London is often described as a collection of villages. Over 2,000 years, these communities were slowly amalgamated to make today’s sprawling city. However, many original villages still exist, with a special character that makes them well worth a day trip.
The easiest and most popular excursion is downriver to Greenwich, full of history, good shopping and restaurants. Upriver lie Hampton Court Palace and the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. Each makes a glorious sunny summer’s day out, but don’t try to combine the two – there is far too much to see. Return visitors to London should seek out the low-key but highly enjoyable pleasures of riverside Richmond, and Twickenham, on the opposite side of the Thames.
GREENWICH
Greenwich is some 10km (6 miles) east of the centre of London, accessed by train from London Bridge or on the Dockland Light Railway (DLR) direct. Or take a boat to arrive the traditional way, or perhaps the DLR to Island Gardens, directly opposite Greenwich. From here you can enjoy a river view that has changed little in centuries, then simply walk under the Thames via the Greenwich Foot Tunnel. Thanks to its observatory, Greenwich is where the measurement of time was standardised. Greenwich Mean Time, the Meridian Line and Longitude 0° are synonymous with this UNESCO World Heritage Site. Though suffering from heavy traffic and summer crowds, Greenwich retains something of a village atmosphere with lots of interesting shops, a market, an abundance of historic attractions and one of London’s finest parks.
Discover Greenwich 
0870 608 2000 
Daily 10–5 
Guided walking tours depart daily 12:15, 2:15 020 8858 6169 
DLR to Cutty Sark
With displays ranging from pirates and slavery to warfare and ecology, every aspect of man and the sea is examined in this world-class maritime museum. Learn about intrepid explorers, take the helm of a Viking ship and get the facts about the Titanic disaster. At its heart is the Neptune Court, a dramatic glassed-over courtyard with the museum’s largest objects, such as the carved and gilded state barge made for Frederick, Prince of Wales, in 1732. Near here are 15 or so galleries that explain the history and role of maritime Greenwich, Britain as a once-great sea power and ocean exploration. Some of the finest ship models and great maritime paintings are also here. Younger visitors should head for All Hands and The Bridge, two hands-on galleries.
Greenwich Park 020 8312 6565 (recorded info); 020 8858 4422 Daily 10–5. Closed 24–26 Dec 
Free 
The Galley Café (£) DLR to Cutty Sark 
Greenwich from London Bridge 
Greenwich Pier
Royal Observatory
The Royal Observatory was founded in 1675 by Charles II to find out the ‘so-much desired longitude of places for perfecting the art of (sea) navigation’. High on a mound in Greenwich Park, and commanding a splendid view, it was designed by Sir Christopher Wren and functioned as Britain’s principal observatory until 1957. Today it is a museum that tells the history of the observatory and offers a crash course in the measurement of time and astronomy. Displays are well explained and there is also a fascinating camera obscura. The prime attraction for most visitors, however, is to be photographed standing astride the 0° longitude line (which passes right through the observatory) with one foot in the eastern hemisphere and one foot in the western.
Greenwich Park See National Maritime Museum opposite Daily 10–5. Closed 24–26 Dec Free The Galley Café (£), National Maritime Museum DLR to Cutty Sark Greenwich from London Bridge River boat to Greenwich Pier
This exquisite miniature palace is set at the heart of Greenwich’s historic riverfront complex and was the very first classical-style building in England, begun in 1616. It was designed by Inigo Jones. The queen in question was originally Anne of Denmark, wife of James I, though by the time of completion in 1635 she had died and Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I, assumed tenancy.
Greenwich Park See National Maritime Museum opposite Daily 10–5. Closed 24–26 Dec Free The Galley Café (£), National Maritime Museum DLR to Cutty Sark Greenwich from London Bridge Greenwich Pier