Debby Lasden

We are planning a trip to London and Scotland in Aug. with 10 and 13 years old daughters. First time for all of us. Any great ideas for things not to miss or just something fun? Also we are thinking of renting a flat in London for a week and doing some day trips. Any info on this? Would love to stay in the countryside in Scotland..maybe a castle. Any ideas or info from recent trip would be great. Thanks

Sandy

I would spend 3 or 4 days in London and then head north. I don't know what your children are like, but if they are like most kids, they are not going to have much patience with museums and cathedrals. Of course, you MUST see the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. While you're there, take a walk through St. James Park. Gorgeous! London will be very crowded in July, but it's fun to people watch.

Then you could take the train to Edinburgh and rent a car. Drive to the Western Highlands. You could go hiking on Ben Nevis, explore Urquart Castle at Loch Ness, take a ferry to Mull or Skye and stay overnight or longer. If you stay in Mull, Duart Castle is fun to visit.

Or you could drive to York. The old walled city is wonderful, with its narrow streets, and fabulous Minster. You can walk on the walls in York, a real treat in the late afternoon, when the light is so wonderful. The Yorkshire coast is not far from there. I recommend a visit to Whitby and the spooky ruings of Whitby Abbey, but stay at the Victoria Hotel in Robinhoods Bay.

The possibilities are endless.
Enjoy!
Sandy

Mike Long

The Museum of the Moving Image is terrific for kids. Also, the Crown Jewels would dazzle any woman, regardless of age. Windsor Castle is a wonderful day trip and a nice surprise.

Wendy

I am in a similar situation in that we are going
to London and Scotland with my 10 and 5 year olds
in June. I can not give you info. from experience
yet but I have found a lot of great ideas on
Joanne Winter's web site called The Internet Guide
to Scotland at www.ourworld.compuserve.com I sent
her an e-mail asking a similar question to yours
and she sent me all kinds of suggestions. Our
plans include Sea Life Surveys boat trips to see
dolphins, whales, and seals, Highland Mysteryworld
in Ballachulish,Oban Sea Life Center, steam railway
trips in a variety of locations, Highland Wildlife
Park and reindeer farm near Aviemore, islands,
Highland Night in Pitlochry (Mondays), and castle
collecting. I have found the net to be a limitless
source of info. Far more than in any guide book.
I have also saved money several times with only
on the net special accomodation offers. I would
b happy to share other favorite web sites and
b&b info. I have collected if it might help.

Lisa Brown

I would recommend Madam Tussauds which has waxwork dummies of all sorts of famous people, including a grisly section which your older child might like. The Science museum has a special section for kids where they can get involved and actually try things themselves, and the natural history museum has skeletons of dinosaurs which I always loved as a kid. There are also open-top tour buses which have 50 stops and you can hop on and off at any one/number of them. The Tower of London (home to the Crown Jewels mentioned earlier. Tip- get there as soon as the tower opens and make that the first thing you see, before all the crowds get there. there are alos river cruises on the Thames, and the London Dungeons is another place with models of the infamous London villans which makes it much more fun than most museums/sights. Why not go to a show in the evening? There is one showing here which is not on in the states (Martin Guerre) or the usual ones like Starlight Express, Phantom etc. Try and book in advance, but if you want to try your luck, there is a half-price ticket booth (forgotten where, the tourist office can tell you) which sells reduced ticketd for that day's shows. For day trips, Bath is nice as is Windsor and Oxford. If you fancy a long day, try the eurostar to Paris which has special rates for kids, day returns and midweek travel if you book in advance. It takes 3 hours, but is worth it, or you could get a hotel in Paris for one night.... Have fun!