1st trip to England coming this summer, any tips appreciated from the natives

[jimmytammy]

Hello! My DW, son and I just purchased tickets yesterday to fly in July to England. DW's brother and family are based there at LackenHeath (sp) AFB, and we will be traveling to London to stay for about 3 days. So, any places that are not to miss.

I love history, so seeing a castle, museums, govt. bldgs., Big Ben, River Thames, etc. are the kind of things we are looking forward too.

Also, I love music, so anything related to all the wonderful groups of the 60s(Beatles)70s(The Who, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd)and 80s(Def Leppard)are of interest too. Not so much anything New Wave or past the 80s.

My DW has been to England before, not as much interested in history and music, but just wants me to see it all! Any tips, help or thoughts appreciated!!

 

[sky13]

I'm not a native but have lived just outside of London for a few years now (in fact am relatively close to Lakenheath)...

My (non-exhaustive) list of tourist things to do in London:
- Tower of London - nice way of spending a morning/afternoon. Tower Bridge also nearby
- Walking around the major sights: seeing Big Ben, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, London Eye (all in the same area)
- London Eye - I actually quite enjoyed going up on this, it was a nice way of getting a view of the city
- Boat ride to Greenwich - boat ride along the Thames, then can see the various things at Greenwich
- Museums - what is fantastic about the museums in London is that they're free to enter! British Museum, Natural History Museum (dinosaurs!), Tate
- Churches and cathedrals - St Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey
- Markets - Borough market, Camden market
- Shopping - Oxford Street, Covent Garden
- Plays and musicals - tend to be around the Leicester Square area

If you happen to be travelling to London by train you can sometimes get 2 for 1 offers on admission to places http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

Have heard some people recommend getting a London Pass - think this includes admission to a number of places as well as bus/boat tours and transport fares but I'm not sure of the specifics. Apparently this is good if you want to see a large number of different things in a short period of time.

Have fun planning!

 

[Chilly]

I would suggest getting a ticket for one of the hop on hop off buses which take you all over the city and to all the major attractions.

The above is a great list of places to see. Others include Buckingham Palace, Kennsington Place, Science Museum, Portrait Gallery, Harrods, and then you have things further outside like Hampton Court Palace and Windsor Castle.

 

[jimmytammy]

Thanks for the ideas!

 

[KayleighAndJim]

A hop on/hop off bus is fantastic for seeing all the sights more easily. We did the Tower Of London a couple of years ago in July and it was fantastic. We found it took most of the day, but we did everything there and it was very interesting, even for someone who is not that into history.

Quite often you can find 2for1 tickets for london tourist attractions online, so it could be worth your while looking these up and printing them off before you go.

I'm not sure if it would be your cup of tea, but after the tower we had dinner and then had a Jack The Ripper walking tour booked. It was approximately 2 hours and was very informative and interesting. Not too gruesome or lengthy and we all would really recommend it. It's only about £8 per person too.

The Shard or the London Eye are good for a bird's eye view.

The natural history museum and the science museum are both fantastic and free.

Theatre shows are always good, if you want to take in a musical. LoveTheatre is a great website for discounts and meal and theatre packages.

If you get a chance, a very English thing to do, is go for an afternoon cream tea. You get tea, mini sandwiches, scones and a taster selection of cakes.

I hope you have a wonderful time x

 

[jonoble]

There are a number of different companies that do the hop on/off bus tours - some of them include a Thames cruise in the price, and it's definitely worth picking one of those. The last time we were on one, the guide on the boat was one of the funniest guys I've ever heard.