Amsterdam to London itinerary advice
 

Our first trip to Europe is in May. We will be arriving in Amsterdam by transatlantic cruise ship (having stopped in Lisbon, Normandy, and Dover) and departing from London by plane 8 days later.

Here's what I've planned for our itinerary:
1. arrive Amsterdam mid-morning, overnight Amsterdam
2. depart Amsterdam late afternoon, overnight Brussels
3. depart Brussels mid-morning, overnight Bruges
4. depart Bruges early afternoon, overnight London
5. London
6. London, maybe Windsor
7. London
8. ??
9. depart London late morning
I planned 3 full days in London, but the airfare is cheaper on the 9th day, so we have an extra day dangling there and I don't know where to put it. Ideas?

Or alternatively (though due to the length of this trip, I leaning against it):
1. arrive Amsterdam mid-morning, overnight Amsterdam
2. depart Amsterdam late afternoon, overnight Brussels
3. depart Brussels mid-morning, overnight Bruges
4. depart Bruges early afternoon, overnight Paris
5. Paris
6. Paris, and Versailles
7. Paris
8. depart Paris early morning, overnight London
9. London
10. London
11. depart London

I've allocated the time with these in mind: 1) my family enjoys scenery, food, and atmosphere but are not that interested in museums and booze; 2) we would have arrived with 9 of the past 16 days spent sitting on a large ship doing very little, and will not be returning home to any real jobs, so something on the fast-paced side is fine; 3) we won't be visiting Europe with any frequency in the near future and would like variety in sights (taking into account the need to minimize transportation time and cost). I'm hesitant to give Amsterdam more time if we don't plan to visit the art museums. I thought I'd throw in Brussels (just to see the square at night) since we have to pass by any way to visit Bruges. I'm not sure whether to leave Paris for a future trip.

Any thoughts on this itinerary?
So the only transportation that I need to book ahead (i.e. right now...) is Thalys to Paris (if we go) and Eurostar to London?

In both cases you have to travel from Bruges to Brussels in order to go to London or Paris, so you need to factor that in. You should be able to buy a through ticket from Bruges to London or Paris to cover you in case you miss the Eurostar / Thalys due to delays coming from Bruges

If this is your first trip and you will not be returning soon I would add the two days to the trip since you have no jobs to return to and have already paid for your transatlantic fare. I would skip Brussels and add time so you could have 4 nights both in Paris and london. Lots to do in Paris and London.

If I skip Brussels and depart Amsterdam around noon to get to Bruges: is about 24 hours on the ground in Amsterdam (including checking into the hotel and a night of sleep) too short even if I skip the museums?

There's a slight problem with the second itinerary. Airfare on day 11 (June 1) and afterwards suddenly become expensive. The ideal time to leave would be day 7, day 9, day 10.

Is this itinerary too rushed? We save quite a bit on airfare if we depart on May 31 instead of June 1.

1. arrive Amsterdam mid-morning, overnight Amsterdam
2. depart Amsterdam noon, overnight Bruges
3. depart Bruges mid-morning, overnight Paris
4. Paris
5. Paris, and Versailles
6. Paris, depart evening, overnight London
7. London
8. London
9. London
10. depart London around noon

We will skip the art museums in Amsterdam - just go on a canal cruise, to the Anne Frank House, and take a walk - we will have 24 hours on the ground, including a night of sleep, there.