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Please critique itinerary
If you check my profile, you will see that I've been down this road before with London. Researching and seeking bits of advice. However, this time after a move and two kids within as many years, we are finally able to make the trip! Will be in London for (only) five days in Jan as part of our 10th wedding anniversary celebrations. We are flexible on just about everything with regards to the itinerary. So, we appreciate your feedback.
Day One Thursday *Self-guided walking tour -Parliament/Big Ben -Westminster Abbey -Buckingham Palace -Selfridges/Marks and Spencer Day Two Friday -Tower of London tour -Churchill War Rooms -Tea Time (somewhere cozy) -London Eye evening ride Day Three Saturday Flexible sight-seeing -Wimbledon -Fleet Street -John Snow memorial -Theater performance Day Four Sunday -Day trip to Oxford - CS Lewis Walking Tour Visit friends Day Five Monday -Hampton Court or Windsor Castle |
Apologies, meant to put London in title.
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When I went (back in may 2005) I bought a ticket for the hop-on/off bus..it is not cheap...it was about 16 pounds.. but i found that it really helped me to orientate myself
for the first ride round the city, i didnt get off but just took note of what i wanted to visit there were three routes - denoted by a coloured triangle on the front of the bus it was valid for 24hrs and included a river cruise..the live guides were great...some routes didnt include a guide but you got the commentary through headphones i also fitted in a coach tour to bath/stonhenge and windsor/canterbury cathedral/leeds castle/dover i wouldve loved to have visited the cotswolds but missed out this time im going with my daughter ( winter/january 2014...brrr!sloshshiver tour on our own of london and then hopefully a five day tour up to york and edinburgh...) i have bought a walking tours book...it maps out various walks according to proximity and gives handy info re what can be done at night,,eg british museum and what days places close im hoping the queue to westminster abbey wont be so long..i gave up last time but did see st pauls ..particularly poignant to think about diana walking down that aisle( westminster abbey not open on sundays for tourists..only worshippers apparently but we really want to go there now that wills and kate married there) also want to find dianas memorial garden somewhere in kensington gardens..nobody but nobody could direct us...we even asked the homeless lol to no avail ...will be better equipped this time did see the little shrine that dodis father has in harrods ( the two wine glasses diana and dodi supposedly had their last drink in not a royalist...but was touched by that tragedy nonetheless) (i am watching a fabulous doco on youtube 'history of britain' as homework..starts right from pre Roman times and is narrated beautifully theres so much history to absorb but it will hold me in good stead... im ashamed to admit, i hardly knew who anne boleyn was back in 2005 so this doco has educated me so much about the tower and other castles and so much about whos who of the king/queen timeline...the places will mean so much more to me now that im aware of how the historical episodes rose swelled and crumbled time and time again...missed out on the selfridge mini series..might watch it when we get back) carluccios has good coffee...thats a random tip ive picked up but havent tested it as yet i have bought fresh food from tesco supermarkets...food was so expensive back then..the AUD is stronger now so we will be able to actually eat a bit better this time round lol as far as daytrips go...we booked them from OZ and premier tours didnt show up to our hostel..cancelled the tour withoutletting us know we galloped off to Victoria station and found that you could just front up on the day and choose what coach tour you want to do..thats what we will do this time..not worry about arranging it from home evanevans tours were great... if youre going to oxford, you might consider taking a bus to the cotswolds covent garden markets were great...will take my daughter there some places are closed for winter...we wanted to go to hever castle ( anne boleyns residence but because it is privately owned it they dont open during the low season) like us...youll no doubt be frustrated by the shorter days so do check out what is available to do once the dark takes over by the way ..where have you decided to stay? we got a room at the premier inn in leicester sq to be central..particularly at night..something to do when it gets dark (since we are two females without my husband for this leg of the trip)...maybe get tickets cheaply at the last minute for the shows... good luck with your planning and enjoy your trip..ill check in to see what others recommend |
Thanks for sharing your plans, lane johann. Please also share the names of your walking guide and link to the YouTube doco. :) We have not decided yet, but InterContinental Westminster and Royal Horseguards are top of the list.
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By "Wimbledon", do you mean the tennis museum? It's fascinating for anyone interested in tennis, but what makes it really special is the add-on behind the scenes tour. It is <b>essential</b> to book in advance for this as it fills up quickly, especially at weekends.
http://www.aeltc.com/museum/. Allow a good 3 hours for the museum plus tour. |
have tried to paste a link here to the youtube doco without success.. sorry
i found it by searching..'history of britain' ...'1001 documentaries' posted it...first episode has a mosaic of black horse on white background..narrator is simon schlama (sp).. ill find the walking tours guide in the next couple of days for you..its late here at the mo |
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Yes HAHA! i noted my error when i was watching episode 6 last night...Hes great..kinda quirky and bobble-headed...he moves his head around so emphatically sometimes that he reminds me of one of those loosehead doggies that used to sit on the parcel shelf in sedans lol lol
but i am so enjoying his presentation ! OK I found my walking guide book: National Geographic 'Walking London - the Best of the City' about $20 AUD I like it cos besides the fact it is very informative, it is still light enough to carry on your person |
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Skip the HOHO bus - it's nearly $40 each (25 quid) and you can get whatever you need for "orientation" by taking the "heritage" routes - the 9 and 15 (which still run the old Routemasters). And one of the main attractions of the HOHO buses are the open tops - do you seriously want to ride an open top bus in JANUARY?
Considering the Churchill War Rooms are rightthere when you visit the Westminster area, why not include them in that day and save HRM's house for another? Go to daysoutguide.co.uk and get the 2for1 vouchers and then go to a national rail ticket office and get daily travelcards as needed. You must get the travelcards from a national rail ticket booth, not one for the Tube. You can get one free admission to the Tower and HCP and the War Rooms. If you keep day two as is, you only need the one-day travelcard and you'll save about $60 on the Tower and War Rooms combined. If you go to HCP, your train ticket from Waterloo will work for the 2for1 deal. Here are the prices for Tower (21.45), War Rooms (17.50) and HCP (17.60). That's 56.55 quid that you'll save with the 2for1 deals, or $91.50+ at today's exchange rate. |
Gordon - Actually, we were only going to "drive by" or "walk by." Didn't know about the museum. Very cool. Thanks for the info and links.
lanejohann - Thanks again. Will def see if my local library has the guide! :) BigRuss - I had to check my itinerary again after your mention of the HoHo buses, but I see you were referring to lanejohann's plans. :) I was hoping to make the tour at Westminster Abbey and wasn't sure there'd be time for that and another tour, such as Churchill War rooms. Will check times again of both. If we can do those same day and HRM's residence another day, that'd work well. This will probably sound like a dumb question, but just to be clear, are you saying if we do daily travelcards we will not need the Oyster? Or is that something diff? Would love to save the $ by getting the 2for1 deals. Thanks for the tip! |
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Normally, for a stay of 5+ days, it makes more sense to get a 7-day paper travelcard if you want to take advantage of the 2for1's. You'll need a photo ID and you'll need to get the pass at a National Rail station. Print out all vouchers ahead of time.
Now, you've added a wrinkle in that you may go to a few places outside of zone 2 (a zone 1-2 card is normally sufficient). Hampton Court/Windsor and Wimbledon, I believe, fall into that category but you should confirm. How are you getting into the city on arrival/departure? That could also factor in (e.g. a roundtrip train from Gatwick would qualify). |
indy_dad - We plan to take the tube to our lodging, but need to confirm closest station. Based on our short list of hotels, we would travel from LHR to either St. James Park or Embankment.
What's the difference between National Rail and Tube? One is underground and the other above ground? If we purchase the 7-day paper travelcard, does that mean we shouldn't need to use the tube other than to commute to/from LHR? |
'National Rail' is a site that connects you to all train companies/lines. It is not a train company/train line. Has nothing at all to do w/ the tube/Underground.
The Tube/Underground is the London 'subway' system - not 'trains' >>If we purchase the 7-day paper travelcard, does that mean we shouldn't need to use the tube other than to commute to/from LHR?<< Some basic confusion here: • There is no 'train' into London except for the line into Paddington Station and it would not apply to either St James;s or Embankment. • There are essentially no 'trains' through central London, so no, you wouldn't use 'trains' during the week unless you go out of town. • You will use the tube or buses (and walking) to get around from site to site. • The paper travelcards are purchased in actual train stations (not tube stations) but are used for the tube and buses . . . This part can be confusing. • You cannot purchase paper travel cards at Heathrow. So you would go into London on the tube (or better yet IMO) a pre-booked car service like justairports.com and then AFTER you are in central London, you'd go to one of the <u>train</u> stations (Embankment/Charing Cross is one) and buy your paper travelcards there. |
Ah! Janis, thank you SO much for the thorough explanation! My signals definitely were crossed, but now I understand.
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I actually mis-read part of your post.
>>If we purchase the 7-day paper travelcard, does that mean we shouldn't need to use the tube other than to commute to/from LHR?<< >>• There is no 'train' into London except for the line into Paddington Station and it would not apply to either St James;s or Embankment.<< Yes - there IS a tube / Underground from LHR into London. I was trying to explain (ineffectively :) ) that the only 'train' in from LHR is to Paddington. But I think you got the gist of it. Basically -- Tube (or a car service) from LHR in to the city; tube/buses around London during the week; any train you take will be for out of town day trips; |
Thanks again, Janis! Since my last post, I clarified which means of transport hubby prefers. He's fine with taking the tube in from LHR as long as there is no more than one exchange. I believe if we take the tube we'd have to change once at Hammersmith, taking the circle line to St. James Park. Does that sound about right?
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Yes - that is the easiest route. The transfer at Hammersmith is one of the easiest on the entire tube system. Simply get off the Piccadilly line train, walk a few feet across the same platform and board the next District line train, get off at St James's Park.
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Good gosh, no.
At Hammersmith you take the DISTRICT line to St James Park. That should be a walk-across-the-platform switch. If you take the Circle Line, you'll be on the train for over an hour before reaching a station just 15 minutes away by District line. And why is your choice between St. James Park station and Embankment? Wouldn't Westminster be closer to your hotel than one of the other two - it's the station between St James Park and Embankment. If you get a 7-day Travelcard you do not need an Oyster for general use, just get a pair of pay-as-you-go Oyster cards for your trips to and from the airport. For the 7-day travelcard, take passport size headshots of yourselves with you, go to the manned ticket booth at Victoria or Waterloo or Charing Cross (would pick Charing X if it's close enough - Waterloo is busy as heck) and get your 7-day travelcard. The manned ticket booth is for the TRAINS and on the level with the omnipresent Boots Pharmacy, M&S Simply Food store, etc., and not below ground level. |
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