UK Trip planning help needed

[doombuggy]

Hello! I am planning my 1st trip to DLP, but am spending a week in London before hand. Ware Bears suggested I post my questions on that portion on my trip over here, since you guys are nice and might be helpful!

This will be my first tirp abroad and I am so excited to finally visit London. I do have a timeshare request in with my dad's RCI timeshare (for a swap), but we've had the request for 23/10 to 30/10/2010 in since last June and nothing is coming up - there is only 1 or 2 places in London for the swap.
That said, we have been looking at Bed & Breakfast places. I do have about 8 on a list and have contacted some, but......
1) any suggestions on where to stay and not break the bank? ie no more than 100 pounds per night maybe?
2) location of a good bookstore in London? My favorite author's books are being re-released in the UK, so I thought to pick up a couple while I am there, and order the rest thru Amazon.uk.
3) What "attractions" would you recommend? What can be skipped?
4) Is it worth it to go to Windsor for the day? I won't have a car, so that is about as a far afield as I can go.
5) Airfare - you guys come here to Orlando - I am looking for the opposite. As I mentioned, I plan to leave on an overnight flight on Friday oct 22 - when should I start looking for a good flight price and who would you recommend for a carrier?
6) places to eat for a person by themselves?

Feel free to add your two cents (or pence, I guess...)!

Thanks for your tips and advice! I am SOOOOOO looking forward to this trip!

 

[izzie-wizzie]

Hello! I am planning my 1st trip to DLP, but am spending a week in London before hand. Ware Bears suggested I post my questions on that portion on my trip over here, since you guys are nice and might be helpful!

This will be my first tirp abroad and I am so excited to finally visit London. I do have a timeshare request in with my dad's RCI timeshare (for a swap), but we've had the request for 23/10 to 30/10/2010 in since last June and nothing is coming up - there is only 1 or 2 places in London for the swap.
That said, we have been looking at Bed & Breakfast places. I do have about 8 on a list and have contacted some, but......
1) any suggestions on where to stay and not break the bank? ie no more than 100 pounds per night maybe?

When we are visiting other places in UK we usually stay in a Premier Inn - infact last time in london we stayed at a premier inn just beside oxford street (huge street with heaps of shops, close by to piccadily circus / hamleys) and thought the location was perfect, rooms were really nice and the breakfast was great too - and its really really resasonably priced. Theres also travellodges (more basic) /hiltons etc - all chain hotels really - but if its a nice bed/breakfast you want I think they are decent.

2) location of a good bookstore in London? My favorite author's books are being re-released in the UK, so I thought to pick up a couple while I am there, and order the rest thru Amazon.uk.

Look up some Waterstones bookstores - thats one of the biggest bookstore chains in UK, and im sure if anywhere has it its here!

3) What "attractions" would you recommend? What can be skipped?

The main sights are things like Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, London Eye Ferris Wheel. and I here the bus tours are pretty good to see most of them (although i've never done one!)

I enjoy walking around hamleys the toy store / piccadily etc, and of course Harrods is an amazing store to browse in! Some visitor attractions I enjoy are Madame Tussauds Waxworks and The London Dungeon.
I personally would skip Ripleys belive it or not - not up to the same standard as some of the other attractions.

6) places to eat for a person by themselves?

If you like sushi - there are a few Yo Sushi resaurants in London and every time im at a Yo Sushi theres always a lot of people there alone - so its not a place you would feel lonely or anything.

Feel free to add your two cents (or pence, I guess...)!

Thanks for your tips and advice! I am SOOOOOO looking forward to this trip!

Hope some of that helps!! I love London heaps, the whole 'buzz' of the city is great!!

 

[DSNY4ever]

Sorry piping in but not from the uk

Last time we went to London (which is such a great city!!) we LOVED our day at Windsor, definitely worth it. Take the train out early so that you have time to walk around the town and eat in addition to touring the castle, it is a nice break from the big city.

We loved walking around Harrods, the parks, enjoyed all the main museums and attractions- so much to do! There are lots of places to get a quick baked potato or pasty (on the go) if you are by yourself and don't want a big meal.

We stayed at a B&B recommended in the Fodor's guide. I can't remember the name but it was over near Victoria's station. Great location to walk to everything.

Have a great time!

 

[Dimplenose]

1. I live too close to need to stay in London but I've heard good reports of the County Hall Premier Inn.

2. For bookstores Waterstone's in Piccadilly (near Piccadilly Circus) is supposed to be the largest in Europe.

Other bookshops can be found in Charing Cross Road - including Foyles possibly the most famous one. (It's a long road, I think most of the bookshops are towards the Tottenham Court Road end.)

3. If you like museums and art galleries, most now don't have an entrance fee. (The cafe at the Victoria and Albert museum is wonderful (maybe a little pricey) and you sit in the most beautiful surroundings.)

I love looking around Covent garden market but DD (16) prefers Camden Market - but it makes me (48) feel soooooo old!

4. If you want a trip out of town I prefer Hampton Court (30 minutes by train) to Windsor but both are good trips.

It will be getting dark fairly early in October so you might want to book a show for an evening (I think some of the galleries/museums are open late on some evenings.)

The last week in October is a holiday week for most schools so expect the attractions to be reasonably busy.

 

[coltink]

Hello! I am planning my 1st trip to DLP, but am spending a week in London before hand. Ware Bears suggested I post my questions on that portion on my trip over here, since you guys are nice and might be helpful!

This will be my first tirp abroad and I am so excited to finally visit London. I do have a timeshare request in with my dad's RCI timeshare (for a swap), but we've had the request for 23/10 to 30/10/2010 in since last June and nothing is coming up - there is only 1 or 2 places in London for the swap.
That said, we have been looking at Bed & Breakfast places. I do have about 8 on a list and have contacted some, but......
1) any suggestions on where to stay and not break the bank? ie no more than 100 pounds per night maybe?

When we are visiting other places in UK we usually stay in a Premier Inn - infact last time in london we stayed at a premier inn just beside oxford street (huge street with heaps of shops, close by to piccadily circus / hamleys) and thought the location was perfect, rooms were really nice and the breakfast was great too - and its really really resasonably priced. Theres also travellodges (more basic) /hiltons etc - all chain hotels really - but if its a nice bed/breakfast you want I think they are decent.

2) location of a good bookstore in London? My favorite author's books are being re-released in the UK, so I thought to pick up a couple while I am there, and order the rest thru Amazon.uk.

Look up some Waterstones bookstores - thats one of the biggest bookstore chains in UK, and im sure if anywhere has it its here!

3) What "attractions" would you recommend? What can be skipped?

The main sights are things like Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, London Eye Ferris Wheel. and I here the bus tours are pretty good to see most of them (although i've never done one!)

I enjoy walking around hamleys the toy store / piccadily etc, and of course Harrods is an amazing store to browse in! Some visitor attractions I enjoy are Madame Tussauds Waxworks and The London Dungeon.
I personally would skip Ripleys belive it or not - not up to the same standard as some of the other attractions.

6) places to eat for a person by themselves?

If you like sushi - there are a few Yo Sushi resaurants in London and every time im at a Yo Sushi theres always a lot of people there alone - so its not a place you would feel lonely or anything.

Feel free to add your two cents (or pence, I guess...)!

Thanks for your tips and advice! I am SOOOOOO looking forward to this trip!

Hope some of that helps!! I love London heaps, the whole 'buzz' of the city is great!!

Which Premier Inn are you refering to? City Tower, county Hall, Kings cross, or Kensington Earls court?

 

[janiebubble]

you may get lucky with a good deal at the City Inn in Westminster ... I've stayed there twice now, once we paid £99 a room (but that included a bottle of wine) the second time we paid £75 a night. www.cityinn.com it rates in the top 5 in London on Trip Advisor regularly, and all rooms have an imac in them so you're connected for free (plus there is free wifi) they also do a 'grab and go breakfast' which cost us just £6 for bacon rolls, orange juice and coffee.

It is worth a look!! Situated just past the houses of Parliament - 5 minute walk to Pimlico tube, on a bus route into Oxford Street. I'd highly recommend it.

 

[disney_princess_85]

The Grange City Hotel in Tower Hill is very nice. It's a 5* hotel and I paid around £100 per night a year or so ago. The location is great- it's next to a tube station and across from the Tower Of London and London Bridge.

 

[izzie-wizzie]

Which Premier Inn are you refering to? City Tower, county Hall, Kings cross, or Kensington Earls court?

Apologies - i was refering to Holiday Inn at at London Oxford Circus. Still, very much recommend it in there

 

[doombuggy]

Thanks and keep them coming!

I am about down to booking a flight on US Air; it's not direct, has 1 stop (no changing planes, though) both ways, but it will save me about $200. Of course, that might get spent staying at the airport the night before I return home....

There is a B& B I am looking at that is near harrods. It's 100 pounds per night. I am checking to make sure that it's in a good transportation area - to & from the airport (Gatwick, if I go with US Air) and to the Eurostar station.

 

[doombuggy]

This might be a dumb question, but do the taxis take credit cards?
I think I might end up taking one fromt he Eurostar station to the Gatwick airport upon my return from DLP. I am ready to book my flight, and the return home is around 10:30 the next morning, so I thought it would be best to stay at a hotel at the airport. It looks like the train gets in at around 9pm ish, so I don't want to be fooling around with getting this tube here or there, especially at night, by myself.
At the end of my trip, I might be at the end of my "cash" especially since I will have at least two different kinds on me!

 

[Disneymad]

Hi Doombuggy

Yes, some of the traditional black taxi cabs take credit or debit cards by no means every one as taxi drivers are all self employed so it's up to them if they want to offer the service so check with the driver before you jump in! (As you're getting a taxi from a major train station there will likely be a constant stream of taxi's arriving so you shouldn't have to wait long to find one that does).

They do charge extra for the privilege though - like 10-15% of the fare I think, so bit of a rip off - I think they charge so much to try and put people off from doing it tbh.

 

[Dimplenose]

Gatwick might be too far for cab drivers to take you and if they do it will be VERY expensive. Central London to Heathrow starts at £45 - but Gatwick is further away.

Have a look here

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/taxisandminicabs/taxis/1140.aspx

 

[doombuggy]

Gatwick might be too far for cab drivers to take you and if they do it will be VERY expensive. Central London to Heathrow starts at £45 - but Gatwick is further away.

Have a look here

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/gettingaround/taxisandminicabs/taxis/1140.aspx

Thanks for the link! I was just looking at US Air's schedule to London/Heathrow, and the stop would take me home to Philly. It would cost about $30 more, but sounds like it will be worth it.

I will reconsider the taxi vs. tube thing to the airport from St Pancras International. I used to take the train back home all the time, but not usually at 9 o'clock at night.

Thansk for everyone's thoughts! Keep 'em coming!

 

[AlexJB]

I love London - you'll have a great time!

There is a train from London Victoria to Gatwick, usually takes about 50 mins (I *think*) - might be worth checking on nationalrail.co.uk . Victoria station from St. Pancras (Eurostar station) is only a 10minute direct tube too.

In terms of where to stay, have you tried looking at top rated places on tripadvisor? There are some reasonably priced places amongst the top rated that you could check out. I can also vouch for the CityInn Westminster though, fantastic hotel!

Windsor is really interesting, last year I used to live about a 15 minute drive away and we were always visiting; there's a good mix of shops, restaurants/cafes, and of course the tourists sites too - there are plenty of open top sightseeing buses that I've heard are really interesting. If you do visit Windsor, make sure you walk into Eton too.. it's connected to Windsor via a bridge, and there are lots of interesting little places, and you can see Eton College, which is a very famous school in Britain.

You'll be able to see a lot in a week, and you'll be able to cover more than just the standard tourist attractions - it's worth investing in a good guide book; the Rough Guide to London is a good read.

Hope this is useful, If I think of anything else I'll post, or just shout with a question!

 

[doombuggy]

I'll definately put Windsor on my list! I will have Sunday to Friday to do all my sightseeing, and since I am by myself, I can see whatever I want!

Booked my flight into Heathrow this am. I noticed yesterday when checking the direct flights on VA & BA, they both flew into Gatwick. They were also more expensive.

I did get Rick Steve's London (not as good as I thought it would be) and Frommer's, which is better. I also ordered the Brits Guide to DLP, and an loving that too!

My co-workers were asking me about the weather during late October - 40s - 50s F, but will I need to bring an unbrella, just in case? I also have a couple of Disney ponchos, which can help keep me warm in a pinch, too!

 

[doombuggy]

Are there any special Halloween type events happening in late October? Such as ghost tours or something?

What are the rumors of Wills & Kate?

 

[Disneymad]

We don't really do Halloween to quite the same scale as in the US but there are a few treats to be had (pun intended )

You might want to bookmark this page - bit early for info this year but when it comes, should pop up there and in the meantime it still covers events that were held last year for an idea of what to expect - including ghost tours.

I'm not sure if they actually do anything special, but I've also always kinda fancied visiting the Tower of London on Halloween as it's a great place for lots of ghostie stories etc.

As for Wills and Kate, I'll be honest, I don't really pay much attention to the hype so may have missed it, but as far as I know the rumours are still just rumours at the moment. A potential wedding is mooted for this year that will be held at a time firmly away from Charles and Di's wedding date (which was in July) and not in St Pauls to try and avoid as many of the inevitable comparisons that will be made.

 

[doombuggy]

As for Wills and Kate, I'll be honest, I don't really pay much attention to the hype so may have missed it, but as far as I know the rumours are still just rumours at the moment. A potential wedding is mooted for this year that will be held at a time firmly away from Charles and Di's wedding date (which was in July) and not in St Pauls to try and avoid as many of the inevitable comparisons that will be made.

They are saying over here that a possible november wedding might be in the air. But who knows. As much as it owuld be nice to kind of "see" a royal wedding (I remember getting up at 5am to see Charles & Di's), I would be more concerned that it would interfere with me getting home. I am going to DLP on Oct 30 and returning to London on nov 3, then going home the next day. After nearly 2 weeks, I will be ready to get home.

on a lighter note, I got my new laptop and had the DSL & wireless router hooked up this week, so I plan on surfing the web doing research on this trip.
Keep the tips and web links coming. You guys have been a great help and I am looking forward to coming to your country to visit!