swalter518

OK, well we decided to spend a week in London this SPring. We are flexible to go either March or April but March tickets are cheaper. Is there that big of a temperature difference between the two months? How about rainy days? Also, we are obviously in very preliminary stages of planning but I haven't been there since I was 18 (over 10 years ago) and at the time I didn't plan the trip so the question is what neighborhood to stay in? We're early 30s and for comparison we like the 7th in Paris, Chelsea and the Flatiron in NYC or Lincoln Park/Lakeview in Chicago. Thanks so much--you all made our last trip to Italy and I'm sure your advice will be invaluable again!

mamc

The weather and gardens should be better in April. And there are more hours of daylight. If you like the 7th in Paris, you would probably like Chelsea, South Kensington or Knightsbridge in London.

swalter518

Thanks Mamc. Good point about the hours of daylight. Thanks for the neighborhood recommendations-that at least gives me somewhere to start.

isabel

But if the tickets are substantially cheaper bear in mind that a year ago (2003) mid March in London I had an entire week of no rain, temps in the 60s, green grass in Hyde Park, forsythia in bloom, and it stayed light out till 6:30ish. Obviously there is more chance of cooler temps but it was pretty nice that year.

swalter518

The cool temperatures don't bother us much but I'm more concerned about rain in April v. March. Is there usually a noticable difference in the amount of rain?

knoxtraveler

It has been two years but my girlfriend and I stayed in the Park International Hotel in Kensington at the end of January and loved it. I think the weather is hit or miss that time of year. We had cool but sunny weather except for a little rain one day. I can say that the off season was great for keeping the crowds down. For example we were practically alone at the Crown Jewels and got to spend as much time as we wanted. Besides you don't go to London for the weather.

The rooms at the Park International are on the small side US standards but normal for Europe, clean but very basic, but we basically only slept and showered in ours. As mentioned, the hotel is located in Kensington very close to the Gloucester Road Station. Having lived between Chelsea and Murray Hill in NYC I can say that the area is very compatible with your tastes.

The area has a neighborhood feel but at the same time you can easily reach anything in London, and there are great pubs in the area. We had a great walk back from Harrods one evening past the Royal Albert Hall stopping at pubs along the way.

Look into the London Pass if it is still offered. It is a great value which can be coupled with train/tube cards that allow visitors greatly reduced admission to many of the top tourist sites. We used ours for admission to the Tower of London, Hampton Court, Windsor Castle and other sites as well as tube and train fares so it was very well worth it. It must be ordered outside of the EU as I remember.

I hope this helps.

http://www.parkinternationalhotel.com/

Dave_

I suppose it's easy to say that April weather may generally be better than March in terms of expected average temerature being higher and rainfall lower (based on averages over the years).

The real difference between these months isn't that great and unless your trip will be made or broken by a bit of rain or less sun then I would choose the most convenient time for you (and because of the cheaper March prices that sounds like the month you prefer).

You could pick a week at the beginning of March and have perfect weather, a week at the end of April and have plenty of rain. I wouldn't choose my time for a trip to London between March and April that relied too much on temperature and rainfall.

Moat people would be surpised that our rainfall is pretty evenly spread throughout the year. Hence maybe the reputation we have that it rains all the time! Of course it doesn't happen like that in practice.

janis

If the chance of rain is your main criteria -- heck just flip a coin. There is ABSOLUTELY no way to tell until 5 or 6 days before your trip what the weather will be.

You are just as likely to have wonderful weather or dreadful weather (or something in between) in either month.

(BTW this goes for ANY month - just look at the folks in Cornwall whose cars were swept away in massive floods on Monday -- last year at this time they would have had record setting high temps and clear skies)

swalter518

Believe me living in Chicago I understand how unpredictable weather can be, it's 50 degrees here right now when it's normally 85! I just wanted to make sure that one time wasn't known to be worse than another. We've trecked through Paris in downpours so obviously rain isn't going to ruin our trip. Any other hotel suggestions or areas to look into?

USNR

I used to live in Chicago, and so I know what you mean. Just go. What amazed me was how March brought out the daffodils in London's parks. Great bunches of daffodils for sale on street corners, too, brought up from the Scilly Isles, off England's Cornish coast.

jnn1964

I was in London this past March, and was expecting cool and damp weather for the entire week. I packed accordingly. Of course, Mother Nature had other ideas and cranked the temperture up to into the 60's with bright sun. My 4 layers of clothing immediately turned to a damp, smothering blanket and I ended up carrying a wool jacket and cotton sweater under my arm for the first day of sightseeing. I also caught a nasty cold.

Be prepared for both cool/damp and sunny/humid, and have an outer-wear plan for both.

I had a terrific trip, and did not let my packing miscalculation hinder me. You'll have a fabulous time in either month, so I would take the cheaper March tickets and stay an extra day!

Patrick

A week? How about an apartment. I stay in a sort of upscale converted loft apartment in Covent Garden, above a street of very trendy New York Soho style boutiques. It's huge compared to hotel rooms and just a little over 200 US a night. I've stayed there about 7 years now and it is my favorite part of London -- so convenient.

swalter518

Patrick, the apartment sounds fabulous. Could you share the info. After driving all over Italy last year and France the year before my husband has requested a non-driving vacation so I think we'll use London as our one stop and travel from their if we decide to do day trips.

FromAtlanta

LOL!!

I never FULLY understood just how UNPREDICTABLE the weather was until I saw many posts about it on this forum - But I understand fully now. It is like this all over the world! Welcome to "Global Warming"

I was there in 2002. Mid march -early April. My experiences were A LOT different then others who went around the same time in 2003+ (They probably don't believe me or think I am exagerating my experiences of intense wind and very cold weather in SOME parts -including London- of UK during that time)

My point? I think janis hit it on the head when she said you won't know what the weather is going to be like until a week before. (I don't even put much faith in those charts that give you the average monthly temp. - I find those so outdated...but I guess you could use it as a rough guide)

Patrick

If you go to www.farnum-christ.com
and click "flats" then "Floral Street" you'll see some pictures and basic description of the flat. It actually rents for 900 pounds a week now, but easily worth more in my opinion. It is very spacious (although the bedroom is rather small with only a double bed). There is a huge bathroom with tub, toilet, bidet, and two sinks, plus a very small bathroom with a walk-in shower. Feel free to email me if you have any other questions. The agency (Farnum and Christ) which is in the States, rents it for private owners who are horse-breeders in Somerset who keep it as their London flat. Farnum and Christ jokingly call it the Patrick Ashton flat because I've stayed there so many times.
[email protected]

swalter518

Thanks Patrick. The website looks great. We're at the very early stages of our planning so no questions yet but I will have more about the flat when we know more about our plans.