I want to go to London, sugestions?

[speed_racer_801]

So, I know that it is a little early, but for spring break I want to take a trip to London. The exchange rate is a little better now, 1.50 to each pound, and I really want to go. Anyone here ever gone? I think that I want to stick to Zone 1 central London. I do have family in northern England, but am not sure that I want to venture up there. I am undecided as to taking the Chanel Tunnel into France for a day trip, mainly because I am not sure how much of PITA it will be. I would like to do the Eye of London for sure, any other suggestions?

Spring break starts Saturday March 13th and have to be back by Sunday March 21st. I would like to be there about four days, give or take a day. I have found a great fare, 265/person each way that flys SEA/KEF/LHR now I just have to either fly from SLC/SEA or drive into SEA.

[westcoaststrokin]

I will just say that 4 days is not near enough time to see the sights of London.

[speed_racer_801]

I know that it's not a lot of time there, but I have to be back for school and the cost of a hotel and not getting paid for the time over there makes it hard to stay longer.

[powerstrokemike]

london tube.. worth using to get around town cheap.. (subway) tower of london bridge (cool esp at the top) forgot waht the castle called right there.. very cool. saw the queens jewels learn some neat info about the castle.. dont take taxi's very $$$ oh ya.at pubs people are friendly.. an beer comes in pints.. really big..

[Poohkie13]

RRonning84, aka Ryan the husband, said I need to log on and answer this since I've been to London a multitude of times...

The London Tube will be your friend! You can see Westminster Abby, Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, and the British Museum (go see the Egyptian collection!!!) all by taking the tube to the correct location. There are maps available from the Tube that show all the major sites and what subway line they are one. Don't miss the tower of London and tower bridge....the view from the top of tower bridge is great!

Although I'm sure you'll want to eat in local restaurants and pubs, buying food at ASDA (their version of Walmart) is far more economical than spending $20 in a pub for a salad or $18 for bacon and eggs.

If you have time...there are bus tours available to sites such as Stonehenge, Bath, and the "Harry Potter town"..... these don't really have to be booked more than the day or two before.

Four days just isn't enough...so plan your siteseeing in groups of places that are close together.....

And, don't forget to shop at Harrods! (all around that area are great shops and restaurants too!)

If you want to spring for a ticket for me....I'll go along and show you around!

[speed_racer_801]

I'd love to spring and buy you a ticket just as soon as I get those lottery numbers you promised me,J/K. It's gonna be an expensive trip as it is, the airfare I found does not give children discounts and so I am looking at 3 tickets for 530+tax and fees and the wife is asking if we really want to sit in cramped seats for the 11 hours each way, but business and first are super SUPER expensive. We are looking into different hotels, but they aren't cheap and we are loosing 50 cents on the dollar that I keep forgetting about. At this point I think that we are scrapping any thoughts of visiting France for this trip.

[Poohkie13]

Yeah...last time I was there (Sept. '04) I did the train to Paris -- did the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre....and a little shopping! LOL

But, that will eat up one whole day for you and there is so much to see/do in London. I think my ticket in 2004 was only $540 --- but I also booked it a few months in advance. Hotels are expensive! But, I really loved the last one I stayed at...here is their link

Custom House Hotel, London, Docklands - OFFICIAL HOTEL SITE - Near ExCeL Exhibition Centre and London City Airport

It was neat a tube stop and close to everything...it also had great restaurants in it...and an ASDA a few tube stops down the line...

I stayed for 16 days the last time I went...and they gave me a really great break on the price of my room.

[speed_racer_801]

Wow 540 is great. Was that before or after taxes? I love all the fees now. Our base fare is gonna be 1590.00 but after their taxes and fees for the different airports and 9/11 security we are at 1971.64 oh and we still have to get to Seattle from Salt Lake and the price is without any checked bags, they are 35 bucks each and we think that we will need 4 for 2 adults and a 3 year old for the four days and have enough room to bring some things back. We are trying to get everything in one now to get the 90+ day advance purchase discount, it is substantial, 45%. It drops to 25% if you buy 60+ days in advance and then to 10% for more than 30 days. Looking at some of the last minute fare deals though, some are approaching 75% off the base fare but that is a HUGE gamble and I am not daring enough.

[AaronATX]

i used to live there, lived there for 2 years and don't feel like i saw everything. you should be able to hit the big things easy in 4 days, might be a little harder if you take the chunnel to france. but the trip to france is really easy, we used to do 1/1.5 day trips to paris easy. i agree use the underground, and definitely check out the museums!! if you want a good half-day trip, take a train into Windsor, Windsor castle is really cool and the town is really nice. That's where I used to live. Have fun, London is awesome

[Poohkie13]

The $540 was after all the fees/taxes. I flew from Nashville to Dulles and then to London. Of course, back then, they didn't charge extra for those checked bags! But, I also chose to sit in the cramped regular seats because I'm not that big and I can still stretch out pretty well in them. I also took some NyQuil and put myself to sleep.

I spent far more on the hotel than I did on the flight. Seems to me, you might just spend more on the flight...but there are three of you and there was only one of me!