7 days in London in Dec with family

Old Aug 25th, 2014, 11:14 PM
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7 days in London in Dec with family

Dear all

Thanks for all your feedback and comments previously! My family and I will be visiting London in early Dec, there are 5 of us - 2 adults and 3 children (13, 11 and 6 yrs). We will be staying at an apartment near Russell Square station. Here is my draft (100th draft?) itinerary:

28 Nov, Fri - arrive in London, car service from Heathrow to London (although it's a straight shot on the Piccadilly line, I'm not sure I want to wrestle with logistics, kids and bags after a 14-hr flight!)

29 Nov, Sat - Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, London Eye, Piccadily Circus, Trafalgar Square area

30 Nov, Sun - Tower of London, Oxford Street??

1 Dec, Mon - Manchester Day Trip (Old Trafford)

2 Dec, Tue - Shopping, Hyde Park, afternoon tea, catch a show?

>>any suggestions for nice afternoon tea near Mayfair/Oxford St?)

3 Dec, Wed - Hampton Court OR Greenwich (gonna let the kids choose one)

4 Dec, Thu - Stonehenge & Oxford (tour)

5 Dec, Fri - Natural History Museum, Harrods + British Museum (late opening) (and just near our apartment!)

6 Dec, Sat - Eurostar from London - Paris (11 + am train)

Any feedback on the itinerary is most welcome. I wonder if I should also drop Stonehenge? It seems really far although I would really like to see it..just wonder if it's worth a day out from London itself with all it has!

thanks!
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Old Aug 25th, 2014, 11:42 PM
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I would drop Stonehenge,, its a long drive and expensive on a tour .. and it will likely be cool and rainy. and you just walk around the stones( you can't get anywhere near now) .. with kids I would not do it..
Hampton Court might be a better choice,, kids will enjoy the castle kitchen and the way the staff dress in period outfits..

Actually its tough.. I have only visited London once in winter and I have to say the cold wet weather did influence a lot of my touring.. whileas my other 4 visits were in summer months and walking around gardens, palace grounds, etc is much nicer then.. When we took my 13 yr old to Warwick Castle he loved it. but during off season I bet they don't do the outside jousting shows and catapault demonstrations etc.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 02:05 AM
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With the weather you have to chop and change your plans, if you monitor bbc.co.uk you can get local area weather forecasts by the hour/day/week.

Harrods is basically a waste of time unless you want to go look at where the fool is hiding in the Ecuadorian Embassy, if you want to visit somewhere like this but worth your time try either Hamleys or Fortnum and Masons
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 03:30 AM
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I would hesitate to visit two museums in one day. For shopping, consider one of the markets.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 04:12 AM
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Manchester seems a long way for a day trip!
Does it have to be Old Trafford - I think some of London grounds do tours or even better see a match

Both Oxford and Salisbury (Stonehenge) are easily accessible by train or coach so you don't need to book a tour and best not to try and both on same day. I think Old Sarum is more interesting than Stonehenge itself and is visited by the Stonehenge bus http://www.thestonehengetour.info/

Science museum is close to Natural History museum, lot of child interest and is easier combination than British Museum
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 04:55 AM
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Thanks. The British museum is right by our apartment so we will play it by ear on that day, plus it opens late on Fridays! Thanks for the tip about science museum as well! Will check it out if we are not too museumed-out after the Nhm.

And yes, it has to be Old Trafford........
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 05:28 AM
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Also consider the Victoria and Albert Museum, just across the street from the NHM. It has something for everyone, and is my favorite rainy day retreat in London. It also has a gorgeous tea room.

I will be in London Dec 6 to 10, and am not planning any significant outside activities - have to check out the Christmas decorations, but I can do that on the top deck of a bus (see tfl.gov.uk for bus maps). You might also take a look at the skating rink at Somerset House.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 07:53 AM
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Never will understand why someone would fly over an ocean and go an additional four hours out of their way to see a bloody stadium and (1) I'm a fan of the most successful and important franchise in American sports, (2) I've been to the Bernabeu, one of the most important football venues in Europe.

What's Oxford Street - for shopping? If you're going to be thisclose to Russell Sq, you'll be close to Tottenham Court Road and plenty of shops. Oxford Street tends to have a LOT of chains. And with the dollar in the tank (assuming you're American or Canadian), UK is not the place to buy.

If the hubby wants man stuff, he should go to Jermyn Street. It's close to Pic Circus. Fortnum & Mason's food hall is on Jermyn Street, which eliminates your "need" to go to Harrod's.

If you want woman stuff, there are boutiques in the same area. And Oxford Street is more convenient to your Pic Circus day not your Tower day (Regent Street runs from Pic Circus to Oxford Circus; the latter is where it meets Oxford Street). And if you want to ditch the kids in a toy store, Hamley's is on Regent Street.

You can do the Tower and St Paul's in a day.

Because there are at least two of you who will have to pay admissions, look into the 2for1 offers for London on www.daysoutguide.co.uk. The Tower is available and the savings is large, especially for folks budgeting for three hobbits. I've set out instructions on how to cash in on the offers in previous posts - check for my name.

If either the 13 or the 11 is a boy, go to the Churchill War Rooms.

Hampton Court Palace, Tower, Churchill War Rooms are all on the 2for1 offers.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 08:02 AM
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Check out www.walks.com for affordable day trips and walks in London.

We avoid Oxford Street like the plague, especially on weekends! There are shops all over London carrying the same brands as Oxford Street with way less crowds!

Hampton Court Palace will likely be more interesting for the kids. Especially if you check the schedule on their website for special events.

I would also do the Tower on a weekday rather thAn the weekend and go first thing in the morning. Hit the Crown Jewels first to avoid all the lines then circle back to the entrance and pick up a free beefeater tour.

Check www.afternoontea.co.uk for team ideas.

Have fun!
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 08:04 AM
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I don't see Covent Garden on your list but there is lots of shopping around there and the kids will probably like the street performers. It is a short walk from Trafalgar Square.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 10:33 AM
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Seven days is a nice amount of time to see some of what London has to offer. I believe it would be a huge waste of time and resources to spend any of your week going farther than Hampton Court Palace, just out of town.

While not a huge fan of spending loads of time in museums, especially with your children, there are a number I think everyone would enjoy, especially some smaller ones. Here's a list of museums in London:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_museums_in_London

Two come to mind that I think your children would enjoy. The Geffrye has reconstructions from different eras showing how real people lived. There were a number of children there the day I visited and they seemed to be fascinated, I suspect by the rooms that they could imagine having lived in. http://www.geffrye-museum.org.uk/

Dennis Severs House is a whole house, possibly not absolutely authentic, but sensationally atmospheric and I think your children would love it: http://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/

Look beyond "the usual" and I think you'll find you won't have the time or desire to leave London in the few days you have to enjoy it.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 01:02 PM
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Another vote for Covent Garden over Oxford St, depending on what you want to look at in the shops. Tottenham Court Road is mostly furniture and electronics shops, and the eastern end of Oxford St where it joins TCR is the more downmarket end (and made even more unattractive by the works for the new Crossrail station there): the more upmarket shops are west of Oxford Circus.

Covent Garden/Seven Dials has a collection of much smaller, often independent and more arty shops, with plenty of street entertainment.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 01:06 PM
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you've missed out Liberty's - an iconic department store at the to of Regent street and lovely for a bit of browsing and buying scarves as souvenirs.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 01:09 PM
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The main museums I recommend for kids: The London Transport Museum for sure, the Natural History museum - especially of they are into dinosaurs and such, the Science Museum -- right next door to the Natural History, the British Museum - mummies(!) , the Museum of Childhood - out in Bethnal Green but a straight shot from Holborn tube station near where you are staying.

But most every museum has something for kids - and many have guides geared to children.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 01:34 PM
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>>any suggestions for nice afternoon tea near Mayfair/Oxford St?)

Fortnum & Mason's on Piccadilly Street.
Richoux Tea Shop on South Audley Street just off Oxford at the Selfridge's end.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 01:50 PM
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How about some kid stuff - like the popular London Dungeon, one of the top top paying tourist attractions in London and a favorite of British families - six year old may be too young but the older ones will love it - may son at that age did. Adults too may like it. Well something just for the fun mixed in amongst all the cultural stuff.

http://www.thedungeons.com/london/en/
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 02:02 PM
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Wondering if PalQ gets a cut from the London Dungeon - expensive and cheesy. Yeesh.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 02:06 PM
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I was wondering why " cultural stuff" can't be fun. All the ( cultural ) suggestions are places that kids seem to love.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 02:13 PM
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Do you know that there is a big Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park? Not sure what weekend it opens. Also, last year there was an outdoor ice rink at Hampton Court. That would be fun for the kids.

Have a great time! London is colorful and lively at the Holidays.
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Old Aug 26th, 2014, 02:23 PM
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Thank you everyone for your valuable feedback! I've decided to drop the Oxford/Stonehenge day in favour of more time in London.

I will probably do Covent Garden with Tower of London. Does that make sense? For my first day I am wondering how long all that would take, considering we are mainly just walking and viewing the outsides of structures.
But I suspect we will be suffering from jetlag (I am from Singapore) so may not be able to last the whole day out. Would it be realistic to fit in Covent Garden there instead? Any recommendations for places to stop at eat along that walk?

As for Oxford Street , it's kinda like an attraction it itself to is! Haha. (Especially my girls and I) where else can we find a similar concentration of shops (high street, midpriced brands) not far from our apartment?

Thanks!
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