Green City Guide: London

The capital of England, aka the Big Smoke, is one of the world's most expensive cities, but also one of the most entertaining, and even a month here would not be enough to experience everything London has to offer.

Explore

Greater London's urban sprawl dominates south east England, spreading out for hundreds of square miles, but the city's main tourist areas are around zone 1 of the tube system - neighborhoods such as Westminster, Southbank and Kensington. The majority of the attractions lie north of the River Thames, but the SouthBank area is home to some of the most popular attractions, including the Tate modern and the London Eye.

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Attractions

Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, St Paul's Cathedral - London's most famous attractions are surrounded by tourists everyday, and rightly so, but once you've ticked them off your list London also has plenty of green attractions worth visiting.

Kensington Roof Gardens is a private members club, but ring in advance and if they aren't hosting a function, you can visit the Spanish, English and Tudor themed gardens 100 feet above street level, and complete with flamingos and other wildlife.

For more exotic wildlife take a trip to London Zoo in Regent's park, which is home to a large range of wildlife, and like most zoos, also runs numerous conservation programs to help protect animals in the wild. To see wildlife in more natural surroundings, however, take a trip out to the London Wetlands Center. The 43 Hectare site on the banks of the River Thames is the best place in London to see a wide variety of birdlife.

One of London's most popular attractions, Madam Tussauds waxworks, has also gone a little greener recently. Their new waxwork of Prince Charles was created using natural materials such as clay and beeswax, and artists working on the model also cycled to work.

Like most major cities, London has a plethora of sightseeing bus tours available, but for a greener way to explore the city join a walking or kayaking tour. The London Walks company runs ghost tours, Jack the Ripper tours and even a Thames pub walk. Alternatively, the London Canoe Company hires kayaks and runs guided trips along London's canals, which run right into the heart of London city. One of the most routes travels down Regent's Canal from Little Venice to Islington, via Camden - home of the famous Camden Markets.

Shopping

Eco-friendly fashion has creeped into London's busiest shopping area - Oxford Street, in the form of a People Tree organic clothing concession stand in TopShop; but a wider variety of organic and fairtrade fashion can be found around London's markets. Braintree Hemp in Camden Market specializes in hemp fabric clothing and Spitalfield Market is also a top spot for picking up unique, organic tees from designers such as LogLike. Both markets are also a great place to browse through hundreds of second hand and vintage clothes.

Other eco-stores include Equa in Islington - a store dedicated to Fair trade and organic fashion; and Welsh designers Howies run a store in Carnaby Street, which sells eco-friendly gifts and gadgets as well as their range of organic skate and biker clothes.

Food and Drink

London, and especially areas such as the West End and Covent Garden, has several organic supermarkets that sell a wide variety of organic food and drink and locally produced vegetables and meat. The Natural Kitchen on Marylebone Street for instance houses an organic butcher, deli, cafe and even runs organic food cookery lessons. Planet Organic has three stores In Fulham, Westminster and Russell Square, each selling fresh organic produce and take away food, and US phenomenon Whole Foods Market has a branch on Kensignton High Street.

Diners searching for organic meals out also have plenty of choice. The restaurant chain Pizza Organic has three outlets in London which, as you'd expect from the name, serve organic pizzas and pastas. Surfers can grab an organic or Fairtrade coffe at the LCB surfstore cafe in Brick Lane, and Quiet Revolution, a small organic cafe near Regent's Park serves some great light meals and organic cakes.

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Green Accommodation

Eco-friendly Budget

Palmer's Lodge An elegant hostel in a converted Victorian mansion and packed with character. The mixed dorm also features double bunks with their own curtains and lights. Book at Hostelworld

Ace Hotel Kensington A smart hostel complete with its own garden, hot tub and games room, and in one of London's trendiest neighborhoods. Book at Hostelworld

Meininger Hostel A Four star hostel in South Kensington with a rooftop terrace, large, clean dorm rooms and they even throw in a free London walking tour for guests Book at Hostelworld

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Going Green

The introduction of the traffic congestion charge in central London has helped the city become far more cycle friendly, and the introduction of fuel cell buses and a new clean air zone - which will penalize heavy polluting vehicles should help improve air quality even further.

London also boasts a wealth of parkland, the most popular of which are Regent's Park, which is home to London zoo, a few organic cafes and an impressive arboretum; and Hyde park, site of the famous Speaker's Corner and the Princess Diana Memorial.

Dozens of other parks and gardens, including roof gardens, are scattered across the city - and each year a garden open day takes place in June, where visitors can explore gardens usually closed to members of the public; and in September the annual traffic free day takes place, turning the city into a cycle haven for the day.

Other eco-friendly events can be found in the alternative London paper 'Green Events'

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Nightlife

There's no shortage of choice when it comes to London's nightlife, and if you're after a green night out there are several options. The Bunker Bar in Convent Garden is one of London's few micro breweries, and brews German style bier, including organic lager.

The Duke of Cambridge in Islington claims the title of London's first ever organic pub, and serves organic beers, spirits and wine as well as seasonal food. And finally The Engineer pub, close to London zoo, also serves organic food and drink.

Music

Few cities in the world have a music scene as diverse as London, and you'll easily be able to find live music on every night of the week. Venues to look out for include the Scala, near King's Cross Station, the Islington Academy, the KoKo in Camden, and for a touch of jazz, the Blue Note in Hoxton Square.

London has it's fair share of music festivals too, including the O2 Wireless music festival in Hyde Park, the Notting Hill Carnival and the Metro Weekender held on August bank holiday.

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Getting Around

	An all day ticket for around $12 will get you around London's tube and bus system during off peak hours, underground trains run until about 2am
	Become a member of OYbikes and you can use a bike for free for trips less less than half an hour long. OYbikes are docked at sites such as tube stations and hotels, although few sites are in central London yet, alternatively bikes can be hired from London Bicycle near Waterloo.
	Rickshaws also pedal customers around Covent Garden for a small charge, but if you're traveling a longer distance try Green Tomato taxi cabs. The cab firm uses Toyota Prius hybrids and carbon offset trips.
	Several boat tours run on the River Thames, but London's greenest boat trip is the Serpentine Solar Shuttle in Hyde Park. The 42 passenger solar boat travels at a leisurly pace between the north and south banks of the Serpentine Lake.

Getting There

The highspeed Eurostar trains travel from Paris and Brussels to London St Pancras and is one of the greenest ways to get to London. The trains are carbon neutral, serve organic food and use biodegradable plates and cutlery.

Heathrow and Gatwick airports are London's two main international airports. Gatwick connects to Victoria Station by rail, and Heathrow is connected by the tube - Heathrow will soon also be home to eco-friendly, driverless train pods, which will shuttle passengers from the carparks to the terminals. Stansted and Luton airports also connect London to Europe with numerous cheap carriers. London is connected to the rest of the UK by rail, but also check out Mega Bus and National Express for cheap coach fares.

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