Cotswold Eagle

Some banks do have a policy of doing small exchanges for non-customers, even though they don't have to. Do you remember which one you used? I believe Virgin Money may do it, and the Halifax - both of which have branches in Southampton that the OP could try. But there is no guarantee, I'm afraid.

But you were talking about using cash instead of a credit card (which would be charged in sterling) 🤷‍♂️ Anyhow, if you're not prepared to spend a couple of minutes filling out a form, copying two bits of ID and the time it takes to pop Into a post office in Southampton to mail them off, then I think you are all out of options, I'm afraid. It really doesn't seem that much of a hassle to me, even for a relatively small amount.

I’m curious how this makes one “a good tourist”? No one appears to have mentioned the option to send the notes into the Bank of England by post. They will pay the sterling amount into an overseas bank account, but of course there will be foreign exchange rates and possibly bank fees at your end. But probably your best back up - prepare the documents in advance and mail them in Southampton, if nothing else works. Personally, I’d pop over to Portsmouth on the train and visit some of the attractions there, making a day of it! All options are detailed here: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/exchanging-old-banknotes

I’m afraid that is a semantic distinction that eludes me 😀 But thank you for confirming that when you said “skip the lines” you only meant the line to buy tickets, not e.g. those for entry, security or exhibits, and therefore, as I said, the London Pass offers no advantage here over a pre-purchased Tower ticket.

The time slots system only operates during certain periods - school holidays, for example. If you go to the Historic Royal Palaces ticketing site and select a date, if time slots are required they appear below the calendar (for example, they are not required next week, but are from the week after). If not, your ticket is valid at any time that day.

There is no Fast Track at the Tower, so not sure what you mean by this? Of course, you don't need to queue to buy tickets, but then neither do those who have booked in advance. And because the London Pass doesn't have a time slot, it is theoretically possible you may need to wait for an available time slot.

Two different stories may be getting conflated here. Yes, the Regal Princess decided to skip Portland at the weekend, due to planned protest and counter-protest (of course, protests are disruptive, but do not mean unrest, and there are no asylum seekers on the barge yet). Earlier in the year, the cruise calendar disappeared from the Portland Port website and replaced by the current message: "All cruise calls are proceeding as scheduled at Portland Port. For more information about individual visits, please contact the cruise line involved." Some reports suggest this was to make it harder for protesters to know when cruise ships would be in port, which would be obvious dates for disruption at the port for maximum publicity, as happened at the weekend.

I'm not sure what this means to you (in some true classic pub experiences you wouldn't get food other than a stale sandwich and pickled eggs on the bar!), but I'll open the bidding with the Hung, Drawn and Quartered. It's a Fuller Ale and Pie House, which means you should get a decent pint (London Pride would be my recommendation) and some fair grub (not all pies). And it look like a classic pub, even though the building was nothing of the sort for most of its long history - this is a common theme in this chain of pubs, old buildings, new pubs!

It matter less as you have given two options, but 300 what? Dollars or pounds? I am struggling to imagine the search that came up with two such different hotels in two such different locations! Makes it hard to suggest either way, because it's not clear what you are looking for, other than a price point. But I would absolutely stay at the Resident given this choice, unless you had a particular reason for being out on the Gloucester Road. Not least because the other hotel has committed the sin of removing the word Road from its name - that's where it is, not Gloucester, which is a city some one hundred miles to the West 😠😂

I am sure you’re the victim of autocorrect, but to avoid confusion the station is called St Pancras 😀

This part of your question should be addressed to the Roll Call for your cruise.

Oh, interesting, thanks. I think I know the one in Covent Garden from the Before Times! OP, I'd avoid the Albert on Victoria street itself - it is a pretty authentically Victorian pub, having survived the Blitz, but a tourist trap and not great food. But you can often enjoy watching some Chelsea Pensioners mumping drinks off said tourists, so maybe pop in for a pint 😀

Pretty much however you define it, the St Ermin's is in Westminster. All the pubs I mentioned are no more than 10 minutes walk from the hotel and you may eat at all of them. Casual dining restaurants can be found towards Victoria Station, for example in the Cardinal Place complex, and if you want to walk to somewhere more upmarket head across St James's Park, across Pall Mall and into St James's itself. And, as has been mentioned, you can jump on the tube or bus and literally all the cuisines of the world are available to you 😀

I couldn’t possibly comment!

Interesting, thanks. I think I'd probably go with a 2-day GVB ticket (trams, buses, metros) for €15, combined with the hop-on, hop-off boat or a simple canal cruise, and trade convenience for commentary!

Did you feel the bus part was good value? They get terrible reviews, but I just don't think a hop-on, hop-off bus is worth anything in Amsterdam. On the other hand, if I'm doing my maths right, for 48 hours it's only €17-50 more for the combo than the boat only ticket? https://www.citysightseeingamsterdam.nl

Stay here. 😀 As well as the Buck, I offer you the Adam & Eve, the Grafton, the Old Star, the Westminster Arms, the Two Chairmen, the Feathers….

But the OP was asking about staying in St James, not Bloomsbury….

I worked across the road for 20 years, so forgive me if I violently disagree. There are some brilliant pubs within a few minutes walk. I’ll give you the Buckingham in Petty France to start with….

And Tottenham Court Road is close than any of these to the main entrance.

London buses ONLY take contactless payment, no cash. Debit, credit or Oyster cards or mobile devices, and you'll need one each.

That information is roughly 10 years out of date!

Well, pop in next time 🤣

Oxford is not a bad shout in my opinion. Very regular coach from Heathrow, tons to do & see, catch a bus to Blenheim/Woodstock, direct trains to Southampton. But I do have a certain ancient academic and current geographic bias 😀

I have had a flat on the south-east reaches of the Jubilee Line for 20 years and live by the old rule, “never change at Green Park, particularly with luggage” 😀 If you must, don’t follow signs for the Jubilee Line, head up the escalator for the exit instead. When you get to ticket hall level, don’t go out through the barriers, turn and go straight back down the escalator to the Jubilee Line.