Just found out we will be in London next December....

[5lilfish]

Our daughter's are marching in the London New Year's Day Parade. They will be with the band the entire trip. My husband and I plan to go on our own (we want to see them march and take advantage of the opportunity to be on our own in London). We have been to London once before so we aren't totally clueless. still, I have questions:

1) Are Christmas Markets still going after Christmas? I don't have our exact dates but I imagine we will be there around Dec 27th.

2) What other festive seasonal things should we consider?

3) Any specific tips on the parade? We plan on getting some sort of seating package. I'm sure it will be crazy and I wouldn't want to just 'wing it.'

4) Where would you stay?

5) I think this time we will do a visit to Stonehenge and Bath (didn't make it last time). any tips? We would consider splitting time with someplace we could easily train to, but it would be for a couple of days and probably Jan 2-3. I'm not sure if it would be worth it or if we should just dedicate our time to London (and maybe Bath/Stonehenge for a day trip)....especially likely to do this if the markets will still be going.

Thank you,
Jessica

 

[ratherbeshiny]

1) Some are! Winter Wonderland (Hyde Park) is open until 01/01, and Leicester Square Markets (very small!) are open for the first week of the new year. Southbank's last day is Boxing Day. I don't think many/any the smaller markets will remain open post-Christmas!

2) CHRISTMAS LIGHTS! Regent Street, Oxford Street, St Christophers Place, Marylebone Village, St Martins Lane, Carnaby, Covent Garden, Seven Dials, Saville Row, Leadenhall Market, The Churchill Arms (pub) - map out a route and walk, pick up seasonal hot beverages along the way from Pret or Costa to keep warm!

See a pantomime! There are dozens, but the one at The Palladium is always the best, no expense spared. Ice Skating at Somerset House, Christmas Lights at Kew Gardens, The Nutcracker at The Royal Opera House (Royal Ballet) or London Coliseum (English National Ballet). They put the T-Rex in a Christmas jumper at the National History Museum!

Not Christmas related - get tickets to the Sky Garden, the free viewing platform inside the Walkie Talkie building. Tickets are free, they release them a week at a time on Monday's, three weeks in advance.

3) I have no experience with this! If there is ever an option to secure tickets in advance in London, you have to do it. And be quick too!

4) Anywhere within Zone 1/2 within easy walking distance to a tube line.

5) Make sure everything is open! It's an easy day trip, or split across two part days.

London is magical this time of year, I hope you have the best time!

 

[Kate_45]

Markets won't be strong but other Christmas's things will still be. I highly recommend getting tickets to Christmas at Kew, though you will have to book well in advance. There are some very scenic open air ice rinks too - varies slightly each year so have a search for what you fancy.

I would probably stay at Premier Inn County Hall. It's a budget chain but clean, comfy and well located.

I've only seen the new year's day parade once. It's not really a thing, though they're trying to grow it. Most of the audience were American parents of parade participants.

 

[londonderrydisneyfan]

Bump...

I wanted to reply to this thread since my son's band participated in the New Year's parade this year and we just got back. We arrived last Wednesday and just got home earlier today.

There were plenty of Christmas markets open and they were all packed. We went to Borough market and it was so busy at times there was no room to even move. We loved the Christmas lights too but again the crowds were so big it was hard to move around.

I would recommend getting tickets to any attractions you would like to see (Westminster Abbey, museums, etc.. ) in advance because they can be hard to get if you try to get them the day of. Of all of the sights we saw, Westminster Abbey was probably our favorite.

We rented an apartment in Earl's Court on VRBO and it was a great location. It was pretty affordable and was very close to the Tube so it was easy to get out and see the sights from there.

We did not buy grandstand tickets to the parade but we got there around 10:30 and camped out at the very end (right next to Parliament Square across from the VIP seats) and we had a great view. If you do decide to buy grandstand tickets I would buy them one or two sections to the right of the VIP seats at the end of the parade. The bands stop and do a quick little show before they leave the parade.