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Fodor's London's 25 Best
25 MUST-SEE SIGHTS in London PLUS A FULL-COLOR FOLDOUT MAP and the best of the rest
Best classic sights • Best art galleries and museums • Best kid-friendly attractions • Best local shopping from tiny boutiques to vast shopping centers • Best side trips • Best music and theater
Everything you need to explore London.
• Top lodging and dining picks for every budget
• The classic sights -- Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Parliament
• Art and history in the Victoria & Albert, the Tate, the Natural History Museum, the Museum of London
• Venues for classical music, opera, and jazz
• What kids the London Zoo, Toy World at Harrods, and the London Eye
• The best local shopping in vibrant street markets, legendary department stores, and offbeat boutiques
• Side trips to Greenwich, Hampton Court Palace, and Windsor
Best classic sights • Best art galleries and museums • Best kid-friendly attractions • Best local shopping from tiny boutiques to vast shopping centers • Best side trips • Best music and theater
Everything you need to explore London.
• Top lodging and dining picks for every budget
• The classic sights -- Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London, Parliament
• Art and history in the Victoria & Albert, the Tate, the Natural History Museum, the Museum of London
• Venues for classical music, opera, and jazz
• What kids the London Zoo, Toy World at Harrods, and the London Eye
• The best local shopping in vibrant street markets, legendary department stores, and offbeat boutiques
• Side trips to Greenwich, Hampton Court Palace, and Windsor
- GenresTravelNonfiction
128 pages, Paperback
First published March 5, 2002
9 people want to read
About the author
Fodor's Travel Publications Inc.
1,840 books61 followersFodor's Travel Publications is a United States-based producer of English-language travel guides and online tourism information. It was founded by Hungarian Eugene Fodor in 1936.
Fodor’s was acquired by Random House in 1986 and sold to Internet Brands in 2016.
Fodor’s was acquired by Random House in 1986 and sold to Internet Brands in 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 7, 2017
My husband and I will be visiting London for the second time, in spring of 2018. On our first trip, I used the Rick Steves guide book, as it is comprehensive and his others have never let me down while traveling. Since I already have that one (the 2015 edition), I decided to use this as a companion piece. I would be able to form an opinion on the value of this book for beginner travelers. And I was surprised how much valuable information was packed away in this small, tidy book. You won’t get tips on obscure places to visit or how to vacation like a local (RS books have a compendium of advice on lesser known jewels of the city) and, unlike the RS books, you won’t often get witty descriptions and rare finds, but, when comparing to other brief city guides, this is surely a winner.
The book is color-coded and divided into sections, such as the recommended Top 25, More to See, City Tours, eateries, places to stay, places to shop, etc. There is no alphabetical index at the end, but rather several throughout related to its chapter. Each site gives “The Basics,“ i.e. address, the tube or public transport exit, cost, hours, and handicap access. I appreciate that the cost is marked as “free” or “moderate” or “expensive” rather than the exact price. That is one of my few criticisms of RS price quotes--—often it is outdated. But Fodor’s gives you a range, and stresses how expensive London can be for the tourist consumer. But, it also recommends many places that are free to visit (many of the museums). I looked at some of the London places we already visited, such as Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral. In this aspect, although the info is specific and sufficient, it was the RS guides that convinced me that I MUST visit the Tower of London and the Beefeater’s Tour, whereas Fodor’s gives zilch on the Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters) and the fascinating and engaging tour. It was one of the highlights of our trip.
If you just want to check off boxes, this would suffice as a 5 star book. It points you to 25 of the most popular and also notably can’t-miss places. And the color photos and sturdy pages are first class. I am also a street-map appreciator, and the laminated—yes, laminated street map of Central London folded neatly in a snap-shut plastic envelope at the inside back page is star-worthy by itself. Plus several maps are interwoven with the chapters. Central London, or “The City,” as I learned, is about a mile in perimeter. But, many who visit, especially for the first time, stay largely inside its boundaries. There certainly is enough history to behold and breath-taking sites just within that square mile—even Roman ruins!
The enfolded map plus the front flap of the book has the Tube system. By the way, not only is the Tube the oldest underground metro system in the world, but you must experience while in London! It puts NYC subways to shame. You won’t get stuck in a Tube tunnel or suffer from its crumbling infrastructure. It is almost poetry the way the train lines are braided, and the countdown clocks at every station and cleanliness demonstrate how well Londoners care about their public transportation. I wish this book spoke with such passion about the Tube, but it doesn’t authoritatively dedicate praise of the Underground. Use it to your advantage! And the buses, too. Taxis and even Uber are expensive.
OK, back to the guide book at large (or small and compact). Little tidbits stand out, such as The British library, which it states is home to over 150 million items, including Shakespeare’s first folio and some Beatles’ manuscripts. You can take a “Tate to Tate” boat ride; there’s a good atmosphere in the evenings at the Victoria and Albert Museum; and the Houses of Parliament tours are expensive and only during summer recess and on Saturdays (although open to the public daily at specific hours in the public gallery). Additionally, there is a “Getting Around” section that shares everything from getting in and out of London by plane, train, and automobile (or boat!); the general weather each month, tips and websites; money and credit card info; modes of communication, etc.
If you had the RS guidebooks, you’d also be given info that is pertinent to the LGBT community. This book is surely lacking in social and political edification, which you may not think is important until you get there. The Fodor’s guide will tell you where things are at, but not the nuances and underpinnings of English culture. However, there are little entries on history, which gives some context to various sites, and may pique interest or add to your quest to explore. In summation, I think this makes a portable adjunct to the RS guide books, but not a replacement. But it does an excellent job of going beyond the 25 Best that it adverts.
The book is color-coded and divided into sections, such as the recommended Top 25, More to See, City Tours, eateries, places to stay, places to shop, etc. There is no alphabetical index at the end, but rather several throughout related to its chapter. Each site gives “The Basics,“ i.e. address, the tube or public transport exit, cost, hours, and handicap access. I appreciate that the cost is marked as “free” or “moderate” or “expensive” rather than the exact price. That is one of my few criticisms of RS price quotes--—often it is outdated. But Fodor’s gives you a range, and stresses how expensive London can be for the tourist consumer. But, it also recommends many places that are free to visit (many of the museums). I looked at some of the London places we already visited, such as Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral. In this aspect, although the info is specific and sufficient, it was the RS guides that convinced me that I MUST visit the Tower of London and the Beefeater’s Tour, whereas Fodor’s gives zilch on the Yeoman Warders (Beefeaters) and the fascinating and engaging tour. It was one of the highlights of our trip.
If you just want to check off boxes, this would suffice as a 5 star book. It points you to 25 of the most popular and also notably can’t-miss places. And the color photos and sturdy pages are first class. I am also a street-map appreciator, and the laminated—yes, laminated street map of Central London folded neatly in a snap-shut plastic envelope at the inside back page is star-worthy by itself. Plus several maps are interwoven with the chapters. Central London, or “The City,” as I learned, is about a mile in perimeter. But, many who visit, especially for the first time, stay largely inside its boundaries. There certainly is enough history to behold and breath-taking sites just within that square mile—even Roman ruins!
The enfolded map plus the front flap of the book has the Tube system. By the way, not only is the Tube the oldest underground metro system in the world, but you must experience while in London! It puts NYC subways to shame. You won’t get stuck in a Tube tunnel or suffer from its crumbling infrastructure. It is almost poetry the way the train lines are braided, and the countdown clocks at every station and cleanliness demonstrate how well Londoners care about their public transportation. I wish this book spoke with such passion about the Tube, but it doesn’t authoritatively dedicate praise of the Underground. Use it to your advantage! And the buses, too. Taxis and even Uber are expensive.
OK, back to the guide book at large (or small and compact). Little tidbits stand out, such as The British library, which it states is home to over 150 million items, including Shakespeare’s first folio and some Beatles’ manuscripts. You can take a “Tate to Tate” boat ride; there’s a good atmosphere in the evenings at the Victoria and Albert Museum; and the Houses of Parliament tours are expensive and only during summer recess and on Saturdays (although open to the public daily at specific hours in the public gallery). Additionally, there is a “Getting Around” section that shares everything from getting in and out of London by plane, train, and automobile (or boat!); the general weather each month, tips and websites; money and credit card info; modes of communication, etc.
If you had the RS guidebooks, you’d also be given info that is pertinent to the LGBT community. This book is surely lacking in social and political edification, which you may not think is important until you get there. The Fodor’s guide will tell you where things are at, but not the nuances and underpinnings of English culture. However, there are little entries on history, which gives some context to various sites, and may pique interest or add to your quest to explore. In summation, I think this makes a portable adjunct to the RS guide books, but not a replacement. But it does an excellent job of going beyond the 25 Best that it adverts.
February 23, 2017
I've never looked at a travel book so I didn't know what to expect but this one was great. It contained brightly colored pictures that drew you in; this book has the Top 25 places to visit with highlights of each attraction as well as basics such as cost, website, ticket info, and which tube to take. It offered different sections for eating and sleeping locations as well. Now I want to go to London even more!
March 17, 2024
3.5 stars. This was a good 'first pass' publication to help me prepare to visit London. I appreciate that there were more pictures than any other guides I saw. I also liked that there were not endless pages listing only info about specific businesses you could patronize in any given area. Instead, this book did a really good job of describing general regions of London and what types of things you might find there and giving a non-exhaustive list of a few places they might recommend you visit/stay in each area. I certainly got more value from seeing pictures and a highlight reel of different regions of London than I would have from just getting a list of contact info for 200 businesses in a given area.
My only complaint is that when the book presented a 'tour' of each of the geographical regions of London, there wasn't a route/path line drawn on the map in the respective section that showed the route they were describing. This left the reader to hunt for the various sites mentioned. I also thought the book could have been just a few pages longer and had a few more pictures.
My only complaint is that when the book presented a 'tour' of each of the geographical regions of London, there wasn't a route/path line drawn on the map in the respective section that showed the route they were describing. This left the reader to hunt for the various sites mentioned. I also thought the book could have been just a few pages longer and had a few more pictures.
July 1, 2021
London Eye - Ferris Wheel
London Pass - 80 attractions
London Transport Museum
National Portrait Gallery
Museum of London - London 2012 Olympic Cauldron
Postal Museum - Underground Tour
Science Museum - Free
Thames River Cruise
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Borough Market - Food stalls
Icebar London
Covent Garden - Shopping and restaurants
Westfield London - Shopping
London Pass - 80 attractions
London Transport Museum
National Portrait Gallery
Museum of London - London 2012 Olympic Cauldron
Postal Museum - Underground Tour
Science Museum - Free
Thames River Cruise
Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter
Borough Market - Food stalls
Icebar London
Covent Garden - Shopping and restaurants
Westfield London - Shopping
August 30, 2016
An okay travel guide book. High-level and brief essentials on the possible sights with lots of little tidbits here and there. A good addition to travel planning, but I would not use this as my primary guide. I've decided I strongly prefer the regular orange Fodor's travel guides.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews