A row of red telephone boxes covered in snow

Visiting London in January

By Ian Packham

January is London’s quietest month when it comes to visitor numbers, meaning there are usually some great flight and hotel deals to be had. What many people don’t realize is that London in January remains a hive of activity. Not only is it still possible to experience the Christmas festivities, but also to grab a bargain in the January sales and celebrate Spring Festival with the capital’s Chinese community.

Weather in London in January

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London in January is typified by short days and cloudy skies. Whilst milder than most other capitals in northern Europe, temperatures struggle to hit double figures, with top daytime temperatures reaching eight or nine degrees Celsius.

Rain can be expected at almost any time, although significant rainfall is limited to about a third of the month. Snow in the heart of the capital is rare, and deep snow falls even rarer. If weather forecasts hint at the possibility of a sprinkling of snow, the best places to enjoy the spectacle are attractions on the city’s outskirts such as Richmond Park or the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.

When it comes to staying warm, be sure to pack plenty of layers, a trustworthy pair of waterproof boots and some thick socks. Then you’ll be ready for anything the unruly British weather might throw at you whilst exploring all that London vaunts, from New Year partying to renowned museums.

New Year in London

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London’s New Year’s Eve celebrations are beamed live across the globe. Even so, there’s nothing quite like being there in person. The countdown begins long before the midnight fireworks light up the skies above the London Eye, with restaurants booking up way in advance.

The fireworks are followed by a New Year's Day Parade. One of London’s newest traditions – having first taken place in the late 1980s – the spectacle starts at noon in upmarket Piccadilly before passing through Trafalgar Square on route to the Houses of Parliament. The 10,000 participants form an eclectic mix of dancers, musicians and performers from every continent, alongside the homegrown delights of London’s Pearly Kings and Queens.

But that’s certainly not the end of the seasonal festivities. Christmas in London doesn’t conclude until Twelfth Night (Epiphany) on January 6. Only then are the Christmas lights switched off, window displays removed, and Christmas trees taken down.

The day is marked on the banks of the Thames at Shakespeare’s Globe by the appearance of the Holly Man. A character from pre-Christian folklore akin to the Green Giant, he symbolizes new life and is welcomed by suitably-clad dignitaries before wassailing (blessing) the river and the city.

Grab a bargain

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As shopping destinations go, London in January has got to be up there with the best of them. By the start of the month the biggest sales of the year are already in full swing. Few stores want to miss out on the action, with Harrods and Selfridges among the well-known names slashing prices. Although the crowds tend to form at the start of this period, many of the best discounts are to be had when the sales are wrapping up in the middle of the month.

They are swiftly followed by more shopping opportunities at the London Art Fair. Collating works from over 100 of London’s independent galleries, the fair has become one of the best places to scrutinize the capital’s up-and-coming artistic talent in close quarters. And whilst all the works of painting, sculpture and photography are for sale, browsers are also very welcome.

Discover major cultural events

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Not content with one lot of New Year’s celebrations, the end of January (or start of February) sees another moment of feasting, this time for Chinese New Year or Spring Festival. Shifting on an annual basis with the new moon, the largest commemorations outside of Asia begin with a street parade in Chinatown containing a series of finely-decorated floats.

Firecrackers then echo across Trafalgar Square to launch a day-long festival of lion dances, musical performances and a plentiful supply of authentic street food. It’s a Spring Festival tradition to mark the new year from high-up, with The View from The Shard and ArcelorMittal Orbit the perfect way to do this.

January’s other big event is Burns Night on January 25. Scotland’s unofficial national day, restaurants across the capital join in with honoring the poetry of Robert Burns, author of Auld Lang Syne. Expect Scottish salmon to make an appearance, alongside haggis, neeps (turnips) and tatties (potatoes) rounded off with a portion of whisky-dosed cranachan. Or you could forgo this raspberry and cream concoction and jump straight to a whisky tasting at one of London’s cocktail bars.

Tick off a museum or two

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January’s rainier days are just the excuse you’ve been looking for to jump headlong into London’s museums and galleries. Whatever your interests, you can pretty much guarantee there’s a collection somewhere in the capital that suits. For an overview of two million years of humanity look no further than the British Museum, whose riches include the Rosetta Stone and the Anglo-Saxon treasures of the Sutton Hoo ship burial.

Less celebrated but still worth any amount of time you can dedicate to them are Kensington Palace and the Royal Greenwich Observatory. The palace in Hyde Park was the birthplace of Queen Victoria and is presently the home of Prince William and his young family.

Meanwhile, the Royal Greenwich Observatory has been leading the way in mapping and timekeeping for four centuries. Pierced by the prime meridian, it’s one of the most photogenic places on Earth to have your photo taken with one leg in the eastern hemisphere and the other in the western.

Whilst in the area, take a turn at some of Greenwich’s additional attractions, including the Cutty Sark, the last tea clipper sailing ship to be built before steam power took over. Capable of conducting the journey between Chinese ports and the southeast of England in a record-breaking three months, this elegant masted vessel kept Londoners’ obsession with tea fed for just eight years before swapping to a role in the wool trade.

Don’t miss your chance to save with Go City

There’s plenty to see and do in London in January. Many of the capital’s top attractions welcome Explorer Pass holders, allowing you to save on standard admission costs. So, if you’re considering January in London because of the deals available, don’t forget to add Go City to your list of budget-stretching buys.

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An aerial view of London's Notting Hill
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Things to do in Notting Hill London

Famous enough to have a movie named after it, west London’s Notting Hill has become one of the capital’s most respectable neighborhoods and forms part of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. But that wasn’t always the case. It was once an area of piggeries and potteries, and went through various incarnations before becoming the attractive neighborhood for families it was always intended to be. Both cosmopolitan and multicultural, things to do in Notting Hill London are as varied as the shades that don the homes of Lonsdale Road and Westbourne Grove. These colorful townhouses have been the backdrop for several blockbusters, alongside a selection of markets, galleries and a world-renowned carnival that will have you coming back for more. We’re sure of it! Party time Europe’s largest street festival, the Notting Hill Carnival has been dazzling the crowds since 1965. Taking place over the Sunday and following Monday bank holiday in late August it is led by the neighborhood’s British West Indian community, who club together to create floats and costumes which wow year after year. Ringing with the sound of steel drums and samba come rain or shine, there’s also plenty of Caribbean-inspired food and drink available throughout the two days of the event. At other times of year you can get your fill of the latest beats at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Where once Charlie Chaplin performed you’ll now find listings that include emerging talent and household names despite its relatively limited capacity of 2000. Pearl Jam and the Rolling Stones have both hit the Empire stage at the height of their success. Bag a bargain A great introduction to Notting Hill since it runs on a north-south axis for almost the entire length of the neighborhood, Portobello Road has become synonymous with its market. At its peak on Saturdays, its stalls run for close to one kilometer, which together with shop fronts packed with goodies makes it as stimulating visually as it is culturally and historically. Saturdays sees the antiques stalls joined by a traditional fruit and vegetable market, fashion, vintage items and household essentials, which share a roster of appearances the rest of the week. The closest Notting Hill – and London more generally – gets to a shopping mall is White City’s Westfield. Situated opposite BBC Television Centre it is one of Europe’s largest covered shopping centers, spanning the buyingg experience from the cheap and cheerful fashion of Primark to the high-end couture of Versace and Gucci. Feel the grass beneath your feet Although many of Notting Hill’s homes face out onto small communal gardens – sometimes reserved for residents alone – the neighborhood also includes two publicly accessible green spaces. The first is Holland Park, once the grounds of a Jacobean castle. A mix of landscapes, birds including peacocks delight in its dappled woodland, formal gardens look towards the remnants of Holland House and the Japanese Kyoto Garden adds another layer of interest. The second is Kensington Gardens not far to the east. One of London’s key green spaces, with a children’s playground, statues and duck pond, it is also the location of Kensington Palace. Open to the public since 1899 and a functioning royal palace to this day, it was the birthplace of Queen Victoria and has also provided a home for Princess Diana and Prince William. A design for life It’s worth staying a little longer in Holland Park though, since the Design Museum sits on its southern boundary. Founded by designer Sir Terence Conran in 1989, it reopened in its present location in 2016. A hyperbolic paraboloid roof acts as a further object of wonder beyond the museum’s collection of ‘everyday’ items in its permanent collection, whilst the lower floors are used to host temporary exhibitions on a broad range of design themes. Taking a look at design over the ages from an alternative viewpoint is the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising. Starting in Victorian times – which began in 1837 – the museum explores how consumer culture has changed through displays totaling 12,000 individual items. If you’ve ever wondered how a box of Corn Flakes has altered over the ages, or how Cadbury purple came into being, you know where to head! Let your hair down When it’s in full bloom, The Churchill Arms on Campden Street does a very good impression of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, whilst the festive season results in a look normally only possible after an explosion in a Christmas decoration factory. Unstoppably colorful, its pumps are also a good shout for sampling traditional British warm beer. Consider a pint of London Pride – named after a wildflower that appeared on the rubble of the Blitz. Surviving equally unscathed was the Electric Cinema, so named because it was one of Notting Hill’s first electrically lit and powered buildings. First opening in 1910, it is also one of the UK’s first purpose-built movie theaters, making it one of the most evocative places in the capital to take in a screening. Discover the best art around A one minute walk from Portobello Road, the spelling of Graffik Gallery tells you all you need to know about the sort of art establishment this place is – individual, contemporary and just a little bit edgy. Specializing in high-end street art, its walls display some of the best graffiti artists of the moment – including Banksy. Should the world of the spray can grab you, they regularly host graffiti workshops and private masterclasses. Westbourne Grove’s Maddox Gallery has been successful enough that it’s expanded internationally, though it all started right here in Notting Hill. They too have their finger in the Banksy pie, alongside works by Damien Hirst and Jean-Michel Basquiat, despite only being founded in 2015. Visit the real Notting Hill with Go City You probably won’t find Hugh Grant throwing an orange juice over you as in Notting Hill. Whilst this fictionalized version of the neighborhood has some truth to it – including the upper-class British accents – the only way to untangle fact from fiction is by visiting Notting Hill for yourself. Travel with Go City and uncover the huge range of things to do in Notting Hill London and save big at the same time. From design museums to market banter, Notting Hill has it all.
Ian Packham
Friends exploring London together
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Things to do in Shoreditch London

If you’re wondering about the things to do in Shoreditch London, know this first. Shoreditch is many things, but probably not the things you think it is. Technically part of east London, it feels more like an area of central London, lying just north of the Square Mile and its financial institutions. Likewise, Shoreditch is often described as being edgy and creative, but this shouldn’t be mistaken for dirty or seedy. By day the neighborhood throngs with young professionals working in the office blocks around the Silicon Roundabout – the UK’s answer to Silicon Valley. By night, its triangle of main streets is alive with bars and restaurants, as well as spots to dance the night away and seek out a comfy hotel bed. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. Shoreditch has been an entertainment district since Shakespeare’s time. It was here – rather than the Globe – where his earliest and best-known plays were first performed – Romeo and Juliet, Henry V and Hamlet amongst them. Rub shoulders with market traders A couple of hundred meters south of Shoreditch, Old Spitalfields Market has been in operation since around 1666 – the year fire devastated much of central London. For centuries a wholesale market open only to traders, the early 2000s saw its redevelopment into a hub for the public. It’s Victorian era structures provide an atmospheric backdrop for seeking out everything from the latest fashions to street food. Open daily, the complex has a pop up vintage market every Thursday, a vinyl fair on Fridays and a mix of arts and crafts throughout the week. The backdrop of an otherwise ordinary terraced east London street is not necessarily where you’d expect the explosion of color that is Columbia Road Flower Market either. Each Sunday the narrow street becomes a jungle of plants, with connecting roads seeing a spillover of plants and café tables. Explore the Shoreditch of yesteryear Old Spitalfields Market isn’t the only attraction in Shoreditch to have undergone regeneration. Still known to many as the Geffryre Museum, but rebranded the Museum of the Home, this former almshouse on Kingsland Road explores home life from the year 1600 to the present day. Visitors are able to pass through rooms from multiple ages, including a drawing room from 1870 and a loft apartment from the late 1990s. The period gardens are a nice spot to escape the hubbub of Shoreditch High Street. Operating in a similar vein, Dennis Severs’ House has been dressed up into an approximation of a home of Huguenots in the 1700s. Protestants from France, the Huguenots are just one of a series of groups who have sought refuge in London’s cheaper neighborhoods alongside Jews and Bengali immigrants, creating one of the world’s most diverse cities in the process! Satisfy your hunger You only need to head as far as Brick Lane to experience this diversity in all of its aromatic glory. The heart of London’s Bangladeshi community, it has bilingual street signs and some of the best curry you’ll find in the capital. It has also become one of the top areas of the capital when it comes to street art, with works of graffiti spanning many buildings and side streets. For a whistle-stop tour of world cuisine, and a dose of fashion from independent stores with their finger on the pulse, make the short journey from Brick Lane across to Boxpark. Named after its formation out of converted shipping containers, its kitchens serve up everything from doughnuts to vegan-friendly dishes and Jamaican to South American cuisine. Take your pick of the bars Ask most people who know about the things to do in Shoreditch and they’re bound to tell you to hit the bars and nightspots of Shoreditch High Street and Old Street, where there is something for everyone. Traditional-style pubs line up alongside trendy cocktail bars and more than a few themed locales that will either have you jumping for joy or weeping into your craft brewed IPA. Hoxton Square is another destination to be aware of when it comes to all things wining and dining. Believed to be one of London’s oldest squares, it was laid out in 1683. Today most of its Victorian buildings contain a bar or restaurant whilst its lawns frequently host live events in the warmer months. Another Shoreditch structure that has reinvented itself over recent years is the Old Truman Brewery, which has become a home for creatives including fashion designers, DJs and artists. Its 10 acres of once derelict warehouse space has been put to good use with plenty of small shops and exhibition spaces in which to while away a pleasant hour or two. Delve into the art scene Spanning two stories of a former furniture warehouse, the Victoria Miro Gallery is one of the largest spaces in the neighborhood dedicated to contemporary art. With its back facing a canal basin, the gallery has represented two Turner Prize winners – Chris Ofili and Grayson Perry – amongst many other established and up-and-coming artists. Perhaps better known, the Whitechapel Gallery has been a public arts space since its unveiling in 1901. Nonetheless, its focus remains on contemporary art, having displayed Picasso’s Guernica in 1938 and hosting the first UK hanging of Rothko’s work in 1961. A further space to consider is the Flowers Gallery, whose 50 year history has led to the showing of over 900 exhibitions of painting, sculpture and photography. Discover London’s Shoreditch with Go City Shoreditch has always been known primarily as an entertainment district. The sheer volume of bars and restaurants means it continues to attract revelers from across London. But don’t think that there aren’t additional things to do in Shoreditch London. Visit London with Go City and you can get incredible savings on admission to many of the capital’s top attractions. Outside of Shoreditch this means savings on entering everywhere from the Tower of London to St Paul’s Cathedral.
Ian Packham
Hammersmith Bridge over the River Thames.
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Things to do in Hammersmith London

With picturesque riverside pubs, several top-class theatres and concert venues and some of west London’s finest parks, there are plenty of things to do in Hammersmith year-round. Save on things to do in Hammersmith Save on admission to London attractions and explore Hammersmith and beyond with Go City. Check out @GoCity on Instagram and Facebook for the latest top tips and attraction info. So grab a London pass and save while you sightsee!
Stuart Bak

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