One of the world’s biggest celebrations, Notting Hill Carnival returns to the streets of West London in 2022 for the first time since 2019. For two years, festivities have been strictly virtual, but now it’s time to be back on the road to see the colorful world of Mas, Soca, Calypso, sound systems and so much more in splendid real life. This colorful street festival celebrating Caribbean culture is Europe’s largest street party, with a parade route through several neighborhoods in West London. It’s held every year on August Bank Holiday Weekend, so take the Tube to Westbourne Park or Notting Hill Gate then walk to the parade area.

You can choose to stand and watch the floats with steel bands, DJs, and hordes of dancers roll by, or you can follow a float if you like their style. Jerk chicken and other Caribbean dishes are widely available from food trucks dotted all along the parade routes. Millions of people enjoy the carnival each year, with the main parade on the Monday, and Sunday generally considered the family day. To sum up, it is Notting Hill Carnival which is one of the best stuff going on in summer in London.

Address: Notting Hill, West London, UK

Opening hours: August Bank Holiday Weekend from 9 am to 10 pm

Phone: +44 (0)20 7341 5147

Price: Free

Website: nhcarnival.org

Google rating: 4.8/5.0

Hyde Park is a Grade I-listed major park in Central London. The Hyde Park is London’s biggest park and, in the summertime, it becomes the de facto hangout spot for Londoners. Friends and families come here to throw a frisbee and have a picnic while enjoying the nice weather. In the late 20th century, the park was known for holding large-scale free rock music concerts, featuring groups such as Pink Floyd, The Rolling Stones and Queen. Major events in the park have continued into the 21st century, such as Live 8 in 2005, and the annual Hyde Park Winter Wonderland from 2007.

Set right in the heart of London, the Hyde Park offers both world-class events and concerts together with plenty of quiet places to relax and unwind. Along with large summer music festivals like British Summer Time, you can enjoy more casual events like big screens showing the summer’s sporting events, film screenings and pop-up food festivals

Address: Hyde Park, London W2 2UH, UK

Opening hours: Daily from 5 am to Midnight

Phone: +44 300 061 2000

Price: Free

Website: www.royalparks.org.uk

Google rating: 5.0/5.0

Open-air cinema screenings are becoming a steadfast summer favorite - here are some of the movies being shown in the great outdoors across London this summer. Screening classic films under the stars in some of the country’s most stunning settings, The Luna Cinema has a program of events running through to the end of the summer. Upcoming highlights in the capital include Zoolander, which will be screened on the roof of the One New Change shopping center, with its breathtaking views of St Paul’s Cathedral, on Sunday 31st July.

Watching a classic movie on location gives an added poignancy to the story that unfolds. Imagine watching Jaws on a dinghy on a lake or a classic horror movie in a cemetery (don’t worry, not all the options are so frightening). Throughout the summer in London, you’ll find a host of outdoor cinema screenings, in places such as Trafalgar Square, Hyde Park, a ferry on Thames River and many rooftops throughout the capital. You can find out more about these pop-up events online. It is certainly one of the best stuff going on in summer in London.

Address: Lakeside Drive, Park Royal, London‎

Opening hours: 10:00 AM – 5:00 PM daily

Phone: +44 20 3811 2360

Price: £16.95-£22.95

Website: www.thelunacinema.com

Google rating: 4.5/5.0

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show, formally known as the Great Spring Show, is a garden show held for five days in May by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) in the grounds of the Royal Hospital Chelsea in Chelsea, London. Hosted by the Royal Horticultural Society, this is a gathering of the world’s finest landscape designers, who compete to build the best flower gardens. Every year sees more conceptual creations and the results are surprisingly artistic. There’s also gardening advice and presentations on anything from the power of plant healing to conservation.

Located in the grounds of Royal Hospital Chelsea, the nearest Tube station is Sloane Square. Highlights to the Chelsea Flower Show include the avant-garde show gardens designed by leading names with Floral Marquee at the centrepiece. The Show also features smaller gardens such as the Artisan and Urban Gardens. On the final day of the festival, many of the plants and flowers are sold at huge discounts, so bear that in mind if you like a bargain.

Address: Royal Hospital Chelsea, Chelsea, London, UK

Opening hours: 5 days in May from 8 am to 8 pm (5.30 pm on the final day)

Phone: +44 (0)844 995 9664

Price: Tickets for non-members start from £45

Website: www.rhs.org.uk

Google rating: 4.0/5.0

The Serpentine is a large man-made lake in Hyde Park. Although it is common to refer to the entire body of water as the Serpentine, strictly the name refers only to the eastern half of the lake. Serpentine Bridge, which marks the boundary between Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, also marks the Serpentine's western boundary; the long and narrow western half of the lake is known as the Long Water. There are many recreational facilities around the Serpentine, as well as boating on the lake itself. In 1860 the Serpentine was to be modified into a skating pond with formal edges. This scheme was not implemented. Among the landmarks near the lake is the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain.

Among other activities available on the water, there’s a swimming section known as the Lido. Roped off with buoys, it’s a lovely place to spend a summer afternoon. The water that feeds the lake comes from 3 bore holes and is tested every week, so you can be sure it’s clean. After a brisk swim you can relax on the sun loungers, have a drink in the café and take the kids to the playground. There are also rowing boats on the opposite side of the lake. All in all, swimming in the Serpentine is really one of the best stuff going on in summer in London.

Address: The Serpentine, Hyde Park, London W2 2UH, UK

Opening hours: June – September, daily from 10 am to 6 pm

Phone: +44 (0)20 7706 3422

Price: £4.80 for adults and £1.80 for children

Website: www.serpentinegalleries.org

Google rating: 4.8/5.0

Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is an open-air theatre in Regent's Park in central London. Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is one of the largest theatres in London (1,256 seats) and is situated in Queen Mary’s Gardens in Regent’s Park, one of London’s Royal Parks. The theatre’s annual 18-week season is attended by over 140,000 people each year. In 2017, the theatre was named London Theatre of the Year in The Stage Awards, and received the Highly Commended Award for London Theatre of the Year in 2021.

Watching outdoor theatre is a popular evening activity in London in the summer. There’s a total of 5 plays performed throughout the summer, one every evening, ranging from opera to Shakespeare to children’s theatre. The award-winning Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is also a London landmark – a firm fixture of summer in the city, providing a cultural hub in the beautiful surroundings of a Royal Park. The wonderfully unpredictable nature of outdoor theatre makes each visit here extraordinary and thrilling. The exact itinerary and tickets can be found online. The Open Air Theatre is in Regent’s Park, which has its own Tube station.

Address: Regent’s Park, Inner Cir, London NW1 4NU, UK

Opening hours: Performances are daily from 7.15 pm (weekly matinees from 2.15 pm)

Phone: +44 (0)844 826 4242

Price: Tickets start from £23 for adults and £11.50 for children

Website: openairtheatre.com

Google rating: 4.6/5.0

The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hall in central London. This year’s eight-week celebration will feature 84 concerts, with 73 of these taking place in the spectacular auditorium. The season will feature large-scale repertoire not heard at the festival since 2019, plus the return of international orchestras including the newly-formed Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra. The festival also marks the centenary of the BBC with partnerships with beloved BBC brands.

Prom is short for promenade concert, a term which originally referred to outdoor concerts in London's pleasure gardens, where the audience was free to stroll around while the orchestra was playing. Running for 8 weeks throughout the summer, the annual Proms season focuses on classical music in a variety of venues throughout London. Prices are kept reasonable for most of the shows, which range from classical concertos played by the world’s finest orchestras to tunes from the musicals and even world music from as far afield as Africa and the Caribbean. And the largest events are held in the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington. It promises to be one of the best stuff going on in summer in London.

Address: Royal Albert Hall, Imperial College Rd, Kensington, London SW7 2AP, UK

Opening hours: Events take place every weekend from July to September

Phone: +44 (0)20 7589 8212

Website: www.bbc.co.uk

Google rating: N.A/5.0

The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. Wimbledon is one of the four Grand Slam tennis tournaments, the others being the Australian Open, the French Open, and the US Open. Wimbledon is the only major still played on grass, the traditional tennis playing surface. Also, it is the only Grand Slam that does not conduct night matches, imposing a night curfew instead.

A day out watching tennis at Wimbledon is more than just watching tennis – the sporting aspect is just part of it. Other festive events surrounding The Championships recreate a kind of garden party. You can enjoy a glass of Pimms, eat the traditional strawberries and cream, and hang out admiring the well-dressed crowds. The grass courts and strict dress code give Wimbledon a classic vibe. Tickets for Centre Court are like gold dust, with people applying months in advance, but it’s usually easier to get tickets to watch tennis on the smaller courts. To get to Wimbledon, take the Tube to Wimbledon Park.

Address: Church Rd, Wimbledon, London SW19 5AE, UK

Opening hours: 12 days in July from midday to 6 pm

Phone: +44 20 8944 1066

Price: Tickets start from £25

Website: www.wimbledon.com

Google rating: 4.5/5.0

In summer, the royal palace opens its doors to the public. You can wander through 19 State Rooms and the grandiose garden between July and October. Central pieces in the Buckingham Palace State Rooms tour include the White Drawing Room, Music Room, Throne Room, and the magnificent Ballroom.

The iconic red and gold Throne Room, with its dramatic red draping’s and two red thrones, is a must-see in the royal palace. This room displays the chairs made for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and King George IV. Queen Victoria’s throne chair from 1837 is also on display. You can also visit The Palace Garden, it is a 16-hectare park that includes a summer house, a rose garden, and the palace tennis court. It is the largest private garden in London and a favorite venue for the queen’s annual garden parties. The lake that runs through the garden was originally from the overflow of the Serpentine Lake but is now a central piece that has an ecosystem of its own.

Address: Buckingham Palace, Buckingham Gate, London, SW1A 1AA

Opening hours: July – August (9.30a.m.-19.30p.m.); September – October (9.30a.m.-18.30.m.)

Phone: +44 303 123 7300

Price: Tickets Adult: £30.00, Young Person (18-24): £19.50, Child (5-17) & Disabled: £16.50, Under 5: Free

Website: www.rct.uk

Google rating: 4.8/5.0

Another colorful garden to visit in London is the Mayfield Lavender Farm. Here you can frolic in the sea of fragrant smells of fresh purple lavender at this flower farm in Banstead, Surrey. This is just 20 km (13 miles) from Central London, but very much worth the visit. So, get your best frock and straw hat out and get ready to be gone with the wind fabulous! This is really one of the best stuff going on in summer in London.

The purple buds start to appear in June and art is in full bloom from July to August. There are hundreds of visitors during this time, so a weekday trip is best to avoid crowds. Visitors can eat some lavender-infused treats at the Mayfield open-air cafe before taking a tractor ride through the blooming farm. From the ride, you’ll be able to see three varieties of lavender along with butterflies and bees enjoying the view. When you’re done, take a bit of the farm home with you by visiting the gift shop. Here you can find lavender liqueurs, treats, gifts and aromatherapy oils. You can also buy seeds from their nursery to start your own fragrant lavender fields at home.

Address: 1 Carshalton Rd, Banstead SM7 3JA, UK

Opening hours: 7 days per week from 9am to 6pm (from June 11th to August 31st)

Phone: +44 (0) 7503 877707

Price: Entry is £4.50 per person. FREE entry for Children 14 years and under

Website: www.mayfieldlavender.com

Google rating: 4.0/5.0