6 Great Sights to see on a London Bike Tour

Whether you’re interested in must-see famous landmarks, the open spaces of London’s gorgeous parks, or stunning Gothic and Baroque architecture and a spectacular blend of historic and new, this bike tour of London has it all! 

And if you’re going to be zooming (safely, obviously) around on your Boris bike, you’re going to want to have your wits about you to make sure you’re able to dodge the pedestrians while also being able to see the sights! So the last thing you need is to have a big ol’ backpack throwing you off balance too.

Luckily, we’ve partnered with the guys over at Luggage Hero to give you the chance to bike London, hassle-free!

Luggage Hero offers travellers convenient and secure ways to store your luggage in the most popular cities around the world - yup, including London! - which means you’re free to carry on making the most of your trip even after you’ve checked out of your hotel! :star-struck: And with 250,000 customers using their 1,100 luggage storage locations in 40 cities around the world and an average rating of 4.7/5, LuggageHero might well be the travel partner you didn’t know you needed...until now!

We love London, and whether you’re a tourist, a local or something in between, we know you’ll appreciate being able to see this city in all its glory; especially if you’re lucky enough to catch the weather as it was when we took these gorgeous (if we say so ourselves) pictures for you! ☀️

The route we’ve chosen is of course one of many cycles you could do around central London, but we think this one ticks off the key areas you’d want to make sure you don’t miss, and it follows well-established bike routes pretty much the whole way, making it okay for those who aren’t 100% confident navigating confusing roundabouts and lane changes in the city centre (you’re welcome). 🚴‍♀️

We’re starting this tour off with a couple of the most iconic shapes on the London skyline - the London Eye and Elizabeth Tower, home of Big Ben! Cycling across Westminster Bridge is a great way to appreciate the sights of London and the Thames, and keep an eye out for the guys who often play bagpipes on the bridge too, just to add a little Scottish musical feel to your journey (we’re not sure why they’re there either but it’s fun anyway).

Once you’re across the bridge just go straight on past Parliament Square on your left & then St James’ park on your right - St James’ Park is one of the Royal Parks of London, and while cycling isn’t allowed in the park, if you fancy getting off to wander around the lake you’ll probably spot the Pink Pelicans that live there!

At the top of St James’ Park you’ll come past Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial, so take a minute to breathe in the sights of the Royals’ official London residence! The route then goes up Constitution Hill, between the walls of Buckingham Palace gardens and Green Park. This tree-lined road has wide open cycle lanes perfect for getting your pedal on up the slight incline, but we know you won’t mind the work here as the leafier part of our tour gets into its stride (or ride? Gosh we’re funny). 

At the top of the hill you’ll see the impressive Wellington Arch. If you’re thinking about famous arches in London then Marble Arch may well be the one which comes to mind first (and don’t worry, you’ll see this later on as well), but in our own controversial opinion Wellington Arch is just as (if not more) impressive. Feel free to cycle around the edge, through the centre, or just do infinity-loop circles of the whole thing if that takes your fancy, but remember that you’re sharing this path with pedestrians so just keep half an eye out if you don’t want to cause an incident with an unwary foot-walker who isn’t able to coast around this monument (how boring for them).

You’ll then cross the road the other side & enter Hyde Park - the largest of the four Royal Parks. The dedicated cycle lanes through here mean you don’t have to worry about any other types of traffic, so feel free to take in the open air and wide spaces around you as you glide through one of the greatest city parks in the world (fact). 

If you follow the path that goes slightly right just after entering the park and then the tarmac road that curves left, you’ll eventually come across The Serpentine lake. A popular spot for rowing or pedal boats, and grabbing an ice cream on the shore, this is a really gorgeous part of the cycle which we’re big fans of - you can almost forget you’re in the middle of a bustling metropolis!

Once you’re past The Serpentine you can join the road which crosses you and head North to the far side of the park; following this East along North Carriage Drive will soon see you cycling past Marble Arch (as promised) and then along world-famous shopping hub Oxford Street. If you can avoid the temptation to stop and park your bike for a bit of a shopping spree, you’ll then be able to loop right past Oxford Circus station and onto Regent Street, a distinctive curved row of gorgeous buildings hosting even more fashion, dining, wellness and lifestyle brands.

At the bottom of Regent Street you’ll then come out into the impressive Piccadilly Circus and the start of London’s West End. This open space is a convergence of multiple roads and pathways between the retail therapy of Regent Street and Piccadilly, the fashionable grunginess of Soho, the intoxicating smells and tastes of Chinatown, and the pizzaz (fun word, we know) of the West End and Leicester Square. It’s hard to know which direction to head in next, but this is London at its core.

Well, as Leicester Square isn’t bike-friendly we’d recommend heading down Haymarket, past the Theatre Royal and Her Majesty’s Theatre, and round past Trafalgar Square to take in the majestic lions and The National Gallery. Now, while it might be tempting to follow the road down towards the Thames & Cycle along the river (and this is absolutely a great way to go), we actually recommend following the Strand all the way along and on to Fleet Street, as this allows you to take in the sights of the beautiful Gothic buildings that make up the Royal Courts of Justice, and following the road even further brings you to the impressive, skyline-defining sights of St Paul’s Cathedral. 

Follow the road straight past St Paul’s and you’ll find yourself at the history-filled site of the Tower of London, and world-famous Tower Bridge (not London Bridge, as some people think it’s called - we’re looking at you Fergie). There’s definitely something spectacular about cycling right around the site of so much defining UK history, and you can really see the combination of old and new when you look back across the Tower of London and can see The Shard popping into the sky behind it - two equally-iconic buildings built during such different times.

The final leg of this tour sees you cycling right across Tower Bridge itself, and then back round onto the southern bank of the Thames so that you can look back and take in the views seen in the picture. Icons of London seen in all their glory (and a good excuse to take a well-deserved breather after all that exercise…).

If you want to make the tour a full loop we recommend following the road back towards the London Eye so you can enjoy the sights of Southbank once more, and make the most of the food stalls along the river or, if it’s a weekend, by the Southbank Centre itself, as the food market there has something that will definitely suit everyone’s taste buds (and you’ve definitely earned yourself a treat!).

We love doing this cycle ourselves, and if you don’t fancy biking it then this route is just as good on foot (although it will take a little longer of course), so you can either make the most of the time you have in the centre by seeing all the best sights in just a few hours, or fully enjoy each part of the journey by stopping to make the most of it at every stage.

If you do this cycle make sure you let us know on our Facebook or Instagram, as we’d love to hear from you, and if you’re looking for more things to do around London then make sure to book with Klook for the best prices and most convenient bookings. #KeepLooking