{2025} 3 Days in London: The PERFECT 72-Hour Itinerary

Planning a trip to London? Wondering how much you can see in just three days? Your 'favourite' London enthusiast will walk you through my ideal plan of what to do in London for 3 days.

Tower Bridge (SPC)

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Planning a long-weekend in London?

Buckingham Palace (SPC)

Lucky you! One of the questions I'm asked most frequently is "Is three days enough in London," along with "can I combine my trips to London and Paris?" While I'd argue that each city/country deserves its own trip, the reality is you have the time that you have. And you've gone all that way, so you want to see as much as possible. YES, visiting London for "just three days" is absolutely "worth it," and hopefully you will return to see even more again another time.

No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.
— Dr. Samuel Johnson

What can you expect during your three days in London? If you follow my London itinerary, you'll have extremely FULL days, but you'll tour iconic landmarks, stroll in royal parks, and discover world-class museums, all while making time for the theatre and a few pubs. Oh and, of course high tea. I'm so excited you're here! I hope you'll take some time to peruse the many free resources I've created over my 7+ years of blogging, which actually started after I returned from my third strip to the UK. No paywalls, just your friendly neighborhood lawyer who wants Americans to fall in love with Europe and the UK like I did.

Frequently asked questions about a three-day trip to London

FAQ: Is it worth going to London for three days?
Absolutely. You can see many of the tourist highlights you're excited about and have a wonderful time in London, even in a long weekend. Will you "see all of London?" Of course not.

FAQ: What are the top 5 tourist attractions in London?
Buckingham Palace, The London Eye, Westminster (Palace of and the Abbey), The British Museum, and The Tower of London are the traditional "classic," most-popular tourist attractions in London. You will have time to see all of these in three days. And you'll have very tired feet, I can guarantee you.

FAQ: What should I see during my first trip to London?
If it's your first time in London, you'll want to focus your tourism on the north side of the Thames, from The City of London, down The Strand over to Covent Garden, Trafalgar Square, and The British Museum. Continuing back along the Thames, you'll want to see Westminster, Buckingham Palace, and over to Hyde Park. That's the main area to focus in on.
FAQ: What should I pack for my trip to London?
For three days in London, you'll want comfortable walking shoes, a good rain-resistant coat, a small foldable umbrella, and a pickpocket-proof purse. For all the details on what to wear in London, check out {2025} What to Wear in London: A Packing Guide for First Timers!

FAQ: What's the best way to get around in London?
Public transportation can get you nearly everywhere you'll want to go during your short time in London. The Tube is cheap, safe, clean, and efficient. It's almost always faster than any other mode of transportation. You can grab an Oyster Card and 'top it up' with as much money as you'll need during your stay.
Bus tours and 'hop-on-hop-off' busses are popular in London. You'll see Big Bus Tour busses zooming around throughout your time in the British capital. It is significantly more expensive than The Tube, but of course a good way to see a lot in a short time.

FAQ: Should I get a London Pass for my three-day trip to London?
Assuming you'll be cramming your days full of high-value tourist sites in London, getting a London Pass likely makes a lot of sense. One of the pitfalls of a London Pass is that it now must be used for consecutive days (it wasn't that way last time I used it, but alas), but with a trip as short as you're taking, that won't be a problem! Decide whether it makes sense to do just 2 days on your timeline - it might make sense to cram the expensive days (Westminster Abbey, The Tower, etc.) onto two days and have your third day be things like shopping, pubs, or visiting places that are free (like the British Museum, which will easily take an entire morning), or not included in The London Pass.

FAQ: Can I visit the Harry Potter Studios during my quick trip to London?
If you'll only be in London for three days, yes, you "can" visit Warner Brothers Studios to see their Harry Potter sets, etc. That said, the studios are way North in Watford. There is no easy/quick way to get there from Central London, relying on public transportation and they're an and hour and a half by car. I will confess I have not visited, for these reasons, though I would love to. If you are a massive Harry Potter fan, you certainly can get there, but it will eat up about 75% of one of your days.

{2025} What to Do in London for 3 Days: The PERFECT 72-Hour Itinerary

I've put together my ideal three-days in London itinerary for you to borrow! The days don't have to be done in this order, so you'll need to take things into account like Sunday and Monday closures, church services on Sunday mornings (St Pauls and Westminster Abbey are active churches with services that are free to attend). Many museums are closed on Mondays, like the British Museum, so be mindful when selecting your 3 days.

I've separated each day into morning, afternoon, and evening. A simple Tube ride would allow you to exchange one morning for another, if you need to shake things up.

DAY 1: Your first day in London: Westminster & Royal History

AM: The democratic and religious history and mystery of London
We're going to jam pack your first morning in London, as is tradition! We'll start at the heart of London, with Westminster.

In Westminster, you'll explore:

• Palace of Westminster / Houses of Parliament (time-consuming)
• Big Ben/Elizabeth Tower (just say hi!)
• Westminster Abbey (majority of time here)
• Westminster Bridge (just peak around)
• Churchill War Rooms (not for the claustrophobic)

Now we'll journey down the Westminster tour to Buckingham Palace! Note: Changing of the Guard is at 10:45 AM ish if that appeals to you - for more information check out The Household Division.

And while you're in the area, if you're interested in Royal history, stop by The Goring Hotel, where the Royals and their guests stay, dine, and relax in London! (And where we spent our honeymoon!) If you happen to do this portion of the tour in the afternoon, stop by for their afternoon tea - the best (and somehow least touristy) in London!

Grab a quick lunch at Pret and we'll journey westward

PM
We'll stop first at Kensington Palace in Hyde Park, the London home of Princess Diana and The Prince and Princess of Wales. In Hyde Park, stop by the Diana Memorial Fountain.
Next we'll journey to South Kensington to the Natural History Museum if you have kids with you, or the Victoria & Albert Museum ("V&A"), if you don't.

Evening: Since we did a quick Pret lunch, there's nothing more British than the pub. Hit the pub for a classic English evening. If you're there for the weekend and your first day is a Friday, enjoy standing outside the pub, standing and drinking, a classic London Friday night ritual.

FAQ: Do I need a ticket for the Changing of the Guard?

NO. Please do not get scammed. The Changing of the Guard is a free, public event. A "ticket" is not only not required, but also won't get you anything. The Changing of the Guard doesn't happen everyday, so check the schedule to find out if it'll happen on a day you are free.

DAY 2 The City of London

St Pauls Cathedral (SPC)

We won't travel a great distance today, but by the end of it, you'll be as tired as you've ever been. I promise. Today we're exploring The City of London, which, to the uninitiated, can be a confusing term. The City of London is the historic heart of the London, a just over one square mile center of the city, where it was founded by the Romans in 47 AD as Londinium. Here you'll find the oldest tourist sites in the city, and, today, much of the financial heart of the UK, such as the London Stock Exchange and the Bank of England.

AM The City of London
Take the Tube to Tower Hill and we'll start our journey at the farthest eastern edge of the City of London and work our way back to Central London. Here you'll find Tower Bridge and, the highlight of any trip to London, the Tower of London. Execution and burial site of Anne Boleyn (among many, many others), home of The Crown Jewels and the Beefeaters (yes, they're real people and a free tour with them is included in the price of your ticket), and a medieval royal residence, The Tower is a much larger (and more time-consuming) place than many tourists anticipate. Expect to spend at least 2 hours here, and more if it's crowded or you're with a history buff.

Make your way east, past the Monument to the Great Fire of London to St Pauls Cathedral, Sir Christopher Wren's post-fire masterpiece, completed in 1710. Visitors do require a ticket (though attending a service is free). Be sure to see The American Memorial Chapel, which renders the flags of the US states that existed in the mid-1950s when it was erected to honor the 28,000 servicemen station in the UK who sacrificed themselves for the country in WWII.

You'll see a number of London's famous bridges in The City, including Tower Bridge, followed by the current London Bridge (fairly unimpressive these days), and finally Millennium Bridge (the Harry Potter bridge). Tower Bridge is not London Bridge, and I beseech you to tell your friends and family when you get home. I even watched a kids TV show recently to the tune of London Bridge is Falling Down, just showing Tower Bridge on repeat.

The perfect place to grab lunch at the end of your time in The City of London is Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, my favorite pub in London, on Fleet Street. Featured in books and movies, Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese was 'rebuilt in 1667' after the Great Fire, and has proudly stood as one of London's last 'London chophouses' since then. It's still a surprisingly 'real' pub, filled with businessmen grabbing lunch and drinks,

PM 
After lunch, we're taking one of those aforementioned bridges to the other side of the Thames to experience the South Bank of the Thames. Here you'll find the recreation of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Borough Market (everything from fresh produce to wheels of cheese. food tour is a great option if you're a foodie, if not just pop your head in), The Golden Hinde (Sir Francis Drake's ship, which is worth walking by, even if you don't pay to go in), and the Tate Modern (free admission!).

Evening: Take a spin on the London Eye
One of the most popular tourist attractions 'across the pond,' The London Eye truly is an enjoyable experience, if quite touristy. I find that these thing are popular for a reason, and seeing the British capital from that angle is worth the cost of admission. When we visited for our honeymoon, my mother-in-law bought us the Champagne Experience, which I'd highly recommend for a special occasion.

DAY 3 Art, Culture, and Consumerism

AM The British Museum
This morning we're heading north, getting off The Tube at Holborn, up to Bloomsbury and arguably Europe's finest museum, The British Museum. Home to Cleopatra, The Elgin Marbles, and the Rosetta Stone, you'll see a collection of stunning items from around the world, which is, of course, not without controversy. Whether the Brits should return these items to their homelands is a topic for another day, but expect to spend a morning at The British Museum. It is free, but you do need a timed entry ticket. Crowds can be an issue, so be patient. If you aren't museumed-out after your experience, you're very close to Sir John Soane's Museum, the house museum of a famed British architect.

Grab lunch and we're moving onto the merchantile history of London....which I'm going to show you by spending the afternoon shopping in the capital's loveliest shopping districts.

PM Consumerism
Head south from The British Museum and into the West End and eventually to Covent Garden, my favorite place to shop in London (it's classier and more manageable than exceedingly commercial Oxford Street). Covent Garden would be a great place to eat or grab a drink, if you haven't done so already.

And then it's west again to Trafalgar Square / The National Gallery / The National Portrait Gallery. Peak into St Martin-in-the-Fields on the corner of Trafalgar Square's crypt cafe.

Evening: Head back to The West End to see a phenomenal show in one of the 39 theatres.

Worth a trip:
​Incredible Windsor Castle

If you'd like to get outside of London proper during your quick trip, a visit to Windsor and Windsor Castle could easily be done on public transit in a morning or afternoon visit. There's a reason that centuries of monarchs and, most recently, Will & Kate, have decided to make Windsor their home base. A stunning, historic town, Windsor will absolutely give you your fill of 'classic English countryside' without too much travel.

Thanks for Stopping By!

I hope you have the most fabulous time on your three-day trip to London. You won't see it all, and I'd urge you to remove whatever pressure on yourself that you can. Take breaks. Grab a pint, and enjoy all this incredible city has to offer. Cheers! And while you're here, I hope you'll take some time to explore the many free resources I've created over the years that can help you plan the perfect trip to London.

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