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"Not much to do" is a weird idea for a place like London. You could spend a week there doing only free stuff (aside from travel) and have a great time seeing most of the most well known attractions.
I went for four days in November 2015, and I loved it.
I like history and read a lot of historical fiction based in medieval England. I went to London with my then-24-year-old daughter. We went to the Tower of London, and my imagination was just sparked, but after a while my daughter got a creeped-out vibe, so we got lunch and then went to Westminster Abbey.
I just could not get over the fact that I was in Westminster Abbey. Over one thousand years old, still in use as a church, filled with the tombs and graves of the people whose names we know.
We came to the iron gate behind which lies the tomb of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. I said to my daughter, "Oh my God, this marriage ended the Wars of the Roses!"
She said, "Can we go somewhere next that isn't full of dead people?"
So we did, but I would love to go back and walk through Westminster Abbey again. Probably with my sister, who would appreciate it.
Besides that, we had afternoon tea and scones one day, took a walking tour and saw one of the parts of the original Roman wall that was mentioned above, and took some time just to walk along the city streets and look in the shops.
The bus system is so easy to use. We stayed at a B&B in Southwark, which was very reasonable and in a safe neighborhood. There was a park on the road that we had to pass to get to the main road for the bus, and one night we were walking back from the bus and saw two foxes running through the park. Right there in the city. It was very cool.
I have mostly passed through London in the past, only giving it a weekend or so & the last time was over 30 years ago. In recent years I have become a real fan of Brit TV: Broadchurch, Luther, Fleabag, Catastrophe, etc., etc., & that has me primed for a leisurely return to London - I'm pretty sure I can find "things to do" - & then a drive to some quaint rural area tbd.
Until recently I always figured that if I was going to travel abroad I may as well go somewhere really different than the US, plus I visit Ireland quite often so the UK has always taken a back seat.
On my first visit 40+ years ago I saw a guy who was essentially a hippie busker who had an act in a local pub & passed his hat around for some shillings. I googled him a few years ago & found out he starred in one of the UK's most famous TV series & recently has had a recurring role in several of the huge blockbuster film series!
We took our then 13-year-old daughter to London last June for eight days, traveling from the Twin Cities (Minnesota).
It began as a discussion about going back to NYC, as she love musicals (she has seen many in Minneapolis as well as NYC, Boston, Chicago) and that discussion quickly turned to London. She saw three while we were there, one for which we bought tickets in advance and two of interest that we picked up tickets while there.
That one show for which we bought tickets ahead of time was the only scheduled event we had, aside from flying in and out. We stayed in Earl's Court on the East side, not far from Hyde Park, at an AirBnB, great for the three of us.
So, yes, the theatre is fantastic in London.
Other things we did that we enjoy about London:
- Lots of walking - wonderful history and architecture in London and several great walking tours are available. My personal favorite was a London historical pub tour (family friendly). Free Tours by Foot has tours in London (as well as many cities - the Washington D.C. dusk monument tour is great as is the Boston Freedom Tour). But also just walking on your own. Old London is not geographically large - you can see an amazing amount of stuff in an afternoon walking around with a plan.
River Cruise - London was settled because of the Thames. It is a core - the core? - of the city. Walking along the Thames is a lot of fun, but you can also see a lot (in a hurry) from a river cruise. There are MANY.
Out where we were staying, to the east of central London, there is a street fair on Saturdays in Notting Hill that my wife wanted to hit. It was a lot of fun but a lot of people, so consider that (every place in old London will have LOTS of people ... if anyone traveling wants solitude, London may not be a wise use of travel budget).
- Museums - the Tate, of course. I love the Imperial War Museum, which I had been to nearly 20 years ago on a long weekend and visited again this trip (alone ... wife and daughter hit a musical). Our - Americans' - participation and knowledge of WWI is limited (and fleeting, as expected for something 100 years ago). The IWM has an incredible floor dedicated to WWI (as well as WWII).
I did not make it to the Royal Mail Rail, one regret. Did not make it to Fuller's Brewery, either (but enjoyed Fuller's frequently).
My daughter - not a fan of history - really liked the Tower of London.
- Restaurants/bars - our daughter is still a very (very!) picky eater, which limits our choices. My wife was looking forward to some great Indian food (she traveled there four or five times for work in the early '00s). To our surprise and delight, because of London, our daughter is suddenly a big fan of Indian food (we have many good options in Minneapolis, but it was never considered ... go figure). No high dining for us - we actually used the kitchen in our rental a lot - but Indian several times, pubs more than once (some great beers that I have only had in bottle that I could get on cask and tap all over the place).
- Hyde Park, Kennsington Gardens, Battersea Park, Green Park, St. James Park, Covent Garden - London has some fantastic parks and gardens. In a terrifically busy city, scheduling a morning in one may be a nice and beautiful respite.
I strongly suggest two things on day one - 1) a river cruise will give you a fast glance at the city from the river, help you get your bearings and make plans and 2) jumping on a bus (top deck) that does into and around old London will also help you get your bearings and make plans, but may not be quick as London traffic can derail any thoughts of that (more than once, we got off and walked because of traffic, then jumped on another bus as fit our wander).
But, after day one, we made EXTENSIVE use of the Undergound to get around the city. London's underground is an engineering marvel and fantastic. Seeing the city from the Thames and from a bus really helped us get our bearings, but to get around London the Underground is so incredibly convenient and efficient. You can buy an Oyster Card for each traveller - those under 16 get a discount - for a set number of days for unlimited underground and bus use and then add to it as needed. We bought ours at Heathrow when we landed - they have self-serve machines to buy cards but definitely find one of the people assisting and tell them what you are planning as they will tell you about best purchases and discounts which may be available to you. By the end of our time there, our 13-year-old was very adept at navigating the Underground for our daily ventures into various parts of old London and then back out to Heathrow to fly out (which it outside the London zone for Oyster Cards but you can add money to your card to cover that trip in and out of Heathrow ... cannot say enough about London's Underground system).
Great museum scene in London. Love the cuisine:: Indian, Chinese, local British pub food (fish & chips). I enjoy browsing at Harrod’s Department store. You can easily get around by public transportation.
I’ve been to London over 30 years and I never knew the Queen Mary’s Rose garden has over 30,000 roses. Now that is one thing I missed, so next time I get a chance I will have to see it.
Harrods is nice, but I stick to the food floor, because I don’t buy anything there anyway, I just eat there. My kids love Fortnum& Mason for an afternoon tea. There’s a Sky Garden and the Shard to give you a high view.
I?ve been to London over 30 years and I never knew the Queen Mary?s Rose garden has over 30,000 roses. Now that is one thing I missed, so next time I get a chance I will have to see it.
Harrods is nice, but I stick to the food floor, because I don?t buy anything there anyway, I just eat there. My kids love Fortnum& Mason for an afternoon tea. There?s a Sky Garden and the Shard to give you a high view.
The Temperate House at Kew Gardens reopened last year, after five years of restoration work.
Last edited by Brave New World; 10-26-2019 at 07:30 AM..
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