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You know as a teen, you just want to hide away in your bedroom, listening to music with the Do Not Disturb sign on, but sometimes it’s worth opening the door to adventure to foreign lands. London is the place to escape the bedroom for. It’s NOT the boring destination your parents keep trying to take you to as there are tons of things to do in London with teens. Take it from my teen, who did not complain once on our two-week trip to London.
Our teen smiled a lot, took lots of photos, laughed and even said, ‘London is awesome!’ several times. At the end of our vacation, she exclaimed “This has been my favorite family trip” (and she has been traveling constantly since birth). So if you’re planning on visiting London with a teenager and not sure what to do, these are the things we did with our tees. Also, if you have a tween in your family, they will love it just as much as our 10-year-old.
For all Harry Potter fans, the tour of the Warner Bros Studios is the closest you will get to being a part of the films. This was our teen’s favorite London experience. I think it could have possibly been mine as well. The Harry Potter tour at the Warner Bros studio gives you a magical close up look into the making of Harry Potter and how the movies were created and filmed.
For an extra fee, you can purchase an audio tour, which guides you through the studios, giving you lots of behind-the-scenes information about set creation, production challenges and successes, and stories about the actors. I was the only one who got that and I really enjoyed it, especially the videos which allowed me to see the sets come to life in each appropriate movie scene.
It takes around three to four hours to walk through the whole tour, which features sets, costumes, props, and butterbeer from the films. Plus there are interactive exhibits to experience from green screen broomstick rides to jumping in a few of the vehicle props. The tour starts off in the set of the Great Hall in Hogwarts, and from there it is a self-guided experience through the Wizarding World.
Kalyra’s favorite parts were seeing the costumes on models of the characters and walking through the Forbidden Forest. And weirdly, like I did when I first walked into Hogsmeade in Universal Orlando Resort, tears pricked my eyes when I walked into the room showing the model of Hogwarts Castle.
There is just something so magical about the Harry Potter world that will live on forever and across all ages. It is the ultimate experience in London for teens – well, for kids of all ages. Read our full guide: Harry Potter London Studios
One of the most famous attractions in London, with some of the best skyline views of Central London, is the London Eye on the River Thames. It is the tallest observation wheel in Europe and a great way to see different viewpoints of the famous buildings in London, like the Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, as well as Buckingham Palace on a clear day. The capsule you sit in moves slowly enough that you get time to enjoy the experience and get good photos.
There is also an option to get private capsules, which is what we did. For the regular ride, you will be put with another group of people. It is a more fun way to look at London’s scenery instead of going to regular viewpoints and having to climb a lot of stairs. We know most teens are afraid of movement!
Teenagers will love this more relaxing London experience. I’m sure their friends back home will be jealous of their TikToks and photos.
Covent Garden is a popular shopping destination in the West End and so a perfect London experience for teenagers who love fashion and beauty stores. There is also a good number of dining options, with food halls and restaurants scattered throughout the area, which makes the garden a good place to spend a few hours of your time if members in your family want to go shopping.
Stores range from big name brands like Apple and Tiffany and Co to local independent stores. Some stores, experiences, and eats teens may love include:
It can get busy, so try to go at a time when people may be at work and school. That being said, it’s still a good way to spend your time and can give you a feel for London’s food scene and what luxury fashion it has to offer.
It is also next to other tourist attractions in London, like Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Soho, and the West End theater district. Don’t forget to spread out across the central Covent Garden marketplace area to explore the surrounding cobblestone streets and side alleys for other secret gems!
We found Cecil’s Court and Goodwin Court, both of which are said to have inspired Diagon Alley. I thought Goodwin’s Court was more like it. Let me know in the comments what you think.
Book Loving teens will love Cecil’s Court, it is lined with book shops and antique stores filled with magical literature and bric-a-brac, which is one reason it’s been connected to Diagon Alley. You’ll also find brand stores like Doc Martens, Urban Outfitters, and Brandy Meville that teens will love. Kalyra bought a cute skirt from Brandy.
When you need a break, head to Lamb & Flag for a family pub lunch in the oldest pub in Covent Garden. (this was one of our favorite London pubs)
For families with diverse culinary tastes, you may want to eat at the Seven Dials street food market. However, I found it very lacking in gluten free options so watched my girls eat before our show in the West End.
Another shopping area teens in London may love is Oxford St. You’ll find more recognizable brands here and can often pick up good shopping deals. Be warned, this is one of the busiest streets in London, especially on a weekend, so be prepared for shoulder rubbing. This was one reason, Kalyra preferred Covent Garden.
The daily Camden Markets is also fantastic for shopping and a unique London neighborhood and cultural experience. Read our guide on how to enjoy a day in Camden Town. (includes a Regent’s Canal ride)
London is renowned as one of the best places in the world for theater. (Ignoring COVID, there are over 40 theater venues in the West End performing to over 14 million every year. It is the largest theater scene in the English-speaking world. Teens will love the variety of musicals on offer, some of the most popular ones being The Lion King, Wicked, Les Misérables, and Hamilton. (I saw Les Misérables and Saigon when living in London).
On this family vacation to London, we went to see Matilda in the Cambridge Theater. Matilda the Musical is based on the Roald Dahl book and movie, which was fantastic. Most of the cast are young children, who are very talented.
It is a funny musical directed towards younger kids, but I would recommend it to all ages. I absolutely loved it. There was a trio of twenty-something males behind us who laughed louder and more often than anyone else in the theater. Kalyra chose this theater production and did the research to find the best-priced tickets and booked them while we were in London. We booked through LondonTheatre.co.uk.
I recommend booking as far out as you can, as we have some of the last tickets. But, since it was a small theater, all seats had great views, and we somehow ended up with seats near the front, and for what we thought was a great deal.
Seeing a musical at the West End is highly recommended for any family that needs a break from the stress of visiting all the tourist attractions. I’m glad we added this to our London itinerary in the last minute as our teen said it was one of her favorite London experiences.
You can snag cheaper West End theater tickets by opting for stand by tickets, which you buy on the day at the venue. Of course, you run the risk of missing the show, but if you are okay with just experiencing the West End, rather than being passionate about a particular show, this is a great way to save money.
You can also get last-minute tickets from the booths on Leicester Sq. Or, you can book tickets in advance online, depending what show you want to see. Currently, you can get tickets for The Devil Wears Prada the musical and Wicked the Musical via Airbnb Experiences.
The day we arrived in London, we went to the Ampersand Hotel in South Kensington for afternoon high tea. For any traveler, especially teens, interested in English culture, this is one of the best things to do in London.
It is alleged that afternoon tea began in England in 1840, by Anna Stanhope, the Duchess of Bedford. As dinner was served late in the evening, this was a way of satisfying her hunger pains mid-afternoon. It became a fashionable form of entertainment, and over the years, it became an experience for more than just the wealthy. Some also say the French started it. But let’s not get involved in that battle. For now, we’ll celebrate the English tradition of high tea, named so for the high tables it’s served on.
The Ampersand Hotel has a few themed high tea options, including ones for kids and gluten free eaters! We chose the award-winning Science Afternoon Tea in the Drawing Room of the Ampersand Hotel in South Kensington, a fantastic for teens especially.
This English high tea features multiple experiments you can do with your food. You can make your own lemonade, look for fossil biscuits, and enjoy the billowing smoke as a waitress pours water over the dry ice that is on your dishes. It is a cool interactive version of a high tea, and it is also very tasty.
I was very impressed with my gluten free versions, and the gluten free scones with clotted cream here are a deliciousness I’ll never forget. Just as impressive is the elegant interior design of the Drawing Rooms with its scarlet and blue velvet armchairs, floral wallpaper, and quirky animal print cushions, and large Victorian windows bringing in the afternoon light. You will feel part of the British aristocracy who live in this area of London.
This was a great first London experience for us and set the tone for the family joy that was to come. You can see our Reel here.
As you’ve discovered from this post so far, teens love Harry Potter – well most anyway. Devout Harry Potter fans will want to stop in at The House of MinaLima. This gallery and store, situated in the heart of Soho, showcases the graphic art of the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts films, all of which was exclusively designed by Miraphora Mina and Eduardo Lima.
We added it in on our last day exploring London city and I’m so glad we did. It was incredible! It’s only while exploring the Wizarding World art on display here that you realize just how much these graphic designers are responsible for the magic of the Harry Potter films.
The first floor is filled to the brim with the graphic designs from the movie, which include posters, newspaper articles, train tickets, insignias and more. There are plenty of these magical items available for purchase including prints, notecards, journals, wallpaper and posters.
You can also get illustrated copies of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Kalyra really wanted to get the Black Family Tree Tapestry wallpaper, but opted for the Sirius Black wanted post instead (her favorite character).
Downstairs is the gallery, which will make you feel you’ve been transported to the Wizarding World. The wall is covered in the Black Family Tapestry wallpaper, the Marauder’s Map covers the gallery floor, and Hogwarts letters flood out of a decorative fireplace.
I absolutely loved this store! And we had a special treat while inside, Miraphora Mina was actually in the store. We weren’t brave enough to stop her and say hi – teens may not have developed the confidence for that yet. This is a completely FREE London attraction for teens – well, except for the shopping they’ll want to do
Harry Potter Walking Tour: For more magical fun, you may want to join this Harry Potter themed walking tour across London. Find out which Hogwarts House you belong in and test your Harry Potter knowledge. Stroll down Diagon Alley, visit the Leaky Cauldron, and see iconic London sites such as Borough Market, The London Eye, Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station, and Trafalgar Square. Reserve your spot here.
What teenager doesn’t love looking for vintage fashion? London is the city to find hidden gems and unique finds. One of the most well-known vintage shopping streets is Brick Lane in Shoreditch, which has the largest vintage market in London and features specialist vintage fashion from across the UK and Europe.
The Brick Lane Vintage Market has everything from coats to bell-bottom jeans to bags and shoes. You can find designer makes and cheap finds. You could spend hours diving in the rails there. If you need help finding the best gems, here’s a thrift store tour you can do with a local who knows all the best vintage shops.
While in Brick Lane, consider a street art tour! Shoreditch is a well-known creative hub and has loads of cool art murals on the wall. Check out this walking street art tour of Shoreditch to learn more about it.
Another place to look for vintage clothing is Notting Hill along Portobello Road Market. The market is there daily, but it’s at its busiest on Saturdays. Some vendors only open their stalls on Saturdays, so this is the day to go if you can.
You can also find high street brands on Oxford Street if you do like shopping, or if you do go to Covent Garden as we suggested earlier, dip into Beyond Retro in Soho on the way.
The London Bridge Experience is an interactive history tour that explores the dark past of London’s most famous bridge. Making this experience more real is that this attraction is actually under the London Bridge! Live actors take you and your group through these dark rooms underneath the bridge that are filled with artifacts and spooky stories about the fate of traitors, Jack the Ripper, haunted churches, and more.
In the traitor room, an actor displays ripped-off heads on sticks and a medical table where he cuts up the body parts of traitors. But the most fun, and scary, part of the attraction is the final room of the tour, where a barman tells the story of Jack the Ripper before leading you into a haunted maze.
In the maze, we had to navigate our way through dark rooms while being chased by actors dressed as pigs and a lady with a chainsaw. We laughed and screamed and tumbled out of there saying, “That was so much fun!” Even Savannah, once she got over the terror of it, said she was glad she did it.
While scary at first, it was one of the best attractions in London and is a thrilling experience for older kids who love Halloween. It was also a great way for kids to learn more about the history (although darker) of London. I think it gave us a perspective that, although the world feels grim, at least no one is being hung, drawn and quartered with their heads left on display as a warning on London Bridge anymore.
This is a top thing to do in London for teens with a sinister edge!
We’ve done food tours in many cities around the world (Rome and Paris being two of our favs!), and it’s something we always love doing as a family. It’s also a great way to get to know the cuisine of that country and find the best haunts.
I know what you’re thinking, British food is not known to be, well, great, but one thing we learned from our time living in London is that this is a common misconception. If you are only eating at chain restaurants and Wetherspoons, then sure, not the best, but get yourself on a food tour with the locals and you’ll soon discover the best food in London!
This bike and food tour of London combines both our teens love of food and bike riding, so it’s high on our list of things to do when we return. The tour passes through some of the top street food locations (Camden and Southbank), where you can taste test some sweet treats, the best grilled cheese ever, and more! Plus Camden is such a cool neighborhood that’s edgy and artistic, your teen will love exploring here.
Another thing we love doing when we travel is learning. We often take cooking classes, or learn to make handicrafts or learning to surf. Coming away from a new city with a new skill is one of those souvenirs that you will never forget, or lose, and it could ultimately inspire a new passion. So we love looking for something creative we can do when we travel with our teens.
This street photography class in London would be right up our teen’s alley. She loves taking photos when we travel, so pairing a photography class and sight seeing in one go is simply ideal. On this class, you learn how to use negative space, use light creatively, and use different styles. This is another one we have bookmarked for when we return.
London is the perfect destination for teenagers because of its shopping areas, famous movie locations, world-class museums, ancient history (that includes royalty), breathtaking views, high teas and quirky cafes, and endless things to do that will suit any teen interest.
During our London vacation, we set out to find the best experiences in London for teens in any family.
There are so many things to do in London and places to visit that your teens will love. This guide was written based on our teen’s personal experience. I think Kensington Palace, the Globe Theatre, Natural History Museums, Tate Modern, the British Museum and London Parks could make this list, but we’ve narrowed it down to Kalyra’s top recommendations for London with teens.
London also made her top destinations in Europe to visit with teenagers list.
Need more inspiration for visiting London? Here are some other helpful guides…
We’ve created a simple one-page checklist of all the top things to do in London, UK and itinerary guides to help with your travel planning
Are you planning a trip to London? What are some things to do in London for teenagers that you’re most looking forward to? Let us know in the comments.
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