Places where children have room to move and something to look at, all free. Booking rules matter more with kids in tow, so check each card.
Always free in London18
Open to everyone, every day they are open. No ticket to buy.
British Museum
Bloomsbury
Always freeBooking recommendedIndoorGood with kids
Two million years of human history under one glass roof: the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon sculptures, the Sutton Hoo helmet and the Egyptian mummies. The permanent collection is free.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 5pm, Fridays until 8.30pm
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not compulsory, but the museum advises all visitors to book a free timed slot online. Booked visitors get priority entry when it is busy.
Time needed
2 to 3 hours
How to get there
Tube to Tottenham Court Road (Central, Northern, Elizabeth line) or Holborn (Central, Piccadilly), then 5 to 8 minutes on foot
Worth it? Yes.Worth it, but not at midday on a Saturday. Go on a Friday after 5pm, or use the quieter Montague Place entrance at the back.
Always freeBooking recommendedIndoorGood with kids
European painting from the 1200s to about 1900 on the north side of Trafalgar Square. Van Eyck's Arnolfini Portrait, Van Gogh's Sunflowers and Turner's Fighting Temeraire all hang here for free.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 6pm, Fridays until 9pm · closed 24 to 26 December and 1 January
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Walk-up entry is allowed. A free booked ticket gives fast-track entry, useful at weekends.
Time needed
1.5 to 2.5 hours
How to get there
Tube to Charing Cross (Bakerloo, Northern), 2 minutes on foot. Leicester Square is 5 minutes away.
Worth it? Yes.The best free hour in central London if you choose three rooms and ignore the rest. Friday evening is when you can actually stand in front of the Sunflowers.
Modern and contemporary art in a former power station on the Thames. The collection displays and the Turbine Hall installation are free, the big-name exhibitions are not.
Free when
Always · Sunday to Thursday 10am to 6pm, Friday and Saturday 10am to 9pm · last entry 30 minutes before closing
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed for the collection
Time needed
1.5 to 2 hours
How to get there
Tube to Southwark (Jubilee) or Blackfriars (District, Circle), about 10 minutes on foot. Or walk over the Millennium Bridge from St Paul's.
Worth it? Yes.Go for the building and the Turbine Hall even if modern art leaves you cold. Enter down the ramp on the west side, not through the riverside door, for the full effect.
The national museum of art and design: fashion, jewellery, furniture, sculpture and two halls of full-size plaster casts including Trajan's Column cut in half to fit. Admission is free.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 5.45pm, Fridays until 10pm (some galleries close after 5.45pm)
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed. The museum states you do not need to book.
Time needed
2 hours
How to get there
Tube to South Kensington (District, Circle, Piccadilly), then the signed pedestrian tunnel straight to the museum
Worth it? Yes.The least stressful of the three South Kensington museums and the only one with no ticket to think about. Start with the Cast Courts and the jewellery gallery, and sit in the courtyard garden if it is dry.
Always freeBooking recommendedIndoorGood with kids
Dinosaurs, a blue whale skeleton hanging over the main hall and a Victorian building that looks like a cathedral for animals. The galleries are free.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 5.50pm, last entry 5.30pm · closed 24 to 26 December
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
You can walk in, but at weekends and in school holidays you may queue. A free entry ticket booked online guarantees entry.
Time needed
2 to 3 hours
How to get there
Tube to South Kensington (District, Circle, Piccadilly), 5 minutes through the pedestrian tunnel
Worth it? Yes.Essential with children, crowded with everyone else's. Book the free ticket, arrive at 10am and go to the dinosaurs first, before the queue inside the gallery builds.
The First and Second World War galleries and the Holocaust Galleries, with a Spitfire and a V2 rocket hanging in the atrium. Free, unlike its sister sites HMS Belfast and the Churchill War Rooms.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 6pm · closed 24 to 26 December
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed. The museum says entry is free and you do not need to book.
Time needed
2 to 3 hours
How to get there
Tube to Lambeth North (Bakerloo), 5 minutes on foot, or Elephant & Castle (Bakerloo, Northern), 10 minutes
Worth it? Yes.The most affecting free museum in the city and well off the usual tourist loop. The Holocaust Galleries are heavy going and the museum advises against them for children under 14.
Always freeBooking recommendedIndoorGood with kids
Two free buildings side by side in Greenwich: the maritime museum with Nelson's Trafalgar coat, and the Queen's House with its spiral Tulip Stairs and the Armada Portrait of Elizabeth I. The Cutty Sark and Royal Observatory next door are paid.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 5pm, last entry 4.15pm
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Free entry, booking recommended on the Royal Museums Greenwich website. Walk-ins are usually fine outside school holidays.
Time needed
2 hours for both
How to get there
DLR to Cutty Sark, 5 minutes on foot. Or train from London Bridge to Greenwich, 10 minutes on foot.
Worth it? Yes.Do the Queen's House first, it takes 30 minutes and most people walk past it. Then the museum, then up the hill in the park for the view.
A glazed garden across the top three floors of the Walkie Talkie at 20 Fenchurch Street, with an open-air terrace facing the Shard and the river. Public access tickets are free.
Free when
Always, with a free ticket · Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm, weekends and bank holidays 11am to 9pm · each ticket is valid for one hour
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Book on the Sky Garden website. Free tickets are released every Monday morning (not bank holidays) for a whole week, three weeks ahead. A few walk-in slots exist at staff discretion. Arrive more than 15 minutes late and you are unlikely to get in.
Time needed
1 hour
How to get there
Tube to Monument (District, Circle), 3 minutes on foot. Bank is 7 minutes away. Entrance on Philpot Lane.
Worth it? Yes.The best free view in London, and the hardest ticket. Book on the Monday release and choose a weekend slot near sunset. Paid early-morning and evening tickets are also sold, so check you are on the free option.
The viewing gallery on level 58 of 22 Bishopsgate, higher than Sky Garden and fully indoors, with floor-to-ceiling glass and a 300-degree view. It is free.
Free when
Always, with a free ticket · Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm, Saturday 10am to 5pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Book a free timed ticket on horizon22.co.uk. Tickets are released every Monday at 10am for the following 14 days. Same-day walk-ins are possible through a QR code at the entrance, subject to capacity.
Time needed
45 minutes
How to get there
Tube to Liverpool Street (Central, Elizabeth, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan), 6 minutes on foot. Bank is 7 minutes away.
Worth it? Yes.Higher and easier to book than Sky Garden, but there is no terrace and reflections on the glass spoil photos. Good backup if you missed the Sky Garden release.
An open-air roof garden on the 15th floor of 120 Fenchurch Street. Lower than the towers around it, which is the point: you look at the Walkie Talkie, the Gherkin and Tower Bridge rather than down on them.
Free when
Always · 1 October to 31 March: Monday to Friday 10am to 6.30pm, weekends 10am to 5pm · 1 April to 30 September: Monday to Friday 10am to 9pm, weekends 10am to 5pm · closed on bank holidays
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
No ticket. Walk up, pass a bag check and take the lift. Expect a short queue at lunchtime on sunny weekdays.
Time needed
30 minutes
How to get there
Tube to Monument (District, Circle) or Aldgate (Circle, Metropolitan), 5 minutes on foot. Entrance in Fen Court, off Fenchurch Street.
Worth it? Yes.The one City rooftop you can do on impulse. It is fully outdoors, so it closes in high wind and is no fun in rain.
Crossing at road level is free at any hour, and so is watching the roadway split and rise for a tall ship. The bridge lifts around 800 times a year and the schedule is published in advance.
Free when
Always · the pavements are open day and night · lift dates and times are listed on the Tower Bridge website
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
None. Only the high-level walkways with the glass floor and the engine rooms need a paid ticket.
Time needed
30 minutes
How to get there
Tube to Tower Hill (District, Circle), 7 minutes on foot. From the south, London Bridge station is 12 minutes away along the river.
Worth it? Yes.Check the lift times before you go and plan around one, it takes about 10 minutes and changes the visit. The best place to watch is the riverside path by City Hall on the south bank.
The big one: the Serpentine lake, a rose garden, Speakers' Corner on Sunday mornings and enough grass to forget Oxford Street is at the top edge.
Free when
Always · pedestrian gates open 5am to midnight, every day
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
1 to 2 hours
How to get there
Tube to Hyde Park Corner (Piccadilly) for the south-east corner, Marble Arch (Central) for Speakers' Corner, or Lancaster Gate (Central) for the north side
Worth it? Yes.Walk it rather than sit in it: Hyde Park Corner to the Serpentine bridge and on into Kensington Gardens takes 40 minutes. The Diana Memorial Fountain was closed for a water fault in 2026, so check before promising it to children.
A formal park with a rose garden of some 8,000 roses in Queen Mary's Gardens, and across the road a bare hill with the skyline laid out from the BT Tower to Canary Wharf.
Free when
Always · Regent's Park pedestrian gates open at 5am and close around dusk (7pm in early October) · Primrose Hill stays open 24 hours on weekdays and closes at 10pm on weekend nights from 3 April to 8 November
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
1.5 hours
How to get there
Tube to Regent's Park (Bakerloo) or Baker Street for the gardens. For Primrose Hill, Chalk Farm (Northern), 10 minutes on foot.
Worth it? Yes.Primrose Hill at sunset is the free skyline view that needs no ticket and no lift. Roses peak in June, and in October the park is about trees and space instead.
A steep royal park with the classic view from beside the General Wolfe statue: the Queen's House and Old Royal Naval College below, the river, then the towers of Canary Wharf.
Free when
Always · pedestrian gates open 6am, closing time follows the season (7pm in early October)
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed. The Royal Observatory at the top, including the Prime Meridian courtyard, is a paid attraction.
Time needed
1 hour
How to get there
DLR to Cutty Sark, 10 minutes on foot to the park gate, then a 10 minute climb. Train from London Bridge to Greenwich or Maze Hill also works.
Worth it? Yes.Pair it with the free Maritime Museum and Queen's House at the foot of the hill for a full half day. One Tree Hill, a few minutes east of the main viewpoint, has the same view and far fewer people.
Stephenson's Rocket, the Apollo 10 command module and floors of engines, planes and medical history. Entry is free, but this is the one big museum that insists on a ticket.
Free when
Always · daily 10am to 6pm, last entry 5.15pm · closed 24 to 26 December
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Required. Pre-book a free timed ticket on the museum website before you go.
Time needed
2 hours
How to get there
Tube to South Kensington (District, Circle, Piccadilly), 5 minutes through the pedestrian tunnel
Worth it? Depends.Good with children aged 6 to 14, less so for adults on a short trip. Several of the most hands-on areas, such as Wonderlab, are paid extras, so set expectations before you go in.
A free viewing room on the 50th floor of 8 Bishopsgate, next door to Horizon 22. Smaller, plainer and quieter, and open late two nights a week.
Free when
Always, with a free ticket · Monday and Friday 12pm to 9pm, Tuesday to Thursday 10.30am to 5.30pm, Saturday 11am to 6pm, Sunday and bank holidays 10am to 5pm
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Book a free ticket through the 8 Bishopsgate website.
Time needed
30 minutes
How to get there
Tube to Bank (Central, Northern, DLR) or Liverpool Street, 5 to 6 minutes on foot. Entrance on Bishopsgate at the corner of Leadenhall Street.
Worth it? Depends.Skip it if you already have Sky Garden or Horizon 22. Its one real advantage is Monday and Friday evenings, when the other free decks have closed and the City is lit up.
The King's Guard hands over on the Palace forecourt with a military band, bearskins and a lot of shouting. You watch from the pavement and it costs nothing.
Free when
Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 11am in autumn 2026 · the Household Division publishes confirmed dates month by month, and the ceremony can be cancelled in heavy rain or for state events
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
None. Be in place by 10.15am for a view.
Time needed
45 minutes, plus the wait
How to get there
Tube to Green Park (Jubilee, Piccadilly, Victoria) or St James's Park (District, Circle), each about 8 minutes on foot
Worth it? Depends.Famous, crowded and mostly seen through other people's phones if you stand at the railings. Stand on the steps of the Victoria Memorial instead, or wait on the Mall to see the band march past at close range.
London's old food market under the railway arches by Southwark Cathedral: cheese, oysters, bread, and a great many people filming a strawberry pot. Walking through is free.
Free when
Always · Tuesday to Friday 10am to 5pm, Saturday 9am to 5pm, Sunday 10am to 4pm · closed Mondays
Free for whom
Everyone
Reservation
Not needed
Time needed
45 minutes
How to get there
Tube to London Bridge (Jubilee, Northern), 2 minutes on foot from the Borough High Street exit
Worth it? Depends.Free to look, hard to leave without spending. Saturday lunchtime is shoulder to shoulder, so go on a Tuesday or Wednesday morning when traders have time to hand out tasters.
If you spend on one thing in London, make it this.
Tower of London
Nothing free in London stands in for the Crown Jewels, the White Tower and a Yeoman Warder telling you who lost their head where. You can look at the walls from Tower Hill for nothing, but the point is inside. Go at opening time and head for the Jewel House first.
Everything above is free. This is the only paid pick on the page, chosen because no free option replaces it.
