govmarley

My husband is sending me to Paris with my sisters in April for my Christmas present. It's my first time flying to Europe, and I'm so excited. I'm considering flying BA LAS to LHR and taking the Chunnel to Paris--something I've always wanted to do.
If I land in London, are there things close by that I could see in a day layover? I'm thinking historical landmarks, etc. Big Ben, Tower of London.
I should have time on both legs of the trip, but I don't want to underestimate the time it takes to get around and get through the airport. Thoughts on what I can realistically see in a half day? Best way to get around?

Nugget_Oz

Depending on the amount of luggage you have it's easily doable to spend about half a day touring London before heading to Paris if you get into LHR nice and early.

Other than the station itself there is not many of the big sites near St Pancras but it's an easy tube ride to the more touristy parts of town. If you have an itinerary I am sure posters will be able to critique it for you.

stut

Just to clarify - are you leaving the airport and taking the train the same day, or are you staying overnight in London?

There's lot of ways to do it. One option is a HOHO bus tour (there's plenty to choose from). Or, if you'd rather stretch your legs, you can see plenty from the river walkway (or, indeed, from the river boats).

If you're doing a same-day trip, you'll need to leave your bags somewhere - there is a left luggage place at St Pancras station. You can then hop on a train down to London Bridge, walk along towards Tower Bridge (with the Tower opposite), then back along towards Waterloo via Borough Market, the Tate Modern, the London Eye and finally the Houses of Parliament. Over the bridge and there's Westminster Abbey. Walk along Whitehall to Trafalgar Square then hop on a 91 bus back up to St Pancras.

You could also look into walking tours - http://www.walks.com/ has been mentioned by several posters before now.

govmarley

I am not sure if I'm doing an overnight in London or not yet. It will depend on flight times and what I can fit it. This is my first time, and I want to be sure to experience what I want: the Chunnel, and it seems crazy not to experience a taste of London if I'm landing there!

rwoman

The Chunnel experience will not be much - passing through a darkened tunnel on the train for ~30 minutes or so. Not much to see upon entry/exit on a high speed train.

stut

Well, I suppose the best way is to work backwards with timing.

Assume your flight's broadly on time, I'd allow a good 90 minutes to get landside. Plus another hour to get to St Pancras. Say half an hour to drop your luggage and grab a quick coffee and gather your thoughts, another half hour to get down to somewhere interesting, and that's at least 3.5 hours already eaten up before you can see anything.

So, if the LAS-LHR flight lands around 2pm, you'll be hitting the tourist sites by about 5.30 or 6 (and beware the London rush hour). That's two hours of daylight. The last Eurostar to Paris is at 8pm, though (don't forget you lose an hour going to France), and you'd need to be back at St Pancras to get your bags and some food by 7...

Not doable in a day, I'd say. You'd also be travelling in the dark, which would defeat half the fun of travelling by train.

There are, however, plenty of places to stay near St Pancras. I'd avoid any of the hotels around the Argyle Square area, but the likes of the nearby Premier Inns, Pullman and, of course, the Renaissance St Pancras (overpriced but very impressive) are decent options.

Nugget_Oz

There should be earlier flights than that. I've never flown into LHR but most, if not all, the CDG flights get in before midday.

Don't forget to add on time to get your tube tickets although you could cab it but that will be expensive after a while.

You don't see much on Eurostar anyway so traveling by train at night is not that much of an issue. Just a point to note that the area around Gare du Nord is a little sketchy (especially as you get closer to the 19th arr) so if you are going to be getting into Paris around midnight go for a hotel that is closer to Gare du Nord.

rwoman

There is only one direct BA LAS-LHR flight per day...

Swiss Tony

Yep, as noted above you can't sensibly do this if you come in from Vegas.

Spend a night in London and you'll be fine to see the main venues (or just connect straight through to Paris that day by plane)

There's also a not insubstantial tax saving to be made by breaking your journey in London on the way to Paris, rather than on the way back.

stut

That's a good point - to expand on that, if you can arrange your flight routing so it is:

Las Vegas - London then
Paris - London - Las Vegas

and take the Eurostar from London to Paris only, then you could save on the expensive UK APD (air passenger duty).

For Eurostar tickets, I'd recommend looking at http://www.eurostar.com/ and ignoring the likes of RailEurope.

You could also consider using something like lastminute.com and booking a rail/hotel package.

Reason077

The British Library is right across the street from St. Pancras, and well worth a visit, particularly if you're literarily inclined!

You can view one of the original copies of the Magna Carta from 1215, and there are usually some pretty interesting exhibitions too (often free).

stut

Probably not for a first visit when you want to see the famous sights, but there's also the Wellcome museum just up from there towards Euston. Not huge, but some fascinating (and often slightly gruesome) medical exhibitions.

Aviatrix

It's the OP's first trip to Europe. Long overnight flight, eastbound (i.e., against the clock). She is likely to be shattered when she lands.

I'd leave sightseeing in London for another time. Head straight for Paris - get a good night's sleep - and then explore Paris, hopefully well rested.

govmarley

That actually sounds perfect. I will be sure to put it on my list.

govmarley

I hadn't considered jet lag and such. Thanks for all of the great advice. I might overnight in London or go directly to Paris and visit London before flying out instead.