Great link Pal!

Typayt--also if you get tired of walking and don't want to take the tube, there are the buses too. The tfl website shows the bus routes you may take as well.

latedaytraveler---I looked up the National Gallery site and see the entry on the right near the impressionist paintings. Just the kind of info I was looking for--thanks.

nytraveler---I do have some good maps that I hope will do the trick. The reason I asked the question is that so many posts kept saying that London was so huge and that you HAD to take the tube to get around. It appeared to me that the center was walkable so I was just trying to get some opinions from those who know London well.

We do like to have sort of plan but also leave it open to whim if we come upon something interesting. Having such a short time we will only see a small portion of London---just a taste! Our first taste of Paris was only for 3 days and we are now returning for the 10th time. Who knows, London may be our next "return to" place.

nytraveler---BTW, which map do you consider to be the best? I'd like to order it so I'll be sure to have all the streets.

>>BTW, is it always that crowded?<<

No, relax. The opening of the Millennium Bridge coincided with a charity walk across all the bridges, so in addition to the curious who wanted to walk across the new bridge anyway, a whole load of charity walkers (including a large number of children) turned up more or less together. Hence the initial wobbling (call it the ultimate stress test).

Anthony Caro (now dead) was the artist behind the Millenium Bridge though he talked about a "bridge of light" or "sword of light". The suspension bridge was not supposed to wobble any more than any other suspension bridge http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millennium_Bridge,_London

If you like paper maps, the famous "A to Z" (pronounced 'A to Zed') has always worked for me.

I'll second PalenQ's walk along the South Bank, one of my favourites in London. As well as the Globe and Tate Modern, the Royal Festival Hall is well worth a visit as there are often free exhibitions, displays or even concerts going on.

In addition, the views from the middle of the Golden Jubilee Bridges - either looking towards St Pauls, or the Houses of Parliament are among the best in London IMO.

Big Russ and PalenQ suggest two different routes to your destination. The former would include a stroll up WHITEHALL (love all those statues, memorials, and monuments) as you approach Covent Garden. Yet PalenQ's includes a ramble along Southbank. You can't go wrong with either.>

Well IMO do the whole loop and I would do the South Bank first as there are several sites along it to pop into and then St Paul's and the amble back to Covent Garden which IME really starts to hop in late afternoons - then end up in the Leicester Square/theatre district.

Leave the Whitehall area for another day - nice walks around it and #10 Downing Street with those clowns posing as guards out front - yeh snap your photo with them - and waltz up the broad boulevard to Buckingham Palace and over to Green Park en route to Trafalagar.

London is IMO best seen on foot!

My favorite London walks include Hyde Park - a vast oasis in the heart of London with miles of walking paths - stop at one of the tea cafes for a snack and sit on the outdoor veranda looking over the park. Be sure to stop by the Serpentine and look at folks boating - walk all the way to Kensington Palace at the far end western end of the park.

A great nice strolling area - Hyde Park.

All these lovely descriptions make me wish that we had a bit more time in London.

Hi again TPAYT,

You wrote:

"The reason I asked the question is that so many posts kept saying that London was so huge and that you HAD to take the tube to get around. It appeared to me that the center was walkable so I was just trying to get some opinions from those who know London well."

Good point. Many posters believe that as long as their hotel/apartment is "near a Tube stop" that they are all set for touring the city. However, since you are staying a very central spot near the Eye, you will be able to walk to dozens a main attractions/venues within a one or two mile radius without accessing the Tube.

No doubt, you will return to London.... :)

I mapped out a few urban hikes for my last visit to London. I didn't make it to the one in Hampstead as I got a late-ish start (lingering in the British Museum) and the tube line was down on the section I needed.

I also love love love the South Bank walk. Start near Borough Market and walk to the Eye. What a fantastic way to spend a few hours - especially if you get some food at the market.

Two main walking routes:
1. Along the south bank from the Eye to the Tower. South Bank, National Theatre, National Film Theatre, Southwark Cathedral, Borough Market, Tate Modern, (side trip across the Wobbly Bridge to St Pauls and back) Globe Theatre to Tower Bridge and across to the Tower and St Katherine's Dock.
2. From the Eye in the opposite direction, across Westminster Bridge, Houses of Parliament, Parliament square, Westminster Abbey, up Whitehall past Downing Street. Turn left through Horse Guards, along the Mall to Buck House. Or, up Whitehall to Trafalgar Square, (National Gallery, St Martins in the Fields) up Haymarket (past the Theatre Royal) to Piccadilly, along Piccadilly (Royal Academy, Burlington Arcade) to Green Park then Buck House. Then along the Mall to Hyde Park Corner and through Hyde Park.

Tube stops and buses everywhere along the route for those who flag.

Bookmarking!

Gertie, two great suggestions. Leaving for London in mid June and can't wait to do it all again. :)

Another nod to Gertie - we have followed those same walks and like latedaytraveler can't wait to do them again. We leave for Scotland next month but every trip includes London.

>>A great nice strolling area - Hyde Park.<<

You can walk through not quite continuous park all the way from Parliament Square through St James's to the Palace, through Green Park alongside Constitution Hill, across Hyde Park Corner and then all the way through Hyde Park to Kensington Palace. Sundry war memorials through Green Park, you could drop in at the Wellington Arch or the Serpentine Gallery, gawp at the Albert Hall and Memorial.... that would earn you a bus or tube ride back to where you're staying (and/or a good tea somewhere).

Green Park itself makes a sweet strolling/picnicking area - one of the nicest parks anywhere! At noon join all the suits taking lunch breaks here.

All these great suggestions. We definitely have our planning to do. We can't do it all, but we'll take a look on the map at all of these walking plans.