Mind the gap ? The London Report, Part I
Jun 27th, 2003, 06:35 AM
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Mind the gap ? The London Report, Part I
Because this board proved itself invaluable when I planned my first trip to London, I thought I would return the favor and provide a report of the excursion in hopes that it might aid some of you first-time Londoners out there.
Incidentally, I've taken lots of pictures and kept a journal while I was there. To learn about my journey to Britain, visit my website at
http://www.voxdesigns.com/london0503
Enjoy.
The following report contains items that I didn't include in my journal and hopefully might be of service to those of you planning your trips.
First was the flight. My husband and I booked a package trip with Virgin Vacations. I highly recommend these guys. Their prices are greatly competitive and they allow you a little flexibility when doing your planning. We chose the London Excursion package for 7 days/6 nights and extended the return flight for three days later so that we could spend a few days in the West Country. It included the airfare, airport fees & taxes, hotel stay and transfers to and from the airport. Naturally, we flew Virgin Atlantic airlines, which was great. They make you as comfortable as possible and the in-flight meal was excellent for airline standards!
We didn't rent a car until we left London for Bath. This was just as well since there is NO available parking in the city and the tube/bus takes you anywhere you'd like to go in London. About 95% of all the attractions in London are accessible by the tube, the rest covered by the bus. We rented our car from SixT, a European car agent. These guys are very economical but be very aware of a few things. Unless you know the Heathrow area well, get very explicit directions on how to get to the agent. They are not situated right in the airport like the other agents. Our hotel shuttle driver had never even heard of SixT (as they were another agency until about a year ago). Otherwise, arrange to have a SixT shuttle pick you up at the airport. Also, be extremely aware of what type of transmission you want for your car. I highly recommend getting an automatic. We inadvertently booked a stick shift and it was quite the challenge on top of the already challenging driving conditions. To avoid all of these issues, I would just book with Hertz/Avis, etc.
We got 7-day Travelcards from the Underground (brought head-on passport-size snapshots of ourselves to use for the photo ID cards), which covered the bus and the tube (zones 1 & 2--all you'll need to see the London attractions) as many times as we wanted to ride. I believe we paid about £19 each for them, well worth it considering how often we rode the tube and bus!!
We stayed at the Thistle Kensington Gardens. The location is fantastic. It's only 3 minutes from the Queensway tube station and Queensway itself is full of great shops, restaurants and internet cafes for those of you who absolutely MUST check email while you're away
The hotel itself leaves a bit to be desired. The service wasn't very helpful and the continental breakfast is awful (they never refilled anything, so we stuck with the last of the muffins/toast and hours-old coffee). The rooms are extremely small (I've heard that a substantial amount of London hotels are like this) but that was something I would overlook since we only slept and showered there. Hot water seemed to be a rare thing when we showered in the morning (we'd either have to shower late or extra early to get a little hot water). For those of you requiring hair dryers (like myself), the dryers looked more like vacuum cleaners and hardly blew out any air at all. Prepare to have a few bad hair days if you need a hairdryer here.
While we were in Bath, we stayed at Badminton Villa hosted by Sue & John Burton. Our hosts were fantastic and so helpful. John suggested a terrific afternoon trip taking us through Lacock, Biddestone and Castle Combe for a little quaint English country adventure. Sue's breakfast was wonderful; cooked fresh and made to order with a wonderful selection of fruit, juice and coffee. One regret was that I didn't specify (or even think to) a room overlooking the city. Most of the B&B's in Bath are situated on hills and have a lovely view of the city.
Well, that's the major stuff. I'll report again on the little quirks and some other things to pack and the like.
Cheers!
Incidentally, I've taken lots of pictures and kept a journal while I was there. To learn about my journey to Britain, visit my website at
http://www.voxdesigns.com/london0503
Enjoy.
The following report contains items that I didn't include in my journal and hopefully might be of service to those of you planning your trips.
First was the flight. My husband and I booked a package trip with Virgin Vacations. I highly recommend these guys. Their prices are greatly competitive and they allow you a little flexibility when doing your planning. We chose the London Excursion package for 7 days/6 nights and extended the return flight for three days later so that we could spend a few days in the West Country. It included the airfare, airport fees & taxes, hotel stay and transfers to and from the airport. Naturally, we flew Virgin Atlantic airlines, which was great. They make you as comfortable as possible and the in-flight meal was excellent for airline standards!
We didn't rent a car until we left London for Bath. This was just as well since there is NO available parking in the city and the tube/bus takes you anywhere you'd like to go in London. About 95% of all the attractions in London are accessible by the tube, the rest covered by the bus. We rented our car from SixT, a European car agent. These guys are very economical but be very aware of a few things. Unless you know the Heathrow area well, get very explicit directions on how to get to the agent. They are not situated right in the airport like the other agents. Our hotel shuttle driver had never even heard of SixT (as they were another agency until about a year ago). Otherwise, arrange to have a SixT shuttle pick you up at the airport. Also, be extremely aware of what type of transmission you want for your car. I highly recommend getting an automatic. We inadvertently booked a stick shift and it was quite the challenge on top of the already challenging driving conditions. To avoid all of these issues, I would just book with Hertz/Avis, etc.
We got 7-day Travelcards from the Underground (brought head-on passport-size snapshots of ourselves to use for the photo ID cards), which covered the bus and the tube (zones 1 & 2--all you'll need to see the London attractions) as many times as we wanted to ride. I believe we paid about £19 each for them, well worth it considering how often we rode the tube and bus!!
We stayed at the Thistle Kensington Gardens. The location is fantastic. It's only 3 minutes from the Queensway tube station and Queensway itself is full of great shops, restaurants and internet cafes for those of you who absolutely MUST check email while you're away
The hotel itself leaves a bit to be desired. The service wasn't very helpful and the continental breakfast is awful (they never refilled anything, so we stuck with the last of the muffins/toast and hours-old coffee). The rooms are extremely small (I've heard that a substantial amount of London hotels are like this) but that was something I would overlook since we only slept and showered there. Hot water seemed to be a rare thing when we showered in the morning (we'd either have to shower late or extra early to get a little hot water). For those of you requiring hair dryers (like myself), the dryers looked more like vacuum cleaners and hardly blew out any air at all. Prepare to have a few bad hair days if you need a hairdryer here. While we were in Bath, we stayed at Badminton Villa hosted by Sue & John Burton. Our hosts were fantastic and so helpful. John suggested a terrific afternoon trip taking us through Lacock, Biddestone and Castle Combe for a little quaint English country adventure. Sue's breakfast was wonderful; cooked fresh and made to order with a wonderful selection of fruit, juice and coffee. One regret was that I didn't specify (or even think to) a room overlooking the city. Most of the B&B's in Bath are situated on hills and have a lovely view of the city.
Well, that's the major stuff. I'll report again on the little quirks and some other things to pack and the like.
Cheers!
Jun 27th, 2003, 07:08 AM
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I got the hotel via a package, so I'm sure it was a negotiated rate between Virgin and Thistle. The entire package was about $2K for two people (not including our car and stay in Bath).
:0)
:0)
Jun 27th, 2003, 09:55 AM
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We stayed at Henry viii hotel and its right around the corner of Thistle Kensington Gardens. We do too love this area. air at night is so crisp, clean and refreshing. (because of Kensington Gardens nearby). Aside from your experience we really enjoy our hotel. Rooms are small but very clean and the shower was the best. I wish I would have one like that in home!. Service was excellent. Staff was friendly and helpful, and the breakfast was good. I got English breakfast twice (extra 3 pound) and it was excellent!. We even had dinner in our restaurant once and it was good. BTW our hotel has a pool. We paid $79 a night (travelocity.com)
Jun 27th, 2003, 10:47 AM
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We just stayed at the Thistle Kensington Palace, next door to the TK Gardens, and had a better experience than you describe. We had plenty of hot water and a good breakfast, plus one area of the dining room looks out over Kensington Park.
The room wasn't air conditioned, but we were in an ell with an outside window across the hall from our room, so we left the door open for a cross breeze until bedtime and were quite comfortable. Of course, we had just come from Greece which would make most any temperature feel comfortable. Ours was part of a British Air package, so I don't know how much the room cost. The price shown at the desk for a double was 120 BP.
The room wasn't air conditioned, but we were in an ell with an outside window across the hall from our room, so we left the door open for a cross breeze until bedtime and were quite comfortable. Of course, we had just come from Greece which would make most any temperature feel comfortable. Ours was part of a British Air package, so I don't know how much the room cost. The price shown at the desk for a double was 120 BP.
Jun 27th, 2003, 12:33 PM
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So as not to confuse people who may be interested in staying at one of the five Thistle hotels that are near Kensington Gardens/Hyde Park, the Thistle Kensington Palace and Thistle Kensington Gardens are NOT adjacent. The Thistle Kensington Palace and Thistle Kensington Park are adjacent on the south side of Kensington Gardens. The Thistle Kensington Gardens is on the north side of Kensington Gardens. Nearby on the north side are the Thistle Hyde park and Thistle Lancaster Gate.
Jul 21st, 2003, 11:02 AM
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Just wanted to post a quickie footnote. My friend just returned from London and told me that the Thistle Euston is excellent! It's in a fairly central location, right next to the tube and the rooms are big (within reason) and clean. The service was really good, too. Just wanted to pass that along.
Cheers!
Cheers!
Sep 29th, 2003, 04:25 AM
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Sorry about that, kids. I just changed ISPs. The URL should now again be functioning:
http://www.voxdesigns.com/london0503
Happy Trails!
http://www.voxdesigns.com/london0503
Happy Trails!
Sep 29th, 2003, 06:34 AM
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Vertigo - Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed reading your journal on your website - very entertaining!
I certainly agree with your 3 mathematical certainties. However, I must say, if you had made a different choice at the TKTS booth, you would have a much different view of London's West End. The long-running musicals and plays have been long-running for a reason - they're very professionally done and worth seeing time and again.
Thanks again for an informative and enjoyable report.
I certainly agree with your 3 mathematical certainties. However, I must say, if you had made a different choice at the TKTS booth, you would have a much different view of London's West End. The long-running musicals and plays have been long-running for a reason - they're very professionally done and worth seeing time and again.
Thanks again for an informative and enjoyable report.
Oct 4th, 2003, 05:38 AM
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Journal and photos at website excellent. Liked the fact that you had the odd moan i.e. no cold drinks but didn't go on and on but accepted that is the way it is in England.
When you go next time consider not doing a package and that will give you more choices on where you can stay. Usually it takes me as long to work out the details for the best car rental as it does to work out the flight details. This past May we used www.nova.co.uk and had no complaints. You can get a quote direct from their website and they place you with major car rental places. If you do want a automatic be very clear because they are few and far between. Sounds like you did o.k. with the stick shift. Hope you go back and explore, explore.
Thanks so much for a excellent report.
Sandy
When you go next time consider not doing a package and that will give you more choices on where you can stay. Usually it takes me as long to work out the details for the best car rental as it does to work out the flight details. This past May we used www.nova.co.uk and had no complaints. You can get a quote direct from their website and they place you with major car rental places. If you do want a automatic be very clear because they are few and far between. Sounds like you did o.k. with the stick shift. Hope you go back and explore, explore.
Thanks so much for a excellent report.
Sandy
