Wimbledon

Wimbledon, the oldest tennis tournament in the world, has been held at the All England Club since 1877. For two weeks every summer, hundreds of players and thousands of spectators descend on the venue, southwest of London. Traditions abound in the open-air courts; participants play on grass, the game’s original surface, and spectators can buy a conventional snack of strawberries and cream. It was here that legendary tennis player Martina Navratilova won six consecutive singles titles between 1982 and 1987 (she would later rack up three more, solidifying a tournament record). And, in 2010, Wimbledon saw the longest match in tennis history: 183 games over three days and 11 hours between American John Isner and Frenchman Nicolas Mahut.

The Proms

Short for Promenade concert, is a classical music festival in Royal Albert Hall, located in South Kensington. The musical series was started by Robert Newman, who organized orchestra concerts as manager of the Queen’s Hall in the late 19th century. His goal was to reach a broader audience through a more casual, low-priced atmosphere. Almost 120 years later, visitors can gain entry to any of the 92 concerts held between July and September for just £5 (roughly $8). The hall’s central arena can fit 900 standing visitors, and its gallery can seat 500. Conductors lead orchestras through music by Beethoven, Wagner, Bruckner and even Hollywood film scores. This year, Marin Alsop will be the first-ever female conductor to direct the “Last Night of the Proms,” the series’ grand finale.

The Notting Hill Carnival

This is an early 19th-century Caribbean-inspired street festival held during the bank holiday weekend in August. The event began in 1964 as a way for Afro-Caribbean communities to celebrate their cultures and traditions in the face of poor race relations in London at the time. Today, costumed participants march through the streets playing steel drums and live bands perform on stages along the route. The aroma of traditional Caribbean food—jerk chicken, fried plantains and curried rice and peas—is heavy in the air, and the rum punch flows all weekend.

London Fashion Week

LFW is a trade show held twice a year in February and September, draws in 5,000 visitors, including designers, reporters and celebrities. The affair usually consists of more than 80 fashion shows, each running on-average 10 minutes, over a five-day span. Designers debut their latest collections, offering buyers and the media a look at what’s going to be “in” for the upcoming season. Experts say the designers who show their collections in London are often newer and edgier than those at the event’s Milanese, Parisian and New York counterparts. Tickets for runway shows are not available for the general public, but fashion fans can stake out shows to catch a glimpse of the designers and models or explore free fashion showcases throughout the city.

London film festival

Held each year during the second half of October, the London Film Festival features the best films of the summer’s international film circuit. Take your pick of more than 300 films, documentaries and shorts from around the world. Last year’s festival showed 338 short and feature films from 57 countries. Awards are presented to the best film and documentary, the most original film and the best of new British talent. The festival also hosts workshops and Q&As with filmmakers and actors and screenings of restored classics.