London Travel Forum

Hi
Could you please advise what attractions / restaurants, pubs /sightseeing you would recommend.
Obviously we will be seeing Buckingham palace, Madam Tussauds etc.

Also as we will there for Xmas (hopefully a white Xmas) we would love to have a traditional Xmas dinner.

We are there – 25/12/2008 – 29/12/2008 staying near Kensington Palace.
Thanks
Russ

You will be spoilt for choices!

Firstly I thought Buck House was only open in August.

Christmas Dinner - take your pick - there are many hotels/pubs.

I would strongly recommend Hampton Court Palace, which is about an hour out of London [you don't give your location]. From about 27th Dec onwards they have 'actors' in and prepare and serve a Tudor meal [sorry no samples due to Health & Hygiene regs] there is the Court Jester, dancing in the Great Hall and Enthroning of the Boy Bishop. A really good day out - even a lot of locals don't know about it - everything is open and working. The 'actors' are extremely knowledgable and very helpful - everyone is dressed in period costume. Food is a bit dire - so take a picnic. I think the programme starts at 10am and finishes about 4pm. Prices for the Palace are cheaper at Christmas than in the summer. The maze and orangery etc are still open.

Windsor Castle is another must but in the opposite direction to Hampton Court. Windsor town is very quaint and well worth a visit with plenty of good if not slightly expensive eating places.

Then there's Kings College Cambridge for the traditional 9 Lessons and Carols - I understand that you can go to this freebies provided you are prepared to wait. Cambridge is a delightful place to visit and you can normally have a quick glimse of the college chapels and quads, whereas in Oxford you can't. Also personally think Cambridge is more picturesque than Oxford, although I'm sure others will disagree with me.

Hope you enjoy your break.

Oops didn't realise you were staying in Kensington - if I had to choose I'd opt for Hampton Court to get a real taste of Tudor England

Make sure you do a pub crawl while in London. The pubs have so much atmosphere the only downside is that the pubs are very smoky but I guess that adds to the charm and besides its not always your stuck in a room full of smokers.
I did a great pub crawl with London walks called "Carry on Shakespeare and Scurvy" pub crawl. The crawl meets at London Bridge underground every Friday at 6pm and lasts for 3 or sometimes more hours. Also I recommend not bringing your camera for this as you may become intoxicated.

All pubs in London are now non-smoking since the change in smoking laws 1st July 2007.

The chance of having a white Christmas will be very small. Christmas dinner will be available almost everywhere, but your are best advised to book beforehand and this is a very popular time to eat out.

Thank you for your reply
We are coming from Australia so a remote chance of a white xmas is exciting.
Anywhere you would recommend.
Thanks
Russ

Buckingham palace only opens to the public in August and early September. Also, as you are visiting over xmas most attractions will be closed on 25th and 26th and public transport will be very limited.
I suggest you visit the websites of the major attractions you are planning to visit before you come.
You are VERY unlikely to have a white Christmas as London only gets snow on may one or two days a year. It is more likely to be cold cloudy and damp.
You will however be able to get a full christmas dinner in most hotels around that time.

A few websites to look at are:

Getting around London:

Bus and underground information: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tube/
National train information: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/times_fares/


Whats on /Where to go:

http://www.whatsoninlondon.co.uk/index.php
http://www.whats-on-in-london.com/
http://www.timeout.com/london/

Museums and Exhibitions

http://www.londonnet.co.uk/ln/guide/about/museums.html

Tours

http://london-tour.conciergedesk.co.uk/
http://www.theoriginaltour.com/


Restaurants

http://london.diningguide.com/
http://www.toptable.co.uk/

Free things to do:
http://www.londonfreelist.com/home.asp

Russ - I'm an Aussie who's spent 4 Christmasses in London and I'm sorry to say there wasn't a drop of snow over any one...

But yeah - you'll totally be spoilt for choices regarding things to see and do - I won't bother you with my long list. One thing I will suggest though is to check out London Walks www.walks.com. They are a fantastic way to see the city, and you can choose all sorts of themes you're interested in from a pub crawl (brilliant) to The Beatles or Jack the Ripper.

Regarding Christmas dinner, there's hundreds of pubs and restaurants around that will be hosting big Christmas lunches. You'd need to book ahead too. Check out websites such as London Eating or Top Table to search for places around Kensington Palace that you like the sound of then email them.

I'll give you the website of Londonwalks. It's londonwalks.com and just type in pub crawls in the search for a walk section. It'll give you many pub crawls to choose from.

Excellent
exactly what I was looking for - thank you

azz8206 - I already gave the correct website in my first post - it's www.walks.com

I'm sorry I did not read your post. You can also access the website using www.londonwalks.com.

No worries, sorry - I thought it was a follow-up to my post. :o)

Like Buck House, Tussauds is a COMPLETELY MISSABLE experience. Almost anything would be time better spent.

I agree - Tussauds is totally tacky - but everyone enjoys different things so....

Standing in that epic queue in December is a very peculiar way to enjoy yourself, but as you say tastes differ and it would be a dull world if they didn't.

Our latest craze is ice-rinks (to make up for lack of snow?!). They do get booked up quite quickly, so you may have to book online (around end Sept/Oct) to get guaranteed tickets. They are all over the place - Somerset House, Hampton Court I believe, Hampstead Heath is planning to resurrect theirs after dropping it last year, etc. (If you decide to visit the Royal Parks, try and make a visit to Hampstead Heath too, which is completely different.)