Good day all. My wife and 3 adult girls are visiting London on our way to Africa in June. I am putting together an itinerary and I am hoping that you all can give me any pointers or point out any glaring issues you may see (such as over booking).

Sunday - Arrive at LHR at 0935. Car service from JustAirports to Islington. Drop off bags around noon. Lunch around Angel/Islington. Tube to Westminster. Walk around area and see Buckingham, Parliment, be at Abbey for 1500 Evensong (this is the only full choir available during our time there). Bus back home. Dinner and early night in.

Monday - Head to Westminster, if up early enough stroll through Piccadilly, Leicester, Trafalgar. Be at St James Park on Horse Guards Rd (still not positive where best to stand for this) by 1045 to watch changing the King's Life Guards. Afterwards head to Convent Gardens, grab lunch. Then head to Westminster Abbey for Vergers tour.

Tuesday - Tower of London at 0900. Walk across Tower Bridge, have lunch in Borough Market, then to Imperial War Museum. Stop at Garden at 120 and Leadenhall Market on the way back home.

Wednesday - British Museum at 1000, rest of the day free and open to suggestions.

Thursday - Drop luggage at luggage storage facility somewhere. Looking for day plan before having to be on flight to Africa at 1905. Probably will walk around Angle/Islington area or nearby. Something low stress.

On our return from Africa we have a long layover. We arrive LHR at 0730 and depart 1635. I am planning on cab or Uber for us to visit Windsor Castle.

Thank you all for your time and input!

It looks good. It is Covent Garden by the way. Other suggestions - Churchill War Rooms as just about across the street from Westminster Abbey, National Portrait Gallery, just around Trafalgar Square from National Gallery. You can also go to a show either a matinee or evening on Wednesday and get discount tickets at the Leicester Square ticket booth for same day or next day performances of many shows. What about St Paul's? Very beautiful and interesting and different than Westminster Abbey. You can also visit the Tate Modern for their outstanding collection or the Tate Britain, both outstanding museums to visit as is the Courtald Institute.

Hopefully the layover day that you plan to tour Windsor Castle is not a Sunday as St George's Chapel is not open for visitors, only for worship.

Just a couple of quick comments - I'm heading ouy for the day.

'strolling' through Piccadilly and Leicester Sq (assuming you mean Piccadilly Circus and not Piccadilly the street -- which would be for Fortnum & Mason and the Royal Academy) wouldn't be on most priority lists. Nothing special about either one except maybe the lighted rolling sign at Piccadilly Circus but that is really a nighttime 'thing'. If you are eventually headed to Horse Guards -- then Trafalgar Square and St James's Park make more sense.

On your departure day -- just leave the bags at Kings Cross Station, then retrieve them and take the tube out to LHR . . . or. . . .leave then at Liverpool Street Station and take the Elizabeth Line to LHR.

I did mean Piccadilly Circus. I agree it is not a priority. I had just seen it mentioned and it was in the area. Same with Leicester. I'll take your advice and just concentrate on Trafalgar and St. James Park. I'll look into Kings Cross. Looks like the Piccadilly line is half the cost of the Elizabeth line from Liverpool. Got any ideas on things to do in the area for 4-5 hours?

Thank you for the suggestions. Churchill looked really interesting to me but I don't know if the 165 pounds would be worth it for our family. I'll definitely check for discounted tickets and Leicester. If I can send the girls to a show I'll check out the War Rooms myself.

So...I forgot why I originally planned Windsor on our departure day Thursday. Our layover day is Tuesday and thanks to your note I just remembered the castle is closed Tuesday/Wednesday. It is also closed the day we arrive and that Monday, so it is either Thursday or miss it. Is this doable?

Thursday - Car service to Windsor, ditch bags at luggage storage, tour castle. Car service to airport arrive at airport at 1600 for 1905 departure. I looked into the train (London->Windsor) and the bus (Windsor->LHR) earlier but it didn't seem the hassle would be worth it for the lowly cost savings.

Also open for any other ideas on our layover. 9 hours in the airport doesn't sound too fun but I don't know if we can get out for anything meaningful in that time either.

Careful using just 'Liverpool' since that is a city waaaay up north (Beatles and all that) . It is and must be Liverpool STREET Station.

Kings Cross is one tube stop from Russell Square and the British Museum or you could walk it in 20 minutes. The station is a 5 or 6 minute walk to the British Library -- look u the Treasures Gallery. Or itis less than a 10 minute walk into Coal Drops Yrd - a massive redeveloped area with shops, restaurants galleries canal boats etc.

If you decide to you the Elizabeth Line - yes it does cost a bit more than the tube but it is MUCH faster and has more space for luggage etc. Close or walkable in less than 15 minutes are Spittalfields and Market -- mostly restaurants pubs and shops, Leadenhall Market (including Harry Potter locations), The Guildhall with the remains of a Roman Ampitheatre in the basement.

But -- both Kings Cross and Liverpool Street are on multiple tube lines so you could visit almost anywhere in the city.

Oh -- and it must be Leicester Square -- not just Leicester (another city north of London). One should not ever take 'short cuts' with place names in the UK or you could end up really surprised.

(More than a few tourists think they are going to Stratford-upon-Avon 100 miles NW of London for Shakespeare stuff and end up in Stratford way out in east London -- where most of the Olympic venues were.)

Good to know! Thank you for the heads up. I think we are going to try and hit Windsor Castle on our departure day. I think we will take a car service to Windsor and drop our luggage there while we check out the town/castle. Then another car service to Terminal 5. Thank you for the Coal Drops Yard and British Library suggestions. I think one or both of those will fit in great with British Museum Day.

For your layover on the way back from Africa, you could take the tube to South Kensington, have breakfast and visit the V & A museum for a couple of hours. Or go to Richmond, or Chiswick for a look around and a nice walk along the river. They are both pretty close to Heathrow. It’s easy to make this decision when you get to the airport, in case of snafus or if you are too tired to do anything.

For your free time on Wednesday, I suggest that you do the London Eye, you can get tickets ahead of time on-line so you don’t have to stand in the long cue. It was the best thing I did last June, loved the views, scenery and the ‘ride’ itself

My faves are-
Victoria and Albert Museum-great exhibits and beautiful cafe to get coffee or lunch.
Tate Modern-Walk over the millennium bridge from St Paul’s, check out some modern arot and get coffee on the upper level at the bar counter and gaze out on the Thames and St Paul’s. Also like the National Portrait Gallery for a smaller more intimate museum experience.
Spouse and daughter’s might like a quick perusal of Harrods or Selfridges or my personal favorite (architecturally) is Liberty’s.
We’ve gotten cheapish tickets to a few plays over the years. Loved the musical where we sat at small tables and got wine delivered!

I think the Thursday plan for Windsor Castle sounds doable, but not an expert on getting around by vehicle. You do need several hours to tour Windsor Castle and St George's Chapel but definitely worth it and don't overlook Princess Mary's dollhouse.

On the Thursday I'd just catch a taxi from Windsor to the airport. Pre-booking a car service would require you to meet at a specific time/place, and since you wouldn't know how long you'll spend at the castle, nor where you'd want to meet the driver. There are a couple of taxi ranks in Windsor -- one just out front of the Castle in Thames Street. (or you could flag one down) There is a Gift Shop that includes a Bounce luggage storage facility -- you can't miss it - bright red sign just next door to the Horse & Groom pub right at the corner of Thames Street and Castle Hill.

The Dolls' House was created for and presented to Queen Mary. Definitely a must.

Thank you all for the suggestions! Sorry for the delay, I was sent out of town for work and this got put on the back burner.