London,first visit

trafalgar_2

I'm spending xmas in london and it will be my very first visit :eek: ,please could anyone give info on places to see,travel passes etc......................idiot guide form would be good :cool:

I have seen a few sites but unless you know london they are of no use at all


thanks for any help given:D

vanoonoo

hello - where abouts in london (ie, north south east or west) are you staying and what types of thing are you interested in doing and seeing and visiting whilst you are in the capital? also, how long are you staying for, how many in your party and what sort of budget have you set?

a site I often visit for ideas, offers and information is

http://www.visitlondon.com/

hope that helps a bit.

trafalgar_2

thank you I'll browse that site a little later ,I'm sure it will be of help

covent garden area,4 days ,just hubby and myself,budget not a problem (but obviously if we can save on tickets etc,why pay full price) would like to go and see at least one show ,and the usual sights,Houses of Parliament ,Buckingham Palace etc....................all the touristy bits:D

thanks for your help

zincoxide

http://www.londonfreelist.com/home.asp

Great site for London.

Best advice I can give you is:

*NEVER TAKE A BLACK CAB UNLESS YOU WANT TO REMORTGAGE!!!!
*Get yourself a zone 1-4 travel card (depending where you are staying) after 09:30 in the morning (it's cheaper then).
*Go to Harrods - it's a must before Christmas, but make sure it's a weekday after 12 noon when it isn't so busy.
*If you want to taste the best burger ever, go to Gourmet Burger Kitchen in Covent Garden and also visit the apply market in Covent Garden, you can find some great little gifts there dirt cheap.
*Never buy a full price ticket for a show, next to the covent garden tube station is a little hut that sells half price tickets to fill up the audience.
*Remember that all the museums are free, the two best in my opinion are the natural history & science museum.
*If you want to be a big kid again, go to Hamleys toy store in Regent Street
*Don't believe a word anyone tells you, especially those people in th etrain station that give you a sob story and ask for money to get home - it's just an advanced form of begging
*Go to Somerset House at the end of the Strand, you can go ice skating!!

If I think of anything else, I'll post it for you!

vanoonoo

I find the number 38 bus route one of the best for taking in a load of sites for very little money and no annoying commentary

http://www.rdiplock.dircon.co.uk/bustimes/38.htm

covent garden provides great entertainment with the street performers at either end of the piazza

in leicester square you will find the tkts booth for good deals on shows

http://www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk/tkts/leicestersquare

lots of the "sights" are within walking distance of each other - the other weekend I walked from green park (buckingham palace) along piccadilly, past the ritz hotel to eros, along regent street to carnaby street, through the back streets to berwick street market and back on to soho then to china town thru leicester square down to trafalgar square, along the strand to covent garden and then further along the strand to the old bailey and fleet street and st pauls. it only took a few hours and we stopped along the way for hot chocolate and toilet breaks it was a great (and cheap) and fun day out.

as it was a saturday we'd started from liverpool street station walking through the square mile past the lloyds building and the gherkin and a very quiet leadenhall market past the monument across london bridge to borough market which has lots of food stalls and loads of samples available - we hit there in time for lunch

your best investment would be to write a list of all the places you fancy visiting, finding out the addresses and then getting an A-Z and planning your trip according to the vicinity of the places you want to go to so that you spend as little time travelling as possible.

have a wonderful time - I really enjoy spending time in london now that I dont live and work there

pin

British Museum is a treat.

I like the Southbank. I also the think the Wheel is good fun. Also Westminister (Parliament and all of that) I enjoy.

Agree with the other comments, esp about the Burger place, try their malt shakes!! However a bit pricey.

Doozergirl

You must do this:

http://www.lastminute.com/lmn/pso/catalog/Product.jhtml?POSITION=1&PRODID=370054812&CATID=99580

It's a trip on the London eye and a 40 minute boat trip on the river with a really good commentary. It's the same price as booking just the London Eye (with the internet discount) and, in my opinion, provides great value for money. If your dates aren't covered yet, I'm sure they will be soon as they were running this in August when I went. It was fantastic fun and I'm from London!

Also, https://www.toptable.co.uk is a great place for finding special offers at at fancy restaurants. Sometimes the best deals are at lunchtime and places are often a little more relaxed then too.

Nile

If you visit the Tate, you can take the boat trip to the Tate Modern. It's a nice trip on the river Thames and doesn't cost a fortune.

If you want to see a Royal Ballet performance or opera at the Royal Opera House (Covent Garden), they release tickets (Stalls Circle) on the day of performance. So, if you get in the queue well before they open the doors (at 10am) you'll be guaranteed tickets for a performance that evening (or matinee) at affordable prices.

Ticket price examples are: Opera - Orchestra Stalls £180 v Stalls Circle £50
Ballet - Orchestra Stalls £84 v Stalls Circle £46

My cheapskate ploy to get cheap theatre tickets is to go to the Theatre Box Office at 10am on the day of performance and buy a standing ticket for around £10. I have never had to stand for any performance (in London's west end or New York's broadway) because there are always 'no show' vacant seats.

Enjoy your visit to London.

Allexie

I would suggest a visit to Tate Modern and then go across the 'Wobbly Bridge' to St Paul's.....

Tate Modern

Even if you're not greatly into art the building is awesome and you can always laugh at the exhibits! There is some truly remarkable stuff there though, (I'd love to see the current Rachel Whiteread thingy in the turbine hall). Praps best of all - its FREE, (apart from the special exhibitions).



P.S. Just thought...if you do The Wheel it's not far to walk to Tate Modern along the river and you pass Shakespeare Globe on the way.

Shakespeare's Globe

arma

To go around all the major attractions (except madam tussauds and london eye) u can buy a london pass +/- travel pass at https://www.londonpass.com.
http://www.londonforfree.net/ provides a route map for a 3 pound bus tour of all the major attractions in central london.
tickets for london eye can be bought at https://www.londoneye.com and there is a 10%discount if you buy tickets for madam tussauds at the same time.

Enjoy your trip!!

trafalgar_2

wow I knew I'd get help but never expected this much,thanks to everyone,you've all been a great help:D