Best Places to Visit in London
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The best places to visit in London are Hampstead Bathing Pond, The Point, Platform 9¾ at King's Cross, Grove Upper Water Mill, Little Venice and Folly House Beach.
London hides quiet corners among its landmarks, from wild swimming ponds to a canalside village and a Thames beach that appears only at low tide. On Hampstead Heath, the freshwater bathing ponds draw cold-water swimmers all year, and out at Greenwich the hilltop green of the Point looks over the towers of the city.
Water threads the west of the city at Little Venice, where the canals meet in a boat-lined basin, and the little Wandle rises by the restored Upper Mill at Carshalton in the south. For something different there is Platform 9¾ at King's Cross, the photo spot and shop drawn from the Harry Potter stories, and the small Thames foreshore of Folly House Beach on the Isle of Dogs, uncovered as the tide falls.
Some are green retreats away from the crowds, others quirky city finds. Here are six places to visit across London.
Hampstead Bathing Pond
Photo: Richard Rogerson via Geograph.org.uk
The bathing ponds on Hampstead Heath are natural freshwater ponds set among the trees and grassland of the heath in north London. There are three for swimming, the Men's Pond and the Ladies' Pond on the Highgate side and a Mixed Pond nearer Hampstead, all with lifeguards.
The Men's and Ladies' ponds open all year, drawing cold-water swimmers even in winter, while the Mixed Pond opens in the warmer months. The water is chilly and silty, alive with ducks and other wildlife.
The Point
Photo: Rod Allday via Geograph.org.uk
The Point is a small hilltop green space and viewpoint on the edge of Greenwich in south-east London, near the boundary with Blackheath, one of the highest natural lookouts in the area. From the grassy top the view opens out over the city, taking in the towers of Canary Wharf, the skyline of the City and, on a clear day, the dome of St Paul's.
It is a quiet, little-known spot away from the busier riverside, a favourite with local people and photographers, especially at sunset and after dark when the city lights come on.
Platform 9¾ at King's Cross
Photo: Christopher Hilton via Geograph.org.uk
Platform 9¾ at King’s Cross A luggage trolley disappears halfway into a brick wall, and staff will drape you in a house scarf, hand you a wand, and flick the scarf mid-air for the shot as you seem to push through. This is the Harry Potter photo spot inside King's Cross station in London, named for the barrier the young wizards run at to catch the school train.
A themed shop sits right alongside, stocked with wands, robes and other wizarding goods. It all stands outside the ticket barriers, so no train ticket is required, and snapping your own photo costs nothing.
Grove Upper Water Mill
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
The Upper Mill stands in Grove Park at Carshalton, in the London Borough of Sutton, at the springs where the River Wandle rises by Carshalton Ponds. A corn mill worked on this spot from the time of Domesday, rebuilt in the late eighteenth century and later driven by a water turbine before it stopped in the 1920s.
The small mill building was restored in 2004 and opens to the public occasionally, in a public park of ponds, lawns and mature trees. It should not be confused with the separate Grove Mill, a snuff and paper mill nearby that has been demolished.
Little Venice
Photo: Robin Sones via Geograph.org.uk
Little Venice is a canalside district in north-west London, on the border of Paddington and Maida Vale, where the Paddington arm of the Grand Union Canal meets the Regent's Canal. At its heart is a roughly triangular basin known as Browning's Pool, with a small island in the middle and moored narrowboats and houseboats lining the water.
White stucco terraces of Regency date stand along Blomfield Road and Maida Avenue. Towpaths run along the water, waterbus trips head off toward Regent's Park, Camden and the zoo, and there are canalside cafes and small venues including a puppet theatre barge.
Folly House Beach
Photo: David Anstiss via Geograph.org.uk
Folly House Beach is a small stretch of Thames foreshore on the east side of the Isle of Dogs in east London, at Cubitt Town near Folly Wall, that appears only as the tide falls. At low water a compact strip of sand, shingle and river-worn debris is uncovered below the river wall, used for mudlarking and for river views across to the Greenwich Peninsula and the O2.
At high tide it is under water. The name comes from the old Folly House, an eighteenth-century riverside building and later a tavern, remembered now in the street name Folly Wall.
FAQs
Where can you swim outdoors in London?
The bathing ponds on Hampstead Heath are natural freshwater ponds with lifeguards: the Men's and Ladies' ponds on the Highgate side open all year, drawing cold-water swimmers even in winter, while the Mixed Pond opens in the warmer months. The water is chilly and silty, alive with ducks and wildlife.
Do you need a ticket for Platform 9¾?
No. Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, the Harry Potter photo spot at King's Cross with a trolley set half into a brick wall, sits outside the ticket barriers, so no train ticket is needed and taking your own photo is free. Staff at the neighbouring shop offer a scarf-and-wand photo, which is charged.
Which spots in London are best for a quiet walk?
Little Venice, where the canals meet in a boat-lined basin in the north-west, has towpaths, waterbus trips and canalside cafes, and the hilltop Point at Greenwich is a quiet green lookout over the city, especially at sunset. Grove Park at Carshalton, around the Upper Mill, has ponds, lawns and mature trees.
Conclusion
London keeps quiet corners among its landmarks. On Hampstead Heath, the freshwater bathing ponds draw cold-water swimmers all year, and the hilltop Point at Greenwich looks out over the city's towers.
Water threads the west at Little Venice, where the canals meet in a boat-lined basin, and the Wandle rises by the restored Upper Mill at Carshalton. For something different there is Platform 9¾ at King's Cross, the photo spot from the Harry Potter stories, and the small Thames foreshore of Folly House Beach on the Isle of Dogs, uncovered as the tide falls.
From swimming pond to hidden beach, these are the places to seek out across London.
