London: Need help with 4 day Itinerary with Autistic 7 year old/one parent

I am traveling to London in a few weeks (late July/early August) for one week, but we technically have only 4 days to sight see with two other adult friends. My son is a child with mild Autism and I will be taking his special needs buggy.

Would you mind helping me with my itinerary? Not yet in itinerary: We want to see Peter Pan @ Kensington Park/Gardens and we also have to squeeze in a dinner with friends wherever we can meet. We also want the double decker bus experience and the River cruise experience somehow -- How do we do that, where to fit in?
And the Harry Potter experience -- visiting 9 3/4 platform.Notting Hill visit, too.

My draft of the itinerary is below:

Thanks!

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London Itinerary:

Arrive: Wed, 29 July: Rest Day

Thursday 30th July: Kensington & South Kensington
Ease into that Thursday with some easy stuff: Princess Diana Memorial Playground in nearby Kensington Gdns, Play date with friends children. Picnic Lunch with kids.
-- Natural Museum of History: There is a Butterfly Garden inside, a new exhibit that has hundreds of living butterflies flying about the place, where you can touch them, walk with them, etc. Free museum, butterly: 6 quid.

FRI: St. James/Westminster
--Big Ben (just for the picture and to hear its bell)
* Westminster Abbey (but the last admission is 3:30) - across from Big Ben apparently
* London Eye (You don't have to suffer! We'll go--it's only 30 min.)
*Dali Museum
*Dinner with mates somewhere local

SAT: The City
--Tower of London
-- is it possible to have a Boat ride past London Bridge to Tate Modern?
--Tate Modern
--Trafalgar Square & Cafe in the Crypt (it's inside St Martin in the Fields at Trafalgar Sqare! A crypt!!)

SUN:
--Play date and lunch in North London
--Perhaps visit the Kings Cross station? (Platform 9 3/4)
--Piccaddilly Circus
--Trafalgar Square et al (if we had not seen it yet)

MON:
--Check out flat, taxi to Paddington, train to Wales

I don't know how long certain visits take, and there are so many places to visit.

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autism_mum_in_LA on Jul 5, 09 at 04:42 AM

We want to see the matinee of Peter Pan, which means 14:00 on Sat or Sunday.
We can switch things around for that.
Cholmondley_Warner on Jul 5, 09 at 07:28 AM

I need access to my work computer wher I have the sddresses of people who can help.

Please look in again in about 24 hours.
autism_mum_in_LA on Jul 5, 09 at 01:32 PM

Thanks..will do.
lovisa on Jul 5, 09 at 02:05 PM

As the parent of an adult with mild autism, I think you are trying to pack way too much in for it to be enjoyable for your child. The famililar with small doses of the novel works best.

First of all, prepare you child with the plan, so he knows what to expect, and there are no surprises. Show him pictures of the Tower of London, London Eye, etc.

Does your child have issues with his body in space, loud noises or crowds? The London Eye might be frightening. Try something local like the glass interior elevators in the Westin Bonaventure downtown, and see if that bothers him.

My son loves the live butterflies at the L.A. Museum of Natural History:

http://www.nhm.org/exhibitions/butterflies/

The Santa Barbara museum of natural history has a similar exhibit:

http://www.sbnature.org/exhibits/butterflies/

If he sees the butterflies in L.A., he will probably like it better in London, as repitition is not boring, but reassuring.

Be prepared for melt-downs, and be ready to sacrifice some of your itinerary.

PatrickLondon on Jul 5, 09 at 02:47 PM

Yes, there are boat rides, the Thames Clippers (which run rather more like buses) and the Circular Cruises. They all stop at Bankside (for Tate Modern), London Bridge and the Tower. The Clippers run from Embankment and Waterloo piers (by the Eye), the others from Westminster and Festival piers (outside the Festival Hall).

http://www.thamesclippers.com

http://www.westminsterpartyboats.com/WPB/sight-seeing.cfm

http://www.crownriver.com/circular-cruise.asp

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London: Need help with 4 day Itinerary with Autistic 7 year old/one parent

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