Any experienced people know how to do london

[Hortuslover]

Morning all,

I’d really like some help on how to do london with a teen. I plan to take 13yo ds for 2 nights in January.

I have no idea where to stay. I’ve stayed in Covent Garden before now when I’ve been for shopping trips and seemed a good location, but not sure if there’s better places to stay in terms of sight seeing. Plan is to do open top bus, national history museum, change of the guards and London dungeons..not sure if I’m being too optimistic with the amount of time we are there.

Ive not got loads of money so I’m looking for deals on hotels if anyone knows of any little gems.

Thank you.

Look for offers that you can get with with train travel- I think it's "days out guide".

There are half price tickets for some really good attractions if you were wanting to do some of the paid for stuff- Tower of London and London Eye are often on it.

Also, depending on where you work, check whether you have access to a corporate membership of historic royal palaces- my workplace used to have this and I got into them all for free through it!

It's an amazing place- 2 nights is nowhere near enough for more than a taster, but you can always go back for more another time!!

I’d use the app Bookatable, it shows any 2 for1 offers and you book at the time through the app and get the deal

Bruno’s pizza place is great prices and cooked breakfast with brew is approximately £8

It’s located on ward our street & Peter street corner

You can have bubble with your fry up 🤣

Myself and dp stayed in premier inn bankside in march, it was nice, good location, handy for dungeons, eye, sealife, borough market, thames clippers and tube station only 5 mins walk.
We did jack the ripper tour and a ghost bus tour, personally i preferred the ghost bus over jack the ripper. We also climbed the monument, which i think was £5 per person and good view from the top. We did the clink museum and the old operating theatre museum. And just walking along the southbank you have lots of street entertainers.

Forgot to mention about tower bridge with the glass floor, it wasn't too much to get in and hms belfast i don't remember being too expensive either.

Brick lane is minging for curry,avoid
I suggest Camden market, the eye,south bank
London dungeon is fun
Are they footy fans for stadium tours?

Just to agree with the PP that have said about using Tesco Clubcard vouchers for tourist places, we use them all the time in London - the bus tour takes them as well and it includes a boat trip. If you have a Clubcard, check the reward website. Can use them in some restaurants as well (we've not done that).

For future reference, we stayed in Greenwich at a premier which was lively. Bit further out but you can get a boat from tower of london. The planetarium is there plus a couple of free museums, the lovely park and market aswell as great bars and places to eat.
But best of all it was so quiet compared to most of London, really enjoyed that trip.

It’s a little pricey but dishoom for breakfast is incredible and no queues.

If you have a family railcard, you get a discount on off-peak one-day travel cards, which you can use on tubes, trains and buses.

We used to go to London quite regularly, so I got my DCs zip Oyster cards (easy to apply online as long as the DC has a passport), but it now looks like there is a special scheme for visiting 11-15 year olds where you can get the discount without a zip card: tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel/11-15-zip-oyster-photocard?intcmp=55575 (scroll down and click on "I live in the UK but outside London")

You can use a contactless credit/debit card as an Oyster for yourself.

I don't think it has been mentioned yet, the thing then 13 year old DS enjoyed most on last years visit to London was the Cabinet War Rooms, well worth a visit. Also HMS Belfast, depending on what your 13 year old is interested in. He also enjoyed watching tower bridge being raised, you can check the schedule online and if you are nearby it is worth a quick detour to watch. Cutty Sark in Greenwich was also very interesting (as was the rather obscure Greenwich fan museum )

The Clayton in Chiswick isa great hotel...v near Gunnersby tube station. We say stay there and jump on the tube. Love the tube as it is so far removed from where I live.
Hope to go up between new year and going back to work.
I love the fact I can see a different part of London each time I go.

Dishonest is going to be shut in January for refurbishment

ivykaty - there are several branches of Dishoom, and it's only the Covent Garden one closing for a refurb. The Shoreditch one (original branch, I think?) is a good stop-off if you are doing things like Brick Lane or Spitalfields market.

Excellent 😋