London during Coronation time

[cc cruiser]

Our British Isles cruise leaves on May 8, 2023.   Right now we are scheduled to fly into London on May 5 so that can tour London for a few days.

 

Now that the Coronation is scheduled for May 6, we are wondering how the crowds will be at London sites while we are there. What about trains and tubes? 

 

Also, will museums and attractions be closed on May 6? 

 

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

Edited November 6, 2022 by cc cruiser
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[Scottishclover]

Monday 8th May has just been announced as a bank holiday so you will need to factor that into your plans too. Although King Charles has decided to have a scaled backed coronation, I imagine London will still be very busy. I don’t know about attractions being closed,  best to email them directly. 

[Globaliser]

9 hours ago, cc cruiser said:

Also, will museums and attractions be closed on May 6?

 

I think it'll be worth planning on the assumption that many/most will be closed during the day. I have already seen one email this week specifically mentioning the cancellation of a matinee performance on 6 May because of the coronation (but not the evening performance). I imagine that the biggest driver behind the decision will be whether staff want to watch; if many do (as I expect), then it just won't be viable for places to open.

 

I doubt that the Bank Holiday on 8 May will be a major problem in your plans. You'll have to plan around whatever changes there are, but they should be relatively minor. There are already Bank Holidays on 1 May and 29 May, and this one will be additional.

[cc cruiser]

And what about crowds that weekend?  Will London be unusually crowded?  
I wrote to Windsor Castle and they said they are not selling tickets for May 6, which I interpret is they will be closed.  I am guessing the same will go for all Royal establishments.

So that takes me to my next question… what day trips could we take to get away from the crowds?  If we go to Liverpool or Salisbury what is the likelyhood attractions will be open?  
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated! 

[karylrocks]

We are on your cruise also arriving May 5 and wondering the same thing. We have scheduled a tour to Blenheim Palace and the Cotswolds for May 6 and plan to tour London May 7, hoping that strategy works. We just need to be able to get to Victoria Station by 8:30am.

[Cotswold Eagle]

Other than the date, there are no other confirmed details as yet. Very difficult to plan at this stage, unless a venue already gives specific information, such as the performance mentioned by Globaliser. But for now, do not take lack of notification as meaning there will be none. Things will change.

 

Important to consider the impact in central London and the rest of the country separately. There will be extensive disruption around the event (so the Westminster area surrounding the Abbey and Buckingham Palace), with road closures, other transport disruption, such as closed stations, and restricted access (some areas may be ticketed) and large crowds. London generally absorbs large events very well, but this is literally a once in a generation occasion. 
 

Elsewhere, there will not be the “mark of respect “ aspect that accompanied the late Queen’s funeral, but there will be local celebrations such as street parties and it is likely that some (who knows how many) businesses will close or limit their services so that their staff can at least watch the events of the day. Public transport will be running. I would expect Royal sites across the U.K. to be closed. 
 

For now, I would be reconfirming hotel reservations and any already made arrangements. Make other plans, but keep in mind that they may change. Keep checking back! 

Edited November 9, 2022 by Cotswold Eagle

[Cotswold Eagle]

10 hours ago, karylrocks said:

We just need to be able to get to Victoria Station by 8:30am.

Is this on the Saturday for your tour to the Cotswolds - in which case do you mean the coach station? 
 

The railway and tube stations are very close to the affected area and will be busy (they usually remain open during State occasions). In the past, including the Queen’s funeral, the coach station has closed, because of the logistics of getting vehicles in and out of the area. 

Edited November 9, 2022 by Cotswold Eagle