How to spot (and AVOID) tourist traps in London
If you’re visiting London soon, you are VERY likely to run into some major tourists traps. Sure, some are easy to spot, but others… not so much. In this video Jess is telling you what to look out for so you can spot tourists traps in London easily and AVOID THEM like the plague! You’ll save your money and have a much better London trip.
Thanks to our sponsor Sim Local for making this video happen! Sim Local is the place to get your eSIM for your travel abroad. No more expensive roaming with your home mobile plan, or dealing with finicky plastic cards (and having to change your number too!) Just buy a plan with Sim Local that suits your trip length and destination, and easily install it when you land. We’ve got a discount for you—- 10% off with code LOVEANDLONDON. Click this link to go get your eSim from Sim Local: https://tidd.ly/4bWOxcB Thanks for supporting our channel!
Skip to a section:
00:00 Introduction
00:41 What is a tourist trap?
01:04 It’s made for the Instagram pic
02:20 You literally can’t move
03:08 Sim Local (advert — thanks for supporting!)
04:12 They’re trying to get your attention outside the major tourist attractions
05:24 The menu is… off
07:44 Museums with performers
♥️ MORE LONDON HELP ♥️ (some links are affiliated and help us keep producing these videos)
📗 Free London 101 Guide for first-time London visitors: https://goo.gl/Eh3HP3
📱 Get our ULTIMATE London Itinerary: (PDF guide, digital map, and more included): https://shop.loveandlondon.com/collections/itineraries?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=description+box+links&utm_term=101+guide
📍 Travel guides for London with Londoner-loved hidden gems, divided by area (The Casual Tourist Guides): https://bit.ly/3bgeRoj
💸 London Spending Guide (includes budget calculator spreadsheet, hotel recommendations and more): https://bit.ly/3OduFqy
🏨 Our top London hotel and apart-hotel tips and recommendations: https://loveandlondon.com/category/london-accommodations/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=video&utm_campaign=description+box+links&utm_term=101+guide
🚕 Pre-book your airport taxi: https://www.book-online-transfers.com/en/loveandlondon-airport-taxi
🚐 Book trains, coach buses and more around the UK and Europe via Omio: https://omio.sjv.io/c/1719972/409973/7385
📲 Get your phone connected while in the UK with an eSIM: https://tidd.ly/46kJQb7
❓Visiting London FAQs: https://loveandlondon.com/faqs-from-london-visitors/
About Love and London:
This channel is a London travel guide for anyone visiting the city that wants to experience it like you live here. Beyond talking about the usual London attractions, our founder Jessica Dante and our team show you some of the cooler things to do in London, that most travel guides don’t mention. Watch our videos and you’ll feel like you’ve got a Londoner friend telling you the best kept secrets in the city.
👇🏻 Mentioned in the video 👇🏻
Photoaid study: https://photoaid.com/blog/tourist-traps/?srsltid=AfmBOoouJVE5FTJiv1YltSUxQpbc7pGkBjDL9SNR-XWrit5daiIi6jCL
Our articles on London’s top food and drink : https://loveandlondon.com/category/london-food-and-drink/
Where to get AMAZING London souvenirs (video): https://youtu.be/A_b8kSLVu7Q?si=PbbLFxu8AdTUaScB
Our London itineraries: https://shop.loveandlondon.com/collections/itineraries
Our Casual Tourist Guides: https://shop.loveandlondon.com/collections/casual-tourist-guides-to-london
VIP Ceremony of the Keys tour at the Tower of London: https://fas.st/t/qaU5zDuf
House of Parliament and Westminster Abbey tour: https://fas.st/t/H1JS7vg5
The ULTIMATE guide to London theatre (video): https://youtu.be/0wYudawqtIE?si=SJyTCXjArWbDB7Ur
44 Comments
Interesting video. Like you say – I love London. But places like Leicester Square is not where to eat, or even the place to be. London is full of great places to eat, places to visit, places to see that really are authentic. Loved the video.
Oh wow, naming and shaming. They are not gonna like this one 🙃
Is the London Dungeon a tourist trap? Absolutely. Did I still enjoy it? Also absolutely. But that's just me. I knew what I was getting into beforehand. Your mileage may vary.
I really liked the Tokyo Diner in Chinatown. Quick service, and low prices for a sit down dinner in London.
Great information. I am guessing the best Italian food would be at Cafe Dante, known for its Italian American Mid Atlantic regional recipies. 😉It is always nice to see your face on the tele. I appreciate your work. Assiting fellow travelers so that they can have a suprise free experience (bad surprises) is God's work.
anyone notice the woman fall @ 4:44?
No ones going to mention the poor lady that fell over behind you when you were on the bridge 😢 🙃
Good seeing you again, Jess.
Spent 2 weeks in England in 2018. About 5 days with friends who live there. They took us to places that locals go to and we’re great showing us London. They brought us to Giuseppe’s Italian Restaurante. If u ever get a chance go there. Fantastic. Giuseppe was an amazing host. Also The Crypt was interesting.
You give the best advice, Jess, and I love your videos! Bingeing on as many as we can beforehand we visit London this Christmas. We changed our accommodation from Leicester Square to St James (the more we thought about it, the more it made sense), and we are so glad we did! Thank you so much!
I LOVE to see you back Jess ❤ That eSim card is really useful tip!
Coming over soon and I know my Chippie, where to get Two Pie and Mash and a greasy full English. I'm a simple man. Oh and Sunday Roast!
I've gotta say that the only thing i waited willingly on line for is getting a pic of me with the red booth and Victoria Tower(?)/big Ben(?). Other stuff were just general tourist stuff like the statues in Leicester square, globe theater, leadenhall market, etc.
The guy selling nuts on the side of the bridge… Those were good nuts 😂 just what i wanted on a chilly day!
Great information
Wish I get someone to join when I’m London to avoid such scams.
Hi Jess, I like your channel but I hope you realize that YOU are one of the main reasons why people watch your videos – love your energy! good to see you back 🙂 cheers!
I thought 'The Clink' prison was great, no performers at all in that one, just a walk around at your own leisure to view and read about the history.
Was that a Poppie's fish & chips plate I saw? Hands down the best fish & chips I've had there.
@Love and London – Hey Jess! Great to see you here again. 😊 We missed you. I’m happy to say that I’m finally visiting London at the beginning of 2025. ☺️✈️🇬🇧 Jess, keep up the great content! I’ve been a long time viewer and supporter since 2016! Take care Jess, and Happy Travels! ✈️🇬🇧 -Henry Orea
Welcome Back
This is all good advice for any large city in any country. It's just sad that people these days need to be told this stuff. Should be common sense.
I have been travelling to London from Australia on and off for more than 30 years, split between work and leisure, so I kind of feel somewhere between a tourist and a local. Some really good tips on this channel, but you shouldn't feel pressured into not seeing the things you might have have always wanted to see. If you want to go to Madame Tussauds, do it (actually that is one I probably would recommend to a wide range of ages). Or if you want to do the London Dungeons, do it (there is actually some decent education provided throughout). Taking kids here will be much more enjoyable for them (and therefore you) than a museum. Not everyone needs to have a cultural experience on their holiday. Mind you, I do fully support Jess's opinion on Leicester Square. The place is a trash. IMHO.
I am a Londoner and I agree with you, however, I recently went to eat to Happy London and the food was pretty good. I was impressed 🙂
I brought nuts in a touristy area. They were nice. If they approach you then avoid them.
eSIM is not so common
I wouldn’t classify street vendors selling candied nuts as tourist trap. It’s pretty popular everywhere in Europe to have these street vendors especially during the colder months. I actually really like them and there isn’t many places where u can get them fresh.
I'd wholeheartedly add "Camden Market" and the entire area to this list. It was really something to see until the early 1990s, now it's as bad as Leicester Square.
Avoid central London and get yourself down to the best part of the whole city… Romford!
When I went to London last year I got up to some very individual things. On that first jet-lagged zombie day I went to the Bank of England to exchange some old banknotes from my last trip. It went uphill (downhill? 🤔) from there.
My best meal was Nando's just around the corner from the hotel in Earl's Court. My worst was grabbing what I could get in Piccadilly Circus because I was too tired and hungry to do anything else.
" When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life, for there is in London all that life can afford "
Samuel Johnson
Good to see you back, Jess! A little sad for you that it seems necessary as it's apparent you've built a nice business. But yes to all! Especially the silly pseudo performance attractions! Go to the West End! We're back in November and thinking Six, which seems more appropriate in London than Manhattan. Probably a day trip to Oxford and need to find a new restaurant. Probably splurging on Gymkhana this time…
This tips also great for NYC, and any big tourist city in the USA as well. 👍🏻
We actually enjoyed Happy a lot, a very nice restaurant lol and I think including the winter wonderland as a tourist trap is a bit weird. I'd go there again and again without thinking twice and met a lot of people from the UK when I was there. Other than that, good tips and I love your vids, thanks x
Anybody else see that lady fall at 4:44 in the background? 😂
A more interesting angle is to show what the locals do for entertainment etc and perhaps emphasise that London is a large international capital, and not necessary very British at times
I really hated poppies, fish, and chips. Looked great in pictures but damn was it disappointing
💕✈️
I love to listen to you talk about tourist traps 😁🤩
I like Peggy Porschen . Been there several times. If you go during the week it isn’t as crowded. It’s just fun. I had an amazing carrot cake on my last visit. Yes, there are people snapping their photos in front but I like people watching so it’s okay. I do avoid things like the wax museum, the re-enactments, the tower, and several others. But do visit the Sky Garden for a great view. And walk, just walk, and you’ll find hidden gems away from the tourist traps. I also avoid going to London during the summer when school is out .
The food in Chinatown is very good. You’re correct.
Great to see you back Jess. Never underestimate how much you bring to this channel, along with the content, your engaging and enthusiastic style is the main reason people subscribe to this channel…
Jess! I am so happy to see you again 😍 I am not even exaggerating but i love your energy so much 🥹🥹🥹
I watched your videos before our trip to London in May of 2023. Thank you. We steered clear of all those places you mentioned in this segment. We preferred to immerse in local favorites and just walking around and taking in the energy. There's a Pub near Waterloo Station, under a bridge, behind the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge (where we stayed) that became a home away from our favorite drinking place in California. We are planning to return in 2026.
Hey i'm looking for a specific video, It's a street tour video where a guys walking around streets in london and he passes a pub where a blonde girl in blue denim shorts is kneeling down stroking a dog, I forgot to save the video and now I can't find it, I think it was 2019 or before.
Great video but as a local there's nothing wrong with the roast horse chestnut sellers, these have been a London thing for years – remember plenty of them as a kid in the 90s.