12 Best Sights in London, England

This is one of the few London houses Charles Dickens (1812–70) inhabited that is still standing, and it's the place where he wrote Oliver Twist and Nicholas Nickleby. The five-story Georgian house looks exactly as it would have in Dickens's day, complete with first editions, letters, and a tall clerk's desk (Dickens wrote standing up). Catch the once-a-month fascinating Housemaid's Tour (£15) in which you're taken back in time to 1839 by Dickens's housemaid, who reveals the private lives of the great author and his family; note that it must be booked in advance.

The bright yellow-and-pink museum (it's hard to miss) designed by Mexican architect Ricardo Legorreta features changing exhibitions devoted to developments in fashion design, textiles, and jewelry from the end of World War II to the present. Founded by designer Zandra Rhodes, and now owned by Newham College, the FTM is a favorite with anyone interested in the history of style. There are weekday fashion-based workshops and lectures on design and aspects of fashion history; the excellent gift shop sells books on fashion and one-of-a-kind pieces by local designers. After your visit, check out the many restaurants, cafés, and boutiques that have blossomed on Bermondsey Street.

The father of psychoanalysis lived here with his family for a year, between his escape from Nazi persecution in his native Vienna in 1938 and his death in 1939. His daughter Anna (herself a pioneer of child psychoanalysis) remained in the house until her own death in 1982, bequeathing it as a museum to honor her father. The centerpiece is Freud's unchanged study, containing his remarkable collection of antiquities and his library. Also on display is the family's Biedermeier furniture—and, of course, the couch. As well, there are lectures, study groups, and themed exhibitions, in addition to a psychoanalysis-related archive and research library. Looking for a unique souvenir? The gift shop here sells "Freudian Slippers." Admission is by prebooked time slot only.

This fascinating museum celebrates the lives of not one, but two musical geniuses: classical composer George Frideric Handel and rock guitar legend Jimi Hendrix. Comprising two adjoining buildings, the bulk of the museum centers on the life and works of Handel, who lived at No. 25 for more than 30 years until his death in 1759. In rooms decorated in fine Georgian style, you can linger over original manuscripts and gaze at portraits. Some of the composer's most famous pieces were created here, including Messiah and Music for the Royal Fireworks. Fast-forward 200 years or so, and the apartment on the upper floors of No. 23 housed one of rock's great innovators, Jimi Hendrix, for a short but creative period in the late 1960s. The apartment has been lovingly restored, complete with replica furniture, fixtures, and fittings from Hendrix's heyday.

Set amid 16 acres of gardens, this eclectic museum is considered something of a well-kept secret by the residents of south London—perhaps because of its out-of-the-way location. You can explore world cultures, natural history, and a fine collection of some 1,300 musical instruments (including a giant tuba) here. The emphasis is on fun and a wide range of activities (many hands-on), including London's oldest nature trail, which features domesticated creatures, such as sheep, chickens, and alpacas, a butterfly house, and an aquarium stocked with endangered species. It's also home to a comically overstuffed, taxidermied walrus who serves as the museum's unofficial mascot. It's a 15-minute bus ride from here to Dulwich Picture Gallery; Bus P4, heading toward Brixton, takes you from door to door.

This delightful museum, dedicated to the rise and fall of London's once-extensive canal network, is based in the former warehouse of ice-cream maker Carlo Gatti (hence it also partly features the ice-cream trade as well as London's canals). Children enjoy the activity zone and learning about Henrietta, the museum's horse. Outside, on the Battlebridge Basin, you'll find the painted narrow boats of modern canal dwellers—a stone's throw from the hustle and bustle of the King's Cross redevelopment. You can walk to the museum along the towpath from Camden Lock; download a free audio tour from the museum's website to accompany the route.

This quirky museum is a fascinating cabinet of curiosities that explores how advertising and marketing has pervaded our lives for the last 150 years. There's much to catch and delight the eyes, from branded toys, clothes, and spin-off TV show board games to the world's first portable gramophone and World War II–era products, such as a toilet paper roll that has Hitler's face on every sheet.

This fascinating museum tells the story of the Knights Hospitallers of St. John, from the order's 11th-century Crusader origins in Jerusalem to its present-day incarnation as the St. John Ambulance service. The museum is spread across two adjacent sites: the arched St. John's Gatehouse, which dates back to 1504, and the Priory Church with its atmospheric Norman crypt. An excellent interactive display explores the order's past, both as a military force and a religious institution that cared for sick pilgrims, and the eclectic variety of objects on display reflects that colorful history: from antique medicinal jars and medical equipment to a bronze cannon given by Henry VIII before he dissolved the order altogether. It's free of charge to visit the museum galleries and garden, but if you want to experience the historic rooms, the church, and the crypt, then you'll need to prebook your place on a guided tour.

Outside Baker Street Station, by the Marylebone Road exit, is a 9-foot-high bronze statue of Arthur Conan Doyle's celebrated detective, who "lived" around the corner at number 221B Baker Street—now a museum to all things Sherlock. Inside, Mrs. Hudson, Holmes's housekeeper, guides you into a series of Victorian rooms where the great man lived, worked, and played the violin. It's all carried off with such genuine enthusiasm and attention to detail that you could be forgiven for thinking that Mr. Holmes actually did exist.

This attraction devoted to shedding light on life in a medieval prison is built on the site of the original "Clink," the oldest of Southwark's five prisons and the reason why "the clink" is now slang for jail (the original medieval building was burned to the ground in 1780). Owned by the bishops of Winchester from 1144 to 1780, it was the first prison to detain women, many for prostitution. Because of the bishops' relaxed attitude toward the endemic trade—they decided to license prostitution rather than ban it—the area within their jurisdiction was known as "the Liberty of the Clink." Subsequent prisoners included Puritans who would later sail on the Mayflower to find more religious freedom. Inside, you'll discover how grisly a Tudor prison could be, operating on a code of cruelty, deprivation, and corruption. The prison was only a small part of Winchester Palace, a huge complex that was the bishops' London residence. You can still see the remains of the early 13th-century Great Hall, with its famous rose window, next to Southwark Cathedral.

This quirky little museum is as fascinating and varied as the uniquely prized object whose artistry it seeks to chronicle. The simple fan is more than a mere fashion accessory; historically, fans can tell as much about craftsmanship and social mores as they can about fashion. Five thousand of them make up the collection, dating from the 17th century onward, often exquisitely crafted from ivory, mother-of-pearl, and tortoiseshell. It was the personal vision of Hélène Alexander that brought this enchanting museum into being, and the workshop and conservation–study center that she has also set up ensure that this art form continues to have a future.

If you fancy something unconventional, sample this collection by U.S. pharmaceutical millionaire and philanthropist Henry Wellcome (1853–1936), which explores the connections between medicine, life, and art (some exhibits may not be suitable for younger children). Comprising an estimated 1 million items, the collection includes Napoléon's elegant silver gilt–handled toothbrush, Horatio Nelson's razor, and Charles Darwin's walking stick. There are also anatomical models, Peruvian mummies, and Japanese sex toys, as well as a fascinating permanent exhibition, "Being Human." Keep an eye out for an original Picasso in the lobby just above the entrance when you enter.