Any ideas helping plan our first trip to UK as a family?

[lmhall2000]

Hi all!!

What? No Disney in England? How will my kids survive? Well, actually they're all excited about our first abroad trip. I went in college and am fairly comfortable getting around...my dh and children have never been. Our kids are 11, 8 & 7....we homeschool them so we've been able to really highlight some great books and projects to help bring this trip some education but fun, too. They have absolutely LOVED Robin Hood (Howard Pyle), Adam of the Road, Door in the Wall, Otto of the Silver Hand, Chronicles of Narnia...we even did a geography fair with England as our country. We've spent 4 years studying world history and the English parts were some of their faves. I think it will be a lot of fun!

We will be in London for 5 nights and Chipping Norton/Oxfordshire for 5 nights. So far I plan on doing the museums in London (Natural History, British Museum, Imperial War/Cabinet Rooms, Tower of London and we've got tickets for Mary Poppins) oh and National Gallery....I would like to hit Cadbury World and Warwick castle while in Oxfordshire. Other than those I'm considering taking them to Chessington on our last day in London before we head over to CN. Would this be worth it? With all the education going on I wanted to throw in some fun unexpected days.

I would love any suggestions on what your kids would like to do in those parts of England..I hope to visit Bath/Bristol to get some Roman Britain history...our Latin program is based in Roman Britain and the kids would get a kick out of seeing those sites.

Also, my ds (11) is an AVID AVID bird enthusiast, especially hawks...we're going to miss the great birds of prey exhibit at Warwick by a day...but am looking for other wildlife areas where we might get some good birding days in.

Thanks! We'll have a car the last 5 days and using tube/buses in London. Thanks!
Tara

 

[jjpenguin]

There are a lot of places with falconry exhibits, check on the web, I'm sure you can find one near CN

 

[Lizzy Lemon]

Sounds like you will be busy. If I were you I would give Cadbury world a miss, OK its fun but you only learn things from exhibits, don't see much of the real thing. Warwick castle is brilliant. Have a drive around some of our beautiful countryside and villages, much more interesting. Try checking Slimbridge for wildlife.

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

Warwick castle is in WARWICKSHIRE!! Harummph!

Its like saying that WDW is in South carolina

Yes, go to Warwick Castle, there is a falconry display there. If you choose the right night there are also fireworks and music.

http://www.warwick-uk.co.uk/

Stratford upon Avon for Shakespere, the River Avon.

http://www.shakespeare-country.co.uk/

Coventry for the cathederal and the bombed ruins

How abbout Legoland in Windsor plus the queens country retreat?

 

[Andrew Bichard]

If you have time, visit the John Soane Museum. http://www.soane.org/Possibly not worth cancelling one of the major museums for, but this small museum is a delight.

If you do get to Cadbury's, tell them about the 'Chocolate Quakers' (Cadbury Fry, Rowntree and Hershey).

Andrew

 

[queenarmadillo]

Whilst you're in Oxfordshire it might be worth checking out the White Horse at Uffington. It is a short hill walk (really short, about 30 mins), the drive there is through some lovely English countryside with thatched cottages, and the site itself is very historical, with (what claims to be) the oldest white horse in britain, and a couple of other interesting sites walkable (within 15 mins) such as the spot where they claim St George slayed the dragon. Plus last time I was there, some kind of interesting bird (I am sadly ignorant in these matters, but Im thinking some kind of falcon, def. bird of prey) came so close that it nearly hit me in the head, so I know you can definitely see them in the wild there on a good day.

 

[Chilly]

Yes I'd give Cadbury World a miss as well, its not very good.

Instead of Chessington you could go to Drayton Manor in Staffordshire which has Falcon displays on Sundays & Bank Holiday Mondays in their zoo as well as theme park rides for young and old children.

 

[lmhall2000]

Thanks guys! I didn't mean to suggest that Warwick castle was IN Oxfordshire, just that while WE are in Oxfordshire we will take a daytrip over to see Warwick ...and for us driving is not a big deal...do you realize (from our geography fair) that England is roughly the same sq. mile area as our state of Alabama?..we frequently take day trips that have 6 hours of driving....but I think Warwick is really not that far from Oxfordshire so I wanted to hit that one...plus any driving we do is actually really fun...we love just seeing stuff from the road on roads that are less traveled.....stopping at little towns along the way...just a lot of fun!

I had not read about Drayton Manor....will go look that one up...I have the book "Take your kids to England" and it's chock full of areas to visit but who can choose? Knowing others have been there and would not go is a huge plus...so thank you sooo much!

I'm going to go check out the Soane museum, I feel awful that I can't tell you who Soane is! Ouch! I didn't know who Shakespeare's mother was...someone had suggested visiting her house...really good on the top characters of history but there are soooo many in England's history that it's hard to hit up on all of them. Another GREAT reason to go hunting for historical facts!

The White Horse outing sounds like it's right up our alley! While reading Robin Hood we noticed that he went through Oxfordshire and knew the Bishop of Hereford must have lived nearby...his yeoman quite often frequented inn's and to "walk" in the same steps as a character in one of our fave books would give them a treat...I can see them now pretending to play quarterstaff along the way! Okay, we might be looking silly, but what a neat country y'all get to live in! We're babes compared to you!

Thanks so much...I'm a commando planner and have really only had experience planning Disney trips...but now that they're older I want them to realize the world is not like Disney....it's actually MORE fun than Disney..but to show them that I need to do my homework!

Thanks!
Tara

 

[Kath2003]

Your trip sounds cool, although I was very disappointed with the Natural History museum when I went in April. It seemed excessively crowded, despite not being in school vacation time. The Science Museum, which is right next door, is much much better and has lots of fun interactive exhibits for kids and adults.

The advantage of all the London museums and art galleries is that they are FREE. If you get to one and you don't like it, leave! I particularly like the Tate Modern but I can't see it holding kids interest for long!

Definitely consider a trip on the London Eye: it's relaitvely costly but the views are said to be unmissable!

The most fun thing to do in London for families like yours? IMO the London Dungeons are unmissable. They are surprisingly expensive but it's a REALLY good day out (so long as your kids aren't easily scared!). I really enjoyed my day there when I was 13 and I'm a big wimp! There's wax works, exhibitions and even a ride - teaches kids about the more grusome side of London's history

I would also recommend Madam Tussards and the Planetarium.

Don't bother paying for the Tower of London - it's really not worth it.

I personally would give Chessington a miss and go to Thorpe Park instead. It's much better laid out and extra-cost activities (arcade style games etc.) aren't pushed on you so much. My family much prefer Thorpe Park - it just doesn't feel so crowded even at peak times.

Hope this helps!

 

[Dimplenose]

You sound like you've got a busy time planned already, so just a few comments.

I think the Tower of London is well worth a visit, my kids (and DH and I) really enjoyed it. You could walk across from there to the Tate Modern and to the Globe theatre - a replica of the theatre from Shakespear's time.

I think most of the exhibits at the Natural History or Science Museum could be seen in any city in the world that has good museums - although obviously there will be somethings that are unique to London you might find a better use of your time.

Madame Tussauds is fun (if you know the celebrities you are looking at) but the Planetarium was very disappointing.

Chessington and Thorpe Park are both very good (but not by Disney standards!). I'd slighty favour Thorpe Park, but I believe public transport is better to Chessington (but I might be wrong).

Cadbury world is good but not brilliant. Warwick Castle is an absolute must do.

(Madame Tussauds, Chessington, Thorpe Park, Warwick Castle and the Planetarium are all run by the same company
http://www.tussauds.com/)

I hope you have fun.

Libby

 

[lorapinky]

If you were willing to travel up to Yorkshire I would greatly suggest staying in York, its lovely (i'm biased as I live here, but it is lovely)

http://www.thisisyork.co.uk/tourism/

If you cant then the places you are thinking of going are lovely also.

I hope you have a lovely trip, please feel free to ask me any questions as a large part of my job is organising trips to England for my American colleagues (Bosses! )

 

[Chilly]

Drayton Manor's website is www.draytonmanor.co.uk - I also like Thorpe Park which has a beach area and some good rides not been to Chessington though.

Other places you could visit include Longleat www.longleat.co.uk this has an Elizabethan House and Safari Park plus Mazes, boat rides, butterfly house and a little train.

If you have done WW2 with your kids you could take them to Bletchley Park www.bletchleypark.org.uk where they broke the German codes. I am planning on visiting there soon.

I could go on but you have only got so much time. I must say I do like all the London Museums and think it is great they are free, food can be pricey in them though so take a packed lunch and you do have to pay for some exhibits.

 

[ariel75]

Yes Definately Try Drayton Manor And Give Cadburys World A Miss My Son Went On His School Trip Last Week And He Said His Best Bit Was The Playground Was The Best Bit And That Was Free To Go On So Save Yourself Some Money

 

[Dimplenose]

Oh dear, I've just reread my previous reply and it sounds like I don't like the science and Natural History Museums. I do like them, they're very good and I have spent many, many visits there with my children, it's just that they are not unique (on the whole - although the architecture alone at NHM is superb) and if I only had 5 days in a city I wouldn't do something that I could do at home.

Libby

 

[Frances999]

Your trip sounds wonderful; I hope you have a lovely time.

Regarding Latin, here in Bath the Roman Baths occasionally have Classical Civilisation/Latin workshops and seminars - it might be worth seeing if anything is going on during your trip. My DS visited one with school just last week. Also, you could take a look or try to purchase the third book of the Cambridge Latin Course, which is based almost entirely around Bath and has lots of useful vocabulary and exercises. It's just an idea - it might be quite interesting for your children (and very educational) using it in conjunction with your visit here. However, it is the third book which predominantly features Bath, and this is slightly more advanced than the more basic first and second books. Nevertheless, the whole series is very good and I recommend them highly.

Have fun planning!

 

[lmhall2000]

Y'all! I 'm getting soo excited about this trip! I think we'll definitely have some fun memories from it all. Y'all are helping me to get excited...I was having apprehensions mainly because the only time we could cash in 4 of our frequent flyer miles was the day after 9/11...with all the news about the anniversary of the London tube bombing and press, I was letting my fears get the best of me....I keep reminding myself that fear is not going to be an issue and we'll all be just fine.

I'm set on going to Warwick...trying to plan it on a night with fireworks...we may miss it...we'll be there Monday-Friday flying out on Friday. I think I'll go ahead and buy the third Cambridge Latin...we've completed the two books of Minimus and wondered where to go from there...it might just be book 3...need to look at some sample chapters online. It would be great to tie it in to Bath.

I checked out the Sloane museum and it seems really cool...I especially like that they've tried to keep it just as it was in 1837 and it's FREE of course!

Do any of you know the areas of London well? We have hotel ressies near Earls Court...the hotel staff seem very nice but I've heard bad things about navigating through Earls Court...and the area in general...I think the last time we stayed there we were at Sloane tube? I know it was Kensington...but there are other areas....I just want to be near Hyde Park and since we have 3 children (most London hotels assume you never have more than 1 ) In fact, one ressie guy said that they base that on the average child of English families...the average English family now only has .83 child...not even one whole one??? So, we over breeders have a hard time finding a room to fit! I can't imagine my friends who have 6 & 7 traveling...wow! Tough find!

Thanks guys!!! i'm going to sit down this weekend and "plan" it all out...I just make up sample days and let the weather help us make final plans....but it's nice to know where we could be going that day even if we just stay at the cottage and swim all day (heated pool! )
Tara

 

[suei]

While you're in London, try to go on one of the Open-top sightseeing buses. You can hop on-and-off at places that you'd like to explore further. There are a couple of companies, but this is an example: www.theoriginaltour.com/ Their Family ticket (2Ad/3Ch) is £60 if bought online, or £72 bought on the day. The price includes a river cruise and is valid for 24 hours.
If you don't mind a 1 1/2 hour drive north from Oxfordshire, you could visit the Ironbridge Gorge. There are some great museums there which tell the story of the Industrial Revolution, including Blist Hill Victorian Town, Enginuity, and of course there's the Iron Bridge itself. Take a look at www.ironbridge.info/ for more information on the area.
You'll have a great holiday here whatever you decide to do.

 

[Andrew Bichard]

I checked out the Sloane museum and it seems really cool...I especially like that they've tried to keep it just as it was in 1837 and it's FREE of course!

It's Soane not Sloane.

When you get to the art gallery with the Hogarths, try to guess how many paintings are in the room. Then ask one of the staff to show you. You will be surprised. (If anyone already knows - no spoilers please - half the fun is the surprise)

If you do visit, take a walk to the opposite side of the square to see Dickens' Old Curiosity Shop.

Andrew

 

[lmhall2000]

Thanks for the great tip on Soane! I love cool things like that! Yahoooo! I can't believe we'll be going to England as a family! I've mentally planned this thing for 2 years....it'll be over before we know it.

Any fun British foods we should try? Any ideas on ways to feed a family of five? They love fish and chips...I've heard about Wagamama's (sp?)...we have a full english breakfast in London, then figure that'll tie us over until a late lunch and then just a snack in the room...

But in our last place we'll have a full kitchen so we'll probably cook some but would love traditional food ideas....I remember a cookie I loved while there... Hobnob? It's been so long.

Thanks guys!
Tara

 

[momrek06]

TARA: Where will you all be staying? My son will be attending the University of Glasgow for the Fall semester as overseas studies through his University. He wants the family to meet him in London upon the completion of the semester for the Christmas holidays. My son has traveled to London and has suggested me look into Paddington Square/Chelsea/ and or SOHO for a hotel.

Any UK DISer's have any good suggestions for hotels. We are planning on flying British Air on or abour 12/22 and return with DS on or about 1/2/07.

TIA!!!