London Trip

[wenpop]

Anyone know any good tips on trips to London? We are planning on going in April next year to catch a game at Stamford Bridge, Looking for any tips on Hotels, transportation and activities... Never been and my son is really looking forward to going for his Graduation present.... thanks for any tips....
Going to Disney in Sept, so really need some savings.....

 

[pklein09]

We went to London just about a year ago. We bought the London Pass online and saved money over buying it there. You might try asking your question over on the UK Community Board. They are incredibly helpful!!!
https://www.disboards.com/forums/uk-community-board.46/

 

[mcottingham]

Use Skyscanner.com to find the best price on airfare. We went to London last Oct stayed in Kensington at $370 a night :> and this March we rented and apartment(AirBnb) in the Paddington area for 5 nights for Less than $500 about a block from Tube station (great way to get around) In Oct airfare From Kansas City $1405 each, in March We got 3 tickets from Boston to Heathrow for a TOTAL of $1362 so the three of us went to London and spent 5 nights for under $2000.
You can buy Underground tube tickets called Oyster Cards in advance and have them sent to you so that you have them in hand when You get there for like $3.00 mailing cost.
Do not forget to get a electricy converter before you go (ebay or Amazon) Then we resell them when we get back.
The exchange rate has been very good since Brexit better than has been in Years. any questions just ask!

 

[IBelieveInTheMagic]

I was going to mention the Premier Inn hotel chain. We stayed at the St. Pancras/Kings Cross location in 2015 and were very pleased with everything about it. They have several throughout the city and are usually pretty reasonable. Ours was also fairly new so it was in great condition and their onsite restaurant was also very nice.

Have fun,
Heather

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We are going in August for the first time so I will see soon if what we're doing is really worthy of a recommendation.
It all started when I read about somone getting RT flights for $475 pp from Boston, amazingly cheap! We live around 10 miles from Philly but we felt the savings would be worth the drive. Before committing, I did keep checking fares from JFK and Newark, NJ in hopes of getting something a bit closer, eventually settling for $619 pp from Philly on Delta.
I found a very nice Marriott next to the London Eye, across the river from Big Ben. It's not cheap but it was recently remodeled and location seems perfect.
For tours we are using The English Bus for a small group tour to Stonehenge & Bath.
Then for our city tour of London we opted for a private 7 hr tour with London Magical Tours. I chose them not just for their good reviews on TA but also because they offer a driver and a guide, so the guide can take us to every attraction without have to deal with parking the car.
This doesn't leave us much free, leisure time because we're only in London for 3 nts before flying to Paris for a few nights there, then on to DLP.
I really wanted to take the Eurostar train (Chunnel) to Paris just for the experience but after reading about tips to reduce the odds of being affected by a terrorist such as not using public transportation, it got me thinking that I'd rather just fly. I know that may sound irrational and of course real odds are less than miniscule but I have to follow my gut. Flights were cheap, like 67 euro pp including luggage and choosing seats, so it's cheaper and faster.

I don't know if this is any help but just thought I'd share what we came up with.

Have fun planning!

 

[nycdisneygal]

Its been a few years but we maximized what we did with London pass. We also used the discount at some of the eateries at the museums. We took the tube from the airport instead of a taxi. We stayed at the Marriott in Kensington and had a concierge SUITE for about half the price of a disney deluxe hotel (haha) - and we got lots of Marriott points! We also bought our Oyster cards ahead of time...

 

[agavegirl1]

Take the tube. Highly efficient. Most areas you would stay in are easily accessible. We stayed near Kensington Gardens and my DD was out navigator. We were were a tube ride or walking distance from almost everywhere. We only took a taxi the one time we had to fly from Heathrow to Dublin for the next part of our journey. Whatever version of the "tourist pass" for the tube for your stay will work well.

 

[Skippyboo]

I went in 2014. Stayed in the Russell Square Area. We could walk to Kings Cross Train station and the British Museum. Flew into Heathrow from Atlanta, the Piccadilly Line runs from Heathrow to central London. There is also a Express train line from Heathrow to Paddington Station. If you fly into Gatwick you take a train to Victoria Station to get to central London. At the airport, I bought my London pass and my Oyster card. When buying the Oyster card, I told them Zone 1& 2 7 days plus enough for 2 trips from/to Airport. The Tube is way easier then the buses. Just look for your stop and then it's easy to figure out which direction you need. The Transport for London website had it where you can type in a start and end point and it would give you the ways to get there.

 

[laughinplace199]

We just got back from London at the end of June. It was amazing! We are a family of 5 (Me, DH, DD18, DS16, and DS10). We went to Ireland first then flew from Dublin to Heathrow. We stayed at the Park Plaza near Westminster Bridge, which was perfect. We could see Big Ben from our balcony and it was a quick walk to a lot of places (the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and the tube station. There's so much to see and do and we didn't have time for it all, but we did a lot. We toured the Tower of London, West minster Abbey, Churchill War Rooms, and several museums. We also saw Matilda the Musical and we did the Harry Potter studio tour.

We were able to walk to many places, and for places a bit further from our hotel, we either took the tube or a cab.

London was my favorite part of our trip and I can't wait to go back someday!

 

[ProudMommyof2]

We took our two teens last April. While I love the disboards for all things Disney, the tripadvisor.com London forums are the place to research a London trip!
So helpful! Check the pinned articles first.

 

[julesann]

I was just in London in March--my third trip--this time with my daughter who is 24. I think it is worth it to stay close to central London near a tube station--best way to get around London besides walking (and the bus). The maps are deceptive--it takes a while to get in and out of London and it is nice to be only 5-7 tube stations away from the main areas of London. Buy an Oyster Card and this will work for the tube and buses and it is easy and saves you money.

I like staying in an airbnb because it gives me the option of eating in sometimes and saving some money. You can get great deals on flights--I like using googleflights.com for checking prices--it will tell you what days give you the best rates. I'd recommend booking 3-4 months ahead of time.

Many museums are free there and there is also a free lunchtime concert at St. Martins in Fields each week (great food in their downstairs restaurant). I also like going to the 1/2 price ticket booth in Leicester Square on the day you want to see a play and saving significant money. Another great fun thing is to go to the Sky Garden and see the view--it is free, but you need to book your tickets in advance (on line).

There are also free walking tours--you tip the guide at the end. I thought the one we did on rock and roll in the theatre district/Soho was really good. I also recommend reading Rick Steves walking tours. One of my favorite walks is getting off bus/tube near Buckingham Palace and walking through Green and St. James Park to Big Ben and then taking the water bus to Shakespeare's Globe and walking along the Thames and across the Millennium Bridge. I find tripadvisor to have lots of good information for things to do.

Have fun--it's a great city! And these days the food is really good too.