London 3-day Itinerary
United Kingdom (UK)
Where to go and what to see in London to get the most from your trip – a 3-day itinerary from destination expert and travel writer Annabelle Thorpe.
Bucket list experience:
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This 17th-century hilltop observatory, designed by Sir Christopher Wren at the behest of Charles II, is where astronomers and scientists pinned down the concept of time and space. Stand on the Meridian Line – Longitude zero degrees – from where Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is calculated. The astronomy galleries are a must-see, as are the daily planetarium shows, which include ‘Sky Tonight Live’, led by a Royal Observatory astronomer.
The observatory is home to London’s only planetarium and the UK’s largest refracting telescope. It also hosts prestigious temporary exhibitions like Astronomy Photographer of the Year. Allow two hours to see the whole thing.
As part of the Greenwich World Heritage Site, it is flanked by the National Maritime Museum, Cutty Sark and Queen’s House Museum, with bundled tickets available for all.
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The Royal Observatory is accessible via the Cutty Sark station on the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) line – or use the Thames Clipper river bus (connecting with Embankment, London Eye, Bankside, London Bridge, Tower and Masthouse).
The Observatory is open all year round, seven days a week. Avoid July and August if possible, when the observatory can get very busy with tour groups.
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