street, W1, near the Oxford Circus tube station.
Tel: (0)20-7734-2012
Hours: Mon-Fri, 9am-6pm, Sat, 9:30am-6pm, Sun, 12pm-6pm
Website: http://www.grantandcutler.com

Koenig Books: Specialises in art, architecture and photography. Two branches now exist, one in the Serpentine Gallery and another on Charing Cross Road, one of London's major bookstore corridors.
Locations: 80 Charing Cross Road, WC2, near the Charing Cross tube station.
                Serpentine Gallery, Kensington Gardens, W2, near the South Kensington tube station.
Tel: Charing Cross location - (0)20-7240-8190
       Serpentine Gallery location - (0)20-7706-4907
Website: http://www.koenigbooks.co.uk

Stanfords: Traveler's bookshop specialising in maps, globes, atlases and general travel books.
Location: 12-14 Long Acre, WC2
Tel: (0)20-7836
Hours: M, W, F, 9am-7:30pm, Tues, 9:30am-7:30pm, Thur, 9am-8pm, Sat, 10am-7pm, Sun, 12pm-6pm.
Website: http://www.stanfords.co.uk

The Quinto Bookshop: A wildly popular secondhand bookshop. Rumor has it that you can find almost anything here.
Location: 48a Charing Cross Road, WC2, near the Leicester Square tube station.
Tel: (0)20-7379-7669
Hours: Mon-Sat, 9am-9pm, Sun, 12pm-8pm.
Website: http://www.haycbookshop.com

Blenheim Books: Specialises in interiors, art and photography.
Location: 11 Blenheim Crescent, W11, near the Notting Hill Gate tube station.
Tel: (0)20-7792-0777
Hours: Mon-Sat, 9am-6pm, Sun, 12pm-5pm.
Website: http://www.blenheimbooks.co.uk

John Sandoe Books: A rickety shop crammed with around 25,000 titles. Very idiosyncratic - exactly what you think of when you think of an independent bookseller.
Location: 10 Blacklands Terrace, SW3, near the Sloane Square tube station.
Tel: (0)20-7589-9473
Hours: Mon, Tues, Thur, Sat, 9:30am-5:30pm, Wed, 9:30am-7:30pm, Sun, 12pm-6pm.
Website: http://www.johnsandoe.com