I’ve been living as a digital nomad for four months now, and my latest destination was London.
I’ve never been to London before, but I have always been in love with it. Living there for a month was a dream come true, and I loved every second of it.
While in London I got the chance to explore so many things! I had a lot of free time from my job, so I got even more days to go out and explore this beautiful city. I went to four different plays, I spent many days reading and writing in cute cafes and parks, and, of course, I visited so many bookshops!
London is a city that’s full of bookshops. I’m not kidding, there are independent bookstores everywhere. It was an extraordinary experience to walk around and find these hidden gems.
So today I’m sharing some of my favorite bookshops in London!
Waterstones
203-206 Piccadilly, St. James’s, London W1J 9HD, United Kingdom
I visited Waterstones at least five times while I was in London. This bookshop is just stunning!
I went there on my very first day in the city. I had two hours of sleep on me, I was exhausted from the flight from Portugal to the UK, but I still decided to go out and explore the city. The first place I went was Waterstones, and I loved it!
This bookshop is HUGE! It had like five different floors, and a variety of books so vast it was breathtaking. It really is a dream for all book lovers. During my stay in London, I visited this bookshop so many times because of how much I loved it.
Waterstones is probably the most popular bookshop in London. It’s like the UK’s equivalent to Barnes and Noble. You’ll find all types of books here, from fiction novels to nonfiction, and even audiobooks!
Plus, there are multiple Waterstones all over the city. I visited at least three different Waterstones, but the one in Piccadilly was my favorite.
Hatchards
187 Piccadilly, St. James’s, London W1J 9LE, United Kingdom
Hatchards is just down the street from Waterstones at Piccadilly, so I visited these two shops together.
Hatchards is another bookshop that’s absolutely massive and has many books to offer. This one was around four floors high and had a wide variety of titles from all topics.
What I liked the most about this bookshop is how entirely English it felt. You know, fancy and sophisticated without feeling dated. It was absolutely beautiful.
The shop even had sofas near windows so you could sit down with a book and have a nice read. There was a café on the top floor, which offered a nice variety of drinks and pastries.
Gay’s the Word
66 Marchmont St, London WC1N 1AB, United Kingdom
Gay’s the Word was a nice surprise and an absolutely new concept when it comes to bookshops. I read about this bookshop online and immediately added it to my list of bookshops to visit.
Gay’s the Word is a bookshop that sells LGBTQ+ books exclusively. They’re a community-center shop, that sells all types of queer fiction and nonfiction books. It also hosts events all the time.
Even though the shop was rather small, the whole atmosphere felt very warm and cozy. The people were welcoming and gave fantastic book recommendations.
Being in this bookshop made me feel happy and I loved everything about it.
Daunt Books
84 Marylebone High St, London W1U 4QW, United Kingdom
Daunt Books is another classic bookshop in London. I’m pretty sure there are multiple locations, but the one I visited (and the most famous one) is the one in Marylebone.
Daunt Books is a beautiful shop. It only has two floors, but the space is actually pretty big. The main floor is where all the novels and some nonfiction is. There’s also a whole area with children’s books that had a wide selection of topics.
Daunt Books was so aesthetic, I took so many photos. Everything about it was elegant and breathtaking.
Foyles
107 Charing Cross Rd, London WC2H 0DT, United Kingdom
When I first visited Foyles, I was not expecting it to be as big as it was. This bookshop was absolutely massive!
It was at least six floors high, the top one being a nice café and restaurant. Foyles had every book you could ever think about. Looking for some obscure tome on how magic was used in ancient Greece? Foyles probably has it. That’s how good their inventory was!
Foyles also had other things, not just books. They had a whole floor dedicated to music and movies, which was a nice change.
I can’t count the number of hours I spent wandering the hallways of this bookshop. I had to resist the urge of purchasing so many books, because every bookshelf had one I wanted to read.
There are multiple stores all over London, but the headquarters is in Charing Cross. This location is amazing because it is close to many theaters, shops, and parks in central London.
The Notting Hill Bookshop
13 Blenheim Cres, London W11 2EE, United Kingdom
Remember that one movie from 1999 starring Julia Roberts? Well, that bookshop actually exists and it is an absolute treasure!
The Notting Hill Bookshop was the last bookshop I visited while in London. It was a little bit farther away from the Airbnb I was staying at, which is why it took me so long to visit it.
This bookshop was so beautiful, I loved it. The space is rather small and it can get crowded during the weekends, so I recommend you visit during the week to avoid cramped spaces.
Other than that, the store was absolutely magical. They offered a lot of titles, mostly novels, though their stock wasn’t too big. Still, you’ll find some literary treasures there and enjoy the cinematographical experience of visiting this gorgeous bookshop.
Have you been to London? What bookshop have you visited or are looking forward to visiting?
I loved all of them! There are so many bookshops in London, I wish I could have visited them all!
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