One of the best things about Oxford is its location: removed from any loud cities, but only an hour and a half bus ride to London. This makes it possible for my friends and I to take spontaneous day trips to London (when our work loads allow, of course). A few weekends ago a friend and I decided to escape the Oxford bubble for a bit and head to London to spend the day bookshop-hopping and sightseeing. Here are some of the bookshops we visited:
Hatchards
What’s a London bookshop crawl without a visit to Hatchards, London’s oldest bookshop? Hatchards was established in 1797, meaning that it has been located at 187 Piccadilly for over two centuries. The highlight of this shop is definitely the seemingly endless staircase that spirals both up and down from the first floor, making it feel like the shop goes on forever and ever.
Waterstones
The thing I really appreciate about the Waterstones chain is that each location feels vaguely familiar yet still unique. I’ve been in several Waterstones already (the one in Oxford center is fabulous) yet the Waterstones we visited in London nevertheless had its own charm that drew me in. I loved the winding way it was built as well as the little art gallery we found on one of the lower floors. You never know what you’ll find in a Waterstones!
Daunt Books
I think Daunt Books was my favorite stop of the day. Not only is it an adorable bookshop–I love the color of the walls, and those lights!–but the books are also organized by country, which is really interesting. I also love how deceivingly big it is on the inside (quite like the TARDIS?!).
Here’s the real surprise of the day: I managed to not buy any books! (As someone who has to think about luggage capacity for flying back home, this was a miracle.) I can’t wait to go back to London within the next few months and explore even more lovely bookshops!
Click here to check out other posts in my Holly Goes Abroad series!
Have you ever been to any of these bookshops? What’s your favorite bookshop (in London or otherwise)? Let me know in the comments section below!
Yours,
HOLLY
nut free nerd 
Leave a Reply