4 Days in London: Saturday to Wednesday, and What I'd Reorder
A four-day London itinerary done Saturday to Wednesday — Westminster and the South Bank, the Warner Bros Harry Potter tour, the big museums, and an honest warning about the day I spent crossing the whole city.
I flew in on a Saturday and left on the Wednesday morning, which gave four full days. That's a good length for London — enough for the landmarks, the Harry Potter tour and the museums without sprinting.
One honest warning before the itinerary: day four had me crossing the entire city, and I'd reorder it if I did this again. More on that below.
Day 1 (Saturday): Westminster and the river
Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament. The obvious place to start, and still the shot everyone wants.
Westminster Abbey, the coronation church, is right there — so this corner gives you two of London's biggest sights within a few minutes' walk.
Buckingham Palace in the afternoon. Check the Changing of the Guard schedule before you go — it doesn't run every day, and turning up on the wrong one is a wasted trip across St James's Park.
The London Eye for the view over the whole city.
The Millennium Bridge in the evening, for St Paul's on one side and the Thames running away in both directions.
Everything on this day is walkable from everything else, which is exactly what you want on arrival day.
Day 2 (Sunday): Harry Potter and the Tower
The Warner Bros Studio Tour — The Making of Harry Potter. I did this on the Sunday and it's the single thing on this list I'd book furthest ahead; it sells out weeks in advance.
Be realistic about what this day costs you. The studios are out at Watford, not in London — it's a train plus a shuttle bus each way, and you'll want three to four hours inside. This is most of a day.
The Tower of London in the afternoon, for the Crown Jewels and the Yeoman Warders. I did both in the day, but it's tight — if you'd rather not rush, this is the thing to move.
Day 3 (Monday): the museums
The Natural History Museum in the morning — dinosaurs, the building itself, and one of the best free days out in the city.
The British Museum in the afternoon.
Both are free, which is worth saying plainly because people assume otherwise and budget for tickets they don't need. This is the lightest day of the four, and after the Watford trip that's welcome.
Day 4 (Tuesday): the day I'd reorder
This is where I'd change things. I ended up crossing the whole city in a single day — Greenwich in the southeast, Camden in the north, Baker Street in the middle, and Wembley out to the northwest.
Here's what I did:
The Prime Meridian at Greenwich, with the Royal Observatory and the view back over Canary Wharf.
Camden Market — food, records, and the most distinctive market atmosphere in London.
The Sherlock Holmes Museum at 221B Baker Street.
The Wembley Stadium tour, out at the national stadium.
Oxford Street and Regent Street in the evening, finishing at Trafalgar Square with Nelson's Column and the National Gallery.
What I'd do differently: these are four corners of London, and the Underground time between them adds up fast. Greenwich deserves its own half-day rather than being squeezed in before a dash north. If you're following this itinerary, pair Greenwich with the South Bank on day one, and keep Baker Street, Camden and Oxford Street together — they're all on or near the same north–central axis. Wembley only makes sense if a stadium tour genuinely matters to you.
Worth knowing
- Just tap in with a contactless card. You don't need an Oyster card any more, and contactless is capped daily the same way.
- The big museums are free — the British Museum and the Natural History Museum both.
- Book the Warner Bros tour weeks ahead. Everything else on this list you can sort closer to the day.
- Check the Changing of the Guard schedule. It isn't daily.
- Don't do Greenwich and Wembley on the same day. That's the mistake in my own itinerary above.