first time trip to England and France
 

We are a middle-aged{early fifties,late forties}couple with a few minor health problems{bad backs mainly} and are rather couch potato-ish, although have recently started walking daily to get in shape for our trip. We are both interested in history, love the outdoors in summer{winter in Winnipeg is not worth leaving the house for} and current music{rock, alt., blues and jazz etc.} I also love shopping and beer so I think I've chosen the right city to start our trip!! We have rented an apt. from www.vrbo.com #111048. The address is 11 Carlton Mansions 16-17 York Buildings. This looks like a very central site that we will be able to walk to a lot of places from. Any feedback on this apt. would be appreciated. I haven't made a detailed itinerary yet but some of the things we are planning to see are- Tower of London, Tower bridge,St.Paul's, Borough market, Tate modern, Westminister Abby, Covent garden, theater one evening, London Zoo, canal ride to Camden{maybe a few pubs there} and one day trip to Salisbury and Stonehenge. We are planning to go on at least one London Walk and thinking of taking the day trip with them as well. I have seen the daysout london site with two-for-one offers on a lot of attractions that you can use with a train ticket. We will be taking the heathrow express into London-does anyone know if that ticket would work for those offers? If so can you buy a return ticket on the Heathrow express that would allow you to use those coupons on any day during that time?... thanks

I should have mentioned we are staying in London for 7 nights {Sept.6-13th} and will be going to Paris after via train.

You should have changed the title of your second post to just London. Duplicate titles and questions are not very productive.

The Heathrow-Paddington Express drops you at Paddington station. This station is centrally located but I have no idea where your digs are located. The cost from LHR to Pad is about GBP 16 and just gets you there in 15 minutes with no other benefits.

Suggest a top down bus tour instead of walking around London. The town is huge. Use a tube/bus Oyster card to go back to the places you want to see in detail.

Buy your admission tickets on line before you get to London town. If not bring a book to read while you stand in line, and don't forget your umbrella.

Sorry about that-I thought it would be simpler using the same title but I see your point.

Hi Colleen,

You've written a very long paragraph but I only see 2 questions. Feedback on the apartment which you've already rented - you can check Tripadvisor and Heathrow Express which was answered above.

Are you looking for any thing else?

Please use shorter paragraphs for easier reading.

Yes, if you have roundtrip tickets for Heathrow Express, those tickets will work as 2-for-1 qualifiers.

When you go to the Tower, get there before they open for the day. You want to get in to see the Crown Jewels first thing. When I was there a year ago, I did this and could spend a lot of time dinking around in there and really look at the things I liked. When I walked past later on, there was a line clear out the door. Join the tour - it's free, but most people tip a little at the end, and everyone I've heard has said they enjoyed it.

At Westminster, again, get there early and take the verger tour. It's a lot of fun and you get more history that way. At St Pauls, take the supertour. It's only 3 pounds and has a lot of neat information. With both of these tours, you get to see places you don't get to see on your own and it's a lot more fun when you have someone who knows the fun stories and the history. Give yourself plenty of time to really enjoy all of these sites.

Have fun :)