London recommendations - 2 or 3 days - pre-cruise

[kristieokc]

Booked on a British Isles cruise in and out of London for summer 2020.  Traveling will be me, my 20 -year old daughter, her best friend, and my 77 year old mother.   I am planning the trip for all, but not sure what is best for pre-cruise.  I want us to fly over at least a day or two before the cruise to get settled and see some sights.  Trying to balance the girls' desire to See! All! The! Things! with the fact my mom, while in decent shape, won't be able to keep up if we are walking the city, sight-seeing, for hours and hours on end.  I don't want to navigate our own travels around the city for that reason (up and down platform stairs would be tedious, if not impossible, and running for a bus would barely be "quick walking for a bus", ha!) and am considering making plans with a company like Toolkit or International Friends with arranged transportation to and from the airport/hotel/terminal and guided touring.  Looking for recommendations if anyone has done that or has another idea to suggest.  The other tack I am considering is arranging transportation from the airport to either Southampton or Salisbury and staying a few days there, pre-cruise, and arranging tours to sights like Stonehenge, Bath, etc.  I think that is more my and my mom's speed but I worry those locations might be too sedate for the younger two in our group.   Any suggestions or opinions would be much appreciated!

[CruiserBruce]

If you haven't been to London, I would strongly suggest staying there. There are plenty of options for private transfers, plus cabs, for all your getting around needs, and getting from the airport. Suggest a hop on hop off bus for a good intro to London, then figure out what you want, and can, get around to see.

[John Bull]

London Toolkit is an excellent source of information.

But they're not your best bet for private transportation - the operators that they promote  are seriously over-priced !!!

 

For a private transfer from airport to central London check with 

https://www.blackberrycars.com/

and

https://www.simplyairports.co.uk/

 

For private transfer to or from Southampton check with

Blackberry cars 

and

www.smithsforairports.com

and 

www.westquaycars.com

and

www.aquacars.co.uk

(those last 3 Southampton-based, so Londion airports to central London is well out of their territory).

 

There are also options from London or its airports to Southampton by train or bus - massively cheaper. Or the International Friends' tour-transfer to the ship via Stonehenge - though it's much better value in the Southampton to London (or Heathrow airport) direction because it doesn't have the constraint of needing to get to the ship early afternoon so includes Salisbury, Stonehenge and Windsor. 

 

Southampton makes a good base for day-trips to Salisbury+Stonehenge or Bath or Winchester or Portsmouth or a dozen other places by train or by car (those last three transfer operators).

Southampton & those day-trips are more laid-back, less-hectic than London, and hotel costs much lower too.

 

But I do agree with Bruce that London has so much more to offer, and if you stayed in London for a week you still wouldn't see everything.

London's ho-ho buses (either "Original" or "Big Bus") give you a great oversight, but best just for a round-trip with one or two stop-offs, because they're a very slow way of going from A to B . Travel from sight to sight is best done by Tube (London's extensive metro system) or by local buses or by taxi.

 

So your first job is to decide how long you want to spend pre-cruise or post-cruise, and whether you want to spend that time in London or the English cities, villages & countryside

 

JB  

 

 

 

Edited July 21, 2019 by John Bull

[geoherb]

My suggestion is to plan as much time in London as possible before your cruise. Three or four nights would be my suggested minimum. You could always plan for some activities for all four of you and some activities splitting up into the younger and older generations. For instance, perhaps you and your mother would like to see the Churchill War Rooms while girls do something more active.

[Bob++]

Geoherb is spot on. There is no real need for all four of you to stay together and a couple of 20yo girls will be fine if they stick together.

 

Find a hotel on the South Bank of the river as that gives you walking access to several attractions (London Eye for example) and you can use the river to visit The Tower of London and St Paul's. Taking a boat is easy on the older folk and interesting enough for the girls.

 

Have a scan down this pretty comprehensive website https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/101-things-to-do-in-london there's far too much for a short visit but you and the girls can cherry pick according to your abilities and interests.

 

A couple of tips:

Make sure that all the party have cell-phones that work here.

Get everyone a contactless credit card; indispensable for paying for everything from tube and bus fares to coffee and entrance fees.

Wear sensible shoes - London pavements are hard on the feet.

If you use Uber, you can use it in London; otherwise black cabs (not always black btw - we were in a pink one last week) are more expensive but 100% reliable (and you can pay by card)

Don't be too ambitious - everything takes longer than you expect, so have an itinerary, but be flexible.

Take the usual precautions - London is no worse than any other tourist destination but there are always people about, especially in a crowd, who are on the lookout for an open purse, unguarded bag or cellphone.

 

London is the greatest city in the world; you could spend a year and there would still be loads of new things to explore.

 

Edit - If your mother finds the walking a bit much, you could hire her a wheelchair - London is very accessible as my DW will attest - all buses and even the tube is negotiable with a bit of planning. https://www.london-express-wheelchair-hire.com/ (Don't tell anyone but in many places wheelchairs get priority and the 'carer' goes free.)

 

Edited July 22, 2019 by Bob++

[John Bull]

Good posts by geoherb and Bob - though I'm none to sure about accessing St Paul's by river. Is there a boat that stops near St Paul's / Millennium Bridge??

 

BTW, the ho-ho bus tickets include a river cruise between London Eye / Westminster Bridge and Tower of London.

 

Yes, IMHO too the South Bank is the ideal compromise between cost (but sit down before you look at London hotel prices)  & convenience -  for instance Premier Inn County Hall or Waterloo, Park Plaza County Hall or Westminster Bridge, or Marriot County Hall. Lots of places in walking distance - Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Churchill War Rooms, Whitehall, Horse Guards Parade, 10 Downing Street (beware of removal vans ), even Trafalgar Square. Convenient Tube station & ho-ho stop,  lots of riverside eateries.

 

JB 

[geoherb]

As for contactless chip credit cards, for some reason mine did not work for the Tube. I purchased an Oyster card to use instead. It worked everywhere else I tried it.

[Bob++]

We also had a problem with DW's card while mine was fine. Apparently, you need to use it once in an ATM before it works on the tube. Just use it to draw some money (using your PIN) and all will be well. We did this and it did work on the way back.

[Bob++]

1 hour ago, John Bull said:

Good posts by geoherb and Bob - though I'm none to sure about accessing St Paul's by river. Is there a boat that stops near St Paul's / Millennium Bridge??

JB 

It's only a mile (interesting sights on the way - Bank of England, Mansion House - & plenty of nice places for lunch.) or a No 15 bus ride.

[kristieokc]

Ahhh, thank you, this was exactly the sort of information I was hoping for, especially recommended hotel locations.  Much appreciated!!

[phabric]

We used the tube a few times.   I prefer the bus as the tube has a lot of stairs which I had difficulty with, plus you get to see London on the bus.

 

We stayed at Premier Inn Waterloo x3.  The hotel has a restaurant/bar, walking to London Eye, Big Ben, Parliament, Westminster Abbey, HOHO, regular bus, tube, Waterloo train station, restaurants, pubs.  The staff is very friendly, they helped us getting bus  directions daily.

 

I have used many times www.justairports.com, a car service from/to LHR and our London hotel.

 

I would recommend visiting Buckingham Palace staterooms www.royalcollections.org.uk, if they are open when you are there.

 

Hop On Hop Off bus is great way to see London.  There are 2 HOHO companies doing the same routes.

 

If possible get your attraction tickets in advance sometimes saving a few $/£ and time.

 

I have taken National Express Coach www.nationalexpress.com, from LHR and Victoria Coach Station to Southampton Coach Station.

 

I have taken International Friends from Southampton with stops at Salisbury, Stonehenge, Windsor before being dropped off our London hotel.

[Milhouse]

5 hours ago, phabric said:

We used the tube a few times.   I prefer the bus as the tube has a lot of stairs which I had difficulty with, plus you get to see London on the bus.

 

Ditto.

I know the OP sounded like they wanted to avoid the buses but for our last few trips to London (and other cities), we've tried to take the bus instead of the tube/metro and it's been great:  less stairs to navigate and get to see the city.  What has really given us the confidence to take the bus more often is Google Maps which has great routing information.  And it doesn't hurt to have a card (or pass) like the Oyster card so you don't have to worry about fares/transfers and which has a daily cap.  

[geoherb]

We used the double decker buses when we stayed in Kensington. They were so convenient because our hotel was about a 10-minute walk to the closest Tube station and they stopped right outside our hotel. It is a great view from the top.

[DMAJPACAA]

We just returned from London and had the most wonderful tour with Graham Greenglass and his black cab tour http://londoncabtours.co.uk/   

London has always been one of my favorite cities in the world and this trip I was taking my cousin and a friend (both seniors) who had never seen this amazing city. Graham made our day in London so very special. It was fun to be picked up in a black taxi and having Graham (not only a certified guide, but also London taxi driver and historian) show us the city---everything from Abbey Road to Buckingham Palace to Oxford Street. He knew the perfect places to park and the best places for photos and his knowledge of everything London and England was amazing.  I would highly recommend this Big Day Out --- I only wish we could have had even more time with Graham!  

We booked his "Big Day Out" ---a 7 hour tour.  It was a perfect way to experience London-- in your own black taxi.  Graham will work with you to address any walking issues and can span the range of interests from your 20 years olds to your 77 year old!  He also does a host of other tours outside of London.  I would highly recommend him!