Hotel and money saving in London advice required

first78

Hi, I'm a single Mum planning to take my kids (7&8) to London for 2-3 days in the October half term. We will get a train to Euston station so I'm looking for hotel recommendations that are easy to get to from there...bit worried about the practicalities of getting kids and bags onto the Tube on my own. I don't have a huge budget so am thinking of Ibis/Premier Inn etc unless anyone has other recommendations.

It's been a few years since I was in London, do you need an Oyster card for the Tube or can I just use my bank card to pay for journeys? Also am I right that the Tube is free for the kids?

I'm thinking of taking them to Covent Garden, Downing Street, Buckingham Palace and Leicester Square. I'd like to take them to a show but not sure if it's possible to get cheap tickets?

Any other money saving tips for our visit would also be greatly appreciated!!

gwynlas

You can use your bank card for te tube, there are premier inns and travelodge within walking distance of Eustonas is British museum. There might be offers cnnected to your rail ticket and look for days out on cereal packs. Buckingham Palace changing of guard free, Check out TFL for travel, upstairs on buses is good. Think of Science Museum, Nayural History Museun. Search, London for Kids and Free Days out in London

daveyjp

Plenty of budget chain hotels around Euston Road so if you choose one of those there is no need to get bags onto the tube.

Tubes and buses are free for children.  I prefer to use the bus if staying in central London as you see more and its cheaper than the tube.  Euston Road has lots of bus services which will get you into the West End in 20-30 minutes, when you take into account walking to tube stations and then platforms, waiting for trains etc the Tube is often not much quicker for short zone 1 trips.

Just tap onto the Oyster pad with a contactless card when getting on the bus, no need to tap out.

Citymapper is a great app for planning journeys.  It will tell you which bus and which bus stop to use.

Archie_Duke

Premier Inns are plentiful, smart and modern, secure from what I’ve seen. A family room would be best for your group and a really nice place to go back to at the end of a tiring day around London. Find the one you like best/can afford and catch the tube to the closest station. You’re going to be on and off tubes all through your stay anyway. Enjoy!

IrenRyb

Thanks everyone for the good info

MSE_James

You mention going to see a show - our cheap theatre tickets guide might be helpful:
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/cheap-theatre-tickets/ 

onashoestring

Book free tickets for the sky garden for great views of London .
https://skygarden.london/booking/book-a-free-ticket/

Voyager2002

I like the Tavistock Hotel, which is within walking distance of Euston. The other hotels belonging to this company are also good and conveniently located, although the breakfast included at the Royal National was disgusting (I left it and paid to eat elsewhere).
https://www.imperialhotels.co.uk/hotels/

There are many smaller museums in that part of London (Bloomsbury) as well as the vast British Museum: the only one I can think of off-hand is the Dickens house but there are many more. All are free so even if the children get bored after a few minutes it doesn't matter. Check out a guidebook (I found the Lonely Planet guide to London really useful) or visit a London tourist information website or office.

Don't forget that double-decker buses go almost everywhere, and children are likely to enjoy sitting on top and watching the world go by.

Consider the Imperial War Museum: little boys tend to get excited when they see real guns.

p00hsticks

I don't know how late 7 or 8 year olds are alowwed to stay up on holidays, but the Ceremony of the Keys is free [edit - no it's not any longer - they now appear to charge £5 a ticket] and is an unusual historic sight - you need to book online well in advance and tickets go quickly though

https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/whats-on/ceremony-of-the-keys/#gs.u6ogp2

And if intending to be in the vicinity of the Tower, it's worth also checking to see if the Bridge is schuduled to lift and plan your visit accordingly - another free sight

https://www.towerbridge.org.uk/lift-times

If there are just the three of you, with only one adult, then the 2-4-1 offers with rail tickets are probably going to be of limited value

https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london  

It's not really cheap, but the Thames Clipper River Roamer tickets give you all day unlimited travel on the Thames Clipper services - you can see a lot of the sights from the river and it;s a good option in bad weather.

A round trip will take you several hours from the London Eye to the O2 dome and back - the staff usually let you stay on the boat if you want to just travel up and down all day !

https://www.thamesclippers.com/explore-london/best-tickets

onashoestring

Cable car ride across the Thames - also runs in the evenings £5 Adults £2:50 children ( one way ) 

https://emiratesairline.gttickets.com/en/london/emirates-air-line-single-ticket

TBagpuss

for shows - https://www.todaytix.com/ can be useful to look out for deals for popular shows.
Half term may be harder to get cheap tickets for kid-friendly shows as it's likely to be a popular time .

id you are looking or tickets, https://www.theatremonkey.com/ has information about any special offers, and also has a lot of information about seating; which seats give the best view at each price point, and the pros and cons of specific seats.  in some theatres, seats may be cheaper (for instance in the front row of the balcony or upper circle) because there is restricted leg room, which of course may not be an issue for younger children, so it's worth looking at which of the cheaper seats may be suitable for your family!) It's also worth looking at smaller venues w like the Southwark Playhouse or  Bush Theatre are often cheaper than the big West End theatres, although of course it depends a bit on what type of production you want to see. 

Check out the Southbank Centre nearer the time - they have lots of types of events including different types of performance, literary events and music, some of which are suitable for children