Hoping on to one of those red double-deckers is one of the best ways to see London. You just need a travel card and with some quick smart investment of time you can construct a perfect cut-price sight seeing tour of London.
if you are in London and your theme for the day is 'Love for Art' and objective of the day is 'minimum weight loss for your wallet' you should definitely be looking out for route 88 at the start of the day.
I chanced upon this red beast, the 88 bus, because I specifically wanted to go to Camden Town from Brixton after a relishing brunch, but little did I know that this trip would extend for almost entire day because I would constantly keep hoping on and off this bus for pleasant surprises every other stop.
Here's a suggested itinerary #88 for you. Although for me that day was more of a 'Serendipity with Public Transport' experience, I have tried to add a bit of structure to this one -
Start your day with a brunch at Brixton Village market. You will find many unpretentious and affordable restaurants to choose from with varieties from around the globe.
A short walk takes us to Stockwell where we meet our beast at bus stop M.
Couple of stops after Vauxhall is our first stop in the itinerary, The Tate Britain. With free entry, soak yourself into largest collection of British art in the world from 1500 AD to the present day. You'll find masterpieces by Gainsborough, Hogarth, Millais, Whistler, as well as outstanding modern and contemporary artists such as Francis Bacon, Lucian Freud and Damien Hirst. They also have the largest collection of works by JMW Turner in the world.
Tip: If you are doing this trip the other way around, i.e. Tate Britain being your last stop, you could opt for Tate Boat which runs between Tate Britain and Tate modern and gives you a unique opportunity to visit both the Tate's via Thames. Both Single and return tickets are available.
Three stops on, and we hit the traditional tourist circuit of London. Drop off at Westminster Abbey, a 700 year old building - the coronation church of England. Satisfy your touristy inquisitiveness there and start walking towards The Big Ben. Although your bus follows same route but prefer to walk across Parliament Square. You will walk past 10 Downing ST with a splendid view of The London Eye. Continue along Whitehall past the two mounted cavalry troopers outside Horse Guards and at the end of the street you will find yourself at Trafalgar Square. Contemplate on works of Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt or Van Gogh at perhaps one of the finest collections of the world at National Gallery. The entry here is again free.
We get back to the bus again, only to alight at the very next stop, Piccadilly Circus. You could choose out of two options or both depending on your preferences -
Slip through Leicester Square and hit the funky streets of Soho. They say that no visit to London is complete without Soho Shopping day. Or,
Start strolling towards Regent Street and loose direction until you have covered all the shopping dens of Carnaby Street and oxford Street.
All this while you will find many 88s slip past you. You will have to finally board one of them at the intersection of oxford and Regent, for your final destination.
If you are making the most of route 88 so far, its likely that you are just in time for Camden Markets - early evening. With enough of traditional English flavor, its now time to witness free flowing art. Do some street art shopping at the Camden Lock markets, some vibrant and sinful food stalls await you right after and end your day at the Hawley Arms, often frequented by Late Amy Winehouse - for a traditional English pub meal.
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