tbrown

Hello, we are traveling to London for our first time.

We are traveling with 1 adult, 1 Senior and a 16 year old.

I would love some help with this itinerary.

28-Aug Sun Arrive at LHR – We land around 1 in the afternoon so we may just go to the hotel and do nothing, but if we wanted to go out I was considering the Notting Hill Carnival. Maybe take the Thames Clipper in the evening if we don’t go to the Carnival.

29-Aug Mon Hampton Court Palace - On this day they are also having the BBC Goof Food Festival. Would you go this day or switch with Friday? Is the Maze and Gardens worth the extra price?

30-Aug Tue
Tour Westminster Abbey
See Big Ben
See Platform 93/4
See the Shard -Go to either Camden Lock Market or Borough Market

31-Aug Wed
See Changing of Guard
Tour Buckingham Palace I was thinking a 1:00 or 1:30 tour
See Piccadilly Circus
See Trafalgar Square

1-Sep Thu
Stonehenge/Bath/Windsor Castle Tour

2-Sep Fri
Tour Tower of London
Tour London Bridge
See Tower Hill
Thames Clipper

3-Sep Sat Fly Home

Would you recommend the Oyster Card or the Travelcard?

Would love tour guide suggestions for the Stonehenge/Bath/Windsor Castle Tour.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Dukey1

You can load a Travelcard onto an Oyster. Have you looked at the Transport for London site?

www.tfl.gov.uk

historytraveler

Just a quick note. I would give the Nottinghill Carnival and the Changing of the Guards a miss. There are much better places to visit and things to do.

janisj

>>I was considering the Notting Hill Carnival. <<

I wouldn't -- even totally jet lag free - this will give you an idea:

http://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/...arr-424782.jpg

I personally would not do Hampton Court Palace on your first full day in London. You will have been traveling for 1.5 days and then want to do a half day semi-out-of-town trip the ver next morning.

Your tuesday is ALL over the place. Westminster, Southwark, Kings Cross . . . just really hectic w/ you crossing vast parts of London multiple tomes.

Wed: Book your Buckingham Palace tickets as soon as possible. I would personally skip the changing of the Guard -- just eats up waaaay too much time. I'd try to book the Palace for a morning tour -- 10 or 10:30 AM or even earlier if you can.

Friday: >>Tour London Bridge<< Tower Bridge is the 'pretty one' - London bridge is just a modern bridge.

>>Would love tour guide suggestions for the Stonehenge/Bath/Windsor Castle Tour.<<

This is confusing -- the tour you go on will provide the guide. I actually would NOT do this tour though. You have very little time IN London. You could do a half day trip to Windsor on your own by train -- but me personally - I'd do Hampton Court Palace instead.

PalenQ

I loved the Notting Hill Carnival but at least several years ago it was a complete mob scene that made me feel uncomfortable -hard to walk anywhere with barricades and all - maybe not a relaxing thing to do the day you land IME?

but a good show.

BTW - once long ago when writing an article about European Festivals I called the British Tourist Authority and asked about the Carnival and the staffer replied "we have no info on that - it's purely an ethnic affair" - this shocked me - oh how times have changed! And to me the colorfully garbed West Indies crowd and participants was great as were the steel bands.

That said with the suffering crowds I would never return unless things have changed a lot.

https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

If you do not know about the 2 for 1 offers in conjunction with a paper Travel Card or train ticket it an save a lot of money.

You seem to not have the London Eye Ferris Wheel on your list - I'd do that on day 1 as it is a great orientation to London from a bird's eye view.

PalenQ

Well was posting whilst janis posted the picture of mobs at the Carnival - says it all.

halfapair

Get a map of London and look at where things are in the city. Group your sites together based on their proximity to one another. That way you don't waste time getting from one area of the city to another.

The tube is great, but can be time consuming.

PalenQ

for short hops buses may be quicker than the Tube and easier to get to and from the top deck you can see London and not just Tube stations and Tube walls.

I love London buses - try to sit up front up top - yeh the going can be slow but you can see so much.

thursdaysd

Another vote against the Carnival. I was thinking of going last year, but I took the train into London on the Sunday, and the crowds just on the train were enough to tell me it was a bad idea. Plus a couple of young men, who kept an eye on my luggage for me, strongly suggested that I avoid it.

If you want to take advantage of the two-for-one deals you need a paper travel card bought at a rail station, not an Oyster.

Seeing Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square takes very little time. How about a museum? The best ones are free. I love the V&A and it has beautiful tea rooms if you want to try scones and clotted cream.

janisj

If one hasn't been to the Carnival for 25 years -- then they <i>might</i> recommend it.

Just the first post on the TA London Forum:

>>Didn't go last year but have twice before in recent years and it's great fun.

It can be a little intimidating and there's drugs everywhere but it's good fun really.<<

Tells you enough. it is sort of like Mardi Gras on steroids. More than 400 arrests last year, including for attacks on police. Just too big and too crazy for a family w/ a teenager and a 'senior' - jet lagged at that.

dan_woodlief

I am not sure if your tour takes in the changing of the guard at Windsor, but we enjoyed the changing of the guard there a lot more than the one at Buckingham Palace. It is smaller, but you don't have to be very early to get a prime spot right by the guards.

I see you have platform 9 3/4 on your schedule. Our whole family loves Harry Potter, and we did that as well. I doubt you will have time, but the Harry Potter Studios, which are a short train ride and bus ride outside of London are spectacular for fans. There is so much to see there, but you would need to give it at least half a day.

Can you fit the Shard in on your Tower day? I am not sure if you plan to visit or just see it. It is pretty close to Tower Bridge. If you get a chance to also see Tower Bridge at night, that is when it is at its best.

Tulips

I had a quick look at the carnival last year, on the Monday. It was raining, and not crowded. Saw some of the parade, and walked around the streets. Really regretted not having earplugs; it is so loud that you feel the pavement vibrating even a block or more away. Shops and houses are boarded up. Many nice restaurants and pubs are closed. It looked depressing rather than festive. The locals move out for the weekend.
If your 16-year old is into that kind of music, then go have a look at the parade (bring earplugs). If not, then give it a miss.

Borough Market/Camden? The 16-year old will probably like Camden more (I know my kids did at that age). Not all stalls are open in Borough Market on Tuesdays. Go on the Friday when you are visiting the Tower (go first thing in the morning) - it's not far. And visit the Shard then as well. After Borough continue along the river to Tate Modern, and cross the Millennium Bridge to St Pauls, or continue along to the Eye. It's a great walk.

Go to Camden after Kings Cross. Or, even better; go to Primrose Hill for the beautiful views over London and walk along the Regents Canal to Camden.

Tulips

Regarding the carnival;
http://www.standard.co.uk/news/londo...-a3288876.html

bilboburgler

You seem to have selected all the expensive things to do... I think that Wednesday is your worst day (by far) the guard changing is nonsense and a waste of time, but the palace is worth a visit, the rest of the day is meh.

Depending on the weather, either have a day in one of the parks or pop off and see the V&A

I'd swap the Shard for Greenwich and the park, for one, the views are better.

Odin

<i>29-Aug Mon Hampton Court Palace - On this day they are also having the BBC Goof Food Festival. Would you go this day or switch with Friday? Is the Maze and Gardens worth the extra price?</i>
Yes I would swap it to another day as it is also Bank Holiday and the area around HCP is very busy as it is and even more so with the Good Food Festival. And yes, the maze and gardens are worth the extra IMO.

Bushy Park is nearby
https://www.royalparks.org.uk/parks/bushy-park

You can take a river trip for part of the journey, maybe stop at Richmond on the way back.

http://www.turks.co.uk/river-trips/

BigRuss

DO NOT GET AN OYSTERCARD - GET THE PAPER TRAVELCARD.

DO NOT GET A TRAVELCARD LOADED ONTO AN OYSTERCARD.

PalenQ gave you the website. Go there, print off any voucher of interest before you matriculate in London. The vouchers provide two admissions for the price of one - the War Rooms, Tower, HCP and more are covered.

Bring passport-sized photos for everyone.

When you get to London, go to a National Rail station (NOT A TUBE STATION) and get a week-long zone 1-2 travelcard from the manned ticket booth for everyone. You will receive a flimsy business-card sized orange-bordered card that you present with your vouchers to get discounts - the Tower alone (about 20 quid off) makes the hassle worth it.

PS - your Wednesday is really thin (and the changing of the guard sucks - the bang/hype ration is completely off considering the crowds, lines, and twee factor; if you want to see a real and traditional changing of the guard ceremony, go to Arlington National Cemetery).

London Bridge is a stone arch bridge of no real interest, especially since the original is in Arizona. You probably mean Tower Bridge.

willit

Not traditional? Twee factor?

I'm not a huge fan of COTG, but I cannot understand the above two comments.

thursdaysd

I find the notion that the changing of the guard in the US is more "traditional" than the ceremony in England bizarre. Perhaps BigRuss would care to share his definition of the word. But he is right on about the paper travel card.

janisj

The Changing of the Guard would be absolutely great . . . IF one didn't have to arrive an hour or more early, didn't have to stand in one place or lose it, didn't get plastered up against the fence if wanting to see anything going on in the yard etc.

If it was just the guard, the band, and maybe a couple of hundred of your nearest and dearest . . . it would be fun. But on a short visit (and yours is very short) spending one entire morning hanging around waiting for the guards change is a bad use of time.

PalenQ

Britain says their royals are worth their weight in gold in bringing in tourists and their money and the Changing of the Guard is one such thing - I never really cared much for it but glad I saw it once

and so do many other people - the huge crowds janis talks about are a testimony to that and all are not foreign tourists.

I think it's something folks do in London - jaded folks who have been to London more times than most British often diss it but they perhaps forget their first visit to London when they may well have done it.

I'd say it's- for good or bad - one of the major things to put on your must do list.