Canary Wharf

Canary Wharf is known first for its skyline: the cluster of glass towers that forms one of London's two financial centres, built up around the old West India Docks. That history is still visible at ground level, where the docks themselves remain, now lined with bars, restaurants and walkways rather than cargo ships. It makes for an odd but appealing mix of place - somewhere that empties out at weekends in the way office districts do, but which has spent the last few years building a case for sticking around after dark.

Most visitors are here for work, a conference, or a stay tied to the towers themselves, and the hotels around the estate put you within walking distance of everything - the docks, the shopping malls beneath the towers, and the river. West India Quay, one of the original dock basins, is the most atmospheric corner, with its warehouse buildings and water on both sides.

Beyond the office towers, there's more to do than the skyline suggests. Skuna Boats runs on the docks themselves, giving a different angle on the water and the buildings around it. Clays Bar offers indoor darts and drinks, a good option when the weather turns. And Canary Wharf as an estate is worth walking simply for the scale of it - the public art, the sunken gardens, the sheer size of the towers up close.

With over 70 restaurants listed and only a handful of attractions, Canary Wharf works best as a place to combine a specific reason to visit - a boat trip, a round of darts, a wander round West India Quay - with a proper sit-down meal by the water afterwards.