London — United Kingdom
London's reputation for rain does not survive the numbers: 671.7 mm a year, where Rome takes 946.1 mm. What London has is frequency and grey, 123 days with at least 1 mm — and an August that turns out to be the driest month of the year, seven wet days out of thirty-one.
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Why go
London is not a city with a centre. It is a run of former villages that the river and the railways welded together, each keeping its own high street, its own market and its own idea of itself. That is why a day here can feel like three trips: government and monuments in the west, banking towers and Roman remains in the middle, canal and vintage clothes in the north, galleries and warehouses in the east. The national museums charge nothing for their permanent collections — the single most useful fact for a tight budget — and the theatre runs six nights a week at a volume no other European capital matches.
It rewards people who are happy to pick three neighbourhoods and abandon the rest, repeat visitors, families, and anyone who treats a museum as a place to spend three hours rather than forty minutes. It punishes the completist and the person who assumed everything was walkable: crossing the built-up area takes real time even underground. And it is expensive in the way capitals are expensive — the United Kingdom as a whole costs less than France, but London runs well above its own country.
Month-by-month climate
Mild, grey, and drier than the cliché. The year bottoms out in January, 8.1 °C by day and 3.5 °C at night — frost is occasional rather than structural. July is the warmest at 23.5 °C, with August at 23.3 °C and June not far behind at 22.6 °C. Summer heat arrives in short bursts rather than as a season. On rain, the useful surprise is in late summer: April records the lowest monthly total at 37.8 mm, while August has the fewest wet days of the year, seven, for 43.1 mm. June is nearly as good, 44.5 mm over 8 days. The autumn turn is sharp. October takes the annual record, 83.5 mm across 12 rainy days, with September at 62 mm and November at 66.5 mm. Across the year that gives 671.7 mm on 123 days — a figure that puts London closer to Paris than to any Atlantic port.
| Month | Avg. high (°C) | Avg. low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Days ≥ 1 mm | Days ≥ 5 mm |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 8.1 | 3.5 | 60 | 11 | 3 |
| Feb | 10.1 | 5.1 | 54 | 11 | 4 |
| Mar | 12.1 | 5.9 | 51 | 12 | 3 |
| Apr | 14.1 | 6.7 | 38 | 8 | 3 |
| May | 18.0 | 10.4 | 49 | 11 | 3 |
| Jun | 22.6 | 14.0 | 45 | 8 | 3 |
| Jul | 23.5 | 15.9 | 60 | 11 | 4 |
| Aug | 23.3 | 15.6 | 43 | 7 | 3 |
| Sept | 20.6 | 13.7 | 62 | 10 | 5 |
| Oct | 16.7 | 11.1 | 84 | 12 | 5 |
| Nov | 11.8 | 7.3 | 67 | 10 | 5 |
| Dec | 9.8 | 5.8 | 60 | 12 | 5 |
Source: Meteostat — Londres (United Kingdom) station, 16.8 km away, 5 sample years. Monthly totals rebuilt from daily averages. Data partly modelled (Meteostat, DWD/met.no).
When to go
June and August are the two best bets, and for different reasons: June gives 22.6 °C with only 8 wet days, August gives 23.3 °C with seven, the fewest all year. July is marginally warmer at 23.5 °C but carries the heaviest crowds and the highest room rates. September still works, 20.6 °C, though rain picks up. Skip October if you can: 83.5 mm over 12 days.
The most favourable months, on these records
- June
- August
- September
What to see in 2, 4 and 7 days
In 2 days
- Morning along the river from the abbey and parliament, crossing to the south bank and walking east.
- Afternoon in one national museum only — pick by subject and give it three unhurried hours.
- Evening in the theatre district; book weeks ahead, or queue for same-day seats at the box office.
- Second morning at the Tower and the bridge beside it, with a timed ticket bought in advance.
- Finish in the food market under the railway arches, then a pub by the water at dusk.
In 4 days
- Open on the river — abbey, parliament, then the south bank walked eastwards — and give one national museum three unhurried hours, with a royal park crossed on the way to dinner.
- Second day at the Tower and the bridge beside it on a timed ticket, the food market under the railway arches, and a pub by the water at dusk.
- Third day for the City: the cathedral dome, the Roman wall fragments, the narrow lanes between the towers.
- Take the river boat downstream to Greenwich for the observatory, the park view and the clipper ship.
- Fourth day for markets by neighbourhood — antiques in the west on Saturday, flowers in the east on Sunday.
- Keep an afternoon completely empty. London days overrun, and the bookshops and cafés are half the point.
In 7 days
- Give the first three days to the river, the Tower and the markets, spread wider, with a second and a third museum on separate days.
- Day 4 in east London: galleries in converted warehouses, street art, and the canal walk north from there.
- Day 5 out to the great botanic garden west of the city, or the Tudor palace upriver from it.
- Day 6 as a train day trip — a university city or a cathedral town, both an easy ride away.
- Day 7 for the neighbourhood you liked best, revisited slowly, plus whatever the weather cancelled earlier.
- Buy nothing in advance except theatre and the Tower; almost everything else is free or walk-up.
- Base yourself within five minutes of a tube station, not within five minutes of a postcard.
Getting there and around
Three airports serve the city: London City (LCY) at 12 km, the closest and the quickest into the financial district by light rail; Heathrow (LHR) at 23 km, on the Underground and on a fast rail link; and Gatwick (LGW) at 39 km, connected by frequent trains to the centre. Trains from Paris and Brussels arrive at a central station, which for many travellers beats flying door to door. In town, use contactless payment on the Underground, buses and river boats; daily fares are capped automatically, so no pass is needed.
Nearest airports
- LCYLondon City Airport12 km from the centre
- LHRLondon Heathrow Airport23 km from the centre
- LGWLondon Gatwick Airport39 km from the centre
Budget
Country price level compared with France : −17 %
Price index for restaurants and hotels, France = 1000, from European purchasing power parities. It is a country average: it says nothing about one hotel in particular.
The rest of the United Kingdom is moderately priced by western European standards; London obeys none of that arithmetic. A mid-range double in a well-connected neighbourhood costs 120 to 220 € a night, and food 50 to 90 € per person daily, assuming market lunches balanced by one sit-down meal. Transport stays a surprisingly modest line, thanks to the daily fare cap that stops charging you once you have travelled enough. Free national museums are what makes a London week survivable, so build the itinerary around them rather than around paid attractions.
Common mistakes
- Choosing a hotel by neighbourhood name rather than by walking distance to a tube station. That single decision shapes the whole trip.
- Assuming August is wet. It is the driest month of our year by wet-day count, with seven days above 1 mm.
- Planning three areas in one day. Crossing the built-up area eats an hour each way, even underground.
- Paying for attractions before checking what is free. The major national collections charge nothing for permanent exhibitions.
- Arriving at big sites without a timed ticket and losing an hour of daylight to the queue.
Frequently asked questions
Is London really rainier than Paris?
Barely. London takes 671.7 mm a year over 123 rainy days; Paris takes 655.4 mm over 110 days. The difference is about a dozen wet days, not a different climate. What London does have is more overcast and shorter winter afternoons. Pack a light waterproof and stop planning around the reputation.
What is the right length for a first visit?
Four nights is the sensible minimum, because travel between areas costs real time. Two nights works only if you accept seeing one riverside strip and one museum. With seven you can add the east, a garden or palace upriver, and a train day trip, which is when the city stops feeling like a checklist.
Can London be done on a modest budget?
Yes, more easily than most capitals, because the national museums and galleries are free and the parks are large. The immovable costs are the room and the transport. If you stay slightly out along a fast tube line, eat lunch from markets, and treat theatre as the one paid highlight, the daily total drops sharply.
Updated on 21 September 2026