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Suggestions for 1st timers in London

Suggestions for 1st timers in London

Old Oct 15, 2015, 12:27 pm
  #16  
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Imperial War Museum is well worth a visit, as is the Muesum of London. Natural History and Science museums would also fit.

A key culinary misapprehension to correct. Pubs do NOT serve good fish and chips. For that you need a fish and chip shop, Golden Hind in Marylebone would be my recommendation in addition to being in a great area to explore. The overall eating scene in London is stunningly diverse and comfortably rivals NYC. You will need to be very specific in what you want to try, and budget too, but good Indian food is plentiful if you avoid Brick Lane.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 2:01 pm
  #17  
 
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Originally Posted by sig05
You're right, I wasn't being very helpful in my request. Here is a better effort.

As a first-timer, we want to see the most popular sights. What's important to us is seeing Big Ben, Parliament, changing of the guard, London Eye, a few museums, westminster, do some shopping.

If I had to pick three main points of high interest for us, they would be monuments, museums/galleries, and food.

What we don't care about are guided walking tours because we want to be flexible. A plan for allotted time at specific locations is nice, but we're the type of couple to bail on something very quickly if it doesn't excite us and spend a few more hours exploring something that does.

We do not plan on renting a car or taking a day trip out of the city if that's helpful.

I will be there the first week in Oct. 2016.
Ah, now we've got something to chew on, thanks.

Well, you can tick off a bunch of those by going up the London Eye It has a great view of the Houses of Parliament. You can then walk from the Eye to the front of Westminster, and there's a convenient tube station there too. I recommend pre-booking the Eye, though at that time of year the queues for a walk-up should not be too long.

The Changing of the Guard is at a fixed time, so consider getting there early.

You might like the Afternoon Tea at Fortnum and Mason's, if so also book in advance. Nearby is some shopping.

The main museums for you might be the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum, and the Imperial War Museum. There is also the RAF Museum at Hendon, in the northern part of the city, and the Maritime Museum at Greenwich. (check out the awesome Soviet pendulum clock there - a pendulum in a vacuum with accuracy comparable to that of early quartz watches)

Oxford street is an obvious place to go shopping, but there are many places in London for that. I suggest googling around for the type of shops you want to go to.

The British Museum often has interesting exhibits on, if so, also consider buying tickets beforehand as they are usually timed entry. The restaurant in the BM's Great Court is quite reasonable.

Consider Covent Garden for shopping, because it has the London Transport Museum, where you can divide yourselves between shopping and urban transport history You go in the museum while she shops.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 2:05 pm
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I know you stated a lack of intention to make a daytrip, but I should add that several places outside London are reachable by a train journey of about an hour, in case this had not occurred to you. So it is eminently possible to visit them with about as much ease as visiting the more distant parts of London itself. For example Cambridge and Brighton can both be reached in an hour. If the thought of difficult driving or poor transport links was putting you off, then this is surmountable. Once you are in Brighton or Cambridge they are very walkable. Of the two, if you want to leave London, I recommend Cambridge, because I don't think Brighton is that much fun in October.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 2:15 pm
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Originally Posted by flatlander

Consider Covent Garden for shopping, because it has the London Transport Museum, where you can divide yourselves between shopping and urban transport history You go in the museum while she shops.
Speaking of the London Transport Museum, you should prepare yourself for two kinds of sticker shock at London museums: shockingly high and amazingly free. I had an out-of-date guide that listed what I thought was a reasonable admission fee, 8 IIRR. When I arrived at the museum I was stunned to discover that daily entry passes no longer existed. Only annual tickets are available, at 16 a pop. It may have been even higher when I was there in 2013.

I couldn't bring myself to pay US$50 for a couple of hours' browsing for two, so my wife and I proceeded to the free Victoria and Albert Museum.

The V&A, British Museum, National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum and many others are free, though I always drop a few pounds into the contribution slots. Non-free museums are almost universally very expensive. You're spending a lot more money to get to and stay in London, so these costs don't really increase your total expenditure all that much percentagewise. They'll feel less like a punch in the gut if you're expecting them.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 3:15 pm
  #20  
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Originally Posted by ajGoes
Speaking of the London Transport Museum, you should prepare yourself for two kinds of sticker shock at London museums: shockingly high and amazingly free. I had an out-of-date guide that listed what I thought was a reasonable admission fee, 8 IIRR. When I arrived at the museum I was stunned to discover that daily entry passes no longer existed. Only annual tickets are available, at 16 a pop. It may have been even higher when I was there in 2013.

I couldn't bring myself to pay US$50 for a couple of hours' browsing for two, so my wife and I proceeded to the free Victoria and Albert Museum.
Two very different museums, though! You can usually get a 2-4-1 deal on the transport museum tickets http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/london-transport-museum although the snag is you need a rail ticket. The work around is to buy a one day travel card from a mainline station (not underground).

It's a superb museum in my opinion and worth the money.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 3:20 pm
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by flatlander
I know you stated a lack of intention to make a daytrip, but I should add that several places outside London are reachable by a train journey of about an hour, in case this had not occurred to you. So it is eminently possible to visit them with about as much ease as visiting the more distant parts of London itself. For example Cambridge and Brighton can both be reached in an hour. If the thought of difficult driving or poor transport links was putting you off, then this is surmountable. Once you are in Brighton or Cambridge they are very walkable. Of the two, if you want to leave London, I recommend Cambridge, because I don't think Brighton is that much fun in October.
Originally Posted by ajGoes
Speaking of the London Transport Museum, you should prepare yourself for two kinds of sticker shock at London museums: shockingly high and amazingly free. I had an out-of-date guide that listed what I thought was a reasonable admission fee, 8 IIRR. When I arrived at the museum I was stunned to discover that daily entry passes no longer existed. Only annual tickets are available, at 16 a pop. It may have been even higher when I was there in 2013.

I couldn't bring myself to pay US$50 for a couple of hours' browsing for two, so my wife and I proceeded to the free Victoria and Albert Museum.

The V&A, British Museum, National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum and many others are free, though I always drop a few pounds into the contribution slots. Non-free museums are almost universally very expensive. You're spending a lot more money to get to and stay in London, so these costs don't really increase your total expenditure all that much percentagewise. They'll feel less like a punch in the gut if you're expecting them.
That's all very good and helpful information. I wasn't sure how far in advance some of this stuff would need to be booked. I was surprised at how many of the museums were free, which was exciting for my wallet.

I know definitely want to experience an afternoon tea at some place.

Good to know about the day trips. I guess I never really considered a train trip here since the US has such horrible public transportation. We had discussed trying to get to Dublin, but that seems like it would take a great deal of time.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 3:32 pm
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Originally Posted by Swiss Tony
Two very different museums, though! You can usually get a 2-4-1 deal on the transport museum tickets http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/london-transport-museum although the snag is you need a rail ticket. The work around is to buy a one day travel card from a mainline station (not underground).

It's a superb museum in my opinion and worth the money.
Thanks for the tip, I'll keep it in mind for our next visit. Looks like the cheapest travelcard would only save 4 though. While that's better than nothing, it still makes a museum visit for two a rather staggering US$44. Or am I missing something?
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 7:03 pm
  #23  
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I think Dublin would be too much in that amount of time. You would have to fly (very cheap and lots of flights from all four airports) and then fiddle around with different currencies etc. Much better to stay in England and fit in a quick trip to Oxford or Cambridge or, if you prefer ecclesiastical architecture, Salisbury - all easily reachable by train in an hour or so.

You really need to figure out what sort of culinary experiences you are looking for. Is it diverse food you won't get at home, is it Michelin starred stuff, is it good food in a trendy atmosphere, is it cutting edge British farm to table? I could go on but the food scene is huge and, without proper research it's easy just to end up in tourist traps, of which there are also plenty.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 7:29 pm
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Originally Posted by lhrsfo
I think Dublin would be too much in that amount of time. You would have to fly (very cheap and lots of flights from all four airports) and then fiddle around with different currencies etc. Much better to stay in England and fit in a quick trip to Oxford or Cambridge or, if you prefer ecclesiastical architecture, Salisbury - all easily reachable by train in an hour or so.

You really need to figure out what sort of culinary experiences you are looking for. Is it diverse food you won't get at home, is it Michelin starred stuff, is it good food in a trendy atmosphere, is it cutting edge British farm to table? I could go on but the food scene is huge and, without proper research it's easy just to end up in tourist traps, of which there are also plenty.
Here's our plan, which is difficult and demanding, but I think we're trying to do a lot in a short amount of time. I have no problem with anyone saying that's stupid and you should change your plans.

I think we want to have several different experiences over each night of our stay. That being said, here are some experiences we're looking that are totally different each night (my fiancee cannot do spicy food at all):
  • Best fish and chips in London
  • A Michelin Star experience - something romantic for a nice honeymoon dinner
  • Good food in a trendy spot.
  • We wouldn't mind spending one night in a pub just drinking and eat.
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Old Oct 15, 2015, 8:15 pm
  #25  
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After reading over these great suggestions I'm more excited than ever to be planning this short stop over.

Now, any suggestions on how I can get in and out of Europe without paying the carrier-imposed fees? I have on hold 2 coach awards using AA miles flying BA CLT-LHR and BSL-CLT with taxes and fees of $464 for the 2 tickets. Or is this question more suitable in another thread.

thanks again for all the great ideas and suggestions, much food for thought!
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Old Oct 16, 2015, 12:28 am
  #26  
 
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London is great, been there twice now and still barely scratched the surface. Though I was barely in London last year (spent most of my time at the races outside London). But most of the places I went in '09 were name checked already - The Eye, Tower of London, Victoria & Albert Museum, Hyde/Regent Park, and Greenwich. It's a great city to walk around and all the public transportation is a major plus. Not a foodie, so I don't have any recs on that.

Next time I want to do as a side trip is Windsor Castle and/or Hampton Court as I am fascinated by all the historical places.

As for the fuel charges - no free lunch - you're gonna have to pay something, but flying BA is the most expensive. Basically, you want AA (or some other partner airline like Iberia or Air Berlin) flights and take a train out of the UK to fly home from another EU country will knock it even lower.

See this: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...er-thread.html
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Old Oct 16, 2015, 12:37 am
  #27  
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Originally Posted by ajGoes
Thanks for the tip, I'll keep it in mind for our next visit. Looks like the cheapest travelcard would only save 4 though. While that's better than nothing, it still makes a museum visit for two a rather staggering US$44. Or am I missing something?
Wow I hadn't realised how expensive the paper travel cards are now - am used to the Oystercard cap kicking in at about 6 or so. Also bear in mind that you'll need transport anyway...*

Another option is to buy a really cheap train ticket - Charing Cross to Waterloo is 2.80. The important thing is that it needs to have the British Rail logo on the ticket, not just the TFL one.

*- I think technically you could buy any train ticket and I think the cheapest is Ryde to Ryde pierhead for 1.30 single. It's a good 100 miles from London but that's probably being a bit too extreme!
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Old Oct 16, 2015, 1:40 am
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Originally Posted by lmwong1977
DL Skypesos to the rescue.
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Old Oct 16, 2015, 9:28 am
  #29  
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Originally Posted by sig05
Here are some things we really enjoy - museums related to war..
I am surprised no one has yet mentioned the Churchill / Cabinet War Rooms in Whitehall. They're unmissable.

http://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/churchill-war-rooms
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Old Oct 17, 2015, 2:52 am
  #30  
 
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Refreshing to see that there are no recommendations for Madame Tussauds. It's best avoided IMHO!
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