London in June----HELP!

Old Nov 28th, 2016, 01:43 PM
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London in June----HELP!

We usually go to Europe in Sept. And get around quite easily.
June 2017 we will be taking our 12 yr. old GD to London & Paris.

2 yrs. ago we took her 13 yr. old sister and were on a tour in June. We couldn't believe the huge crowds.
We are not usually tour people but we were glad to be on one & get into the sights easily.
The downside was...it was a tour group.

That said, we want to go on our own this time. Is it possible in June? Or do we have to prepare to stand in line for hours on end? This does not sound like fun.

In your experience what is the easiest, most efficient way to see the sights in London---Tower of London, changing of the guards, ride the eye,etc. probably not a lot of museums this time.

How would you do it? Can you recommend any small tours or an individual tour guide? Buy tickets ahead of time? Not looking for the least expensive way to go but the most efficient.
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Old Nov 28th, 2016, 01:48 PM
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Never had an issue with the Tower. The Eye is weather-dependent.

Check out www.walks.com - their tours may be helpful in some respects.
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Old Nov 28th, 2016, 01:54 PM
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>>Is it possible in June?
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Old Nov 28th, 2016, 01:55 PM
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was posting the same time as BigRuss
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Old Nov 28th, 2016, 03:29 PM
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Thanks for the input. will check out walks.com

Glad to hear about the timed tickets on the eye...with the tour we walked right on.
That was our only trip to London & I want to go back to see more of the museums & stuff for adults.

Also will check at Windsor, but the lines look really long there in June. Changing of the guard was on her list because she's in love with horses and her sister saw it---now that I mention that, is there a place in London, or outside, that she could take a jumping lesson. She's quite good already but likes any chance to improve.

Paris will not be a problem to figure out as we have been there many, many times but mostly in Sept.-Oct. Well aware of the lines at the Eiffel. The Louvre courtyard will be enough for her to see there. Would like to take her to Versailles though & will figure that out.
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Old Nov 28th, 2016, 05:36 PM
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>> because she's in love with horses and her sister saw it-
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 04:02 AM
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Perhaps not much help, but if you time it right, you can see the Household Cavalry horses exercising in Hyde Park, or en route to or from changing the guard at Horse Guards. There are no crowds there - anyone just walking along the foot path between the ride and the Serpentine can stand and watch - but they just ride past, and I couldn't be precise about the timings.

Our local city farm does riding lessons, with what looks like some jumping, but I don't know if that's what you're looking for - you could always ask. It would be easily combined with a trip to Greenwich:
https://www.mudchute.org/equestrian-...riding-lessons
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 04:05 AM
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PS: There is also this, that might be of interest:
http://changing-guard.com/household-cavalry-museum.html
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 06:33 AM
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And go to the Royal Mews, behind Buckingham Palace, for more horsey things.

Honestly I've never really noticed crowds to get into a museum, except for Madam Tussaud. Most museums are free, and if you want to see a special exhibition, you buy a timed entry ticket.

For riding, there's this; https://www.hydeparkstables.com/
Don't know about jumping, but a ride through Hyde Park would be fun.
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 07:16 AM
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janisj gave you a very good tip on the Tower, getting there just before opening time when there is usually no line. I'll go one further on that--if you get there before opening time, don't take the Yeoman Warder's tour first, which everyone else will likely do. Instead, go straight to the jewel house and see the jewels before the lines form for that. Then, you can go back to the gate and catch the next Yeoman Warder's tour.

You might want to look at the dates for Trooping the Colour and the two full dress rehearsals that proceed it (all on Saturday mornings). Getting tickets to the grandstand at Horse Guards involves jumping through hoops, but is worth it if you can manage it (and the dress rehearsal, without the sovereign, is easier for foreigners than the real deal, but still requires some work, but that's what we did). But, if you don't want to do that, you can still watch the parade to and from Horse Guards--it's much better than Changing of the Guards.

If you want to see the Houses of Parliament on the inside, and you are not a UK citizen, then your only option is to get in line to watch a debate. During the day, lines for this can be quite long, but, Parliament sits in the evening many days, and the lines are shorter. You can look at the calendar on their web site to see when the Commons will be holding an evening session.
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 07:39 AM
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>>If you want to see the Houses of Parliament on the inside, and you are not a UK citizen, then your only option is to get in line to watch a debate.
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 07:47 AM
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Worst lines I saw were at Windsor. We went via train from Waterloo and skipped the lines because we bought a voucher with our train tickets so we just had to go to the ticket-holders line for entry instead of the ticket purchaser line that stretched halfway to Eton. Dunno if that arrangement still exists.
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Old Nov 29th, 2016, 03:48 PM
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WOW! You Fodorites are the best. All those horse options. I definitely have some investigation to do----that girl lives horses.

BigRuss---looking for that info on Windsor, will check it out.
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