We will be arriving in London on 8/28/04 at 8:00 pm and will have to depart approximately 8:00 AM the next morning. We have been to London before, but would like suggestions as to were to stay so that we can make the most of the few evening hours that we have. We will be leaving the next day from Gatwick. We will probably want to have a lite snack in a pub and possibly wander a local neighborhood until exhaustion and bed. I will for go sleep to sightsee. ANy suggestion on where to stay and in what area that would be somewhat convenient to Gatwick would really be appreciated. Feel free to post or e-mail me direct. Thanks again

With such a short stay, the first thing we have to do is clarify the times: Is 8 PM the time you expect to arrive IN LONDON, or is it the time your flight is due in to one of the airports, and if so which one? Likewise, is 8 AM the time of your flight out of Gatwick? If these are your flight times rather than your available time, that doesn't leave much!

Agree w/ anonymous. If you land at 8PM at LHR or LGW, you will be very lucky to be in central London by 10:30 PM, and if your flight out of LGW is at 8 AM you will have to be at Victoria Station VERY early. If that is the case I would forego a trip into London and simply stay at a hotel at Gatwick.

But if you actually have 8 PM to 8 AM IN london proper - then stay at a hotel near Victoria station. There are several within walking distance. Then you can hop on the Gatwick express train which takes 30+ minutes.

This is not the answer you want but I would not go into London. I would take the airport transfer bus from Heathrow to Gatwick (or a car service like london-transfers.com or Swiss Cottage cars). I would stay at Le Meridien at Gatwick which is attached to one of the terminals so you can WALK over to Gatwick in the morning (no shuttle service to worry about). I got a rate of 70GBP for a double at Le Meridien using lastminute.com This is a beautiful hotel. Have a bite at the hotel or take a cab into Crawley (a short ride away). We had a great Indian meal there.

WHY? Because if your plane arrives at 8PM it will be at least 9-9:30 by the time you get into London. That's OK but getting up in the morning in time is NOT if you're coming from the US. You'd have to take a 5:30am Gatwick Express to get there in time.

If you insist on going into London, the obvious answer is to stay near Victoria Station where the Gatwick Express leaves from.

Ok I need to clear up a few details we will arrive at Heathrow approximately 8:00 PM. Our flight the next day will be leaving Gatwick at 12:15 PM. THanks again

I would arrange for a car service to pick me up at Heathrow and I'd stay the one night at the hotel (a Thistle, I think) that adjoins Victoria Station, so I could get up in the morning check my luggage right downstairs (depending on the airline) and take the Gatwick Express to depart. The area around Victoria will be buzzing at night, a number of pubs, delightful walk to the Thames and Westminster, or through the parks around Buckingham Palace. Just enough to get a good feel of London busy nightlife.

Don't go in to London - too much extra effort and stress for very little benefit. Go straight to Gatwick and send the night.

A few little details like thae make a big difference

Arriving at LHR will take more time because it normally takes longer to clear immigration and retrieve luggage. But a car service (as Patrick mentions) would probably get you to Victoria by about 9:30 or 10 PM. Not many pubs still serving food that late - but the area around Victoria has a TON of Chinese, Indian, Spanish, etc restaurants - some serve as late as midnight.

Then you really don't have to catch the gatwick Express until after 9AM. You would have time either the night before or early in the morning to walk along the Thames or to Buckinham Palace/Westminster/Big Ben, etc.

janis, I'm not trying to pick a fight with you (I enjoy your many informative posts), but considering they will have to check in and out of the hotel and sleep, very little free time is left to do anything. I did something similiar once and felt it was more trouble than it was worth after all was said and done.

Basically I agree w/ you dumas - but cfrieday did say they were willing to forego sleep for sightseeing. They would certainly be doing that - but it is possible . . . . . .

janis, you are right. My priority might not be the same as somebody else.
Maybe I'm getting too hole or too jaded from too much travel.

Thanks for your input. I would be happy to just be able to check in and go for a night walk along the Thames and one quick peak at Big Ben in the Morning. It really is just a stop over we are returning from a Cruise on the 27 and have opted to say in Copenhagen for 48 hrs seeing we have never been there. Again thanks