London help needed

hitatotatus

Hi. You could probably walk from St Pancreas to Madame Tussauds, but it is quite a way - alright in the sunshine (here's hoping). It would not be possible to walk from MT to London Eye though - it is a long way between the two in my opinion you would need to take a taxi.
I would also avoid MT like the plague - queues far too long.
Have you considered the Science Museum - free, unless you want to go to IMAX or other special attractions there (considerably less than the cost of MT tho). We spent almost three hours in the Launch Pad (two boys 13 and 10) with the interactive exhibits! Highly recommended.

kingfisherblue

The queues don't sound ideal, and my daughter has asked me today do we really want to see creepy waxwork figures? (Her words, not mine). So a rethink is in order.

My youngest would love the Science Museum - especially the overnight camp! TBH, we'd all enjoy it. I don't know why I didn't think of it. As it is free, I could ask the charity for help with the cost of the London Eye instead, so it would be less expensive as well.

I've looked on Google maps, but I'm no good with distances, so we're back to the questions about distance - and which premier Inn would be best, location wise.

hitatotatus

If you are going to the Science Museum, it is not far to walk up to Kensington Gardens/Hyde Park. The Albert Memorial is a great sight to see if you are in the area - there is a statue of Peter Pan also in Ken Gardens, and it is just a nice park to walk through - if the weather is nice. I have found with my kids that it is more important to spend quality time in one place rather than rushing around seeing too many things.
After we went to the Science Museum we walked to Harrods (about 20 mins) and my son's face at the sight of the Food Halls (particularly the sweet section) was a picture, and didn't cost anything apart from the price of a box of gobstoppers £4.50!
We ate very well at a Lebanese restaurant opposite - for the three of us was £21, falafel (6), sharwarma x 3 (lamb in a wrap), cheese pastries (4), salad, fresh mango juice and a coke with complimentary baklava(4) at the end - bargain. Much better than a McD anyday.

narabanekeater

we went last weekend and the que for Tussards was 3.5 hours but the eye we got on quickly
Theres Wetherspoons dotted around for cheap places to eat.
Please chek your vouchers if you so use BOGOF as we were turned down as they went valid. But the 'Merlin' group so special tickets where you can save about 10% on entry to more than one attraction
I hope you have a wonderful time. I certainly did, I found the underground amazing everyone seams so busy

hethmar

The Premier Inn near the Eye "London County Hall" is supposed to be very good. Have a look on their website to see if they have availability though.

http://www.premierinn.com/en/homeQuickSearch!execute.action

Personally, unless son has his heart set on it, Id give Tussauds a miss. Science museum is much more interesting for youngsters.

If you get the chance in the evening, a good outing is the Globe theatre, which would be walking distance from the Premier along the south bank. For a fiver you go in the standing area to watch a Shakespeare play in wonderful atmospheric surroundings. And some days they have Child Workshops (Henry 1V pt 2 is on til 9 October - its got plenty of rude bits and funny bits for the kids)

http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/
http://www.globe-education.org/events/item/2010/08/28/childsplay-the-merry-wives-of-windsor

Aesop

It's about a 2 mile walk

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=premier+inn+london+county+hall&fb=1&gl=uk&hq=premier+inn+london+county+hall&hnear=Brent&cid=0,0,5965096821485792004&ei=UeR2TJ-ON4_Lswa5yYGMBg&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&resnum=2&ved=0CCUQnwIwAQ

This shows the actual route, although you need to allow for road works, men digging up pavements, etc.

Looks like the 168 goes from Euston - outside Euston Station to South Bank, so this would save you a journey.

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/gettingaround/maps/buses/pdf/euston-2087.pdf

This might be useful

http://www.londonforfree.net/outdoors/bustour/bustour.shtml

I would personally not bother with Madame Tussauds. It is very busy at weekends, and you can pay extra to get fast tracked to the front of the queue, but this makes it very expensive.

I took my 33 month old DS to the Science Museum, he loved the basement (for young uns) and was fascinated by the rest of the museum on our way out. I think you will have a fab time there. Someone I know went there recently and said they need to go back as they didn't get to see everything.

I would stay at County Hall Premier Inn as it is so close to everything. You can have a lovely walk along South Bank and see the markets if they are on, when you are here in London, the street entertainers. The sights, there are sometimes free shows on.

The Festival Hall has free music in the foyer, something to do if it is raining.

I would get an oyster card for travelling around - a visitor one lets you go on the River Boat - Thames Clipper Services

http://visitorshop.tfl.gov.uk/english/ticket-types.htm

this might be useful for cheap lunches
http://golondon.about.com/od/eatingdrinking/tp/londoncheapeats.htm

I think the offer at Premier Inn for dinner and breakfast is quite good, you could have a big breakfast and dinner, so only need something light for lunch.

Aesop

Think you will run out of time anyway as so much to see and do for free, but here are some other ideas

http://golondon.about.com/od/londonwithchildren/tp/FreeThingsLondonChildren.htm

xfive71

Above poster is right! From the train station, you could take 168 to South Bank. If you do get Premier Inn Southbank, there is plenty to sightsee over there already. Do the London Eye and then go over to bridge for photo opp with Big Ben and Westminster Cathedral. If you are up for the walk, go to St James Park and right off to Buckingham Palace.

After a few nice pics, I would just jump onto a taxi and go straight to the Science Museum and the Natural History Museum. I think it would roughly be £15 but on the other side, you'll save the dosh from Madame Tussauds. The queues are really quite horrendous with the holiday crowds but I would plump for London Eye earlier in the day and off to the museum after lunch.

kingfisherblue

Wow, some great information and links - thank you everyone!

We're going to visit the Natural History Museum at the end of September on a separate trip. We belong to a small community group that has applied for (and received) funding for a weekend trip to Legoland, with coach, hotel, entry fees, etc included. We're going to the NHM on the Saturday and then spending Sunday in Legoland.

I think it was this, combined with the fact that my son still talks about his school trip to London (and his ride on the Eye) that has prompted me to consider taking the kids to London for a weekend. I've thought about it, on and off, for a few years. My ex wasn't interested, so I put the idea on hold. Now, though, I have the opportunity. I've saved a bit of cash, and the kids are that bit older. My daughter is an adult, but loves family holidays, so I'd like her to come with us before she decides that family holidays aren't her thing any more.

I'm going to spend some time looking through the links and I think I'll print a map out as well. We're definitely keen to visit the Science Museum (thank you hitatotatus) and the Eye, but I agree that we shouldn't run ourselves ragged. It would be a good excuse to visit again, though!

I wonder if my son's Disabled Person's Travel Pass would be valid in London, if we need to catch a bus? It's issued by Merseytravel. Something else for me to look into

whatmichaelsays

Depending on where abouts in the North West you are travelling from, the trains are going to be very busy. Around 20,000 rugby fans from Warrington will be making their way to Wembley on Saturday morning.