nysmom

Hello Fodorites,

I've had a wonderful time in Italy and France in the past 17 days thanks to you all. My flight out is from Gatwick Airport. I arrive in St. Pancras train station at around 11 am and I leave from Gatwick at 9 am the next day. My question is this:

Should I hop immediately on the train to my hotel near Gatwick OR store my bags at St. Pancras and do an afternoon/evening in London? Any suggestions? I've got no clue about the tube system in London so I'd be flying blind. Is it as great as Paris' system? I look forward to your advice and will post my trip report when I return home!

lennyba

If you can store your bags (someone else will have to answer that question), I'd definitely do that and spend the rest of the day in the city. IMO the tube is much easier than the metro. The wonderful British library is just a short walk from the train station.

azzure

If you can easily store your bags (I've never done this so I have no idea), I would certainly take advantage of your time in London and see a few sights. From St. Pancras station, you can easily WALK to the British Library and the British Museum. If museums don't appeal, Covent Garden is just a couple of stops away on the Piccadilly Line. Have fun!

lennyba

Jinx, azzure.

dmlove

We were just there. Without question, GO (what would you do at your hotel at Gatwick for all those hours?). Do you know that you can store your bags at St. Pancras?

Even if you don't want to go the British Museum or the Library, you can get anywhere on the tube - if you're interested in markets, London has so many - we did Portobello Road, Spitalfield's, Camden and Petticoat Lane. Or you could walk around Picadilly, Leicester Square, Covent Garden, Trafalgar (we did that, too). You even have time for a show even (tickets get pretty darn cheap if you wait until the last minute).

Definitely stay in town.

nysmom

Thanks,

I've really enjoyed some of the little neighborhoods in Paris. I also like to window shop! It looks like I'll go to toward Picadilly and the Covent Gardens. I'm kind of museumed out so unless I get some inspiration I'll save the Library and Museum for another time.

I looked it up, I can leave my bags at St. Pancras. If I choose to go to Victoria Station, I can leave my bags there and take a train directly to Gatwick. So the question is:

What is really close to Victoria staion, i.e. Buckingham palace????

nysmom

I just looked up Piccadilly and Covent Garden and that looks great!

Any suggestions for shows? I must admit, being from Chicago, when I hear the word show, I think movie, but I'm assuming that the suggestion is for theatre?

RM67

I don't want to rain on your parade, but Picadilly is a horrible area, packed with so many people you can barely move, and not actually that much to see or do. Covent Garden is similarly touristy.

You might prefer to stick to the river area and see the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, or Tate Britain instead.

If you must do Picadilly/Regents Street, (and bearing in mind your window shopping comments), then try Fortnum and Mason, Burlington Arcade and Liberty - which are in easy walking distance of one another and provide some quintessentially British brands and goods.

RM67

''Piccadilly'', even!

Robespierre

Here is a geographic map of London:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/centlond.pdf

There is a cluster of sights on the Victoria end of town: Buck House, Westminster Abbey and Cathedral, Parliament (including that bell tower), Trafalgar Square, all kinds of stuff in the Kensington area. Here's a schematic map of the sights:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloa...al_bus_map.pdf

We use the buses almost exclusively. Tube is good for traveling long distances fast, but kicking back and watching the scenery from the top deck of a bus is more fun. You can travel all day on a £3.50 bus pass. Note that the #73 will take you from St. Pancras to Victoria. Other Journeys can be Planned here: www.tfl.gov.uk

BTW, you can get to Gatwick from any of a half-dozen train stations. Which one you choose would depend on what you want to see. For example, the Tower of London is only a few minutes from London Bridge station, but pretty far from Victoria. Use thetrainline.com to see what matches your plans.

nysmom

Thanks for your insight RM67. I'm doing this all by public transportation. Any idea where any of the things you mention fit on the train line?

rogeruktm

Why not print out a "tube map of London" to get an idea of the system.

nysmom

Thanks for the suggestions. The bus 73 to Westminister also sounds like a good idea. I have to pick what things I would like to do. Perhaps when I arrive things will seem more simple than they appear now. It's interesting to see the bus map had figures of popular tourist sights while the train map does not provide such helpful cartoonage !

RM67

This map combines sites of interest with tube stations:-

http://www.holivar2006.org/images/map_uclinlondon.jpg

rogeruktm

RM67, that is a good one. Thanks

janisj

There is Left Luggage at all the major train stations. You could leave your bags at St Pancras - but I personally wouldn't. The only major sites near there are the British Library and British Museum. You'd have to go back there at the end of the day to retrieve you bags before heading down to LGW.

If it was me I'd travel from St Pancras to either London Bridge or Victoria Station. Both are on direct tube lines from Kings Cross/St Pancras and both have trains to LGW. I'd leave my bags there and spend the whole day and evening exploring London. National rail's website says Victoria left luggage closes at midnight, while the TFL site says 11 PM - but in any case - it is open late.

Victoria is near Buckingham Palace and then it is a nice walk up the Mall to Trafalgar SQ and then to Covent Garden or to the river/Big Ben or wherever .

London Bridge is near the South Bank, river, Tate Modern, Globe theatre etc and not far from the Tower of London.

Either would be a good choice but I'd probably pick Victoria.

hpeabody

Another vote for the Westminster area. Many places that you can walk to. I enjoyed the walk through St James Park and boat ride on the River Thames. OOOOOOOH and the London Eye

PatrickLondon

St Pancras has direct trains to Gatwick (via London Bridge), though London Bridge and Victoria have more frequent services.

janisj

Yes - there are trains from St Pancras to LGW. The main reason I recommended Victoria or London Bridge is because they are closer to more of the major sites so nysmom wouldn't have to backtrack to St Pancras at the end of the day.

genabee6

I vote for Victoria...I found it to be very easy to get to and from LGW and it has so much stuff around it that you won't be bored.