London Inspiration, please!

[Daffodil101]

Off to London for a few days at Feb half term with daughters aged 10 and 14. We live up north but try to go at least once a year. Running out of ideas to entertain them...so far we’ve been to:

London eye
Tower bridge visitors centre
The tower
Concert at Royal Albert Hall
Musicals
Hampton Court
Churchill War Rooms
National portrait gallery
Camden Market
Borough Market and the South Bank
Covent Garden
Foundling Museum
Natural history museum
Westminster Abbey

Would also love a recommendation for dinner in the west end, or a great Chinese (we might take them for a bad one at the Wong Kei!) and the sort of afternoon tea that’s replenished without consisting entirely of fancy sandwich fillings that kids won’t eat.

We have tickets for Wicked and we’ve seen Matilda (four times!), Les Mis and both parts of the Harry Potter thing.

Thank you!

Really helpful thank you

If you decide on the Southbank then another place I’d recommend is the rooftop garden at Elizabeth Hall, it’s a really great community garden (with bar/food) and fabulous views of London, and it’s free!

www.southbankcentre.co.uk/visit/outdoor-spaces/queen-elizabeth-hall-roof-garden

Leadenhall Market
Kings X inc:
British Library
Crick
Kings Place

Granary Square and Kings X is also a great area to spend some time in. If you decide to go back to Camden there is a lovely walk there along the Regents Canal from Granary Square.

Thank you!!

KidZania and Westfield is a good day out. Also, the aquarium is great, and the Shrek experience on the South Bank is fun too. If you look in Time Out London and also on Babes About Town blog nearer the time there will be temporary events and new shows on that you might like.

Going for New year ourselves so glad of any ideas😍

Wallace collection?

Hampton court is worth a visit

Are they big Harry Potter fans? Are you ok with going out of London?
The Harry Potter film set is Amazing , took DCs twice , highly recommend it.

As for best afternoon tea, IMO it’s Claridges followed by the Ritz.

if we go for chinese food we always go to Orient London, , it's up Wardour Street, just before the big ChinaTown gate and it usually packed so book if you are going as a family. The lady in charge is very scary but runs the tables very efficiently

I really like the sky garden and the shard

If you are going on the train check out the Days Out Guide website as there are loads of 241 offers on all the London things

My lot used to really enjoy poking about the fancy shops...Fortnums, Harrods and Selfridges, especially the food halls. Laduree behind Harrods was a favourite too, I am still not sure that dh has got over paying £50++ for drinks and cakes, but the children still remember the fancypants hot chocolate in the silver chocolate teapots! :o
Also the street entertainers at Covent Garden...somehow they'd always manage to weedle their way to the front

DD used to love Spitalfields too, although it is more organised that it was, if you venture behind the market toward the Trueman Brewery building there's plenty of Vintage clothes stores/markets which your older daughter would probably like.

oh and Londonist website usually have recommendations for odd things you might otherwise miss, often free stuff too.

Bob Bob Ricard round the corner from Carnaby St is nice. Went there last night.

On a dark rainy night like tonight though my favourite place in London is: My House, pyjamas on.

Can’t do a clicky link but try inthehiddencity.com they do immersive tours that give you clues by text message that you have to solve and it leads you to all sorts of weird and wonderful places around London. We did the Cheshire Cat one and it was fabulous!

Tate Modern.
Wellcome Collection.

For Chinese, the best IMO is Royal China, with Pearl Liang a close second.

Also if your daughters are into Harry Potter you can do a guided walk of the filming locations they used in the movies.

Brilliant thank you. Already done Hampton court and the Harry Potter thing. Not bad really considering we live up north. I was in university near London and I’m determined my kids will ‘know’ London. They love it already, and rightly so!