nevcharlie

Visitors to London next week may care to take note of the possibly violent demonstrations due to take place to mark the G20 leader's Summit.
Looks like most of the action will be in the Financial District and Docklands,
but it could spill over into other areas.
A good time to visit Hampton Court or Windsor maybe ?

<http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/mar/21/g20-summit-protesters>

jamikins

Yup, the anticipate major disruption to transit as well so best to avoid Jubilee Line and DLR (heading to Canary Wharf. Our whole office has been told to work from home those two days to avoid transit and protest problems.

Its April 1 - 2 btw.

Lauratg

Oh man-- my first holiday in two years...

Are there specific dates at issue? (my browser won't open your link)

Laura

bettyk

I'm sure you must be wrong. We were told by fellow Fodorites (in the politically charged Lounge) that with Bush gone and Obama in the White House, there would be fewer demonstrations at the G20.

I'm sure those who show up with be there to show their love and support for our much admired President.

jamikins

Its April 1 - 2..just avoid the City, Parliament and Canary Wharf...

thursdaysd

Drat - I'm arriving into LHR April 1st and leaving from Luton April 2nd - can I assume that the Piccadilly line to Russell Square and the main line to Luton will likely be unaffected?

gertie3751

You'll be fine thursday. The demonstrators won't be in that part of London. I did the exact same thing 2 weeks ago. I was surprised to have to go to St Panc International to get my train to Luton airport parkway. You have to walk to the far end of the long long station and get your ticket at the National Rail ticket counter. Then it's down the stairs on the left. It all took me longer than I anticipated.

thursdaysd

Thanks for the heads up, Gertie. If that's the platform the Eurostar comes into it is indeed very long!

Lauratg

So does anybody think its a bad idea to try and visit Greenwich (from London) next week via the DLR, or will the demonstrations be focused elsewhere?

Laura

janisj

Decide for yourself -- but it does seem they are planning for very widespread disruptions. I personally would stay off the tube and DLR entirely. And I'd head west. Hampton Court, Kew, maybe Windsor -- not anywhere to the east.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/f...-lockdown.html

thursdaysd

Well, that's very encouraging - not! I guess I'll take the Museum of London off the list of things to do, and plan to leave early to get to Luton.

Cholmondley_Warner

Well we're preparing for trouble. There will be over 10,000 police on the streets. Tooled up.

The main area to avoid is the area around Excel Arena where the summit is actually being held as that is the focus of four seperate "actions". Excel Arena is on the other side of the river from Canary wharf - Canning Town tube.

As a tourist there is no reason why you would ever find yourself here. There is nothing at all to see apart from a big shed.

I'd also avoid Canary Wharf (again no loss) and the city itself (again, not a particularly tourist area).

Transport is likely to be disrupted as police cordon off or close stations to round up the hippies and grebos and buses can't get through the protestors marching. If you get caught up in this you could be in for a LONG wait - so this isn't a good day to be visiting St Pauls.

It's going to be the biggest police action in London since the Notting Hill Carnival.

alanRow

So how much overtime are you getting?

thursdaysd

So, with a midday flight out of Luton on April 2nd, should I overnight in Luton instead of London? Is the train to Luton likely to be affected - i.e. is St. Pancras/Kings Cross likely to get cordoned off, or is it too far away from the action?

Cholmondley_Warner

So how much overtime are you getting?>>>

It's an all-you-can-eat bash. So lots and lots. I might get to hit a hippy too. Talk about win/win.

Cholmondley_Warner

Thursdays: London is immense - most foreigners have no idea how big it is. So coming into St Pancras you won't even know there's anything going on.

Any protestors will be coming in from the home counties - you're going the other way.

Having said that, if your hotel room has a radio, listen into BBC London on 94.9 on FM for up to date bulletins or look at the BBC's London's travel page:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/travel/

thursdaysd

Thanks C_W - yes, I know it's big - I lived there for a couple of years. I was worrying that the Kings Cross area might be cordoned off to keep those home counties people out - I grew up in Hertfordshire, and KC was our London access.

flanneruk

"Talk about win/win."

The whole thing's a put up job. The police are so fed up hearing about bankers' bonuses, they want some for themselves too.

The protestors, ultimately, want the State to spend more money. Staging these demos guarantees that happens.

It's all a conspiracy between the police and the anarchists to soak London's few remaining private-sector taxpayers.

yk

For those of you who will be in London during that time, if you have access to the internet, it's always good to check TFL's website for "service disruptions" before you head out. While most tube lines or trains west to Windsor and/or Hampton court are unlikely to be affected, it will only take a minute or 2 to check for the latest updates before you leave, and save yourselves plenty of misery (in case of trains/tubes not running).

Lear8118

Do you recommend reserving a coach ticket in advance for the trip from Heathrow to Vicotoria Coach/Bus Station? Will train & tube be so limited due to G20 that it is necessary to reserve a seat on the bus to ensure one is available? Hate to reserve a seat for a bus time that we may not catch due to our plane arriving late due to weather or other delay.
We are arriving at Terminal 4. Is it well marked to find the bus/coach ticket area?