London with 13 year old girls Help
 

Will be at Thistle Charing Cross Hotel 4 1/2 days March 20-24. Have tickets to Blood Brothers 4PM Saturday. Plan to do Hop On Off bus when we arrive Thurs AM. kids want to see changing of guard, Harrods, Hadleys(toy store)The eye, They have studied holocaust & WW II Which war experience do you recommend, I went 10 years ago to one that had me experiencing the blitz and london during that period. Will go to Tate Modern & Royal Academy. Any market besides Portobello? Welcome all your help

The Imperial War Museum is the one that has the "Blitz Experience." It also has a "Trench Experience" for WWI.

The IWM also has an incredible Holocaust Exhibit. Very powerful. There is an age requirement though - not sure if they allow 13 year-olds to enter. I searched on the website but couldn't find the answer. The IWM is free, which is a plus.
http://london.iwm.org.uk/

I also went to the Cabinet War Rooms and Churchill Museum. It is very different from the IWM. I personally like the IWM more but seeing the CWR is a very unique experience. The CWR is pricey though.
http://cwr.iwm.org.uk/

I would also recommend both the Imperial War Museum and the Cabinet War Rooms.

Keep in mind that if you ride the bus the first day, you may be jet-lagged, and riding on a bus while jet-lagged can lead to napping on the bus! On our first day in London with our then-10yo, we visited the Tower of London, walked around the Thames a bit, then took the Hop On-Hop Off bus for about half a route. We rode a different route the next morning. (The ticket is for 24 hours.)

You MUST go to the IWM -- if you are a fan of history, and especially WWII history, it's an incredible place! Personally, I HATED the Tate Modern (and I usually prefer the modern art) and I cannot imagine 13 year olds really getting into it (unless they really have an interest in modern art).

The Hop On Off bus is nice, but with the crowded traffic, it's REALLY slow. When my dad came to visit me while I was studying abroad there, we tried it, but got so bored that we found it much faster to walk to the sights or take the tube. We were also able to get much more in this way.

The changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace is ok. It's VERY geared towards tourists, and to get a good view, you need to get there a good hour beforehand. I liked the changing of the horse guards a LOT better--it's more colorful and you can get much closer to watch it. I just felt that the changing of the horse guards was more "traditional" than the overly-touristy Buckingham changing of guards.

I took a group of girls to London. The group had several 13 year olds in it.

Our hits!

1. Tower of London. I bugeted a few hours. We were there from opening until well after lunch and if it hadn't just been pouring rain I think they could have stayed longer. They loved it.

2. Globe Theater and Museum. Once again, I didn't have high hopes. The other chaperone and I actually DRUG them out of there because we were starving. They loved the "expereience" stuff in the museum.

3. While I didn't take them there, I think some of my group would have like Camden Market. More "different" types then at Portobello. Plus it seemed cheaper to me.

How do you cope with jet lag? A few years ago when our kids were 14 and 8 we took regular double decker buses around London on our arrival day (cheaper than Hop on hop off). Great view from the front of the top deck but the kids slept through it all!
My kids sleep very little if at all on the flight and need a short nap on arrival.
They both enjoy Tate Modern and the National Gallery.

I recommend the British Museum

Ha, Lexma90! I guess there are a few people napping on the bus!

Second the Tower of London, which has so much history and romance surrounding it. We loved the hop-on and off boats on the Thames--wonderful views, and the ticket is good for all day.

we took our daughters..a little older but still. funny you said blood Brothers--we took them to that also and I was humming it just yesterday(when I put my shoes on the table-you will see). My girls loved it(its sad, you know, though).
My advice: shopping. although expensive--make that EXTREMELY expensive, there are shops that have cute junior stuff that isnt much--FCUK on every corner, TopShop and Miss selfridge's. always fun to get something that you cant get here. Also: Harrod's! See Diana's ring, etc. and the food halls...just a wow of a place. And Liberty of London store--also almost just to look at but very cool! Tower of London was great-a must. Tate was fair. Agree with Globe. Make advance res for the London Eye-we didnt and it was too crowded. Just walk and eat in a pub(try the Black Friar's Pub--very old art nouveau place in the old fish area, now Law area). Covent Garden--lots of shops and just street entertainment. have fun

Look at the London walks: www.walks.com. There's a big choice and all I've taken have been well worth the time. Maybe let the girls each pick one out. It's always good to involve children in the trip-planning. Makes them more interested.

Oh, and make sure everybody has a rainproof outer layer.

We took our kids to the Holocaust exhibit at the Imperial War Museum when they were 10 and 13 and they had no problems getting in. It is excellent!! I would also concur with the suggestions of Tower of London and Camden Market. I think the girls will really enjoy both.