London Trip - recommendations for trips/discounts

JOBEN

Hi
My son (14) and I are going to London for a couple of days next week.

Not sure where we want to go so am looking for recommendations and any discount vouchers that you know off.

Kyle (son) wants to go to the big Nike store on Oxford street:eek: not my idea of fun LOL but as we havent been b4 hes not sure of where else he fancies.

I have been thinking Tower of London, Madame Tussauds, London Eye, but would love your thoughts

Thanks in advance
Jo

Nile

Hello JOBEN

I'll move your thread to the 'UK Holidays, Days Out & Entertainments' board.

Hi, Martin’s asked me to post this in these circumstances: I’ve asked Board Guides to move threads if they’ll receive a better response elsewhere(please see this rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board, where it should get more replies. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="abuse@moneysavingexpert.com"]!!!!!![/EMAIL].

Regards

Nile

Buzzbox

It all depends on what you would like to see in London. Definately take a look at this website for great deals and further inspiration - http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk

London Zoo is amazing and you can get a discount on that website. Whilst in Central London, why not stop by the Rainforest Cafe in Picadilly Circus, he'll love it, go downstairs to the restaurant and have a coffee / juice there. There is also a new attraction around the corner from there called Ripley's Believe it or Not, getting quite popular and I would say that he will have more fun there than at Madame Tussauds.

Another great thing would be to go to SouthBank, there is always a lot of free entertainment in the form of street performers. By the way, if you want to go on the London Eye, get there early, queues can be LONG!

Can't think of anything else but if you can tell me what more or less you want to come and see, I'll gladly help you out even further

jebervic

Covent Garden is worth a stop off

rosepetal37

Are the yellow aqua things worth doing (combined river + boat trip), and can anyone please tell me what they are actually called

p00hsticks

sweepnsoo wrote: »

Are the yellow aqua things worth doing (combined river + boat trip), and can anyone please tell me what they are actually called

They're called the London Duck tours - I haven't been on one myself so can't comment on if they're worth doing

http://www.londonducktours.co.uk/

pmat

What a dirty hole. Went there a few weeks ago and was glad too leave. I don't know if it was the general dirtiness of the place or the rip-off prices of everything that put me off the most. It's cheaper to go abroad for a week than to spend a family weekend in London.

susancs

As he's 14 he may enjoy the London Dungeons. If you are using the train to come into London, you can show your ticket to get 2for 1 with a voucher printed off from here. If you are using Oyster it would be worth buying a BR train ticket, with the Crows foot logo on it for 1 stop and not using (from a BR London train/tube station, such as the nearby London bridge) to get the savings.
http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/london-dungeon

I have not been to the London's Ripleys, but the one in Canada we visited was great. The Tower is good, but I personally, don't rate Madame Tussauds as you just get pushed along in the crowds. Rather than do the duck, it would be cheaper to do a boat ride on the Thames, using the hop on and off River red Rover daily pass to go to the Tower, eye etc. For the Tower you can also print off 2for 1 form the site given above. You can also do a cheap London tour using your Oyster or travel card by getting the no 15 red bus from outside marble Arch or Piccaddilly tube stations, as it goes past a lot of landmarks (Trafalgar Square, Law courts, fleet street, St pauls) on the way to the Tower.
http://www.citycruises.com/rrrinfo.php

minerva_windsong

The Tower of London is much more toned down than the Dungeons in terms of the blood and gore levels (certainly if York Dungeons are anything to go by as I believe they're run by the same company).

If he's into science and/or history it might be worth going to some of the museums - the Museum of London is good, as are the British Museum, Natural History Museum and Science Museum.

Covent Garden is always good for free performers, although they're not really my thing most of the time.

I haven't been to London Ripley's Believe It Or Not but the one in Florida was brilliant. Definitely worth going to that I'd say.

I'd also suggest buying an Oyster card as it will cut your travel costs massively. You can get them from Underground stations or tourist information.

OrangeProse

minerva_windsong wrote: »

If he's into science and/or history it might be worth going to some of the museums - the Museum of London is good, as are the British Museum, Natural History Museum and Science Museum.

Covent Garden is always good for free performers, although they're not really my thing most of the time.

Good call on the museums. They're free, too (they have a glorified bucket out front where they request a voluntary donation; bung a couple of quid in on the way out if you feel so moved but no-one will scowl at you if you don't). The British Museum is particularly impressive - you walk in and immediately you're in with some pretty gigantic antiquities. It's an amazing experience, standing in front of something that's thousands of years old.

Oxford Street and Regent Street are good (I work just off Regent Street; guess where my salary goes each month!) but I'd recommend getting there early otherwise you'll spend three-quarters of your time shuffling along the pavement trying to negotiate the masses. If you're there during the week, most of the shops open at 9.30/10am but some of the coffee shops open earlier (so commuters can grab their Americanos on the way in to work) so pitch up early and grab a coffee and a muffin from Pret or something.

If he's going to force you to go to Nike Town, make sure you drag him around Selfridges and Liberty's in return. :A

Bear in mind that there are two Nike stores on Oxford Street. I'm guessing the one he'll want is Nike Town, which is Nike's flagship store in the UK; you'll find it at 236 Oxford Street. The other one is a more regular Nike store so probably isn't as special.

House of Fraser is nice, if a bit quaint and old fashioned compared to Selfridges, but the cafe on the 6th floor is rather sweet and you can get a cream tea for two people for £7.

A wander along the South Bank is always good fun if all that retail gets too much. The Tate Modern is there too, near the Millennium Bridge, if either of you are into art. This is free, too (well, it's another 'suggested donation' one so chuck in three quid per person if you feel so inclined).

Also, have a wander round Soho. There are all sorts of cool shops, cafes, restaurants and so on that are worth a look. Plus all the ultra cool media people (like me!) wandering round. A walk down Wardour Street and he'll have at least three new ideas for how he wants his hair cut, trust me. Also it's great for spotting 'slebs' if you're excited by that kind of thing. For example, last week I spotted James Corden, Kim Wilde (!!!! I know), Alan Titchmarsh, Julie Walters and James Nesbitt. There's also a nice Nando's on Frith Street which is almost never busy, if you're after a decent lunch.

The London Eye is actually rather good (as a Londoner it's the only 'touristy' thing that we ever do) but it's about 100x better at night than during the day. The views of the lights and sights of London are just breathtaking. If you book in advance on the London Eye website you sometimes get a bit of money off.

Chinatown (Gerrard Street and surrounding) is great too. You're not getting cutting-edge Asian cuisine, to be honest, but you can eat really good food for not very much money (particularly at lunchtime) and some of the restaurant designs are gorgeous.

Things I'd avoid:

• The 'open top' bus tours that pick up from around Leicester Square. The views are good but they're REALLY expensive. As susancs mentioned, you'll get the same tour on the number 15 bus.
• Anything that has 'Steakhouse' in red neon on the outside. These places are TOTAL tourist traps and you can do much, much better for food.
• Cinemas on Leicester Square - once you're inside, it's a regular Odeon/Empire/whatever. SO not worth the £18ish you'll spend, each, on a ticket.

And finally some tips that no-one ever tells people who visit London...:

• Stand on the right on any escalator that you encounter, including in shops. Locals can sometimes get a bit 'shove-y' when people stand on the left. :rolleyes:
• I'm sure you won't, but don't take flash photography on Tube trains or in Tube stations - it makes Londoners a bit nervous, for a number of reasons.
• Don't eat smelly food on the Tube either - it's not exactly forbidden but a lot of people won't like it.
• Do bring a bottle of water each if you're going to be on buses or the Tube a lot. It gets very, very stuffy down there.
• Get an A-Z as sometimes people won't know where they're directing you, but they will cheerfully misdirect you anyway, and you'll end up at the other end of wherever you wanted to go.

Finally, enjoy yourselves. London is one of the most exciting places on earth and I am proud to call it my home.

HTH

anna42hmr

p00hsticks wrote: »

They're called the London Duck tours - I haven't been on one myself so can't comment on if they're worth doing

http://www.londonducktours.co.uk/

i cant recommend them highly enough, i did a trip a few weeks ago and loved it, you are on the trip for around 75 mins, (the last 30 mins or so in the water) great trip and the guide we had was fantastic. its great when it transports from the land to the water as well. not to mention its a bit of history as they were built for the war and took part in the d day landings!