The unique mix of experiences that the wondrous city of London has to offer to vacationers is unparalleled. London is an excellent place to visit along with your family. However it is one of the most expensive cities in all of Europe, and in fact the entire world, so you have to plan your trip to every detail in order to get the maximum out of your trip to London.
Transport is one of the major expenses that you will have to incur when visiting London. This is true irrespective of whether you will be visiting places in your own rented car or making use of the public transport system. The best way of saving money on transport is by purchasing an Oyster card using which you can pre-purchase tickets at a lower price. Similarly you can purchase weekly travel cards that will allow you travel to a number of different zones throughout the week.
Finding Cheap London Accommodation
The next thing, which is perhaps the most important expenses that you will have to incur will be for the London accommodation you go for. Finding the right kind of accommodation can also help to cut down your transport costs. Ideally you would want to go for a place situated close to major tourist sites as well as transportation hubs.
Hotels in London are not spacious enough to host families of four or more. Even if you would be able to find such hotels they are likely to be quite expensive. What you can do on the other hand is go for London serviced apartments. There are a host of apartments of these kinds available on rent in London.
In a serviced apartment you will have the benefits of dedicated living, sleeping and dining zones along with a fully equipped kitchen and laundry facilities. But naturally serviced apartments provide a far more relaxing environment and are likely to cost you lesser than exquisite hotels in London while endowing you with more space and freedom.
Just like the various hotels in London you are likely to find such apartment buildings close to major tourist attractions and transportation hubs. This will help you to save up on incidental costs of travelling while the fully equipped kitchen in serviced units does not restrict you to eating out all the time.
With your transport and accommodation worked out the next thing you have to do is plan out the different tourist hotspots that you want to visit during your trip to London. In fact working this out from before will help you to narrow down the location of the accommodation that you will be renting out during your stay.
Furthermore if you manage to determine all the above mentioned things prior to making your travel arrangements then you can make your reservations early in order to avail bigger discounts. Generally the earlier you book the more competitive the rates will get. Similarly the longer the duration of your stay, the lower the rates will get.
City of Westminster London – Guide to Hotels, Restaurants, Taxis and Places of Interest
Where to stay:
There are a wide range of hotels which are ideally located for the City of Westminster, a selection are listed below:
London Marriott Hotel County Hall ***** (0.2Km) London County Hall Westminster Bridge Road London On the South Bank, overlooking Big Ben and the River Thames, this historic hotel features luxury bedding, spectacular views, fine cuisine and the largest spa/health club complex of any hotel in London.
Park Plaza County Hall **** (0.2Km) 1 Addington Street London Ideal for family getaways, this brand new 4 star deluxe hotel is located on the doorstep of the London Eye and is minutes away from many of London’s favourite tourist attractions including Big Ben.
Days Hotel Waterloo *** (0.5Km) 54 Kennington Road London This London hotel is a 10-minute walk from Waterloo International Station and the London Eye. There is a 24-hour bar for guests, good-value rooms and an on-site restaurant.
Novotel London Waterloo *** (0.6Km) 113 Lambeth Rd London The Novotel London Waterloo is ideally located in the city centre, close to Westminster Abbey and Houses of Parliament.
Thistle Royal Horseguards **** (0.8Km) 2 Whitehall Court Whitehall London This landmark hotel takes centre stage in an area of London renowned for its glorious pageantry. Located in a quiet area of Whitehall, on the banks of the River Thames, opposite the famous London Eye.
How can you get in and out of one of the most exciting cities on Earth easily? Heathrow is a sprawling and unpleasant airport. Immigration from outside the EU can be a chore. The London transport system can be expensive. Here are a few tips to make the going easier:
Let’s start on the way in. You’ve collected your bags from the carousel, got through immigration and made it into arrivals.
There are various transport options to central London; tube, black cab, mini cab, bus and train.
1. The London Underground, ‘the tube’, is the cheapest, but it can take an hour and a half if your destination at the other side of London. The tube has to stop at every station on its route. It can be crowded. It’s great for short trips, or for commuting to work. For beginning or ending a holiday, it’s wearisome.
2. Black cabs: Black cabs are also very good for short journeys; they are spacious, clean, and the drivers are professionals. They pay a lot of money for their licence, and are tested on their knowledge of London. They can be very expensive. A fee of $120 to get into central London would not be unusual, if the traffic is bad. The meter is running even when you’re stopped.
3. Mini cabs: These guys charge flat-fee fares, so it’s worth finding a few mini cab companies near Heathrow on the internet, and see if you can get someone to meet you in arrivals. They have to be booked in advance. You can’t book them from the airport on the day, as getting into Heathrow and finding you can be a nightmare. Sometimes the customer may not show up, so it’s not worth their time.
4. Bus: I’m not sure I’d use these at all. Being stuck in a traffic jam, in a bus, on a long journey, with the clock ticking is my definition of Purgatory. They’re good for short hops or before the rush hour or late at night. Cheap as chips, but you pay for it in other ways.
5. The train: This is my favourite. There are two train services from Heathrow; Heathrow Express and Heathrow Connect. The first takes fifteen minutes to Paddington, the second about half an hour. Both go to and from Paddington, which is a major terminus in the centre of London. Both are clean, and much faster than the tube. Spend a little more money, and be sure of getting where you want to go on time.
On the way back home, when you board the Heathrow Express in Paddington, you are fifteen minutes from Heathrow. The tube by contrast could take an hour or more. No contest, when you’re fretting about getting checked-in on time!
It’s worth considering whether you can fit all your luggage into one small case, which you can take on board as hand luggage. This means you can leave it until relatively late to check in. (Due to the new security measures, however, you can’t cut it too fine; the queues at departure can be quite long.) Coupled with taking a train to the airport, this can make your journey a lot more pleasant. Plus you don’t have to worry about your luggage going missing!
Niccolo Svengali is the webmaster of travel, hotel and education web sites in Palermo, Sicily.
London is a very tourist-friendly city. With free transport maps, information leaflets, guided tours, free tours, visitor city guides, free entrance to most museums and galleries and even free newspapers – just try to grasp all the inflowing information.
Tourism in London is developed to a great standard – whether you come to visit the city overnight, stay for a weekend or longer – the industry has it all prepared to adjust to your needs.
Glimpses of London’s hot spots are best presented in the free visitor guidebooks. It is easy to get hold of them, especially when you stay at a central London hotel.
Overnight visitors usually choose to experience London nightlife. With a selection of superb restaurant, river cruises, clubs and theatres – London overnight will not leave you disappointed. London buzzes till late and it is never quiet in Covent Garden or Piccadilly.
Weekend visitors choose to tour London with double-decker buses. The ticket costs around £22 per person and takes you to the main attractions: you can stop and take pictures at the Buckingham Palace, exit at Trafalgar Square and visit the National Gallery or hop off and visit St. Paul’s Cathedral. It is extremely easy to get around as there is always someone helpful around. Double-decker buses are also great as they offer you a free river cruise and a free guided walk. Include a nice meal out and you will have more than enough for a day. If you come for a weekend you will see you have more than enough time to visit London attractions, a few museums, buy some souvenirs and maybe even do a quick tour outside London.
For those who come to explore London in more depth, it is recommended to purchase an Oyster Card or a week travelcard. It will enable you to travel as much as you want and save money as London transport is quite expensive. Those coming for longer stays can really glimpse at many hot spots. They can not only visit the famous museums, galleries but also go and explore unique street markets, London parks and theatre shows.
Enough of London advertising – come and glimpse at London’s hot spots today!
London has so much to offer, it’s a year-round popular destination and one of the greatest cities in the world to visit. Its historical streets and buildings will take you to another world. Modern day London is so culturally diverse it makes a magical place to visit. Visit the traditional London with ceremony and royalty, enjoy a show at the theatre or shop till you drop. There is always something more to do in London.
Transport: how to get there and around:
London has 3 airports based in and around the city. Ferries are a popular way to travel from mainland Europe and Ireland, although the Channel Tunnel cuts travel time to 30 minutes from France. Once you are in London you will be spoilt for choice, there are excellent bus, coach, rail and underground train systems to get you around.
Weather
British weather is unpredictable and is often the topic of conversation. It is better to be prepared for anything, although generally the climate is temperate. Summer temperatures range from 14-30 degrees Celsius, winter can plunge to 1-5 deg C. Winter days are shorter and darker, frost and snow are also common occurrences.
Accommodation: Luxury to budget stays
The internet can offer some of the best information on the cost, range and location of hotels in London.
Attractions & Events
London has something to offer all year round, you are spoilt for choice with the regular plays and shows, concerts and sporting events. There are a few special events you may want to see. For classic music buffs you can visit to the Royal Albert Hall in August for the proms, for sporty tennis fans there is the Wimbledon Tournament in May,
For those that enjoy pageantry you can enjoy the trooping of the colour in April to celebrate the Queens birthday. All year round you can see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace at 11.30am, this happens everyday in the summer time and in winter every other day.
Birmingham: the heart of England
Historically Birmingham is a ‘city of a thousand trades’, today it is a lively hub of attractions. The heart of England has an array of music, theatre and performing arts to offer such as the famous Birmingham Royal Ballet and Symphony Orchestra.
Transport: how to get there and around:
Birmingham is just 2 and a half hours drive from London and connected by the M40 motorway. Being in the centre of the country, Birmingham is well connected by rail and coach networks with most major UK cities. The International Airport also offers direct flights to destinations such as New York, Dubai and Chicago. Local buses can be boarded around the Bull Ring Centre and service the town well.
Accommodation: Luxury to budget stays
The internet can offer some of the best information on the cost, range and location of hotels in Birmingham.
Attractions & Events
Birmingham holds a number of regular events including comedy shows, live concerts and art exhibitions. If you are in the city during March you may want to join the large Irish population for the St Patrick’s Day Parade which is always a fun festival. If you are an art lover, during September you can visit the ArtsFest. With over 100,000 visitors annually it’s the largest UK free festival for arts.
Manchester: city of football and more
Manchester has more to offer than just the famous football teams. Manchester is a fashionable and lively city where you can enjoy shopping, clubs and restaurants. If history is more your taste you can discover the part of Manchester that dates back to Roman times.
Transport: how to get there and around:
You can reach Manchester in 3 hours by train from London Euston station. The coach is a more affordable alternative to the train, Manchester is served from a number of UK cities with the reliable National Express service. Domestic and International flights connect with Manchester International Airport. Once in Greater Manchester you can hop on a local bus, metro or train to get around.
Accommodation: Luxury to budget stays
The internet can offer some of the best information on the cost, range and location of hotels in Manchester.
Attractions & Events
There are events to enjoy all year round in Manchester. We have highlighted just a few for you to look out for. Music fans can enjoy the citywide Jazz festival in July, which specializes in contemporary Jazz from the north of England. For the flamboyant, the Gay Pride festival is an annual event taking place during 17-27 August. To enjoy the taste of the Manchester, there is a Food and Drink event in October. If you happen to be in the city in November and want to get into the Christmas spirit, head to Albert Square for the switching on of the Christmas Lights.
Even though Heathrow is London’s largest airport, a lot of visitors are amazed to find that it is actually 16.9 miles from the centre of London, and that if they are staying in a hotel there that there is still quite a journey to be made before they can check-in to their room. Thankfully, there is a variety of options to get you quickly on your way.
The quickest option is the Heathrow Express train service which operates a non-stop service between Heathrow airport and Paddington Station in the heart of London; the journey takes only 15 minutes. There are two classes – standard or first class; which offers a little more luxury. In either class you can also buy a pass for Wi-Fi should you need to catch up with emails before hitting the capital. However, the Heathrow Express isn’t cheap with fares starting at £15.50 standard class single, and climbing up to £47 first class return.
A cheaper alternative to the Heathrow Express is the Underground. Heathrow is on the Piccadilly line and from any terminal you can access central London. Trains run every 4 – 9 minutes, with the single fare costing £4.00, or if you are travelling after 9.30 am, buy a travelcard which is valid anywhere on the London transport system for £6.30. At 45 – 60 minutes to reach central London the journey takes significantly longer than the Heathrow Express, but you have more en-route stops at which you can disembark.
Another public transport option is to take the bus or coach. This takes up to an hour to get into Central London if the traffic is operating normally, but can take up to two hours if there are problems, and offers a choice of destinations including Victoria rail station. The cost of this service currently starts around £10 for a single journey.
The airport is very well-served by London black cab taxis with the average fare to most central hotels in London varying between £40 and £60. Each cab holds up to five people, but do consider how much luggage you have, as very few cabs will be able to accommodate five passengers that each possesses two pieces of luggage. Also, if you intend to pay by credit or debit card you will be subject to a 10% service charge on the cash price.
Alternatively, Limousines are available through various agencies and can be booked in advance. Prices can vary between agencies, but this is definitely the most luxurious way of getting into the city centre – but also normally the most expensive!
Finally, it’s worth remembering that you’ll have to carry your luggage on public transport, so if you travel fully-loaded it might not be the best option for you to get through ticket gates and up and down stairs. Most taxis will get you to all central hotels in London dropping you directly in front of reception – and that will probably be the best option for those who have more than one piece of easily transportable luggage.
Having now accepted our status as dedicated, if frazzled and rapidly aging, parents, my partner and I are devoting time to planning some activities for wet weekends and hyper half-terms joined by nephews and nieces.
In our former, almost forgotten, ‘couple’ life we lived in London. Those days (as I like to remember them) were filled with friends, posh restaurants, cocktails, super-cool bars, exhibitions, theater, and lazy Sundays reading the papers. I did watch too much Sex and the City though. In reality, much of my spare time was spent attempting to crawl out of bed in my tiny flat in one of the most unfashionable parts of outer East London. My most cultural achievement was to make it to the corner shop for some bread and Heat magazine before lunchtime.
However, I thought London was the best city in the world then (New York a close second) and I still do. Our lives may have changed forever but our capital can still keep us entertained with little H tottering along too. It is a fantastic place for young children and these are my top ten activities if you ever find yourself in the big smoke with little people.
1Tiny tots love vehicles so even your journey can be fun. Riding on a train, London bus or taxi, taking the tube or DLR (where you can pretend to be the driver) or just watching the traffic or trains will entertain many little ones. You probably won’t find it quite as fascinating.
2If your little tinker is getting really serious about transportation, the newly-reopened London Transport Museum in Covent Garden may be ideal. Exploring the link between transport and the growth of modern London, there are many regular features that will appeal to children, such as costumed characters, and special activities during school holidays like building a bus. ‘London’s Transport in Miniature’ will be running on Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 March 2008 at The Museum Depot at Acton, demonstrations of steam and electric train collections on the Museum’s miniature railway.
3The London Aquarium on the South Bank of the Thames has nearly 400 species on display in over 2 million liters of water. Seeing anything from sharks and stingrays to moray eels and piranhas, your little fish are sure to enjoy the multi-sensory journey which includes a pool where they can stroke a range of friendly creatures and regular talks and feeding sessions. Captain Pugwash and his crew are in residence every day from Saturday 9 February to Sunday 24 February.
4Still lurking on the South Bank, the Tate Modern has a lot to offer families with children. The building itself is a brilliant place for older children to explore. Every weekend the ‘Start’ team are on hand to provide exciting games to play in the galleries, mainly for the over fives. They will be running special activities during half-term week. ‘What Can the Matter Be?’ is a talk and demonstration uncovering some of the secrets behind the gallery’s collection to be held on Saturday 23 February.
5Escaping the hustle and bustle of the South Bank with your brood for half an hour may well appeal. The London Eye (on the South Bank opposite the Houses of Parliament) is an exciting experience whatever your age. Although it does only travel at 0.6 miles per hour – twice as fast as a tortoise sprinting, according to their website – so it’s not for speed freaks. The views are outstanding and on a clear day you can see around 40km from the top, that’s as far as Windsor Castle. The capsule’s are quite cool too.
6Two of the best free attractions in London have to be the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum in South Kensington. At the Natural History Museum, Harry and the Dinosaurs will leap into real life for your tot after seeing the big softy Diplodocus and super-sensing T.Rex (who’s a bit scary for very little ones). The life-size model of a blue whale is awesome and there are fun activities planned every day (including talks, behind-the-scenes tours, Explorer backpacks and a science discovery centre). Ice Station Antarctica is a temporary interactive exhibition running until 20 April (extra charge applies).
The Science Museum’s Launchpad gallery has been updated recently and is aimed at ‘curious and creative 8-14 year olds’ who want to explore the world of physics. It’s packed full of exhibits, shows and demos. The Garden and Pattern Pod are two interactive galleries designed for younger children. There are numerous daily activities and events and also an IMAX 3D cinema making this an inspiring day out for everyone.
7I might be biased as I lived there for a while, but Greenwich is one of the most beautiful areas of London and ideal for a family trip to the capital. It has everything you’ll need for the day from the wide open spaces of the park, the Royal Observatory and National Maritime Museum, OLd Royal Naval College and university buildings, to high street shops and restaurants, independent boutiques and bistros, a lively market and riverside walks. An unexpected highlight for our funny little man is the Greenwich Foot Tunnel, where you walk under the River Thames.
8Wicked, The Lion King, The Sound of Music, Dirty Dancing, Billy Elliot…you can’t go wrong with one of these West End shows.
9London is full of green spaces and parks – ideal for letting energetic monsters let off steam. You might even get the chance to lie down for a while. Hyde, St James’, Green and Regent’s parks are all easily accessible.
10Nestled within Regent’s Park is London Zoo which recently won a number of awards at the Visit London Awards, including the ‘Kids Love London’ award. There’s so much to see here including the new £5.3m enclosure Gorilla Kingdom, the Ambika Paul Children’s Zoo, Butterfly Paradise, Meet the Monkeys and Clore Rainforest Lookout.
We’re lucky enough to live within an hour’s drive of London so I’m hopeful that H will grow up feeling part of this wonderful city. Kids really do love it.
