Themed Itineraries
Here are a few suggested itineraries by themes. Take a look at the menu to the right and choose. Remember you can mix and match according to your interests.
Historic Pubs
Starting at St Katharine Docks, walk just over 5 miles along Wapping Wall, visiting the many watering holes along the way, 
including the Captain Kidd, The Prospect of Whitby and The Grapes. Hop onto the DLR at West Ferry and make your way to Cutty Sark DLR whilst admiring the views of the Docklands and Canary Wharf. Once in Greenwich you are spoilt for choice: the Gypsy Moth, so-called in celebration of the famous vessel, which Sir Francis Chichester circumnavigated the world in solo in 1967; the Trafalgar Tavern, a Greenwich favourite for well over 150 years and immortalised by writers and artists such as Dickens and Thackeray; the Yacht and the Cutty Sark Tavern.
The Old Port of London Tour
Starting in the London Bridge Area, walk through Hay's Galleria, renovated from Hay's Wharf, an original docking quay and where cold storage originated, reinforcing the area’s reputation as London’s Larder. Next walk along the 
river walkway past the HMS Belfast, the Greater London Authority building, under Tower Bridge and through to Butlers Wharf, once one of the busiest docks in London, receiving cargoes of tea, coffee and spices. As a reminder of this you will find places such as Cinnamon Wharf and Cayenne Court. The renovated warehouses still retain the character of the old days when the aerial walkways were used to move cargoes from the River to the warehouses.
Crossing over Tower Bridge and into St Katharine Docks, you will find information panels around the docks with details of the area’s history. Hop 
aboard the Docklands Light Railway at Tower Gateway, destination West India Quay, where you will discover a whole museum dedicated to the Docklands area. The Museum in Docklands tells the story of London’s port, river and people from the Roman settlers to today’s modern developments. Take this opportunity to experience the drastic changes which have turned the disused docks and canal basins into the new high-flying financial district and shopping paradise that is Canary Wharf.
Maritime & Military Connections
Hop aboard the HMS Belfast to start your watery adventure, then 
enjoy a cruise down the Thames to Maritime Greenwich (City Cruises at Tower Pier - north side of river). Discuss your morning voyages over lunch in the Trafalgar Tavern, which overhangs the Thames. You have then many options, but keeping with the nautical and military theme, complete the day at the National Maritime Museum or the Cutty Sark or take a bus to Firepower, the Royal Artillery Museum.
Photo Opportunities
Start your visit at the Tower Bridge Exhibition and take in the 
east and west views of the River Thames. Then take a trip on the river from Tower Pier to Maritime Greenwich admiring the sites of the London Bridge Area, Wapping and Limehouse, Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs along the way. Photo Opportunities in Greenwich include the Cutty Sark, the Royal Observatory, the Meridian Line - 0° Longitude, view of the National Maritime Museum, the Royal Naval College and Canary Wharf from Observatory Hill in Greenwich Park. Have lunch at the Trafalgar Tavern, a historic pub overhanging the Thames, to relish a Greenwich speciality – a whitebait supper.
Next take the Docklands Light Railway to Canary Wharf for the 
awesome architecture and glittering geometrics of the new developments. Here take a stroll through the shops to West India Quay, where the new Museum in Docklands is located and then on to Westferry Circus Riverside to have dinner at one of the several good restaurants offering world cuisine.
Greenwich’s Hidden Gems
Start with the unique Fan Museum, followed by a look around the 
new Wernher Collection at the Rangers House. Discover the delights of The Chapel and Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College and have lunch in Bar du Musée. In the afternoon, make you way either to Firepower, the Royal Artillery Museum and to the nearby Greenwich Heritage Centre or to Eltham Palace. Return to Greenwich for dinner at the Spread Eagle Restaurant.
The American Connections Tour
In east London you will find many connections with North America, and just downstream from the bustling area of the Pool of London lies historic Rotherhithe. It was from here in 1620 that Captain Jones and the Pilgrim Fathers set off on their epic voyage across the Atlantic. The Mayflower returned in 1621, and Captain Jones is buried in the churchyard of St Mary’s. Visit the nearby Mayflower, one of the few pubs licensed to sell stamps and also has permission to sell American ones.
On the other side of the River Thames, the church of All Hallows by the Tower is where William Penn was baptised and just to the north of there, in Whitechapel, is a bell foundry, which has produced bells for countries all over the world but is most well known for casting London’s Big Ben and the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia.
The Discovery, Godspeed and Susan Constant - on an expedition led by Capt. James Smith (later Pocahontas's lover) - sailed with 105 people from Blackwall Stairs (opposite Greenwich) in 1607 to Virginia. And in the Upper Hall of the Painted Hall ( Old Royal Naval College) America is represented by a cartouche of a Red Indian lady with a feather in her hair (Pocahontas). Staying with big names, in 1726 Benjamin Franklin sailed from Greenwich, where there is so much maritime history 
to be explored at the National Maritime Museum – now free. Finally, did you know the design of the White House was directly influenced by the Palladian style of the Queen’s House in Greenwich, designed by Inigo Jones, and the classical architecture that developed from it?
A Traditional London Experience
Spend the morning browsing the markets around Spitalfields, where you can find a bargain all year round and experience the bustle and banter of the East End traders and colourful 
characters. There are many to choose from: Whitechapel Road Market, Brick Lane Market, Old Spitalfields Market, Columbia Road Flower Market, Petticoat Lane Market and Roman Road Market.
Then make you way to the London Bridge Area for lunch at Manze’s, the oldest pie and mash shop in London. Pie and mash is a traditional London food, which used to be sold by street sellers until the first dedicated shops appeared in the 1860s.
To finish the day in true Londoner style, place your bets at the dogs, at Walthamstow Greyhound Stadium for an evening you will not forget.
A Canal Walk focusing on Family Museums
The Islington Tunnel to Limehouse stretch of the Regent’s Canal, is rich with museums and canal heritage. Start at the Geffrye Museum, which showcases a series of fully furnished period rooms from 1600 to the 1990s, then walk along the canal side. Bethnal Green's newly re-opened Museum of Childhood is further inland but worth a stop, especially if you have children with you.
The next place you will come across as you walk east along the canal is Victoria Park, the world’s oldest municipal park. Why not take a breather for a cup of tea and to feed the ducks? Where the Regent’s Canal joins with the Hertford Union Canal, you’ll find Bow Wharf, which was originally home to a glue factory. Today the warehouses are home to Jongleurs Comedy Club, restaurants, bars and shops.
Just past Mile End Park, Dr Barnardo’s second Ragged School was based in a canalside warehouse. Today the Ragged School Museum tells the fascinating story of East End Life amongst the very poorest. Refreshments are available in their towpath café. Finally, Limehouse Basin, used to be the hub of the canal system nation-wide, where cargo from around the world was unloaded onto narrow boats.
Art in East London
For those of you who enjoy contemporary art, Whitechapel Art Gallery is constantly changing exhibits. The Women’s Library close by showcases works of art by women artists and holds interesting 
exhibitions. Have lunch in Canary Wharf. Here take a stroll and count how many pieces of public art you can find. Then for an unusual gallery head to West India Quay DLR and the Prenelle Gallery. The Wapping Project is an ideal place for an evening meal surrounded by relics of an industrial past.
Bollywood in East London
Shop with the famous in Green Street, the fabulous Asian retail centre and Queens Market. Have lunch in one of the Pakistani restaurants in the area. After your shopping experience, take in a movie at the Boleyn Cinema for an experience that is totally different to a mainstream British cinema and you'll come out feeling happy.
East London Markets
Head to Greenwich Market for late morning and enjoy the wide range of antiques and collectables, arts and crafts, the fabulous farmers market and food court and for lunch choose between noodle bars, wine bars, traditional pubs and fine dining offering tastes from around the world.
Then make your way by train to London Bridge and Borough Market, a thriving fine food market with specialist farmers and producers travelling from all over country to sell their wares. You can buy ham, wild boar, venison, ostrich, poultry, fish, olives, cheeses, wines and beers (mainly organic) and speciality breads here. Stop and rest either in the many cafés and bars in Hay’s Galleria or cross the road to have a pint at The George Inn, London’s only remaining galleried inn and mentioned in Dickens' novel ‘Little Dorrit’.
After this, make your way to Spitalfields, where you can find a bargain all year round. All the markets in the area are well worth 
a visit. Each has its own very distinctive atmosphere and speciality. Old Spitalfields Market is 'the cutting edge of cool' according to London's Evening Standard magazine, Brick Lane is home to bric-a-brac, while Columbia Road Flower Market is a paradise for greenfingers, and Petticoat Lane - the oldest and probably most famous market - sells all kinds of clothes, records, leather goods and toys. This isn't just shopping, it's entertainment. Enjoy the bustle and banter of the traders and colourful characters.
End you day with an authentic Bangladeshi meal in one of the many restaurants in Brick Lane, at the heart of London’s Bangladeshi community. We recommend Café Naz or Preems.
