London Travel Forum

I'm visiting Germany in March/April. Flying through British Airways, I can have a 7 1/2 hour layover in London (Heathrow). Is it practical to try and take a small bus tour or tour on foot in that amount of time? It will be just me and my 12 yr old daughter.

i am planning to visit london next week. myself, wife and 2 teens.
we plan to stay in Grand Plaza Serviced Apartments
i am following the frommer plan.
land monday afternoon in heathrw and travel to hotel.
tuesday.:
westminister
big ben
parliment
jewel tower
westminister bridge
london eye
millenniumst paul cathedral

wed
tower of london
tower bridge
british museum

fly from heathrow thursday noon.
i want to see the buckimham palace but dunno how to fit it.

1.what kind of transit pass should i purchase
2.how much will cab cost from airport to hotel
3 whic is best way to move from airport to hotel. i got 7 luggages as we are travelling to other places and have no choise but to lug it all.
4. is there any other sites that are worthier than i listed

Tell me where the ultimate Fish n Chips is in London. Staying with a friend in East London / Stratford, West Ham area. Thanks.

Hi,

I'm travelling with 2 friends to London on weekend of 13th November, 3 night stay.

We are looking for a hotel that will sleep the three of us, preferably in separate beds - we could do a twin plus sofa bed for example.

But I'm struggling to find one that fits the bill - all my searches bring up doubles with pull out.

Our criteria:
less than £120 per room per night
en suite
definitely NOT hostel or Travelodge, but open to other thoughts
Zone 1-2 only
Separate beds!!!

Hope someone can help - maybe you work for a big hotel chain or have stayed somewhere before that fits the requirements?

Big thank you in advance xxx

LOOKING FOR PUB/CLUB EAST/NORTH/CENTRAL LONDON WITH COMEDY/DRAG/PEARLY/SING SONG ON A SATURDAY NIGHT.
NO HEAD BANGING OR HEAVY ROCK/DISCO/KARAOKE. JUST GOLD OLD LONDON PUB!!
CHEERS,
MALC

Hello,

On a recent business trip to our office in Shenzhen (from London), I took a week hols in Thailand on the way to break up the journey. Rather than lugging the 2 weeks worth of luggage (esp business clothes) around the beach, I took only a hand-luggage case and sent via UPS my clothes and files on ahead.

I mistakenly also sent a portable printer, which seems to have flagged up the case going through Chinese customs. It made it there in the end, but I had to pay some GBP 30 duties and taxes, even though the commercial invoice was marked as personal luggage.

I thought I'd try my luck on the way back, and again because my clothes were of a reasonable European brand (though after 1 week of 30 deg. humidity without any laundering, they were clearly used), there was trouble getting them out of China this time.

I'm not a great fan of lugging heavy suitcases around, particularly when traveling with my young family. Therefore, I wondered if anyone had any advise about sending 'luggage on ahead'. I chose UPS, simply because my company has an account that I could use without any personal cost...

Doing this domestically makes sense, particularly if traveling by train for a long holiday - any thoughts about tweaking this approach for smoother international travel?

Cheers,

Tom.

Has anyone stayed here? It's in Bloomsbury, a bastion for egghead types. My foremost concern: Is the place quiet? They say that traffic is barred from the street, and the back rooms face a tennis court.

I am thinking about taking my 11 year old grandson and 15/16 year old granddaughter to London in June. They have traveled with us fairly extensively in the States. Is this a good idea? If so, what are the sights and activities you would recommend.

Hello. I'm to be traveling to London soon and need some pounds to spend while there. I know ATM machines are favored but I cannot use them. I have no choice. I'll only have cash. I want to walk up to a Bureau De Change with $575 in American Dollars and walk away with as many British pounds as possible. Can anyone tell give me an estimate of how many pounds I'll receive? I know you can't be exact but can you tell me a rough estimate like, 10 pounds, 200 pounds, etc. Also, will I have to wait for my money to arrive there or do I trade my American currency and receive British currency immediately? I want to receive it immediately.

I know there are better ways to take your money to London but just for the sake of argument I have to do it this way.

Thank you!

I am travelling with my mother for her 70th birthday to London and Paris. I will have one regular size roller bag and she will have a smaller bag. My questions are as follows:

1. I have booked us a "larger" room at Base2Stay and it seems very nice and clean (clean being most important) and not too far from the undergound. How would you recommend getting from Heathrow to this location? I am debating whether it would be worth it to hire a car or is the rail service pretty easy to manage with bags? The address is 25 Courtfield Gardens
London, SW5 0PG- it is near the Earl's Court station.

2. Would you recommend this hotel for visiting the usual tourist things? I can cancel but I went ahead and reserved and got a really good "early internet" rate.

3. Finally, for now, we are going to fly or take the train to Paris (we were going to meet my husband there)....which would you recommend? We are going to go straight out to Caen/Bayeux to do the Normandy tour thing for 2 days and then back to Paris for a week. I couldn't see an easy way to get to that region...if we could i would just let my husband meet us there.
Any advice you can give me will be appreciated!

Hello!

I will be in London next week for the first time in my life. I was wondering where I could find some art shops (with posters, canvas etc) of modern art near to the centre. I am looking for 3 or 4 unstretched modern theme canvas in a budget price. If you know any places that I could have look please write below...
If there is any URL please provide.


Thank you

SO IF THE QUESTION IS ABOUT A TRAIN STATION, CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT ARE THE POSSIBLE NAMES OF THE TRAIN STATION SO THAT AS I SCROLL DOWN ON THE CHOICES AT LEAST I COULD SEE SOMETHING I AM FAMILIAR WITH... AGAIN THANKS FOR A QUICK RESPONSE

thanks for the tip about this offer. This maybe a dumb question but as I was filling out the voucher for the tower of london, there is a question about " Station where you are starting your journey from"... i scrolled down to the choices but nothing seemed familiar to me. Can you tell me the answer to this question? I really really appreciate it so I can avail of the offer. Thanks again

I am going to spend with some friends 4 days in London (from the 29th December to the 1st January). We are staying at Piccadilly Backpackers Hostel and I wanted to know, if anyone has been there, if it's a good accomodation.
Since two guys who are coming with us are 17, I wanted to know if they can enter in pubs, discos and similar places if they are not drinking alcohol.
Furthermore I would be very interested in nice places to visit, or cool events to attend (that my 17 years old friends could attend too and possibly not too expensive).
Thanks in advance

Hello all,
I am thinking of taking up a master programme in King's College London (Neuroscience) and I am wondering if anyone knows anything about the course or reputation of the college? Also and perhaps more importantly, am I correct to assume that life in London is quite expensive - accommodation, food and general living costs? I would like to take the course but don't know if I can really afford London on a student budget!! Would be glad to hear any advice.
Cheers...

is it better to book ticketts to these attractions on line to avoid waiting in line? On average, how long is the wait if you fall in line on the day ... me and my husband will be in London on Oct. 16, 2009. Again a very big thank you to all of you who patiently took their time to answer all my questions... really, really appreciate everything

Me and my husband will arriving in heathrow at 10:55 pm on Oct.31 and our connecting flight will be at 08:30 am on Oct.31. We don't have to worry about our bags as it will be transferred to the next flight, can anyone suggest what can we do. We are not into a night club stuff... would cruise by the river Thames will still be available. Please let us know and we are very thankful for all your help.

Again thanks for all the answers everyone has offered me. As i was surfing, I came across organized tour groups. Since me and my husband has at least 7-8 hours before our flight to athens,is this a better way to see central london as a first timer? Thanks again for any input -)

Thank you for all the responses everyone gave me regarding all my questions. Every answer is very helpful and am having a clear picture of what to expect when we get to London. But I have a few more:
1. using the heathrow express, are we able to see or view the city along the way to PAddington?
2. how long is the travel via the tube from Paddington to Buchingham palace?
3. via tube,how long is the travel from the airport to Buchingham palace?
3.how long is the travel from buchingham palace to tower of london?

Thank you again for all your time posting your answers

Me and my husband are arriving in Heathrow on Oct. 15 at 8:30am and fly to Athens, greece at 9:00pm. Our bags will transferred to the next flight so we only have each a backpack:
1.From heathrow, take express to Central London and head to Buchingham Palace. Hopefully be at train by 9:30 am.and be on time for the changing of the guards by 10:30.
2.From there, we plan to get a taxi to visit Tower of London and just walk to Westminster Abbey, House of Parliament, London Bridge.I believe these places are walking distance to each other.
3. Do we have time to go to St. PAul's cathedral, the British Museum?
4. Is there a long line for purchasing ticketts to Tower and Westminster Abbey? Should I purchase these in advance?
Pls. advise esp. the mode of transportation, did i miss anything?THANKS A MILLON

i am visiting london for 3 days with my family. my criteria for stay is
* close to airport(heathrow) so i dont pay much cab charges to carry my luggage
* also close to the transit so that i can use the tube to go around
* economical family hotels. maybe 40-50 Pounds per day.
pl advice ideal places to stay

a friend from the USA is visitng London next week do they have to fill the visa form in on the plane and online like i did when i visited the USA ?? thanks

Im flying with Delta out of Heathrow in the next week.

Is it terminal 5?

Thanks

J.

PS. Any information on the Bayswater area would be great.

Has anyone stayed at The Royal Bayswater Hostel?

Can someone provide a route with the bus/train or tube to the Queensway tube station? Or my best link from Stanstead airport to Bayswater.

Thanks again.

Hi all,
I have a friend who will be in London next month for a job interview. She needs 2 nights accommodation..would normally take a hostel however she needs to study at nights so requires private accommodation. The interview is in Bromley, we have found a place called c and a gibson bed and breakfast located @ 21 new farm avenue. Prices are from 25 Pound..think we can find anything cheaper?
As well, do you know of this place and the conditions? Also if there is a cheaper option with a tube station nearby this will work as well.

Thanks in advance for the great answers everyone always leaves.

Cheers
Christian

Me and my husband will be arriving in london heathrow at 8:15, Oct 15 and will be flying to Athens at 9pm and all our bags will be forwarded to the next flight.It will be our first time and we would like to see these places... Buckingham palace, london tower, london bridge,westminster abbey, St. paul's cathedral. We also want to do thames river cruise. With the time we have can we do all of these? please let us know for the best option we have... thanks a lot

My wife and I will stay in london for a night before venturing out to Windsor Castle, Salisbury, Bath and the cotswolds before returning to london again. I guess it would be practical to rent a car to drive around the cotswolds. However, our starting point is central London (Mayfair), and I hear london traffic is terrible. Does it then make more sense for me to take public transport out of london (first destination Windsor castle) before renting a car, or is it still better just to rent a car in central london and driving off from there? Thank you all in advance for your comments.

we are arriving in heathrow on Oct. 15 at 0830, on our way to Athens, and all our bags will be forwarded to the next flight. It will be our first time in London and we would like to see the most of London's must see places... tower of london, buckingham palace,st. paul's cathedral, westminster abbey,london bridge,kensington palace etc.Is getting the london pass better than the hop on hop off bus?would any one recommend a good tour package for that short time which include the popular must see places? CAn someone tell us the best route, transportation from the airport and back that will save us the most time. Thanks a lot for any feedback -)

Hello,

I am traveling from the US to London for a few months. I want to take my mom there for a week or two for her birthday since she has always wanted to go there. Unfortunately, she is traditional and eats only Indian food (vegetarian). Is Indian food easily available in London? That could be an issue for her. I eat anything, but I am worried about her diet. Any help is appreciated.

Greetings, folks! First time here, so I'll try to explain my query as clearly as I can. :-)

I'm asking on behalf of a friend who is planning on making a first-time trip to London, UK from their native Toronto, Canada. My question is: are there any cheap flight options available during December 2009 through January 2010? There is a very strict timeframe available to my friend, which only covers the latter half of December to the first half of January -- basically 2 weeks, with Christmas and New Year's thrown in.

This is the only occasion on which they'll be able to travel in the near future, so the timeframe given above unfortunately isn't flexible at all. It absolutely must run through late December to early January, over a period of 2 weeks. It seems as though Air Transat are seasonal and do not fly to London during the winter, and any other options such as non-direct flights are not feasible in this case (it has to be direct from Pearson YYZ to Heathrow LHR).

So, could any kind souls who know about these things -- or are planning on doing a Christmas trip to London -- offer any help for this? I know it's not exactly the usual thing to be flying during winter, but this is something that's been in the making for a long time.

Good morning, What is the best public transportation from Mildenhall Air Force Base to London? What area of London would you suggest for lodging? Thank you in advance for your suggestions.