London Free Guide — free & cheap things to do in London

A London guide for people who hate overpaying. We find the free and genuinely cheap things to do in London and explain them plainly. Where there is a catch we say so.

Browse the full A–Z of 298 free London spots, the free events calendar, free day trips by train, our curated guides, and the first-time visitor guide.

Free this weekend in London

12 free things to do this weekend (6–7 Jun 2026) — The weekend edit. 12 free things happening across London on 6 and 7 June 2026, from the Trooping the Colour rehearsal to a new Serpentine Pavilion, art trails, carnivals and vintage markets.
Colonel's Review (Sat 6 Jun · 10:30am–12:25pm) — The full Trooping the Colour rehearsal. 1,400 soldiers and 400 musicians, free from The Mall, and far less crowded than the main parade on 13 June.
Serpentine Pavilion 2026 (Sat 6 + Sun 7 Jun · all day) — Opening weekend of LANZA Atelier's crinkle-crankle wall pavilion. A photogenic one-off structure that won't be here past October.
World Ocean Day (Sat 6 Jun · 11am–5pm) — Live music, a giant Greenpeace octopus, puffin puppetry and deep-sea talks. A full free festival day at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich.
Mitcham Carnival (Sun 7 Jun · 11am–6pm) — A mile-long street parade, live wrestling, the MMF Drumline and a funfair. South London's biggest community carnival, no ticket just show up.
Max in the Park (Sat 6 Jun · 12–6pm) — Unticketed closing party for a beloved local arts festival in a residential park. Includes Forest of Homes, a participatory refugee art installation in the trees.
Walthamstow Art Trail (Sat 6 + Sun 7 Jun · all weekend) — 200+ artists open their homes, studios, pubs and gardens. Not galleries, people's actual front rooms and back gardens. 20th anniversary opening weekend.
So Last Century vintage (Sun 7 Jun · 10:30am–5pm) — Curated French brocante, vintage and 1950s art in the beautiful gardens of Dulwich Picture Gallery, with live New Orleans jazz. One of the best market settings in London.
Capital Antique Market (Sat 6 Jun · 10am–3pm) — Brand-new mid-century furniture and vintage market launching inside a local school on weekends. Independent traders, no commission fees, free on launch day.
Little Holland House (Sun 7 Jun · 11am–5pm) — Free access to a Grade II listed Arts and Crafts home built and decorated entirely by hand by one man. One of London's most extraordinary hidden gems.
Kyotographie at Japan House (Sat 6 + Sun 7 Jun · 10am–6pm) — Opening week of the Kyoto Photography Festival's London outpost. Kawada Kikuji's post-Hiroshima Japan paired with the contemporary work of Iwane Ai.
Royal Docks Iron Works tour (Sat 6 Jun only) — Guided tour reframing East London's industrial riverfront as evolving cultural heritage. The London Festival of Architecture's most unusual venue this year.
Peckham Levels (Sun 7 Jun · 12pm + evening) — Sunday Brush Club open art session 12 to 5pm, then Free Delivery stand-up comedy in the evening. All inside a converted multi-storey car park.
Museum of the Home (Sat 16 + Sun 17 May) — London Craft Week takeover with 25+ makers, live demos and a film about Britain's most endangered craft.
Sandwich goes medieval + French (13–14 Jun 2026) — A free day trip to Sandwich in Kent. For one weekend the old medieval town fills with clashing knights, a proper French market straight off the Normandy boat and artists painting in the streets. Free entry all weekend, just turn up.
Knights, archery + a mead tavern (Sat 13 + Sun 14 Jun · 10am–4pm) — Knights clash on the green, have-a-go archery and axe throwing, and a tavern pouring local mead. The medieval camp is the heart of the weekend.
A proper French market (Sat 13 + Sun 14 Jun · all day) — Normandy stalls cross the Channel with cheese, pastries and soaps, plus live French music down Market Street. Bring cash for the cheese.
Paint the town for free (Sat 13 + Sun 14 Jun · register 9:30–11am) — Bring an easel, paint anywhere in town and show your work at the East Kent Art Society gazebo. All levels, just turn up and register.

London's free icons

British Museum — Bloomsbury. World-history collection of 8m+ objects including the Rosetta Stone and Parthenon sculptures.
National Gallery — Trafalgar Square. Western European masterpieces from Van Eyck to Van Gogh.
National Portrait Gallery — Trafalgar Square. Portraits of famous Britons across centuries, reopened 2023.
Tate Modern — Bankside. Modern and contemporary art in a former power station with a vast Turbine Hall.
Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) — South Kensington. World's leading museum of art and design, 5,000 years of objects.
Natural History Museum — South Kensington. Dinosaurs, the blue whale skeleton and 70m specimens; the UK's most-visited attraction.
Science Museum — South Kensington. Hands-on science and engineering history.
Wallace Collection — Marylebone. Old Master paintings, French furniture and armour in a townhouse.
Sir John Soane's Museum — Holborn. Architect's labyrinthine home crammed with antiquities and art.
Borough Market — Southwark. London's most famous food market, trading since the 11th century.
Columbia Road Flower Market — Bethnal Green. Sunday street market bursting with flowers and plants.
Camden Market — Camden. Sprawling alternative market of food, vintage and crafts by the canal.
Sky Garden — City of London. Three-storey indoor garden atop the Walkie-Talkie with 360 views.
Greenwich Park — Greenwich. Oldest enclosed Royal Park with gardens, deer and hilltop views.
St Dunstan in the East — City of London. Bombed-out Wren church reborn as a lush public garden among the ruins.