Renting a car at Heathrow--Recommendations etc.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 03:59 AM
#41
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Ealing does not seem to be an insane detour to Watford, and would give us a route that while slowish, seems to be reasonably straightforward and does not involve the M25. We're still sort of thinking about it. DS says he would like to if convenient, but it does not require a major detour. It appears to be a nice, but not super exciting, shopping centre, and while I'm sure we could amuse ourselves for an hour or two (Poundland might be dangerous, and we all love a trip to M&S), it's clearly not really a tourist destination.
I might not want to climb stairs on a moving bus, but my guys would love the top.
I haven't checked Argos, but it occurred to me that Leonidas might keep short hours on a Sunday (or even not be open), so I looked, and they are 12-5. If we were in on the early end of that, we should be fine for Harry Potter, since they appear to be open fairly late. July hours aren't up yet, but based on June, looks like last entrance is at 6:30 and they throw people out at 10:00. Now I'm thinking that's way later than we want to do it, and 3pm or so should be reasonable, but...
You have to commit to a timed ticket, so we can't play it by ear, which is usually how I'd plan something like that, with the idea that we'd do it Sunday afternoon if we had no traffic woes and weren't exhausted, and Monday morning if we were.
I'm now wondering if Kew Gardens early on Sunday, with a stop at Ealing midday, and then the drive to Watford, might be a reasonable plan. DH isn't going to be wildly interested in Kew Gardens, but it's the kind of thing he's patient with, and DS will love it. My interest falls between the two, and it's the kind of thing that it's easy to have a tentative plan for that can be modified for weather, etc. That way we could just plan on Harry Potter early Monday, when it will possibly be less crowded anyway.
I might not want to climb stairs on a moving bus, but my guys would love the top.
I haven't checked Argos, but it occurred to me that Leonidas might keep short hours on a Sunday (or even not be open), so I looked, and they are 12-5. If we were in on the early end of that, we should be fine for Harry Potter, since they appear to be open fairly late. July hours aren't up yet, but based on June, looks like last entrance is at 6:30 and they throw people out at 10:00. Now I'm thinking that's way later than we want to do it, and 3pm or so should be reasonable, but...
You have to commit to a timed ticket, so we can't play it by ear, which is usually how I'd plan something like that, with the idea that we'd do it Sunday afternoon if we had no traffic woes and weren't exhausted, and Monday morning if we were.
I'm now wondering if Kew Gardens early on Sunday, with a stop at Ealing midday, and then the drive to Watford, might be a reasonable plan. DH isn't going to be wildly interested in Kew Gardens, but it's the kind of thing he's patient with, and DS will love it. My interest falls between the two, and it's the kind of thing that it's easy to have a tentative plan for that can be modified for weather, etc. That way we could just plan on Harry Potter early Monday, when it will possibly be less crowded anyway.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 04:07 AM
#42
Argos is in the process of closing most of its free-standing stores across the UK. Many Sainsburies have an Argos store in them and will remain and some of the more successful free-standing ones will continue. Don't assume your target one will still be there.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 04:43 AM
#44
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Ealing is just a suburb of London which has seen better days. I think you can take a tour of Ealing Studios. It used to be a much nicer area. Richmond is a far better place to go and it is close to Kew Gardens. There is an Argos in Homebase (a DIY store) if you really want to go there or one in Sainsbury's in Kingston Upon Thames, another better option for shopping etc IMO than Ealing & close to Kew Gardens.
https://sandrine.co.uk/chocolates/
https://www.hotelchocolat.com/uk/cho...-kingston.html Their chocolates are not really similar to Leonidas, but they are really good, The chocolate comes from their own plantation in St Lucia
I think going to Kew Gardens, followed by going to Ealing and then to Watford to take a tour might be too much in one day, you need time in Kew Gardens, jetlag tends to get worse in the first few days rather than better (for me anyway).
https://sandrine.co.uk/chocolates/
https://www.hotelchocolat.com/uk/cho...-kingston.html Their chocolates are not really similar to Leonidas, but they are really good, The chocolate comes from their own plantation in St Lucia
I think going to Kew Gardens, followed by going to Ealing and then to Watford to take a tour might be too much in one day, you need time in Kew Gardens, jetlag tends to get worse in the first few days rather than better (for me anyway).
Dec 3rd, 2020, 04:46 AM
#45
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Bilbo, that's very good to know.
I had figured a double check at some point might not be a bad idea (since Leonidas shops do seem to really come and go), but I wasn't aware of Argos' difficulties. Not surprinsing, except for online and groceries, retail has been awful. We're really hoping things will be normalish by then.
I had figured a double check at some point might not be a bad idea (since Leonidas shops do seem to really come and go), but I wasn't aware of Argos' difficulties. Not surprinsing, except for online and groceries, retail has been awful. We're really hoping things will be normalish by then.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 05:03 AM
#46
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Ealing is just a suburb of London which has seen better days. I think you can take a tour of Ealing Studios. It used to be a much nicer area. Richmond is a far better place to go and it is close to Kew Gardens. There is an Argos in Homebase (a DIY store) if you really want to go there or one in Sainsbury's in Kingston Upon Thames, another better option for shopping etc IMO than Ealing & close to Kew Gardens.
https://sandrine.co.uk/chocolates/
https://www.hotelchocolat.com/uk/cho...-kingston.html Their chocolates are not really similar to Leonidas, but they are really good, The chocolate comes from their own plantation in St Lucia
I think going to Kew Gardens, followed by going to Ealing and then to Watford to take a tour might be too much in one day, you need time in Kew Gardens, jetlag tends to get worse in the first few days rather than better (for me anyway).
https://sandrine.co.uk/chocolates/
https://www.hotelchocolat.com/uk/cho...-kingston.html Their chocolates are not really similar to Leonidas, but they are really good, The chocolate comes from their own plantation in St Lucia
I think going to Kew Gardens, followed by going to Ealing and then to Watford to take a tour might be too much in one day, you need time in Kew Gardens, jetlag tends to get worse in the first few days rather than better (for me anyway).
Send DH to pick up the car early on Sunday, with the expectation that he spends an hour or so circling Heathrow and getting used to traffic.
DH returns to Sofitel and picks us and the luggage up, we drive to Kew Gardens for around their opening time and park, assuming we can get parking.
Then drive to Ealing and run errands. Lunch would occur at some point during those stops.
Then drive to Watford, check into an as yet to be determined hotel, find DS a Sunday carvery with a roast dinner (we might go for something slightly more exalted, but there's a Toby Carvery in Aldenham that would clearly work very well for our dining needs), and go to bed nice and early so we're ready for HP when it opens.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 05:33 AM
#47
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You're plan is fine. Kew Gardens opens at 10am, if you are there before, you should be fine with parking. I go to Kew Gardens quite alot as my friend has a yearly ticket, so we (used to) often meet up there. There are eating/coffee & cake places in Kew Gardens or some nice coffee shops close to Kew Gardens tube station. There won't be much or any traffic from picking up the rental car to the Sofitel but it does give an opportunity to get used to the car a little when driving around the airport perimeter road.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 05:46 AM
#48
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Argos is mainly an online ordering operation with pick up at the stores. I’ve only used it a couple of times, but don’t recall seeing many items on display. Before you head for an Argos branch make sure they have what you want in the store warehouse.
https://www.argos.co.uk/features/how-to-shop-at-argos
Kew Gardens is huge and will require a bit of walking. Here is a map of the layout:
https://www.kew.org/kew-gardens/visit-kew-gardens/map
https://www.argos.co.uk/features/how-to-shop-at-argos
Kew Gardens is huge and will require a bit of walking. Here is a map of the layout:
https://www.kew.org/kew-gardens/visit-kew-gardens/map
Dec 3rd, 2020, 08:07 AM
#50
Argos has virtually nothing on display except catalogues and a system for picking up products/cash till. You pay for stuff and wait for them to get it before taking it away. When I last looked they had begun putting them at mainline stations like Kings Cross (often called KX) so commuters could pick stuff up on the way home. Goodness knows what has happened to them this year.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 08:09 AM
#51
Kew has some lovely displays in the gardens of stuff that is not plant based. https://www.kew.org/kew-gardens/whats-on if any of the crew are struggling with jet lag it is a great place to hang out in the sun while your body clock resets.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 08:39 AM
#52
We always fly to Europe using daytime flights to Heathrow and spend the night at the Sofitel before flying on to our destination the next day. And we arrive in time for dinner at their Belle Epoque. To be safe, make a reservation there as one time it was full. It has always been wonderful and a meal we both look forward to.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 11:26 AM
#53
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I’ve stayed at Sofitel when flying out of Terminal 5, and it’s very nice. If you are flying into Terminal 2 or 3 the new Hilton Garden Inn is much more convenient. The Hilton is technically at Terminal 2, but you can easily walk through the underground passageway from Terminal 3.
Dec 3rd, 2020, 11:55 AM
#54
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I think we're flying into T5, and we're already booked for Sofitel, so that's definite.
La Belle Époque looks lovely, but we will not be dining there. Even if I felt like paying for it (and it is a vacation), DH won't eat anything. We'll sometimes dine without him (his fussiness is legendary) if there's something nearby that looks appealing to him, but I don't want to do that the first night of vacation. We'll probably snack on various things (and I think we have club level, assuming they're actually running the snacks in club level by then, not that DH will likely eat much of that either, but it's different--also not really dinner).
DH's Kew Gardens visit may involve taking a nap on a bench, but that's fine. And much less frustrating to him than running out of steam in the middle of Harry Potter.
La Belle Époque looks lovely, but we will not be dining there. Even if I felt like paying for it (and it is a vacation), DH won't eat anything. We'll sometimes dine without him (his fussiness is legendary) if there's something nearby that looks appealing to him, but I don't want to do that the first night of vacation. We'll probably snack on various things (and I think we have club level, assuming they're actually running the snacks in club level by then, not that DH will likely eat much of that either, but it's different--also not really dinner).
DH's Kew Gardens visit may involve taking a nap on a bench, but that's fine. And much less frustrating to him than running out of steam in the middle of Harry Potter.
