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The Casual Tourist Guide to West London

The Casual Tourist Guide to West London

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West London is known for being a leafy, posh part of the city. Walk down almost any street and you’ll see rows of stunning Victorian houses as far as the eye can see. Londoners here also appreciate having lots of beautiful green spaces to enjoy, no matter the weather... we’ll go for a walk through Kensington Gardens even when it’s raining!

Amazing high-end restaurants, cute cafes serving top-notch coffee and treats, and unique shops worth a browse, many of which you’ll see recommended in this guide, also characterize West London. As usual, I’ve only included the ones I LOVE to recommend to friends and family, and I think you’ll enjoy them too.

This guide covers Notting Hill, Kensington and Paddington, but you might notice that the majority of the recommendations are around the area you’ll know so well due to a certain Julia Roberts film. That’s because of all of West London, in my opinion, it has the best vibe and the best spots.

*Note that The Casual Tourist Guide to West London has some overlap with Day 4 of our itineraries.

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👀 So... you're the type of tourist who...

... doesn't want to cram fifty sights and activities into a day.
... doesn't need to see every tourist site.
... doesn't want to stand in a line for an hour just to sit in a pod with thirty other people for thirty minutes.

Or maybe you even live in London and you just want to experience as much of it as possible in the evenings and on the weekends.

You're my favourite type of tourist... a casual tourist.

We've made these guides for YOU.

Get to know the underbelly of London with a detailed list of a Londoner's best recommendations for what to do, see, eat and drink.

What's in the Casual Tourist Guides?

A curated list of:

❤️ Sights and Points of Interest that one of those vanilla guidebooks would never tell you about

❤️ Fun activities and tours to help you experience the alternative side of the area

❤️ Local cafes to park up and enjoy a coffee in

❤️ Pubs to visit that will be filled with Londoners enjoying a pint and a roast

❤️ Unique markets and can't-miss restaurants

❤️ Sexy bars for sipping elaborate cocktails in

❤️ Shops selling interesting and eco-friendly treats to take home

Each guide has:

❤️ Approximately 50 recommendations

❤️ Insider tips, opening hours, price range, Google Maps link, dietary restriction info and wheelchair accessibility status

❤️ Printable checklist of all of the recommendations in the guide. Keep track of which ones you've experienced so far.

❤️ Digital Map to help you visualise where each recommendation is in relation to the others, and to help you navigate when you're on the ground in London. We also show you where to find public toilets in the area.

 *You'll receive this guide immediately upon purchase via digital download.

"So much fantastic information!!"

"I typically do all of the planning myself when travelling, but I am so happy that I bought these casual tourist guides. Without a doubt, I would have missed out on most of these suggestions and the digital map is an invaluable tool."

Charlene, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A breakdown of The Casual Tourist Guide to West London...

  • Sights and Points of Interest

  • Activities and Tours

  • Cafes and Sweet Treats

  • Shopping

  • Street Food and Restaurants

  • Pubs and Bars

  • Dietary Requirements

    We include icons indicating restaurants that are veggie-friendly, vegan-friendly and GF friendly.

  • Wheelchair Accessibility Info

    Our guides have indicators telling you whether or not each recommendation is wheelchair accessible and there are plenty of options for those who need to avoid stairs.

  • Printable Checklist & Digital Map

    Use the checklist to keep track of the places you don't want to miss. Print or save it to your phone. The Digital Map has all of the recommendations pinned, plus public toilets.

About the Digital Map:

❤️ Integrated with Google Maps

The Digital Map integrates with Google Maps and you can easily get walking, taxi and public transport directions to any of our recommendations.

❤️ All the recommendation pinned

The map includes all recommendations mentioned in the guide, so you can easily visualise where each recommendation is in relation to the others, and to help you navigate when you're on the ground in London

❤️ Public Toilets

I’ve even added pins to show you where public toilets are, so you’ll never be stuck without one (I’m a self-proclaimed professional toilet finder!)

"Perfect resource when traveling to London"

"This is wonderful for anyone traveling to the UK. It’s essentially your local friend who can show you the best things to do and the best ways to get around the city."

Jason, ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Get to know the areas featured...

Kensington and South Kensington

Kensington and South Kensington are beautiful and upscale areas in London known for their stunning Victorian architecture, world-renowned museums and universities, and high-end shopping. They’re home to several major museums (as you’ll see) and the Royal Albert Hall. Thanks to Kensington Gardens and Kensington Palace, there’s quite a royal vibe around here. The food scene isn’t quite up to stack though, it can be pricey and boring, but don’t worry, I'll steer you in the right direction.

Little Venice

Little Venice is a picturesque and charming area near Paddington and not far from Notting Hill. It’s known for its tranquil canals, colourful narrowboats, and charming waterside cafes and pubs. If you’re looking for a peaceful escape from the hustle and bustle of the city, Little Venice is the perfect spot. Here you can take a stroll along the canal, enjoy a meal or a drink with a view of the water, or even take a boat ride.

Paddington

Paddington is home to beautiful Georgian architecture and is a popular spot because of its handy transport links which can get you all around the rest of London. Here you’ll find some spots we love including the Paddington Bear statue and a cute boat cafe in the buzzy Paddington Basin. I love how Paddington is connected to popular areas like Notting Hill and Camden via canal (and I’ll tell you how you can drive your own boat along it!).

Have a look at the other Casual Tourist Guides

The Casual Tourist Guides are for anyone wanting to explore London with a Londoner's recommendation. You won't find things like the Tower of London and Westminster Abbey in here, but rather, local cafes, interesting activities and tours, independent restaurants, sexy cocktail bars, and more.
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Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to receive my guides?

You'll receive these guides immediately upon purchase via digital download.

How do I save the guides to my phone/laptop?

To most easily access your Love and London guides and to make sure you can always reference them into the future, you’ll need to download your files to one or more of your devices. It’s fairly straightforward but if you are not sure how to do that then follow these steps.

Get in touch with us if you need us to reset your download attempts as each guide can be downloaded five times by default.

How are these guides different from your itineraries?

The itineraries include lots of the major attractions and also give you a designated route to follow which include both attractions and more local bits.

By contrast, The Casual Tourist Guides are strictly hidden gems. Underrated museums, gin-making experiences, locally-loved restaurants, interesting historic elements that people often miss, cool underground cocktail bars. Think super cool and local, to the point that we have even had lots of Londoners buy these guides to help them better explore their own city.

The Digital Maps for the Casual Tourist Guides don’t include a plan for how to hit up everything in the guide like the itineraries have, they are just general pins to show you where the recommendations are in relation to each other and to easily get transport directions to them.

I have one of your itineraries, are the Casual Tourist Guides similar?

Yes, there is some overlap depending on the itinerary.

For the 3-Day Itinerary, The Casual Tourist Guide to Central and East London overlap with days 2 and 3, and South London slightly overlaps with day 1. The best additions to this itinerary are West London and North London, both of which cover different areas.

For the 4-Day Itinerary, The Casual Tourist Guide to Central, East, and West London overlaps with days 2, 3, and 4. South London slightly overlaps with day 1. The best additions to this itinerary are North London, which covers different areas, and South London, if you want to explore Peckham and Brixton. However, note that the Bermondsey area will overlap.

For the 5-Day Itinerary, there is almost complete overlap. If you want to explore Peckham and Brixton, you can add the Casual Tourist Guide to South London. However, note that Bermondsey will feature in both guides.

For the 6-Day Itinerary, all of the Casual Tourist Guides overlap with it.

Which phones does the Digital Map work on?

It’s integrated with the Google Maps app, so it’s available for all phones that use iOS or Android operating systems.

Here's how to access and use our digital maps.

Do I need data on my phone to be able to use the Digital Map on the go in London?

It absolutely works best when you have it. It will also allow you to get walking directions when needed, or transport directions when you’re planning to head back to your hotel once the day is done. Here’s an article where we explain how to use your phone in the UK.

Is this suitable for families with children?

The cool thing about London is that many things during the daytime, work for families with kids, if your children are fairly well-behaved. That being said, we’ve not specifically made these guides with kids under 16 in mind.

I have really specific things I want to see, will this work for me?

With the guides we simply provide you with a list of the best local places to explore, eat, drink etc. You then decide which options sounds the best to you!

I have a physical disability. Will I be able to do everything in the guides?

Our guides have indicators telling you whether or not each recommendation is wheelchair accessible and there are plenty of options for those who need to avoid stairs. But if you have any questions or worries please don't hesitate to reach out to us at info@loveandlondon.com.

I have a dietary requirement, do your food suggestions suit that?

London’s food spots are generally pretty good at accommodating this, and we’ve included a variety of options that should suit just about everyone. But even still in the guides we include icons indicating restaurants that are veggie-friendly, vegan-friendly and GF friendly.

That being said, you should always check the menu online yourself, and you can also phone up a restaurant before you go to ask what they can do for any requirements, as they might have a hidden menu you can choose from, or they can create something special for you if you give enough notice.

Jess is vegetarian, so if you are too, you’ll find plenty of food options in the itinerary. She also eats vegan very often and has close friends who need gluten-free so she knows how it goes :)

How far in advance should I buy this for my trip?

Buy it at least a week in advance, if you can. We recommend reading over the guide before you arrive to London, so you can familiarise yourself with our recommendations, and some attractions and restaurants require advance booking.

I’m on a serious budget. Will this work for me?

Our recommendations cover all price ranges and we give lots of free options too.

How are these guides different from what’s online?

Well, we’ve never seen any guides that include such a comprehensive digital map for your phone, which allows you to get real-time transportation and walking directions. Also, many “guides” you can find online are created by people who’ve only visited London, not LIVED here. They aren’t able to provide alternative food options for diet restrictions, where to find public toilets, or more crucially, tips that only someone who has lived here for years would know.

Also, why spend hours gathering info of things you think might be interesting to do, and trying to map everything out, when we’ve already done that for you?

Why do you charge money for this?

There are a couple of reasons. It took weeks to create the guides, starting with multiple days of on-the-ground testing, to writing the 50 or so recommendations for each guide and creating the map. If we didn’t charge for the guides, we simply couldn’t provide it to our community as it takes up so much time to create. Plus, as we're a business, there is a ton of overhead costs that we cover with the sale of our guides.

Jess also spends anywhere from £25-200 per week trying out new things around London, some of which is included in the guide, some of which is not worthy. Of course, all of those meals, drinks, and tickets cost a lot of money. But by Jess testing them out and only telling you about the best, you won’t have to waste your time and money too, because only the best of the best goes in our guides.

If we save you from one not-so-good moderately-priced meal, you’ve already paid yourself back for your purchase, never mind the hours and hours of research and planning you won’t have to do yourself.

Customer Reviews

Based on 70 reviews
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C
Canadian adventurers
Excellent resource

We find this site a great resource for planning our trip to London. We especially like the knowledge and suggestions for visiting the non-touristy areas.

S
Saeko

Finally, I'm visiting London in May , As I have no interest in touristy spots, I have got this Guide which is super❗I haven't read all of them yet as I will have plenty of time during my long flight from Tokyo to London. Looking forward to reading the Guide on my way to London as well as visiting Jess ' s recommendation spots as much as possible❣️

I will write additional reviews after my trip.

G
Geo
Helpful

I discovered Jess’ videos and guides a week before my trip to London. I sought info getting around the city and finding interesting sites off the beaten trail. Her offerings were informative, useful, professional and upbeat.
One passing tip that I followed: instead of paying 40+ GBP to ride a double decker tour bus, I jumped on a cross city bus from Parliament for less than 2 GBP. Worked for me!
Jess’ vidis and guides for sale are definitely worth checking out.

R
R Leung
A much needed resource

You can tell Jess has put in a lot of effort writing a travel guide which only a true local who treats her readera professionally would be able to write. I look forward to visiting many of the attractions following Jess' suggestions. Thanks so much!

S
Shawn G.
Jess is the best!

Jess provides indispensable insider info! Love her insights!