As a\u00a0student it\u2019s practically inevitable that at some point, you\u2019re going to be broke. Especially in London, where prices are just generally insane sometimes. But the thing I love about London is that there\u2019s still so much to see and do, even when you can\u2019t really spend anything. There are so many lists of free things to do out there, but they all seem to go over the same places, so I decided to try and find some other, less popular things that are just as good.\u00a0Everything on this list is free to do or visit, so as long as you have some money on your Oyster card, you\u2019re good to go! So keep reading for 20 things to do in\u00a0London even when you’re broke AF!<\/p>\n
Richmond Park is the largest Royal Park in London and is perfect for a sunny Sunday afternoon when you have nothing else to do. It is home to two different types of deer, as well as other wildlife, that wander around freely. It\u2019s amazing how close you can get to them, if you\u2019re lucky. Also stop at the Isabella Plantation \u2013 it\u2019s a beautiful woodland garden inside the park, and is also completely free.<\/p>\n
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An ancient woodland, located near the famous cemetery where a vampire was rumoured to haunt the place, is actually very scenic. For those interested in history, you can do a self-guided tour with this booklet<\/a>, and for those who aren\u2019t, it\u2019s always fun just to go down paths and discover where you\u2019ll end up.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Located behind Kensington Palace, it\u2019s another Royal Park, having been created by Henry VIII for hunting. There are many things to see here, including the Peter Pan statue, the Diana Memorial, the Albert Memorial, Allotment Gardens, and the Serpentine Galleries (see #10 for more on that) or you can just stop and relax, especially if it\u2019s a nice day. You can also cross the bridge to get to Hyde Park.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJgct3xg7NX\/?taken-by=jotungerbil<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Underneath the Hard Rock Caf\u00e9, there is a former bank vault filled with rock memorabilia! From Eric Clapton\u2019s guitar to Kurt Cobain\u2019s shades, and even Madonna\u2019s old bank card from the 80s! You\u2019re also free to actually touch and handle some of the items, so it\u2019s a must-do for any rock n\u2019 roll fan.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The perfect choice for choco-holics everywhere. The Chocolate Museum in Brixton has exhibitions on things like how chocolate is made, how it\u2019s changed around the world and through time, as well as Britain\u2019s history with chocolate.<\/p>\n Opening times are 2-7pm Wednesday-Friday, and 11am-6pm on Saturdays.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/zjmQc_ScWc\/?taken-at=642806435<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Want to see a dodo? Then head over to the Grant Museum, home to over 68,000 species, most of them extinct or endangered. It\u2019s the last remaining university zoological museum, and also holds events such as talks or limited time exhibitions, all of which can be found here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Opening times are 1-5pm Monday-Saturday<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/_T45yHDcxu\/?taken-by=grantmuseumucl<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Located on the London Wall, the Museum of London covers everything about the history of the city, from the Stone Age to the present, with a focus on events that defined the city, like the Great Fire of London. There\u2019s also a second museum in Canary Wharf, the Museum of London Docklands, which focuses on London as a port.<\/p>\n Both places are open 10am-6pm daily.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJgcgnFg54a\/?taken-by=jotungerbil<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Photographer\u2019s Gallery is the first in the world to be solely dedicated to photographs, and has been going for over 40 years. It displays both British and international photographers, with current exhibitions including \u201cWhat Soho Wore\u201d by Nina Mandahar, which looks at the cultural history of Soho through people\u2019s photographs.<\/p>\n Open 10am-6pm Monday-Saturday, and 11am-6pm Sundays<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJTCPv_DXne\/<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Saatchi Gallery aims to bring contemporary art to as wide an audience as possible, and part of that includes showing work by new artists, both British and international. They\u2019re currently only open for the Rolling Stones \u201cExhibitionism\u201d which does cost, but once that ends on September 4th, admission will go back to being free.<\/p>\n Open 10am-6pm Monday-Sunday<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Serpentine Galleries are made up of the Serpentine and the Serpentine Sackler Galleries \u2013 each one located on either side of the Serpentine. Both focus on contemporary art and architecture, and have included exhibitions by Damien Hirst and Marina Abaramovic. Each summer, a temporary pavilion is put up for three months, designed by an architect who hadn\u2019t designed a building in England at the time they were invited by the gallery, and is available for people to explore. Find current exhibitions here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Open 10am-6pm Tuesday-Saturday, closed Mondays<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Located just under the Southbank Centre, the skate park is also decorated top-to-bottom with brightly coloured graffiti and stickers and has been described as \u201cthe beating heart of London skateboarding\u201d. All you need is your skateboard and you\u2019re good to go. Not much of a skater? Not a problem \u2013 Southbank has a lot more to offer.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJgc0D7gKZs\/?taken-by=jotungerbil<\/p>\n <\/p>\n For example, the Saison poetry library, located on the fifth floor of the Southbank Centre, is home to over 200,000 items of poetry, including anthologies, collections, magazines and audio, with most of it hidden inside rolling stacks. You need to be a member to loan anything (all that takes is current ID and proof of address) but you don\u2019t need anything to sit and read for a bit. They also consider self-published and small press publications, so you might find someone completely new.<\/p>\n Opening hours: 11am-8pm Tuesday-Sunday, closed Mondays<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Southbank centre has many things in store, from art to performances to music. Occasionally they hold festivals, where events are repeated throughout \u2013 currently on is the \u201cFestival of Love\u201d. Find out more about upcoming free events here<\/a>!<\/p>\n Opening times vary depending on the place \u2013 found out more here<\/a>!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n London is home to most of the big British TV studios, including Sky and ITV, and they\u2019re always looking for audience members for shows like Jonathan Ross and Live at the Apollo, as well as looking for people to actually be on the show. You need to apply for a ticket through a site like SRO Audiences<\/a> or Lost in TV<\/a>, and it is more like a raffle, but if you get the chance then it\u2019s definitely worth it.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/4ou-KbiuV9\/?tagged=sroaudiences<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Love Locks can be found on bridges around the city, including Embankment Bridge and Tower Bridge, and also on a gate near Shoreditch High Street station. It\u2019s something that started in European countries \u2013 you write yours and your partner\u2019s initials on a padlock and secure it to the bridge, a way to show your love will last. Some people even get their initials engraved, or add a message, or a date, like their wedding anniversary. It\u2019s a simple gesture, but it\u2019s also really sweet.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJgc8d6gmA2\/?taken-by=jotungerbil<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n You can find buskers pretty much anywhere in London, especially in tube stations \u2013 I\u2019ve seen quite a few along the South Bank, as they actually allow people to perform there, and sometimes you can find someone who\u2019s really good. But it\u2019s not just music \u2013 I\u2019ve found some amazing dancers and artists of every kind, from chalk art to Living Statues.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BJgcnDYAfUu\/?taken-by=jotungerbil<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Found in the Barbican Centre, the Barbican Music Library has a large collection of DVDs and CDs of all genres, as well as music scores, books and magazines, listening booths, and two electric pianos (which are free to book for anywhere up to an hour a day) \u2013 if you\u2019re a bit shy about playing in front of people, you can also hire headphones once you show some ID. They also work on promoting unsigned London artists and stock their CDs free of charge, so there\u2019s even more for you to discover.<\/p>\n Opening hours are 9.30am-5.30 pm on Mondays and Wednesdays, 9.30am-7.30pm on\u00a0Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 9.30am-4pm on Saturdays.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A walking tour could be just the thing to help you discover unknown parts of the city, and can cover a range of themes from the Royals to Harry Potter, so there\u2019s probably one to your taste. While most walking tours have some charge attached to them, and others work on a \u201cpay what you want\u201d scheme, there are still plenty out there that are free. Most of them take about 2 hours to complete, and could be fun with a group of friends.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If what you see on walking tours sites doesn\u2019t interest you, or for some other reason you don\u2019t want to go on a guided tour, then why not make up one of your own? All you need is Google (and probably Google Maps) and you\u2019re ready to go! Failing that, there are some suggestions for self-guided tours lurking about on the internet.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n There are plenty of museums in London, and quite a few do a once-a-month after-hours event, usually focusing on a particular theme. It can be quite fun to wander around the museum when it\u2019s dark outside and it\u2019s perfect if you want to avoid the usual-hours crowds \u2013 although they can be pretty popular. Most of them don\u2019t charge, and you can find out about them on the museum\u2019s website.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n As a\u00a0student it\u2019s practically inevitable that at some point, you\u2019re going to be broke. Especially in London, where prices are just generally insane sometimes. But the thing I love about London is that there\u2019s still so much to see and do, even when you can\u2019t really spend anything. There are so many lists of free…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19514,"featured_media":115857,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1807,7631,1793],"tags":[8001,8003,8005,8039,8315,8318],"thb-sponsors":[],"class_list":["post-80377","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campus-life","category-london","category-uni-life","tag-kcl","tag-kcl-around-campus","tag-kcl-everything-else","tag-london","tag-london-events","tag-london-lifestyle"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n<\/h6>\n
3. Relax in Kensington Gardens<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: High Street Kensington, Queensway, Lancaster Gate, Knightsbridge<\/h2>\n
4. Marvel over rock memorabilia in The Vault.<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Hyde Park Corner<\/h2>\n
5. Learn all you need to know about chocolate in the Chocolate Museum.<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Brixton<\/h2>\n
6. Visit the Grant Museum of Zoology.<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Warren Street<\/h2>\n
7. Discover the history of the city in the Museum of London.<\/h3>\n
Nearest stations: St. Pauls, Barbican<\/h2>\n
8. Find some amazing photos at the Photographer\u2019s Gallery.<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Oxford Street<\/h2>\n
9. Discover\u00a0your new favourite artist at the Saatchi Gallery.<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Sloane Square<\/h2>\n
10. Stop at the Serpentine Galleries.<\/h3>\n
Nearest stations: High Street Kensington, Knightsbridge<\/h2>\n
11. Bring your skateboard over to the Southbank Skate Park.<\/h3>\n
Nearest stations: Waterloo, Embankment<\/h2>\n
12. Read some poetry at the Saison Poetry Library.<\/h3>\n
Nearest stations: Waterloo, Embankment<\/h2>\n
13. …Or see what else is on at the Southbank Centre!<\/h3>\n
Nearest stations: Waterloo, Embankment<\/h2>\n
14. Get tickets to watch a TV show being recorded live.<\/h3>\n
15. Add a Love Lock around London.<\/h3>\n
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16. Discover someone new by listening to a busker.<\/h3>\n
17. …Or go to the Barbican Music Library!<\/h3>\n
Nearest station: Barbican<\/h2>\n
18. Try a Walking Tour.<\/h3>\n
19. …Or design one of your own!<\/h3>\n
20. Go to an after-hours museum event.<\/h3>\n
So there it is \u2013 20 things to do in London when you’re broke AF! Hopefully you enjoy them. Have any other ideas? Share them in the comments!<\/h2>\n
Featured image source: tumblr and favim.com\/image\/3996888<\/h6>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"