LEGO Store and M&M’s World. Both open at 10:00 and are practically across the road from each other.
Piccadilly Circus photo stop, then north up Regent Street to Hamleys. Carnaby Street and Kingly Court for lunch.
Eat near Carnaby or Soho, then back to the hotel. Rest from 14:15 to 15:15, do not skip this.
Trafalgar Square → Whitehall → Horse Guards → Downing Street → Big Ben → Westminster Bridge → St James’s Park → Buckingham Palace.
Relaxed hotel breakfast, then shops from 10:00 while energy is high, a proper rest in the early afternoon, then the Westminster walk in the late afternoon when the crowds thin and the light is better. A full day without being brutal.
Buffet breakfast included, no need to go anywhere. Take the time, eat well, have coffee. Nothing opens until 10:00 so there is genuinely no reason to rush. Chill morning, leave when ready.
15 minutes on foot heading north from The Strand through St Martin’s Lane. No tube, no cab needed. Arrive just as the LEGO Store opens at 10:00.
The LEGO Store on Leicester Square is the flagship UK location, large, well-stocked, with custom-build sections, exclusive sets, and a pick-a-brick wall. Opens Monday–Saturday at 10:00. Go in while it’s fresh at opening. Budget 30–45 minutes, it’s genuinely absorbing even for adults.
Directly across Leicester Square from the LEGO Store. Four floors: personalised M&M’s, London-themed merchandise, the wall of colours, the chocolate shop. Opens Monday–Saturday at 10:00. The personalised M&M’s machine (print your face or a message) is the main draw. Budget 20–30 minutes.
Walk south from Leicester Square along Coventry Street, Piccadilly Circus is 5 minutes. The Eros fountain, the neon boards. Take the photo and move on, this is a pass-through, not a stop. Turn back north and head up Regent Street.
Head north up Regent Street from Piccadilly Circus. Nash’s curved cream colonnade runs all the way up. Hamleys is at 188–196 on the right side, about 15 minutes’ walk at a normal pace. Easier to walk than tube from here.
The world’s oldest toy shop, founded 1760. Seven floors with staff demonstrators on every level. The ground floor confectionery is enormous. The LEGO section is on the upper levels. Budget 45 minutes, leaving requires actual negotiation. Opens 10:00 Monday–Saturday.
Walk back south on Regent Street and turn right onto Carnaby Street. Fully pedestrianised. Better teen shopping than Oxford Street, more independent, more interesting. Kingly Court is the archway on the left, three floors of food and retail around a courtyard. Five minutes from Piccadilly Circus, close enough to keep the morning compact.
Multiple options within 5 minutes of Kingly Court: Kingly Court itself has several good restaurants on the upper levels; Soho is a 5-minute walk east; Chinatown is 10 minutes (Gerrard Street, the real one, not a tourist trap). Pick a place, sit down, eat properly. The afternoon rest follows this, so there’s no rush.
Take the tube back to the hotel from Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus, Bakerloo line south to Charing Cross, right at The Clermont door. Tap on with phone at the gate, tap off at Charing Cross. The Westminster loop is 7km on foot and the legs need to be fresh for it. One hour to chill and relax, back out by 15:30.
Walk north from the hotel up Northumberland Avenue, Trafalgar Square is 10 minutes. The square, the four lions, Nelson’s Column. Get your bearings here and head south down Whitehall.
Walk south down Whitehall. Horse Guards Parade is on the left, the mounted guards change at 11:00 daily but the sentries are always there. The Downing Street gates are on the right, no access but good view. Continue south to Parliament Square, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben are ahead.
Walk across Westminster Bridge, the view looking back to Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament from the middle of the bridge is the defining London photograph. The bridge is always busy but the shot is always worth it. Cross to the South Bank side briefly if you want the London Eye in the background too, then come back.
Walk back across the bridge and head into St James’s Park, the most beautiful of the Royal Parks. The bridge across the lake gives a view of Buckingham Palace at one end and Horse Guards at the other. Walk through to Buckingham Palace if energy holds. The Victoria Memorial in front of the Palace is the final stop.
Tube from St James’s Park or Victoria to Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus, 15 minutes. Dishoom Carnaby is on Kingly Street, 5 minutes from Piccadilly Circus. Arrive at 18:00 to get ahead of the evening queue.
Best option: a West End show, book in advance, start times typically 19:30. Backup: the London Eye (book the last session of the day for the best light). Low-energy: walk through Covent Garden or along the South Bank and back to the hotel. No obligation to fill the evening.
The Clermont is at Charing Cross, Leicester Square is one tube stop north on the Northern line, or a 12-minute walk. Both options get you there before the stores open at 10:00.
LEGO Store and M&M’s World are practically across the road from each other. Both open at 10:00. Start here while everyone is fresh and the stores are quiet at opening time.
The LEGO Store on Leicester Square is the largest and best-stocked in the UK. Custom brick-build sections, an extensive pick-a-brick wall where you fill a cup with individual pieces, and exclusives not available elsewhere. Staff are engaged and the store is genuinely well laid out. Opens Monday–Saturday at 10:00, Sunday at 11:00. Budget 30–45 minutes at opening before it fills up.
Open in MapsFour floors of M&M’s merchandise and chocolate, right on Leicester Square. The personalised M&M’s machine lets you print a face, name, or message on individual chocolates, the main draw for kids. The colour wall lets you mix your own selection by shade. London-themed merchandise throughout. Opens Monday–Saturday at 10:00, Sunday at 12:00. Budget 20–30 minutes.
Open in MapsWalk five minutes south to Piccadilly Circus for the photo, then turn around and head north up Regent Street to Hamleys. Total walking: about 20 minutes.
Seven floors of toys, then five minutes south to the pedestrianised street with more character than Oxford Street and Kingly Court through the archway.
Founded by William Hamley in 1760. Seven floors with staff demonstrators on every level showing products in action. The ground floor confectionery section is enormous; the LEGO department on the upper floors is a destination in itself. Loud, colourful, completely absorbing. Budget 45 minutes minimum, leaving requires actual negotiation. Opens Monday–Saturday at 10:00.
Open in MapsFive minutes south of Hamleys. Fully pedestrianised, more character than Oxford Street, better mix of independent and chain shops. Kingly Court, through an archway on the left, is a three-floor courtyard of independent food and retail shops. This is also where lunch options open up: the upper floors of Kingly Court have several good restaurants.
Open in MapsSit down and eat properly. Three good options all within five minutes of Carnaby Street. After lunch, the tube gets them back to the hotel in under 10 minutes.
All within 10 minutes of Carnaby Street. Sit down properly, an hour here, then back to the hotel. The Westminster walk starts at 15:30.
Kingly Court is the most convenient option, through the archway off Carnaby Street, three floors of independent restaurants around a covered courtyard. Good range across cuisines. No queues at lunch on a weekday. Walk in, pick a level, pick a place.
Open in MapsWalk five minutes east into Soho. Old Compton Street has good cafés and restaurants at every price point. Bao on Lexington Street is excellent if you can get a walk-in table. Barrafina on Dean Street for tapas if someone wants a sit-down lunch with character. More variety per street than almost anywhere else in London.
Open in Maps10 minutes on foot from Carnaby through Soho. Gerrard Street is the real Chinatown, not a tourist trap. Dim sum at Plum Valley or Four Seasons is excellent value and fast.
Open in MapsAfter lunch, walk to Oxford Circus or Piccadilly Circus. Inside the station, follow signs for the Bakerloo line — it is brown on every sign and map. Board the train towards Elephant & Castle (that is the southbound direction). Two stops from Oxford Circus, one stop from Piccadilly Circus, both arrive at Charing Cross, right at The Clermont door.
Back to The Clermont. One hour to chill and relax. The Westminster loop is 7km on foot and the light is better after 15:30 anyway. Back out at 15:30.
The hotel is ten minutes from Trafalgar Square on foot. The full loop, Trafalgar, Whitehall, Horse Guards, Downing Street, Big Ben, Westminster Bridge, St James’s Park, Buckingham Palace, is about 7km and takes two hours at a comfortable pace.
Horse Guards, Big Ben, Westminster Bridge, St James’s Park. The defining London landmarks back to back, all walkable from the hotel in an afternoon. Save Buckingham Palace for last, the park walk is the best part.
Two mounted sentries stand guard in the archway of Horse Guards, members of the Household Cavalry, changed daily at 11:00 (10:00 Sundays). The archway leads to Horse Guards Parade, the broad space used for Trooping the Colour. The Downing Street gates are a few minutes further south on Whitehall, you can see the door to No.10 through the gates but not approach it. Both are unmissable in under 15 minutes.
Open in MapsWalk south from Horse Guards to Parliament Square. Big Ben (the Elizabeth Tower, the bell is Big Ben, the tower is officially the Elizabeth Tower since 2012) stands at the north end of the Houses of Parliament. Cross Westminster Bridge for the definitive photograph, looking back north-west from the middle of the bridge gives the tower and the palace facade together. The view from this bridge is one of the most reproduced images in London. Cross to the South Bank briefly if you want the London Eye in the background.
Open in MapsWalk back from Westminster Bridge and enter St James’s Park from the north-east corner. The bridge across the lake is the best view in any of the Royal Parks. Buckingham Palace at the far end if energy holds.
The oldest of the eight Royal Parks and, arguably, the most beautiful. Enter from Horse Guards Road after Westminster Bridge. The path leads to a lake with resident pelicans, fed daily at 15:00. The bridge across the lake is the key spot: looking east gives Horse Guards, looking west gives Buckingham Palace. Both in one shot. Even without the Palace, this park is worth the visit, quieter than Hyde Park and more enclosed.
Open in MapsWalk through St James’s Park to the western end, Buckingham Palace appears at the far side. The Victoria Memorial in front of the Palace is ornate and worth a close look. The Palace itself is not accessible (State Rooms open July–September), but the facade, the forecourt, and the Changing of the Guard ceremony (daily at 11:00) make this a satisfying final stop. The Changing of the Guard is a morning event, you’re here for the architecture and the scale.
Open in MapsWalk 12 minutes from Buckingham Palace to Victoria station. Inside, follow the light blue Victoria line signs. Take the train northbound — the platform will say towards Walthamstow Central. Two stops to Oxford Circus, then five minutes on foot south to Dishoom.
Bombay café food done brilliantly. Dishoom is the best Indian restaurant in London for families, consistent food, extraordinary atmosphere, and nothing too fussy. The queue is part of the experience.
Bombay café · Kingly Street, Carnaby, London W1B 5QP
Dishoom is inspired by the Irani cafés of old Bombay, the all-day institutions that fed the city through the 20th century and are now disappearing. The Carnaby branch occupies a dramatic split-level space on Kingly Street, with a bar on the ground floor and the main dining room below. The atmosphere is extraordinary: dark wood, ceiling fans, old photographs, and just enough noise to feel alive without being overwhelming.
For families, Dishoom is close to ideal: the menu suits everyone, portions are generous, food is genuinely excellent, and the staff handle queues and tables with real warmth. No evening reservations for groups under 6, but the queue is well-managed, you wait in the bar with drinks. Arriving at 17:30 usually means 20–30 minutes. Flat Iron on Beak Street (3 min walk) is a good backup if the wait is too long.
The black daal (dal makhani, cooked for 24 hours) is the signature, essential. The chicken ruby is one of the best curries in London. The chilli chicken is excellent for kids. Order the roomali roti for the table. For starters, the pau bhaji is wonderful. End with the house chai, sweet, spiced, small glasses, complimentary on request. Drink: the Ruby Murray cocktail while waiting at the bar.
No obligation. Best is a West End show if booked in advance. Otherwise the London Eye or a gentle wander. The day has already been full, low energy is a valid choice.
The best use of a free evening in London. Book ahead, same-day tickets are available from the TKTS booth in Leicester Square (queue from 10:00) but availability varies. The big shows (Hamilton, The Lion King, Les Misérables, Mamma Mia) suit families. Curtain is usually 19:30; some shows have 14:30 matinees that work better with the hotel rest built into this day.
TKTS booth →Book the final evening session for the best light, the Eye is on the South Bank, 15 minutes on foot from Westminster Bridge or by tube to Waterloo. A 30-minute capsule ride with views across central London in every direction. Book online in advance to avoid queues, walk-up prices are higher. Closes around 20:30 in summer.
Open in Maps →The tube, the walking distances, and what to expect at Dishoom.