midwestgal77

I just returned from my first trip to England. I said before that this may be my one and only trip to Europe and was I wrong. I fell in love with England and I will definitely be going back.

We left O'Hare on Monday Oct. 2 at 9:10am and landed at Heathrow by 10:30pm. I had booked Ray Skinners London-Transfers to pick us up from the airport and he was already there waiting for us. He is a very professional gent and gave us lots of helpful info in the city. We arrived at our hotel, Holiday Inn Kensington Forum, by midnight. The staff were very helpful and we got settled into our room. I was a bit suprised by how small it was, but it was very clean so I couldnt complain.

The next day we got up and had a very nice continental breakfast (much nicer than any continental breakest I have ever had here in the states) and went out sightseeing. This was our routine over the next 5 days. We got to go to all of the sites that I wanted to see. We took the train over to Windsor one day and had the best time. Winsor Castle is amazing and I loved going into all the little shops and chatting with the shopkeepers. We saw Big Ben, Towers of London, (went one night to the Ceremony of the Keys and I would definitley recommend to anyone going to London to get tickets to see the ceremony...it was something to see.) London Eye..it was a nice clear day and it was beautiful to see the city from that view, Tower Bridge..seemed like the stairs would never end, but it was worth every step to see the view from the top, I was in awe at Buckingham Palace. That is what I have always wanted to see since I was a kid. The list could go on and on of what we saw and things we did but I dont think Fodor's would like to me to take up that much room on a post..lol

We never made it into Paris. I just didnt want to sacrifice time away from London for a few hours in Paris. I want to be able to have more time to spend to enjoy Paris next time.

I was gone for a week and I cant think of one negative thing that happened except the trip wasnt long enough. The flight, hotel, food, and people were all great!!!! I went into this trip thinking this would be my only time in Europe and I am already thinking of what I am going to do next. It really is addiciting and like others have said...you will find a way to go.

I just want to say THANK YOU to everyone that replied to my posts while I was planning my trip because you really gave me good information that helped me out a lot.

I'll be back in a few years when I am planning my next adventure!!!

Kate

Glad London has whetted your apetite for travel midwestgal. Thanks for reporting back.

Kate
London

janisj

Nice report! I wondered how your trip worked out. Glad you had such a good time . . . . .

Merseyheart

Oh, midwestgal77, I'm delighted to hear you had such a fine time. Europe, and England in particular, can be quite addicting, and I'm sure you'll go again.

I trust you had an easier time leaving O'Hare than I did. I flew in from London that same day, and due to a bad storm, all the planes were grounded, and I spent the night at the airport. That's the first time in all my travels that has happened to me! Oh, what we put up with when we travel.

dorkforcemom

It sounds like a wonderful trip! I have a question about the Forum. We stayed there many years ago - yes, I remember the rooms being rather small which doesn't bother me. What I'm wondering is...have they renovated or updated in the last 10 years or so ago from what you could tell? Thinking ahead to a possible spring break trip. Thanks!

midwestgal77

dorkforcemom:

Yeah, I would say that its been updated. Everything was clean and fresh. Aside from the rooms being a bit small, I thought that it was a very nice hotel for the money. I'd definitely stay there again!