History and Culture for All Ages
Reviewed by: The Urban Traveler (Click Here for Photos of our most recent trip)
Overall Grade: A
Kid's Rating: A
Reviewed by: The Urban Traveler (Click Here for Photos of our most recent trip)
Overall Grade: A
Kid's Rating: A
Location: A
Amenities: A
Food: B+
Service: B
Fun Factor: A
Best For: Families with kids 8+, couples or singles.
Date of Stay: July 2007, July 2008, April 2009
The Lowdown: London is an exciting city filled with wonderful historical sites such as The Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace (outside the city), Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and many more worth while spots. Plus, fabulous restaurants, shopping and world class museums that are FREE
to the public make London one of my favourite cities. There is so much
to see in and around the city and the public transit and train system
makes it easy to get to most places.
However,
don't forget a rain coat and umbrella. The weather is very
unpredictable. It rained non-stop for a few of our days in July but it
doesn't seem to stop the locals so don't let it stop you from enjoying
this magical place!
Kid's Comments: My favourite things were the London Eye and the Tower of London. We were studying Medieval times in school so learning about that was really cool too. Some of the audio tours were a bit too long. (9-year-old boy)
Top 5 Things you should know about London:
Amenities: A
Food: B+
Service: B
Fun Factor: A
Best For: Families with kids 8+, couples or singles.
Date of Stay: July 2007, July 2008, April 2009
The Lowdown: London is an exciting city filled with wonderful historical sites such as The Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace (outside the city), Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and many more worth while spots. Plus, fabulous restaurants, shopping and world class museums that are FREE
to the public make London one of my favourite cities. There is so much
to see in and around the city and the public transit and train system
makes it easy to get to most places. 
However,
don't forget a rain coat and umbrella. The weather is very
unpredictable. It rained non-stop for a few of our days in July but it
doesn't seem to stop the locals so don't let it stop you from enjoying
this magical place!Kid's Comments: My favourite things were the London Eye and the Tower of London. We were studying Medieval times in school so learning about that was really cool too. Some of the audio tours were a bit too long. (9-year-old boy)
Top 5 Things you should know about London:
- The History: I thought I knew the basics about English history but reading through the history of the Kings and Queens of England before our most recent visit sure helped when we toured the various sites.
- The Food:
There is an amazing "pub culture" in the UK that we thoroughly enjoyed.
Many local pubs offer a friendly, neighbourhood feel with traditional
English foods (yummy fish & chips or sausages and mash or give the
bread pudding a try for dessert). Plus, the English "Curry" (Indian
food) is some of the best I've ever eaten.
- The Sites: Explore where you want to go first and see whether the London Pass is worth your while. My hubby and I saved a fortune on entrance fees to some of the tourist sites using our Pass over the few days we spent in the city. Plus, remember that Museums are FREE!
- The Traffic: London is famous for traffic. So much so that there is a toll to drive into the city. For North Americans it is important to remember that the British drive on the other side of the street so look in the right direction when crossing. Plus, pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way so yield to cars.
- The Weather: The weather around London can be pretty unpredictable so, as I mentioned, bring your wellies (rain boots) and umbrella. I was there twice in July and did not once don a pair of shorts. The climate is moderate. However, I was just there in early April and we still had snow and cold weather where the flowers were in full spring bloom in London.
