London Highlights
 

Traveling to London on my own.
Would I have time to see
Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Houses of Parliament
and Windsor Castle in one day?
Should I break it into two days?
Any other recommended sights?
Is there a good tour company you would suggest once I'm in London?

Not trying to be mean but the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, and Windsor Castle in one day (the Houses of Parliament are just a walk by) is totally ludicrous.

Not even the worst of the drive-by and take photo tours would attempt it either. The Tower of London and Windsor Castle are more than 30 miles apart.

The Tower takes 3-4 hours for most folks. Westminster Abbey - a couple of hours.So you could squeeze both into one day. Windsor is an out-of-town day trip by train.

"<i>Any other recommended sights?</i>"

MANY - I'd suggest you click on DESTINATIONS above to get some ideas -- or get a good guide book.

Thanks. I got this info from Top Attractions under destinations above. Things such as 30 miles apart is not listed there, that's why I ask it here.

If you were to break it down into 2 days, which sites would you see each day?

You should definitely try to fit in the Tower and Westminster Abbey. What things interest you-museums, art galleries, historic sites, etc. Do you like to shop?? I didn't go but lots of people go to Harrod's. How about having tea at the Orangery, the Ritz, etc. St. Paul's is a magnificent church. British Museum is very interesting. You can't beat the shows in the West End either. Lots of great pubs, markets, parks. What area will you be staying in?? I would go to a bookstore where you can browse through some guide books on London in the travel section. Then you can decide what things YOU are interested in seeing.


Suggestion based on MY interests:
St. Paul's and the Tower are in decent proximity to each other. Walk across one of the bridges-the Millenium goes from the Tate Modern over to St. Paul's. If you can, walk up to the top of the cathedral for amazing views. Catch a bus from St. Paul's to the Tower-ride in the top section. When you get to the Tower, go see the crown jewels first-there's more than just crowns-it's amazing. Once you see them every time you see pictures of the Queen smiling, you will know why! The White Tower is full of history. You need at least 3 hrs. at the Tower IMO to do it justice.

For the next day go through Westminster, see Big Ben/Houses of Parliament, walk across the Westminster Bridge and turn around and come back. You will have a lovely view of the Thames, Big Ben/Houses of Parliament, the London Eye. From there take the underground to the British Museum.

If you have the time and energy, go see a show-there's tons to choose from depending on your interest. For me, it was Wicked and We Will Rock You.

Have a great time!!

For a good tour company I would do a search under tour companies for London, see what pops up and read the reviews.

the Tower is DO NOT MISS.

Exactly how long do you have??

If you are short on time, i'd take a bus-with- guided tour with good narration for a general overview of famous sites.

Some of the travel books have info like, "If you have two days.." and give an itinerary to match your time frame.

Skip Windsor if you're short on time and concentrate on London itself--since it is THE greatest city in the world (-;

lu·di·crous
   /ˈludɪkrəs/ Show Spelled[loo-di-kruhs] Show IPA
–adjective
causing laughter because of absurdity; provoking or deserving derision; ridiculous; laughable: a ludicrous lack of efficiency.

Forgot about the hop on/hop off bus tours-Original Tour and Big Bus. That way you can easily see what you want to see and leave the transport to someone else.

After doing a hop-on, hop-off bus tour our first afternoon, we spent the next morning in Greenwich and the afternoon at Westminster Abbey (do the verger's tour if you go) and the Churchill Museum/Cabinet War Rooms. The latter is very close to Westminster Abbey. We visited the British Library and the British Museum on our last full day.

Lee Ann