Pretty Little London

My best friend and I planned a girls trip to London to see Adele's concert at Wembley Arena. Never having been to London, I wanted to see as much of the city but I'm not a huge fan of crowds, queues or tourists traps. Our solution was to stay in a centrally located airbnb near the Marble Arch and take day trips to each neighborhood we wanted to visit.

Here are some of the reasons I fell in love with London, the pretty little city.

The London Eye is a must-see

We took a tour boat ride up and down the Thames, hitting many of London’s iconic locations along the way. This was the most enjoyable way to learn more about the city's history and see their iconic landmarks without walking around as part of a tour group. It was lovely to sit on the boat, soak up the sunshine and get a lay of the land. In a short trip, we managed to see the London Eye, London Bridge and Big Ben without leaving the comfort of our seats.

Princess Diana’s garden at Kensington Palace was breathtaking, even on a grey day.

Kensington was the only Royal Palace we chose to visit. The sky grew cloudy and we walked through the misty city streets. Not only was the Palace beautiful, the weather had detered the crowds so we essentially had the entire place to ourselves. My favorite garden was the one in memory of Princess Diana. Formerly known as the Sunken Garden, it was designed to be viewed from the walkway and is filled with white flowers to honor her memory. There is no question why this was her favorite garden during her time at Kensington Palace.

A charming place for a pint!

Next up was a pint at the flower-covered Churchill Arms. The outside is covered in lush, colorful flowers but the inside was a competely different story. Filled with Churchill Memorabelia, we sat at the bar and ordered a pint. This was the perfect example of British eccentricity and we loved every second of it.

Fancy a ride to Paris? A short train trip through the Parisian countryside is an excellent way to spend the morning.

I couldn't go to Europe and only see one city. We packed our backpacks and drove to the central London's St Pancras International train station and boarded a Eurostar train to Paris, France. The trip is short, but it is still an international journey so don't forget your passport and make sure to include security and customs into your travel time!

Bonus photo from the Adele show!