Need help planning our first trip to London...

[JesNJakesMom]

We have decided that sometime in 2004 we would like to take a family trip to London and surrounding areas with a definate stop (although probably only one day) at Disneyland Paris. It will probably be for 10 days (not positive but leaning that way). I feel silly but I know nothing of the area. The only trips outside of Michigan for me have been WDW in Florida.

I would love information on weather, best times of the year to travel with 2 kids (ages 4 & 6), and of course those "don't miss" attractions. We don't want to do this CHEAP because it's probably a once in a lifetime for us. However, we are by no means rich and would appreciate any tips/tricks on saving money where possible!

Thank you so much for any help you can give!

 

[andrew_bichard]

I have lived in North London for 18 years or so.

British weather is unpredictable and London is no exception. Your best chances of good weather are July, August & beginning of September.

Lots to do in London, but you will be limited by your 4 and 6 year-olds. You had best buy some guidebooks. My grandchildren like the London Eye (a huge ferris wheel overlooking the Thames), plus the Natural History & Science museums. There is plenty to do for adults (I like the British Museum, the V&A and the Sloane Museum) but your children might be bored. Boat trips on the Thames can be fun, but remember to go at high tide so you get to see the buildings and not just the river's embankment wall and mud flats.

Eurostar hasn't published their summer timetable yet, but they only run a limited service direct London to Disney. The direct train takes about four hours and won't get into Disney untill early afternoon. I suspect you would need to stay over at least one night. When the Disney specials aren't running, yiou will have to change trains at Lille, adding to your journey time.

Definitely book a central London hotel for convenience. There are several theme parks on the outskirts of London, but they are no-where up to the standard of Disney.

Andrew

 

[athurstance]

Disneyland Paris is not as easy to get to by train as is sometimes implied and I agree with Andrew when he says you'd need to stay over at least one night - it is hard to make good value on a ticket this way as you would have 2 half-days though.
Flying is good as long as you don't try to pick up a hire car from Hertz at Charles de Gaulle airport - we did this once now we take a taxi. You can fly out of all London airports to Paris (some use Orly some use C d Gaulle). Be warned DLP is not a cheap trip at all. We find we can visit WDW in Florida for not a great deal more than a long weekend trip to DLP especially if you stay in a DLP hotel. It is ok for us Brits looking for a bit of a Disney fix but if you've been to WDW it may well be quite a disapointment to you and I wouldn't go out of my way to visit it if you have other plans in London.
Other attractions:- the walk along the river past Tower of London and onto Tower Bridge is good. The area is pretty touristy and there is lots of tourist stuff to do - The London Experience is by the tower and you can visit the Crown Jewels inside the Tower. The view from the top of Tower Bridge is great - you can get a similar view from a river view room at the Thistle Tower hotel aswell and this is a great hotel although not cheap it is not outrageous either. Another hotel I've had recommended to me which is slightly pricier is the old GLC building which is now a Marriott hotel. A friend stayed there before Xmas and voted it excellent.
You can visit the Cutty Shark ship over in the London Docklands - easy access from central London on the new Docklands railway.
My kids (8 and 10) absolutely love the Natural History Museum - it is a fantastic building just from the outside and inside is so much stuff you can spend a whole day there. Particularly good are the Dinosaur exhibit and the Volcano/Earthquake area.
Nearby is the shopping area of Knightsbridge which is always worth a look even if you don't buy anything - Harrods is here and the toy department is very entertaining. Hamleys - the toy shop - is great too although never discovered how to get out without buying something yet.
I'm not sure how far out of London you fancy going but Stratford on Avon (Shakespeare area) and also Warwick Castle would be worth investigating, also the Cotswolds are nice for a few days in the country. Portsmouth has a lot of naval history and of course the Mary Rose.

Angela

 

[BevS97]

I don't know London very well, but I have stayed at the Thistle Tower hotel a few times on business. Being from up North, I thought it was quite pricey, but it is a lovely hotel and the views are just stunning - I had a corner room once over looking Tower Bridge that was just an amazing view. I highly recommend it if the price is ok.

Bev

 

[Astrid]

I grew up in London and loved it and often take my two kids up there for a day or two. The both really enjoy taking an open topped double decker bus around all the sights of London when you can hop on and off at will for a day.

As Angela says, it would a shame to restrict yourself just to London as there is so much to see in the rest of the country, a lot of which you could do as day trips and make London your base.
For example, the New Forest down here in Hampshire is a huge forest which is beautiful with wild ponies and other varied wildlife, Portsmouth, just along the coast, again as Angela says, has a lot of naval history.

Just ask any questions you want and I'm sure someone here will be able to answer!

 

[Dimplenose]

What about Windsor? It's not far from London and you've got Legoland which is perfect for young children and Windsor Castle which is one the Queen's main homes.

I'd choose late May or June to visit as most schools have their breaks during late July and August.

Libby

 

[MKLOVER]

You could take your kids to the Rainforest at Picaddilly - like the DTD one.

If you are going to DL Paris - I went last year. We flew to Paris with Air France (we got cheap flights) www.lastminute.com and we then got the train to our hotel in central paris. We then used the metro to get to DL Paris.

My husband will not go to DL again as he is fed up with the European's who are sooooooo rude and push and don;t cue.

Hence the reason that we are going to DW this February.

Hope you have a good trip to London.

I recommend

Madame Tussards
Rain Forest Cafe
Millennium Dome
Trafalgar Square (for the pigeons) your kids will like this the pigeons sit on your shoulders and head (you can buy sead for them very cheaply) it is fun.
Hamleys (Toy shop on Regents Street)


Also when using the London Underground get a capital card (name may have changed) this is an all day ticket which is cheaper if you are going to several places in a day. I think you can get one of these for several days too. Check the web page I think it is londonunderground.co.uk - but not sure.

 

[vernon]

If it's a once in a lifetime trip, I think I'd leave it till the kids are a little older. The stuff that will interest them will be easier and cheaper to do in the US ( for something comperable) and the stuff the adults want to do but they find boring, you run the risk your fun will be spoilt unless they are abnormally well behaved. All of the suggestions above are good ideas, but I think you need to think long and hard about how your kids will react.