Hatters cruiser

The biscuits we had on Ventura during our recent cruise of Norway starting the 28th of July were disappointing, not the normal ones but thin French cookies in only Butter or Coconut versions.

Buckingham Palace and Westminister are within easy walking distance of each other, one wrinkle is that the Queen Elizabeth Tower ( Big Ben ) is undergoing a major restoration program at the moment that is due to last until 2021. It's covered in scaffolding  and protective coverings and the chimes are silenced to protect the workers hearing.

I found Stirling Castle an excellent place to visit, it's a true castle built in the Middle Ages as a fortress that later became a Royal Palace. The palace rooms are a fascinating place to visit and with a real sense of history. The regimental museum of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders is also in its walls.

Culzean castle is not a real castle, I have never been there but it's an 18th century great house built with some exterior styling of a castle. It will have all the trapping associated with such a building.

It depends on what intrests you and your party.

 

2. We plan to stay for 6 nights before taking our Cruise. Is London Pass the best way to see the city? Is Oyster card on top of what you pay for your London Pass?

We want to maximize our stay. Aside from the usual suspects famous site, we want to see Stonehenge and Bath and Harry Potter Studios.

3. 3 days in London, 1 day for Stonehenge and Bath and another day to for Harry Potter? Is that doable? I am thinking 1/2 day at Harry Potter, what other places can you see between Harry Potter and London?

 

 

Hopefully somebody can help me on this.

With regard the Harry Potter Studio tour, you could visit the nearby city of St Albans, there is a rail line the Abbey line between Watford and St Albans or a local bus the Arriva 321. The distance between the two places is only 9 miles.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Albans

St Albans is an place of ancient origins it was the Roman city of Verulanium that was sacked by Queen Bodicae and rebuilt and later the site of the death of the first British martyr.

There are Roman remains, the Abbey Cathedral with its medieval wall paintings, and many intresting shops to visit on Wednesday and Saturdays there is a market.

For golfing fans there a bit of history Samuel Ryder of the Ryder Cup lived there and his old store is now a restaurant you can eat in.

The old style pond coin ceases to be legal tender at midnight on Sunday the 15th of October to give a precise date. The new coins have twelve sides and are made of 2 different coloured metals, the old ones are round and one colour only.

Bank of England notes can always be exchanged at the Bank of England for thier face value.

Benidorm is a Spanish holiday resort that has a certain reputation .

Even locals do the same.

Several posters have mentioned "National " buses, in the UK we call those coaches and the company name is National Express.

http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx

It might make searching for information easier.

Air con is rare in London, not many homes have it and only the better hotels.

How important it is to you will depend on the climate you are used to, on a 21C day here I am in short sleeves and shorts, my Australian Sister-in-Law was wearing a woolly jumper.

The ships crew and hospitality team will look at the weather conditions as the cruise goes on and choose when to have the Formal nights.

There is little point in publishing a timetable before the cruise that turns out to be a Force 10 gale, the next night would be calmer.

In general as has been said the second night and the night before the last are often formals.

If your Husband is a WW2 buff then he might like to visit HMS Belfast a cruiser that supported the Normandy landings that is moored close to Tower Bridge.

If you are willing to travel a little further out of London then the Imperial War Museum Duxford is just south of Cambridge. It is home to their collection of aircraft, has a tank gallery and a hall dedicated to US aircraft.

During the war aircraft based there took part in the Battle of Britain and later housed Amercan bombers from the Eighth Army Airforce.

http://www.iwm.org.uk/visits/iwm-duxford

A train ride from London and a taxi from Cambridge station would get you there.

More info here -

 

https://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/tickets-explained/group-travel/

But again as a consequence of the franchise change that offer may no longer be valid after middle of August.

JB

 

Thanks for all this info. Yes, it was clear we would have to leave at 0 dark thirty, but we thought we might try for the 8 am train. Not quite as bad as 7 :) Love the Monty Python reference, we are big fans!

 

It didn't occur to me to take passports, so thanks for that note too.

 

It seemed like Liverpool fares weren't quite that high (and I saw a post above about lower fares on Virgin) but I have to admit I don't completely understand the Virgin rail thing--is it a private rail line? And i did see that the lower fares get us there after noon, which doesn't seem optimal :D

 

Thanks for your help.

 

ML

The way the railways were privatised in the late 1980s-1990s is complicated.

The infrastructure belongs to a company called Network Rail, that is owned by the Department of Transport.

There are then a number of rail Franchises that have been created to run various routes through the country, that private companies bid for the right to run for a certain length of time. Currently Virgin Trains holds the rights to the Intercity West Coast Franchise that runs to Glasgow through cities such as Manchester and Liverpool.

However because they do not own the tracks other rail companies also use the same one for similar and slightly different routes in places.

Basically all the train operating companies are in private hands, expect when the Government has to step in if a company goes bust, which has happened in the past.

It also means that the Franchise operators on various routes may change over time, but Virgin has held this one since 1997.

Thats incredible when do they let people use the toilets?.

In the UK i am a sales manager and pop into a McDonald's daily while out on the road to use the toilet and no body says anything if you don't buy anything.

 

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That's true, except in the tourist areas of London, where many of our American friends would like to visit.

There many require you to buy a meal before you can use the facilities.

Carisbrooke castle where Charles the first was imprisioned after his defeat in the Civil War is also on the island and run by English Heritage.

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/carisbrooke-castle/?utm_source=Google%20Business&utm_campaign=Local%20Listings&utm_medium=Google%20Business%20Profiles&utm_content=carisbrooke%20castle

For Christmas ornaments, there used to be a tradition on the island Wight of collecting the colours sands of Alum bay and filling glass ornaments with them, they may have something suitable there, but I can not say for sure.

http://www.theneedles.co.uk/pages/sand-shop

M

Vehicles that are transporting disabled people to the Tattoo need to apply for an access part prior to the performance, and these are unavailable on Saturdays.

https://www.edintattoo.co.uk/tickets/accessibility/

An ordinary taxi will not be able to get close to the castle at all, when the Tattoo is on. The Fringe starts at the dates as the Tattoo but earlier in the day.

This image will give you an idea of what access to the Esplanade is like.

https://www.edintattoo.co.uk/tickets/queuing-arrangements

You are there a couple of days before the start dates, but with the increase in security for any event after recent events, what access will be like at the time who knows?

St Albans is quite nice for an easy, quiet day out IIRC the market is on Wednesday and Saturday.

As well as the Verulanium Museum there is the Roman Theatre nearby.

http://www.gorhamburyestate.co.uk/The-Roman-Theatre

The seed store that was owned by Samuel Ryder who endowed the Ryder Cup is now quite a nice Café Rouge.

Cambridge is also very nice full of cobbled streets in places but flatter, I particularly like the Botannical Gardens there if the weather is nice. But on a rainy day which you can often get here there are plenty of Museums to shelter in.

The Historic Dockyard itself does not actually open until 10.00am so that you leave you around three and a half hrs to visit there, giving enough time to make sure you get the train you need.

It's enough time for the Mary Rose exhibit and the Victory which are next to each other, there is a nice little café for a coffee and a sandwich there. The Victory is currently in the middle of a refit that will last many years and has no spars and sails at the moment.

The Warrior is good as well and worth visiting if you have enough time.

If you visit Weymouth then Nothe Fort is worth a visit if military structures are an interest.

http://www.nothefort.org.uk

A trip to the Lulworth estate also means you could visit Lulworth Castle, actually a mock castle built in the 17th century.

https://www.lulworth.com/visit/places-to-visit/castle-and-park/

I would have thought that it was more like 25-30 minutes from Brent Cross to most of the areas in Central London like Embankment for the Houses of Parliment that tourists like to visit.

Still it's a good option that extend the budget, it just adds a little more travel time at each end, shuttle bus and then the tube.

When ever we drive into London on we park at Stanmore or Finchley Road and tube in,

If you did decided to take the walk then it is only a little further to walk to Runnymede meadow where King John signed Magna Carta.

It does require a walk down a hill, It's not too bad I used to do it regularly when I lived in Englefield Green whilst studying at Royal Holloway. Although I was a little younger and fitter back then.

If you have a specific food allergy then it may also be worth checking the ingredient list for Macdonalds and Burger King in the UK as they do not always have the exact same ones as the US versions. Do not assume that because a food is safe to eat in the US it is safe for you here.

For example in the US fries are cooked in Soy and Canola oil, in the UK the are cooked in Sunflower and Rapeseed (Canola) oil.

Dover Castle has a good range of things to see and do, from the remains of a Roman Lighthouse, to a Medieval keep that was recently restored by English Heritage to underground tunnels built to house troops in WW2.

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/dover-castle/?gclid=CP-JlZ6CrNMCFYEV0wodVKINMQ&gclsrc=aw.ds

But as Bob++ says if we know where in the UK you are visiting we San suggest better options.

The best back up plan would depend on which of Londons airports you are flying from. If you are flying to America it would be Heathrow or Gatwick, but for destinations in Europe it could also be London Luton, London Stanstead or London City Airport.

Some supermarkets will stock deionised water/ distilled water in their car care section but not all do, but the sure you have some for your CPAP humidifier then as JB and Bob++ have suggested go to Halfords.