Planning to visit London sometime soon? Before you go, make sure you download these handy mobile phone apps which will help you to find plenty of magnificent venues and attractions across the city.
Best Apps for Eating & Drinking in London
Smith Finder
Fancy a drink but don’t know where to go? This app shows locations for Samuel Smith pubs that serve ales, lagers and ciders from the Yorkshire brewery. It allows users to easily find the nearest pub and view its location on a map. You can even send a map to friends via email, SMS or Twitter so that they know how to find the pub. Not only this, but you can view each pub’s history, opening hours, menu and reviews.
Wriggle
The Wriggle app allows you to get exclusive deals at pubs, restaurants and events near you. You can even order food and drink through the app so that it’s ready and waiting for you by the time you reach your chosen eatery. This free app is ideal for visitors to London who put price and convenience over everything else. It is also a great way of discovering new places to eat and drink.
OpenTable
“Finding a restaurant with availability and making a reservation, whether in your hometown or while traveling, has never been so convenient… It’s by far the best service and the mobile app for making and managing restaurant reservations.” – PC Mag
OpenTable lets you discover available restaurants and make a reservation at hundreds of eateries across London. This makes it easy to make reservations at some of the city’s busiest restaurants. A great tool for arranging nights out, you can use the app to send invitations to friends to join your reservations. Another major bonus is that you can earn loyalty points for each reservation to unlock rewards (e.g. vouchers) for future bookings.
Best Apps for Exploring London
Voice map Audio Tours
This free app uses your GPS location to automatically play audio information about various areas in London as you travel through them. It offers a huge variety of free and paid tours, so you are sure to find something to your taste. In fact, there is even a tour recorded by none other than Sir Ian McKellen which covers London’s glamorous West End. Another useful feature is that it helps you to stay on track with audio alerts if you accidentally move off course. The app even allows you to access maps offline in case you have limited internet access overseas.
Timeline Trip London
Timeline Trip’s London edition uses your phone’s GPS to help you discover some of the city’s most historically significant sites. Discover how the city has evolved, where old buildings once stood and how key landmarks have changed over the centuries. A perfect choice for history buffs, you can discover many of London’s different eras including The Tudors, the Great Fire, the Victorian Era, World War II or 21st-century London. You can even alter the transparency of historical maps to see how the city has changed over the ages.
Best Apps for Finding Events in London
DICE
Want to catch some music during your trip? DICE allows you to buy concert tickets in just a few seconds without paying booking fees. It covers gigs for major international artists as well as for more local or alternative musicians. The app also makes it easy to transfer tickets to friends and get instant refunds for sold-out shows.
Riverside London
If you’re keen to explore the River Thames, then this app is a must-have. Riverside London notifies you of events from attractions that are located by the River Thames such as the Coca Cola London Eye, Tate Modern, Tower Bridge and The View from The Shard. This will enable you to discover some of London’s most well-loved landmarks and attractions, as well as places to eat and drink.
Check out our infographic for the full list of the best London apps in 2019
