Top 10 Kid Friendly Things To Do and Attractions in Highbury

"One of London's largest Royal Parks, Hyde Park is home to the vast Serpentine Lake (which you can swim in), the majestic Wellington Arch and even a hidden pet cemetery. With 350 acres to explore, you're spoilt for choice when it comes to picnic spots, and there are three cafes (including a stingray-shaped one) where you can replenish your supplies. Other points of interest include the Diana Memorial Fountain, the Hyde Park Rose Garden, and the Achilles statue, which actor Laurence Olivier once called "the best arse in London"."

"Hyde Park is central London's largest green space, expropriated from the church in 1536 by Henry VIII and turned into a hunting ground and later a venue for duels, executions and horse racing. The 1851 Great Exhibition was held here, and during WWII the park became an enormous potato field. These days, it's a place to stroll and picnic, boat on the Serpentine lake, or to catch a summer concert or outdoor film during the warmer months."

"Originally created in 1536 as a private hunting ground for King Henry VIII, Hyde Park has been at the centre of many important historical events. Today, it’s a beautiful place for a day out, with a busy calendar of concerts and events, and something always going on at the famous Speakers Corner. Hyde Park © Flickr David Corcoran"

"Westminster Abbey is a large, mainly Gothic, church located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is one of the most notable religious buildings in the United Kingdom and is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English and, later, British monarchs. Most of the present building dates from 1245 to 1272 when Henry III decided to rebuild an old abbey in the Gothic style."

"Another iconic London building, Westminster Abbey is a royal church and UNESCO World Heritage site with over 1000 years of history. But it’s the stunning exterior and well placed red phone boxes that make this one of the most Instagrammable places in London!. Walk away from Westminster Abbey to the corner of Tothill Road where you’ll find red phone boxes gracing each side."

"A post shared by Constantine Konovalov (@ckonovalov) on Jun 12, 2017 at 2:01pm PDT. Be wowed by more than a thousand years of history at the world-famous Westminster Abbey. One of the finest examples of Gothic architecture in the United Kingdom, the London landmark began its life in 1245 and its history traces back to 10th-century Benedictine monks."

"The tallest building in London is The Shard, constructed in 2012 it broke a number of records, many of which it still retains. It was the tallest building in Europe until 2013 and is still the tallest building in Western Europe, with the only taller buildings being located in Moscow. The Shard is also the second tallest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom after the Emley Moor transmitting station located in West Yorkshire."

"Last on my list, and another one where you unfortunately can’t use a tripod if you go inside – the Shard. A relatively new addition to the London Skyline, the Shard offers an incredible view of the London skyline from far above the ground. Like the London Eye, it’s also best visited for sunset – we advise booking your ticket in advance to be sure to get the right time slot for your visit."

"Renzo Piano’s super-skyscraper The Shard is by far the tallest building in London, dwarfing everything around it. It’s 1,016 feet (309 metres) high, dominating the area around London Bridge. It houses an office complex, the luxury Shangri-La Hotel and the highest viewing platform in London."

"While visiting the historically important Tower of London does require a paid entrance ticket, the daily Ceremony of the Keys – the traditional ‘locking up’ of the Tower – is completely free to watch. At exactly 21:53 each evening, the Chief Yeoman Warder (or ‘Beefeater’) marches through the Tower carrying the Queen’s Keys. Escorted by four armed guards, he performs a series of specific rituals as he locks the gates to the Tower for the night before returning the keys to the Queen’s House at 10pm."

"Take a tour with one of the Yeoman Warders around the Tower of London, one of the world's most famous buildings. Discover its 900-year history as a royal palace, prison and place of execution, arsenal, jewel house and zoo!. Gaze up at the White Tower, tiptoe through a medieval king's bedchamber and marvel at the Crown Jewels."

"Discover the unique history of this medieval fortress, royal palace and infamous prison. 🏰 The Tower of London is home to the dazzling Crown Jewels 👑 and legendary Beefeaters 💂‍♀️ and ravens."

"After the houses of Parliament, this bridge is London’s most well known site. There are several excellent angles to photograph this bridge from. – A very popular photo to take is traffic light trails going through the archways of the bridge."

"Why: Don’t let the name on the door fool you, Paul A Young may be a master chocolatier, but he also sells ice cream at his trio of upmarket boutiques across the capital. Scoops here are provided by Hackney Gelato, while chocolatey toppings are naturally left to Young and his team. Complete your ice cream by showering it with the likes of cocoa nibs, dark chocolate pearls and hot chocolate sauce, or just go all out and ask for all of the toppings at once (we won’t judge)."

"Shopping Specialist food and drink Angel. Chocolatier Paul A Young takes the sweet stuff seriously, so when he decided to start selling ice cream in his gorgeous boutiques on Islington’s Camden Passage and at the Royal Exchange in Bank, he called in the experts. East London’s gelato wizards Hackney Gelato make three flavours for him, using the same top-notch ingredients that go into the truffles."

"Address: 33 Camden Passage, The Angel, London N1 8EA and 143 Wardour Street, Soho, London W1F 8WA and 20 The Royal Exchange, Threadneedle Street, London EC3V 3LP. For all you chocoholics (and really, who isn't) this top chocolatier is the place to go for your chocolate ice cream hit. Okay, so there's not a huge range of flavours and crazy toppings, but you know what you're getting and you know it's going to be top quality."

"Hej Coffee may sound decidedly Scandinavian, but this roastery is actually based in Elephant & Castle, and has three other cafes in London. Hej offers small batch coffee for delivery, as well as entire Caffeine Survival Kits. Head to the Hej At Home section on its website to buy bundles including a grinder, a choice of Aeropress, V60 or Chemex coffeemakers, and a selection of beans."

"Restaurants Austrian Marylebone. If your idea of romance is waltzing round old Vienna to the sound of Strauss, you can capture some of that old ‘Blue Danube’ magic with a trip to this instantly comforting Mittel-European number from Messrs Corbin & King. Schnitzels, sausages, ice-cream coupes and – of course – incomparable viennoiserie provide welcome sustenance, with excellent hot chocolate and coffee adding that vital X factor."

"Corbin and King’s refined Marylebone homage to Viennese waltzes past and present is always a fine, low-key luxurious breakfast venue, and in the spirit of fried batter its Austrian crêpes, served either with apricot and brandy jam or a gianduja-approximating hazelnut and chocolate, make a winning centrepiece around which to build an Austrian feast."

"A stately home with as opulent an exterior as the art it holds within, Somerset house was once a palace for the Duke of Somerset Edward Seymour in 1547. Now one of the more grandiose of London’s institutions, the palace hosts exhibitions from all over the world and continually draws enormous crowds. The gallery is “known for the breadth of cultural collaborations across photography, fashion, art, film and music."

"Somerset House is home to London's Courtauld Gallery (currently closed for refurbishment) with its collection of Old Masters, Impressionist and Post-impressionist paintings, and The Embankment Galleries with a rotating programme of exhibitions dedicated to art, design, fashion and photography. Some exhibitions require tickets."

"In recent years this huge complex—the work of Sir William Chambers (1723–96), and built during the reign of George III to house offices…"

"In the early 1800s, art enthusiast Sir Francis Bourgeois instructed that his entire collection be turned into a gallery open to the public, handpicking architect John Soane to create the Dulwich Picture Gallery from scratch. Look up, and you can see for yourself the innovative techniques Soane used to bathe the whole gallery in sunlight, which became the prototype for all galleries to this day. Still, don't forget to look down too, to see the great Baroque masterpieces that line the walls and the mausoleum Soane designed for his friend and patron."

"Dulwich Picture Gallery opened in 1817 in Southwark, southeast London. It is the first purpose-built and London’s oldest art gallery. Nowadays besides the permanent collection of Old Master paintings, the gallery offers a program of temporary exhibitions, as well as public events that engage the community."

"The Cinema Museum in London was founded in the 1980s by Ronald Grant and Martin Humphries. Grant and Humphries filled the museum with objects from their private collection of cinema memorabilia. The museum is housed in the workhouse where Charlie Chaplin lived during his childhood."

"London’s Cinema Museum is devoted to keeping alive the spirit of cinema from the days before the multiplex. Admission is only via joining one of their regular guided tours, which costs £10."

"This big, swanky restaurant in the City of London is worth a visit for the décor alone. The ornate cornicing is the ideal accompaniment to the upmarket Italian cuisine and polished service. An import from Russia (the restaurant’s founder is Sicily-born Remo Mazzucato), Piazza Italiana has brought with it a Muscovite enthusiasm for caviar, which is served with pancakes, quail eggs, crème fraiche and butter."

"This is the first London opening for a restaurant group that started out in Moscow. They'll have high end Italian food in a very impressive location."