London – The 10 Most Overrated Sights And Attractions

We are not going to give you a pretentious lecture about touristy sights in London. On the contrary, you should visit them, they are the very reason why London is famous. The range of museums and galleries are fantastic and most of them are free. History is around every corner in London and sights like The Tower of London should definitely not be missed.

What we are going to look at are the overhyped and often overpriced attractions and sights which importantly, are NOT unique to London. They are often trading on their former glory or are part of some current homogenised trend. So let’s get started.

Madame Tussauds

No surprise with our first choice, it’s Madame Tussauds. This place has been inexplicably attracting herds of tourists for years. It’s the quintessential tourist trap, crowded, overpriced and not unique, every city around the world seems to have one. So why is it still a thing?

Soho

Soho is the heart of London’s West End and is the hub for restaurants, bars, film and theatre, so what’s wrong with that? The dreaded word ‘gentrification‘ is the issue. Soho used to be fun but sleazy but most of the small independent shops, pubs and bars have been forced out by increased rents and the area has now become family-friendly and bland. The dodgy adult cinemas and book shops have been replaced by the usual array of homogenised coffee and bubble tea shops with ridiculous names. Unfortunately, Soho could now be anywhere in the world.

Harrods And Knightsbridge

If you want to visit a busy shop to watch an oligarch’s wife spend their countries embezzled money then this is the place for you. You can do this while surrounded by a strange faux ‘Englishness’. The rest of Knightsbridge isn’t much better but if you do want a bit of high-end shopping we recommend a stroll down New Bond Street instead and then a visit to Fortnum and Mason.

Piccadilly Circus And Leicester Square

Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square are only a few hundred yards away from each other so make sure you don’t take the tube from one to the other. Visit once to say you’ve done it, do not pass go do not collect £200. After your visit, you’ll probably be glad to never go there again.

Oxford Street

Oxford Street has all the major high street shops, just like the ones you can find in any other city, so why bother? However, the whole Oxford Street shopping experience is rather unpleasant. The pavements are crowded, the road is full of buses, pickpockets roam the area and don’t even think of having a quiet sit down.

Also, dotted between the usual high street names you’ll find the tackiest of gift shops. To be honest, most of Oxford Street is like the shabby end of your local high street. You know the places, they usually have phone accessory shops and cheap bag shops (bizarrely, these shops usually like putting a ‘Z’ in their names – Phonz, Bagz, Jewelz).

Harry Potter’s Platform 9¾ – King’s Cross Station

A contrived little photo spot and gift shop. Long queues for a photo at a location that was not actually used in the films. If you choose to buy an ‘official’ picture it will cost £9.50. For real Harry Potter fans then why not visit some of the actual film locations around London. Where they disappeared into the wall for platform 9¾ is actually between platforms 4 and 5, Leadenhall Market is the location of the Leaky Cauldron in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

Borough Market

This may come as a surprise as it features in so many ‘must-see’ lists. However, we feel Borough Market has become a victim of its own success. The weekend is uncomfortably busy, we are not fans of eating standing up anyway so queuing for a £15 portion of food and then trying to eat it while being jostled is not our idea of a pleasant dining experience.

South Bank (Westminster Bridge)

Walking the South Bank is an interesting walk but this refers to the specific stretch which contains the London Eye, the London Aquarium and the London Dungeon. All of these are best avoided, you will not miss out. If you want a view of the Houses of Parliament then walk the south bank from Westminster Bridge to Lambeth Bridge, it’s much quieter.

Also, if you want a view of London, instead of taking a ride in one of the expensive, crowded pods of the London Eye head to the Sky Garden in the City of London which has better views and is also free.

Shoreditch

The once run-down inner-city area of London’s Shoreditch became hipster central and the home to the Britart community (the YBA’s) which included Damien Hurst. Street Art and food trucks abound but now it’s a very gentrified version, the art seems to be there just for the ‘Instagram’ and not for any shock or creative value.

We feel the edginess of the early 90s creative movement has been replaced by an area that could be in New York or a number of cities around the world. Also, there is only so much irony and bushy beards you can take in a day.

Any Spot Described As “Instagrammable”

When we say ‘Instagrammable’ we don’t mean the usual tourist photo spot instead, we mean the contrived bright Instagram walls or the twee flowery shops. They can often be spotted a mile away as they are usually pink or lilac and are surrounded by a flock of Instagrammers with floppy hats and sunglasses pulling identical poses.

Also, it seems to take them 20 minutes of clogging up the pavement to get the picture which will look exactly the same as the billions of pictures already posted. So, in the words of Zammo, ‘Just Say No” to Instagram walls in London (or anywhere else for that matter).

We would avoid staying in many of these areas as they are usually some of the most expensive. As we travel in from the West we tend to stay on the west side of London near Hyde Park such as the Park Grand Lancaster Gate Hotel. Walking back to the hotel through Hyde Park on a cold winter’s evening is one of our favourite London experiences (and it’s free too).

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