I have been devising a working itinerary for our London trip next week. Everything is flexible with the exception of the theater tickets, which I have already booked (used theatremonkey’s wonderful seating quality charts). Here is what I have:

Sunday, March 5
arrive Gatwick airport 6:45 am.
transport to hotel (Mayfair), leave bags
go to breakfast
attend services at Brompton Oratory
short nap
hop on/hop off
or
London Eye (if good weather)
dinner
collapse in bed

Monday, March 6
Walk around Westminster/Trafalgar area (and lunch): Big Ben, Parliament, stops at Westminster Abbey, Cabinet War Rooms, Banqueting House.
boat to Tate Modern/ Southwark.
London Eye if decent weather.
quick dinner
theater

Tuesday, March 7
London Tower, possible boat ride on Thames (weather permitting).
lunch (Leadenhall?)
walking around the City (Guildhall, some churches, possible Bank of England museum)
British Library
nice dinner

Wednesday, March 8
possible day trip to Oxford or Cambridge (with lunch)
dinner
Victoria & Albert late opening (until 10:00 pm)

Thursday, March 9
Walking around Covent Garden/West End and lunch (St. Martin in Fields, bookshops)
National Gallery (daughter and I) /Imperial War Museum (husband)
café meal
theater

Friday, March 10
whatever didn’t fit from earlier in week
lunch
Mayfair and Oxford St. shopping with friends (husband in Greenwich until dinner, possible DLR/riverboat combination)
nice dinner
packing

Saturday, March 11
depart London in am

I am doing some restaurant research, and will probably reserve something for Tuesday and Friday evenings.

Does this itinerary sound reasonable?

Hey, it would feel easier to give away a child than to let others see your itinerary

I think a little too (maybe a lot) too busy. Try doing some with a London Walk- esp Westminster and the City. I think on the Sunday if good weather, the London Eye. The hop on hop off might be a bit ambitious. If you want a bus tour to orient, Id do a half day tour or better yet do the hop on-off the next am when you might have enough energy to occasionally get off the bus!

Day 1 - sounds good.
(Love the Brompton Oratory!)
Which hotel in Mayfair? We stayed at the Washington.
Day 2- good...not sure if you will make it to all the places you have listed..
Day 3-good
Day 4-my pick- Oxford
Day 5-don't miss Neals Yard while in Covent Garden, love St Martin in the Fields ( they have concerts in the evenings) You can have lunch at the Cafe in the Crypt too..You will love the Nat'l Gallery!
Day 6- Don't miss Liberty. Especially if you like to do needlework

You might decide which are your must sees just in case you have an attack of jet lag or bad weather. London Eye at dusk if you can manage the reservation--absolutely fabulous. Loved the Cabinet War Rooms. I did the V&A after a day trip but was so tired could only manage the costume exhibit. If the weather is good you might choose a more relaxing day in Kew midweek--depends on what's blooming in the gardens. If you go do have tea at Maids of Honour. Tell us how it was when you return!

I'm usually one of the first to say "too much in too little time". But most of your plan is pretty good.

Not quite sure why the hop-on-hop-off bus tour would be too ambitious for the first day. If the weather is even half way decent, the bus tour is perfect way to get started. If you have lots of energy you can hop off, and if you are really beat - just ride it around looking at the sites.

Be REALLY careful about napping Sunday. If you can force yourselves to only snooze 45 mins max it would be OK. But often, once you lay down all bets are off and before you know it it is 0300 and you are wide awake and don't know what happened to the last 12 hours.

I personally would not want to do one of the majors (V&A or British) after an all day out of town trip. Why not do the V&A on Friday a.m. and have lunch in its restaurant? Then you aren't forced into rushing back from Oxford.

Firstly, you've made an excellent choice on the location of your hotel.

Your second day is good as you've centred yourself within a mile's radius of most things.

Your third day you might be better to add in the British museum as it's in relatively close proximity to the British library.

As others have mentioned, you might be too weary to do the V&A after your day trip, however, you can decide there and then.

And as for shopping...I'd imagine you'll find yourself doing that as an "in between" activity on most days as well as having an afternoon dedicated to it.

I agree with advice you have had do far, except that for lunch at Trafalgar Square I think Gordon’s Wine Bar, 300 yards from the square, near Embankment underground station, has better food and ambience than the crypt at St Martins – though the crypt is not bad. Around Convent Garden I think St Martin’s less good than the Devereaux Arms entered by an alleyway through a building on the southern side of the Strand, facing the Law Courts. The café in the Imperial War Museum is good, and has good slices of cake, and wine.

For Greenwich the train in 15 minutes straight from Charing Cross station (beside Trafalgar Square) is a faster journey than the DLR. Moreover, you are on the oldest commuter railway ion the world, marked by a panel in the station hall and by the good design of the station frontage. On Fridays and Saturdays there are open-air markets. They are strong in books, and the old town hall has an indoor market of art deco: it is near the railway station,

Welcome to London
Ben Haines
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Nice to see you are planning on visiting Leadenhall Market on day 3. Do remember that it will be packed solid at lunchtime, it's a very popular place for eats and shopping for City workers. Time your lunch for around 12 and you should be OK. I work just around the corner so know the restaurants and shops well.

I go to London several times a year (daughter and family live there). I highly recommend using LondonWalks for some of your touring. I still go with them once or twice each visit. Much better than doing on own and the Walks are only 2-3 hours each. Also, check their schedule for your out of town day. I have done several with them and they were great. Website is London.Walks.com

Thanks for all of the replies. I am excited that we will be in Mayfair. We considered several locations and types of accommodations, and settled on the Holiday Inn Mayfair. I know that it has somewhat mixed reviews, but the type of room (2 double beds) and proximity to the tube swayed us.

I do appreciate the cautions about the first day, travelbunny and janisj. We usually take a 1 hour nap on arrival day and it seems to work. As for that afternoon, we will do what we feel up to - maybe just wandering around Mayfair/St. James.

Scootoir, my planning is usually of the 'triage' variety; we have our list of 'musts' and the rest fits if it can. The London Eye is a big priority, so I will keep my eye on the weather (tricky proposition, that!) and adjust accordingly. The National Gallery is number one on my list, with the Tower and Westminster Abbey towards the top.

I was an art history major in university and love medieval and Tudor history, art, and architecture. I have some printed materials that focus on these areas of interest, and I was planning to use those for our walking routes, especially in the City (trying to find some of the hidden gems). I will follow up on the suggestions from travelbunny and elainee to check out London Walks.

Our daughter loves cities and style, so some of the shopping and the V&A are for her. I am sorry that we won't be able to take in a weekend market for her - either Portobello or Camden Lock sound like she would enjoy them.

My husband loves books, history and all things maritime and scientific (art galleries make his eyes glaze over, not to mention shopping) so we will split up a few times. He has been to London several times on business and has seen some attractions on those trips, as well as meetings in various parts of town. He isn't the biggest fan of the DLR, so he was very interested in your recommendation of the commuter rail, Ben Haines. Also, thanks for the other tips for Greenwich.

I can't imagine that we could do any justice to the British Museum after seeing the Tower in the morning. I made a list of things I knew I would want to see in the British Museum (not to mention the millions of things I don't even know about). After that exercise, I regretfully realized that the British Museum will have to be top of my list for London visit #2. There are a lot of great things on the cutting room floor, so to speak.

Thanks, scarlett, for the Neal's Yard suggestion. Liberty is the London store I most want to see (although I also want to do the Harrod's food hall at some point).

The day trip to Oxford is not set in stone, and we might just make this an all-London trip. I'm not sure that Kew is right for this time of year (the low temps this week have been well below freezing), and I am such a 'pile of old stones' person that we would most likely substitute Windsor for Oxford. The V&A might be on Friday, but I have a sneaking suspicion that the Tate Modern might end up there. I have this inexplicable attraction to the idea of going to the late hours of the V&A. Our main goal is to see the dresses. Only the ground floor galleries are open (and I hope the shop!), so that should keep us limited. I know it would be easy to lose an entire day there.

I appreciate the food suggestions that you all have provided, and am adding them to my notes. Charley, if you have a particular eatery in Leadenhall, let me know. I'm wondering about the the Portrait Cafe in the National Portrait Gallery? I thought that might work for a light meal pre-theater (we will be at the National Gallery, and the theater is a block or two away).

Also, I'm considering which nice restaurant for Tuesday. We are not serious foodies, but do enjoy a good meal (but not £100/person). Friday we will need a conversation friendly place with non meat options for dining with friends. Any thoughts?

Looks to me like a good plan but I notice you haven't included walks through any parks. Even if it means a few steps out of your way, strolling throgh St. James Park can be a way to get from A to B on some of your days.

I would strongly recommend sticking your head into the British Museum (not the Library) and entering the old Reading Room there (all free) because it is a fabulous piece of architecture. Really a modern masterpiece. Don't feel guilty if you haven't got time to tour the museum, or just look at one thing you've picked ahead of time. Very civilized way to go, I think.

I would not count on getting back in time from Oxford to have dinner and visit the V&A, even with the late opening. Personally, I would drop the trip to Oxford, unless you have family there.

I commend you for not going to any palaces! I hope one of your theater picks is the Globe (they have a very nice restaurant there). Were this MY trip (not your trip, my trip) I would drop Oxford, visit V&A in the morning and visit the Globe at night.

If going to Oxford is to have a break from the city, you might look into visiting Hempstead village and Kenwood House (which is just SO nice) instead).

Much of nessundorma's advice is good (especially about considering dropping your day trip) - but going to the Globe isn't. The Globe is open air and is a summer venue - no plays in March.

Now about the day trip to Oxford/Cambridge -- I LOVE both cities, lived for a time in Oxfordshire, and go back whenever I can. But you have really limited time in London - if your trip was 10-12 days - then yes a day trip or overnighter would be great. But to take a whole day out of a short London stay is a problem. I'd consider wandering around Hamstead/Hampstead Heath if you want a break from the hustle and bustle.

Or on a nice day you could go to Hampton Court Palace (or maybe Windsor) - it would take 1/2 a day and give you time to get back to a major museum and/or the theatre.

Nix the first day nap at all costs. Use that time for some more walking about or whatever keeps you moving. You will feel MUCH better the next day if you stay up until what is your normal bedtime at home (such as 10pm or whatever). Otherwise the old jet lag will be pestering you the second day even more. Works for me anyway.

A suggestion: you might enjoy reading The Amateur Historian's Guide to Medieval and Tudor London (Amateur Historian's Guide) (Paperback) by Sarah Valente Kettler, Carole Trimble. I bought mine on Amazon.

I also have a love for medieval & Tudor history and found the book to be a great guide to the lesser known accessible areas and historic locations. They list contact numbers, prices, Tube stops, opening & closing hours, etc. They have written 2 other books with the same premise: one for day trips south of London and one for Nearly 200 Medieval & Tudor Sites Two Hours or Less from London.

>>>Charley, if you have a particular eatery in Leadenhall, let me know. <<<

I like Hamiltons (pasta & pizza mostly), it's nice for a lunch. Can be a bit cramped sometimes, but I like it! There is a Pizza Express in the middle of the market, not sure if you're into that type of thing or not. If neither of these take your fancy there are plenty of pubs in the vicinity that will be doing lunchtime food.

nessundorma, for me it's castles and museums, but palaces not so much. Charley, thanks for the restaurant tips - pasta always hits the spot with my crew.

I am listening to the (many) votes against the day trip to Oxford. It's not that I want a break from London, I just really want to see Oxford (that medieval architecture beckons). It may have to be on the next trip, though. (We are serial travelers, and tend to return to our favorite destinations.)

kamahinaohoku, I have that book! It was at my local Borders. That, along with an old Cadogan guide and some wonderful resources from this board (thanks Ben Haines for the history walk info you have previously posted) have got me all geared up to explore.

I honestly think this trip would be easier if I had either 2 days (highlights only) or 12 days (most things on the list) in London. We are very excited about the trip, however, and seeing what we can.

noe847
Read your super itinerary and the splendid suggestions for improvement; would like to add my thoughts:
Sunday.
. Visit the Wallace Collection (near Bond Street Station), supposedly London's finest small gallery - and relatively unknown. Now with a restaurant/cafe. Open Sun. 2 to 5.
. Visit Althorp House - only open Sundays -
Check via google for details on both the above.
One final thought would be to include a late afternoon tea on the Sunday, e.g. Richous chain, eg Piccadilly or South Kensington (keep the more expensive a'noon tea for another day): many references have already been given, from cheapies to the most luxurious on this thread. Happy holiday. Jay
ps..do write a report when you return, wld appreciate reading of your final itinerary!

Ben Haines once recommended the Albert Restaurant and Pub to us for lunch following attending services at Westminster Abbey. It is easy walking distance, but he would need to give you the directions if you are interested. We enjoyed it.

oops! I forgot you were going in March. Definitely have to scratch the Globe.

I want to add that if you feel a need for a nap your first day, do it. There is nothing worse than getting sick in the middle of a trip because you started out trying to do much in wet or chilly weather.