andtrev

Hi All

I have a giant wish list for touring London but I have a mobility problem and cannot spend the whole day on my feet. Instead need varied standing and sitting down activities. We initially have two full days in London on the 25th and 26th of April before the royal wedding. The first day I thought we would do the hoho bus. We then have another 5 days from the 9th of May. We are located at Kensington. Could someone please have a look at my list and help me to package it into doable days.

Hop on and off Night bus tour by London by Night Sightseeing Tour
Cruise the Thames
Westminster Abbey
Buckingham Palace
Royal Mews At Buckingham Palace
Changing of the Guards @ BP
Big Ben/Westminster Hall
Piccadily Circus
St James Palace
St Pauls Cathedral
10 Downing Street
Tower of London (and a walk across Tower Bridge) - See Lift times in favourites
London Tower Bridge (Exhibition)
London Bridge Experience and The London Tombs
Houses of Parliament
Tower of London Bridge
Harrods - particularly the food court
Fortnum and Mason
Lords Cricket Ground Tours
Kensington Palace and The Orangery
Shakespeare Globe Theatre
Jack the Ripper Night Tour
Trafalgar Square
Sherlock Holmes Pub
Nottinghill
Theatre @ Westend
Hyde Park
Hampton Court Palace
London Bridge
Portobello Road Market
Convent Gardens
Camden Market
Natural History Museum

I look forward to your assistance.
Thanks

NinaSearching

Wow, you do have a long list!

I'm not a London expert by any stretch, so I'll leave the touring suggestions to others. I will say that you can get a "Step Free" guide to the London Underground here: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloa...-guide-map.pdf

which might be helpful as you're planning how to get around town.

Oh, heck, and here's a suggestion: Put Covent Garden and theatre on West End together. Arrive ~ an hour before your show, grab something to eat, sit down on one of the benches and eat while watch a street performer, then go to the theatre.

Also, when I was there last week Kensington Palace was undergoing renovations. It was open, with some "Enchanted Palace" theme, which is apparently delightful for children but you may want to check what it's like when you're there.

BigRuss

<strike>Hop on and off Night bus tour by London by Night Sightseeing Tour</strike> -- Take the No. 9 or 15 bus from one end of Central London to the other = same view, less dough.

Cruise the Thames -- from where to where? Work this in with something else so you can assassinate two avians with one rock.

Westminster Abbey

Buckingham Palace

Royal Mews At Buckingham Palace

<strike>Changing of the Guards @ BP</strike> -- this has been pure hokum for ages; Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower gets rave reviews in this forum

Big Ben/Westminster <strike>Hall</strike> -- you likely mean Westminster Abbey

Piccadilly Circus -- look around, but go down Jermyn Street for high-end shops and the Fortnum & Mason food pantry.

St James Palace

St Pauls Cathedral

10 Downing Street -- you can't go in or go in front so this is just a walk-by

Tower of London (and a walk across Tower Bridge) - See Lift times in favourites

London Tower Bridge (Exhibition) -- better check on whether this fits with your mobility issues

<strike>London Bridge Experience and The London Tombs</strike> -- also largely hokum

Houses of Parliament

Tower of London Bridge -- huh? If you mean London Bridge, it's not that special because the original has been transplanted to Arizona and the new one is a concrete arch structure that just has lots of traffic rolling across. If you mean the iconic bridge with the big flippin' towers, that's Tower Bridge and it's on your list.

<strike>Harrods - particularly the food court</strike> -- go with F&M below for foods, and Harrod's is just an overpriced department store like Neimann Marcus.

Fortnum and Mason

Lords Cricket Ground Tours -- really? It's cricket for land's sake.

Kensington Palace and The Orangery

Shakespeare Globe Theatre

Jack the Ripper Night Tour -- lot of people on this forum hate this because the dens of iniquity from which the murdered harlots came have been replaced by modern (if ugly) structures, but I took one and enjoyed. And Brick Lane and its excellent Indian restaurants are right near the dropoff point of the tour.

Trafalgar Square

Sherlock Holmes Pub

Notting hill -- for what reason?

Theatre @ West End -- pick a show you'll like, don't just blow money on going to a show to say you've gone to the theat(er/re) in London.

Hyde Park -- wander over here on a Sunday to see the idiot brigade at Speakers' Corner

Hampton Court Palace -- this will cost you about a day. It's worth it, but your list is really long.

London Bridge -- quite the yawner. And it's quite stable.

Portobello Road Market -- Dunno why you need to do two unless you're really into markets (see below).

Convent Gardens -- this is an area, Covent Garden, not a botanical park named for a nearby nunnery.

Camden Market

Natural History Museum -- this is in a different part of the city from just about everything else on the list. Why this instead of the British Museum and British Library?

janisj

A few comments:

1) Totally skip the Jack the Ripper tour. It is extremely schlocky, gets very crowded, and there is nothing left of ANY of the original locations.

2) Skip the changing of the Guard -- it requires a long time just standing w/o moving and you have to get there well ahead of time.

3) Of your list - the following are simply drive-bys on the H-o-H-o or walk bys:

Buckingham Palace
Big Ben
Piccadilly Circus
St James Palace
10 Downing Street (you can't see ANYTHING here except and iron fence and a couple of police sentries)
Houses of Parliament
Trafalgar Square

4) Besides Jack the Ripper and the Changing of the Guard, you can also very safely skip the following:

Tower Bridge (Exhibition)
London Bridge Experience and The London Tombs (SKIP this one for sure)
Lords Cricket Ground (unless you are a cricket fanatic )
Kensington Palace and The Orangery. (The Palace/Orangery are fine but I just don't see that you have the time)
Sherlock Holmes Pub
Nottinghill
London Bridge (This is just a modern concrete bridge)

5) Of the remainder of your list -- That is about 2.5 weeks worth. Plus you've omitted places like the British Museum, Westminster Abbey, Victoria & Albert Museum, Cabinet War Rooms, Imperial War museum and a ton of other major sites.

IMO you simply don't have the time for your wish list -- even if you were totally mobile. London is huge and you need to factor in travel times. Hampton Court Palace for instance takes a minimum 1/2 day - and could take longer. The Tower of London - a minimum of 3 hours plus travel time.

janisj

Didn't see BigRuss's post - we were posting at the same time. One can visit Brick Lane w/o listening to a gadfly describing how women were disemboweled over where that car park is now.

Plus there are better areas for Indian food than Brick Lane . . .

VolCrew

I agree with much that has been said, but as an engineer, I enjoyed the bowles of the Tower Bridge.

janisj

"<i>I enjoyed the bowles of the Tower Bridge.</i>"

Me too -- I've been up the Tower Bridge twice (back when it was included in the GBHP) and enjoyed it. I just think the OP should skip it on such a short visit when they have enough on their plate/wish list to fill 3 weeks . . .

andtrev

Thanks for all your suggestions. It was my "wish" list and some were just things I would like to experience! I was after some way of "packaging" the visits each day. Any help?

texasbookworm

"Packaging" your visits to avoid crisscrossing is an excellent goal in your planning, but really only you can do this. It depends so much on where EXACTLY you will be starting from each day and how long you really can go each day.

I echo all the above generally.

One tip is to schedule one major "must see" for first thing each morning and get there at opening time, whatever that is. Like schedule to see Westminster Abbey, the Tower, St. Paul's--each on a different morning; then plan the rest of your day by looking at a good map to see what else on your list are near. Then see what else you feel like getting to in the afternoon on that day.

Scheduling only 1 (or maybe 2) major sites per day is wise. (major in terms of time/touring; Westminster Bridge, Big Ben, Parliament, Buckingham Palace, #10 Downing--all "major" in terms of iconicism [is that really a word?] but are all walk bys, not very time consuming)

I'd also urge adding the British Museum (and maybe the British Library).

I don't know what London will be like right before the wedding, besides functioning but maybe a bit busier than usual and fuller of media, but I wouldn't plan on doing much those days; do the bus thing if you have to, maybe visit some parks and stores, but maybe reserve the tour stuff for the latter part of your trip.

If you want to see a play in the Globe and not just tour it, get on the website and see if there's a play while you're there. If so reserve immediately if there are any seats left.

Do NOT underestimate the time it takes to get around London; I have found it easy to figure out the Tube and to follow maps and to walk, but it is time-consuming!

If you want to read how we (Volcrew from above and I!)squished a lot into our days on two trips to London (one trip was 2 weeks but with day trips and one was for 3.5 days) you can click on my name and go to my profile page and look at my trip reports. We packed a LOT in, so it's possible, but we are pretty spry for our fify-ish ages!

janisj

"<i>I was after some way of "packaging" the visits each day. Any help?</i>"

yes -- we can 'package' them for you -- list which make sense to combine geographically. But since your list is really massive and <u>miles</u> longer than is doable in your short time frame - it really would just an academic/useless exercise. Go over your wish list and cut it by about 1/2 and then we can help you organize things.

flanneruk

Comments of forums like this usually tell you more about the commentators than about the things they're commentating on.

The silly rejection of Lord's tours is an excellent example: neither of the insular Californians dismissing them shows any signs of ever having taken one.

Of the four major international sports (cricket, tennis, rugby and football) with London shrines, Lord's is the only one you can describe as being in the centre London. However, tours aren't that easily organised: there are only two or three a day, and you look as if you're goimng to have a pretty hectic week. The museum, though, is open all day. There are no matches at Lord's during your five days.

Many visitors (for, unlike the bizarre sports these jeering Americans watch, cricket attracts more spectators than any game in the world apart from proper football) cut the museum out altogether and just get a photograph of themselves at the "Lord's Cricket Ground" slab at the junction of St John's Wood Road and Wellington Road. It's a very pleasant walk through Regent's Park - which, unlike "Convent Gardens", really is a park.

janisj

Well, I <i>did</i> say 'unless the OP is a cricket fanatic'. Which I guess is a safe bet now that I think about it.

PatrickLondon

You may find the ordinary service buses a useful alternative to the stairs on the tube, and this map will help to group attractions and plan routes:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/15101.aspx

Would it help, if you're not bringing one with you, to have one of those portable seats that doubles as a walking stick of sorts? Museums and galleries often have lightweight portable folding seats you can borrow (worth asking when you go in).

andtrev

OK I have cut down my list a little (probably not enough)and want to use Texasbookworm's suggestion, can I geographically organise these for the 7 days I have (that may then eliminate some?):

Oveview of London via bus either hoho or as Big Russ' suggestion
Cruise the Thames -- will work this in with something else foot rest"
Westminster Abbey
Buckingham Palace
Big Ben/Westminster Abbey
Piccadilly Circus -- look around, but go down Jermyn Street for high-end shops and the Fortnum & Mason food pantry.
St James Palace
St Pauls Cathedral
Tower of London and a walk across Tower Bridge
Houses of Parliament
Lords Cricket Ground Tours -- My husband is a real cricket fan. I was hoping to do something else in the area or elsewhere?
Kensington Palace and The Orangery
Shakespeare Globe Theatre - will check if we can go to a play as well as do a tour
Jack the Ripper Night Tour -- I really want to do this. Will take up the Brick Lane suggestion as we like Indian food
Trafalgar Square - visit only
Sherlock Holmes Pub - or similar pub for one nights tea
Notting Hill area (fan of the movie) and Portobello Market (yes love markets!)
Theatre @ West End -- pick a show we like
Hyde Park -- will wander over here on a Sunday to see the idiot brigade at Speakers' Corner but also want to see Kensington Palace
Hampton Court Palace -- this will cost you about a day. It's worth it, but your list is really long.
London Bridge -- quite the yawner. And it's quite stable.
Portobello Road Market -- Dunno why you need to do two unless you're really into markets (see below).
Convent Gardens -- this is an area, Covent Garden, not a botanical park named for a nearby nunnery.
Camden Market - may be instead of Portobello?
Natural History Museum

Thanks
Andrea

jamikins

OK I will take a stab at grouping things – you may still need to cut down but here are some ‘day’ options for you although some are very packed days – it will give you an idea

Maybe do this the first day you arrive:
Oveview of London via bus either hoho or as Big Russ' suggestion

Day option 1 – Royal Westminster

Head to Buckingham Palace and then walk through St James’ Park (see St James’ Palace) to Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Houses of Parliament. Go into Westminster Abbey (see if you can do a Vergers tour) have lunch.

Walk up to Trafalgar Square and then up to Piccadilly Circus (see F&M etc), walk down to Leicester Sq and pick up bargain tickets to the show you want to see at the TKTS booth there. Follow signs to Covent Garden – there are lots of pubs and places to eat.

Go to the Theatre in the evening


Day Option 2

Start at the Tower when it opens and expect to spend ½ a day. Go right to the crown jewels and then backtrack to the entrance and pick up the beefeater free tour.

There are some cafes to eat lunch. Then head across Tower Bridge and along South Bank see The Globe. Walk over the pedestrian bridge and see St Pauls. Note you will see London Bridge as its one of the bridges between Tower Bridge and the pedestrian bridge.

Take the tube from Cannon St or Mansion House to Tower Hill and pick up the Ripper Tour and at the end ask your guide for some recommendations for dinner in the area.

Day Option 3 – Sunday

Kensington Palace and The Orangery
Hyde Park -- will wander over here on a Sunday to see the idiot brigade at Speakers' Corner but also want to see Kensington Palace
Natural History Museum

Day Option 4

Hampton Court Palace -- this will cost you about a day. It's worth it, but your list is really long.
I believe if you are coming in the summer you can take a cruise either there or back from London so that might solve your cruise timing.

So that leaves the items below.
I cant help with the cricket grounds.

Sherlock Holmes Pub - or similar pub for one nights tea – Skip this - if you tell us where you are staying we can recommend a way better pub – this is a tourist trap


Notting Hill area (fan of the movie) and Portobello Market (yes love markets!) – this will have to be on a Saturday if you want to catch the market.

Camden Market - may be instead of Portobello? This doesn’t really fit with anything else but you could do after the Notting Hill – its an interesting area.

Hope this helps!

Lifeman

Your original post mentioned Westminster Hall which was dismissed as probably meaning Westminster Abbey. You were correct to group the Hall with Big Ben as Westminster Hall is in the Houses of Parliament building.

We visited the Palace of Westminster last year whilst the House was in summer recess and did a very interesting tour, but I not sure if you can visit the Hall if the House is sitting. If a tour is available during your visit, then you'll see and stand in the House of Commons, The Lords and the various anterooms that surround the Chambers.

See: http://www.parliament.uk/visiting/vi...d-tours/tours/

lizziea06

Just one further suggestion to the excellent advice you've received above. If you do decided to do the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower of London, which I HIGHLY recommend, the Jack the Ripper Tour ends at Tower Bridge about 30 minutes before the Ceremony starts. It is very easy to group them together. I did this itinerary with visitors last year and it was a long evening, but I think worth it. You have to request tickets to the Ceremony of Keys in advance. It's a really special thing to witness and is easy to accomplish with a little planning:

http://www.hrp.org.uk/toweroflondon/...ofthekeys.aspx

BigRuss

Who's a Californian? I'm not, nor should I be lumped in with them. I'm wondering how often Flanner actually talks out of his(?) mouth viz. a different oriface?

As for the new list -- one way to geographically group things together would be to go to www.londontown.com and check out their walking tours section because that could group some areas for you and sequentially structure how to hit them.

It's relatively easy to visit the Monument [to the London Fire of 1666, but in London, it's just The Monument], St. Paul's and the Tower in a day and do the JTR tour at night. Everyone says to get to the Tower early to see the Crown Jewels, but we didn't do that in either '02 or '09 and had no problem with long viewing wait times. You could also try to get a Ceremony of the Keys ticket on that day like Lizzie hints at, and there are plenty of places in London other than Brick Lane to get good Indian cuisine -- we had a good meal at Kerala (I think) off Regent Street.

Jermyn Street will be a men's toyland for your hubby with all the shoe, shave (both Trumper's and Taylor of Old Bond Street have shops), and shirt shops (the standard business shirt in the UK is a Jermyn Street shirt). There is plenty for you too.

Michel_Paris

Portobello Market on a saturday will be mobbed. The crowds are massive. So depending on your mobility, adjust accordingly.

One thing I enjoyed was the Pub Tour of Hampstead Heath from London Walks. A nighttime outing, nice area, two pub stops where you can sit and quaff, and finishes near another pub that has decent food.

laurie_ann

I am a big fan of Notting Hill the movie. And I went once up to the neighborhood just because of that. But I would note that if you want to see the bookshop and other highlights from the movie it is a rather long walk from the tube to there. Perhaps there is a bus that you could grab at the tube station but just wanted to alert you.

If you like markets and you don't care if it is "just" a food market and doesn't include "antiques" like Portobello Market, you might include instead Borough Market which is near the Tower of London and Tower Bridge. (It is open only Th, Fr, Sat, Sun.)

For the big sites like Tower of London and Hampton Court you might check their websites or even email them for more information about accomodating your mobility issues.