London, United Kingdom
London Cats
From Larry the Chief Mouser at Downing Street to Lady Dinah’s (London’s first cat café), the Gayer-Anderson cat at the British Museum, Kaspar at the Savoy, and more — London’s feline landmarks span the city.
Before you go
- You cannot tour 10 Downing Street casually — Larry sightings are luck from outside the gate.
- Lady Dinah’s requires advance booking; the café moved from Bethnal Green to Greenwich in 2026.
- The British Museum’s Gayer-Anderson cat is in Room 4, not a separate “Egypt Hall” floor label.
- Kaspar’s wooden statue serves tables of thirteen; it is often in the Front Hall lobby but moves for dinner duty — sightings not guaranteed.
About London Cats
London’s cat highlights are spread across the city — plan a Tube day rather than one walk.
The best-known living cat is Larry, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office at 10 Downing Street since 2011. You cannot enter Downing Street, but he is sometimes visible from the Whitehall security gate or in press photos. The unofficial @Number10cat account is hugely popular.
At the Tower of London, Yeoman Warder Emma Rousell’s black cat Nyxie (“Queen of the Pawtress”) sometimes roams the grounds. Entry ticket required — sightings not guaranteed.
Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium opened in Bethnal Green in 2014 as London’s first cat café. After the original site closed in 2025 it reopened in Greenwich (King William Walk). Reservation-only, with rescue cats.
Indoors, the British Museum’s Gayer-Anderson cat — a Late Period bronze of the goddess Bastet — is a star of Room 4 (Egyptian sculpture gallery). The Savoy Hotel keeps the wooden “14th guest” Kaspar (1926, Basil Ionides) for parties of thirteen; when not on dinner duty the statue is often in the Front Hall lobby.
Outdoors, find Samuel Johnson’s cat Hodge as a bronze in Gough Square — the statue stands in the square while Dr Johnson’s House (17 Gough Square, now a museum) faces it from the opposite side; the statue is free to view year-round. Also nurse campaigner Patricia Penn’s cat Sam on a wall in Queen Square Gardens, and Dick Whittington’s cat on the Whittington Stone at Highgate Hill.
Respect security lines, museum rules, and café booking policies.
London Walking Map
Open in Google MapsEight stops — Larry, Nyxie, Lady Dinah’s, the British Museum, the Savoy, Hodge, Sam, and the Whittington Stone. Use the Tube. Downing Street, the Tower, and the cat café each have access limits. Locations are approximate.
London Spot Guide
How to get to London Cats
Fly into Heathrow (LHR), Gatwick (LGW), or other London airports, then continue by train, Tube, bus, or taxi into central London.
London is spread out — the stops below are grouped by area. Use the Tube between clusters (not one long walk).
[A] Westminster & City
· Larry — Whitehall gate only (you cannot enter Number 10). Nearest: Westminster.
· Kaspar — Savoy Hotel, Strand. Nearest: Embankment / Charing Cross.
· Hodge statue — Gough Square (free outdoors). Dr Johnson’s House museum faces the square from the opposite side. Nearest: Blackfriars / Temple / Chancery Lane.
[B] Bloomsbury
· Gayer-Anderson cat — British Museum, Room 4 (free general admission). Nearest: Tottenham Court Road / Russell Square.
· Sam statue — Queen Square Gardens. Nearest: Holborn / Russell Square.
[C] Tower Hill (east)
· Nyxie — Tower of London (ticket required; cat not guaranteed). Nearest: Tower Hill.
[D] Greenwich (southeast)
· Lady Dinah’s Cat Emporium — King William Walk (advance booking required). Nearest: Cutty Sark DLR / Greenwich.
[Optional] North
· Whittington Stone — Highgate Hill. Nearest: Archway / Highgate.
Book Lady Dinah’s at ladydinahs.com before you go.
- Reach central London by train, Tube, bus, or taxi from your airport or station.
- Whitehall area — look for Larry from the Downing Street gate (no entry to Number 10).
- British Museum Room 4 for the Gayer-Anderson cat; Queen Square for Sam’s statue.
- Book and visit Lady Dinah’s in Greenwich, or the Tower of London if you want a chance to spot Nyxie.
- Optional — Hodge (Gough Square), Kaspar tradition at the Savoy, Whittington Stone on Highgate Hill.
More Colony spots
Cape Town Cats
Cape Town, South Africa
Nardstar’s bold cat murals on Long Street and at the V&A Waterfront, street cats in the colourful Bo-Kaap, and a calm CBD pause at Company’s Garden — Cape Town’s feline side is a city walk, not a single colony.
De Poezenboot (The Catboat)
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A floating cat sanctuary on a canal boat in Amsterdam, Netherlands — rescued cats live aboard De Poezenboot (The Catboat).
Dubrovnik Cats
Dubrovnik, Croatia
A UNESCO-walled Adriatic city where community cats — locals’ “oldest citizens” — nap on warm stone, ATM ledges, and harbour edges throughout the Old Town.
Gotanjoji Cat Temple
Echizen, Japan
A Soto Zen training temple in Echizen, Fukui, where rescued cats live alongside monks — known as “Neko-dera.”
Found a cat spot you'd like to visit?
With MeowSnap, every cat you meet —
on a trip or around the corner —
becomes a pin on your own cat map.
Free to use. Give it a try.
