Day trip to London with kids... Advice needed

[LondonTan]

Hi all,
I've name changed as I've spoken to people IRL about this and don't want to out myself to them...

We're thinking of taking our 2 DC (DD8 and DS4) to London for the day in the next couple of weeks (they have a 2 week half term) and we want to make the most of the day... Does anyone have any top tips /suggestions? Eg the best things to do? Excellent kid-friendly places to eat etc...

We were originally thinking of going mid-week but I've just discovered that a) the train is lots cheaper at the weekend and b) some potential activities aren't available mid-week so now leaning towards going on a Sunday. When I used to work in London I remember it being beautifully quiet on a sunday... Is this still the case?

Thanks for any advice you can offer!

Go to the museum in the top of Tower Bridge. The glass floor is great!

I wouldn’t say London is quiet on a Sunday, but I think you’ll have a great time!

Which station are you getting into? If it’s Waterloo then head to the southbank, if it’s Victoria go to exhibition road etc etc …

With kids that age I would either build a day around the science museum or the natural history museum (you will probably have to book), or build a dah around the river.

For the museums, I would pick one, explore it, go somewhere in south Ken for lunch, then perhaps head to a playground (diana memorial playground?) for the afternoon.

For the river, I would get on the clipper at Vauxhall and go to Greenwich, then hop off to see the cutty sark/ one of the museums / go to the park, then back on the boat to blackfriars and walk along the southbank

Brill, thanks.

@greensteps - we were thinking of doing either the NHM or the science museum, or maybe even both. We'll be arriving at St Pancras. Do you know of anywhere good for lunch with kids around South Ken? We're also vegetarian /vegan, which makes things a bit harder.

I had also looked at the Horrible Histories River trip (this was the thing I couldn't get mid - week) but I guess we wouldn't be able to squeeze that in with the museum(s) too.

Thanks again!

Great! You’ll have a great time! We’re also vegetarian/ vegan and there are loads of restaurants near south ken station that cater for us - just don’t eat in the museum cafes because they’re very expensive and not very good.

There is even a lovely gelato place nearby that sells vegan gelato … can’t remember the names of anywhere but I’m thinking of a cluster of cafes between the station and exhibition road

How old are the kids? I prefer NHM to science museum. Museums may need booking.

Harrods is also in South Ken, I think, so may be worth a visit.

London is a lot smaller than you think, so long distances on tube maps may be quite close to walk.

Thank you!

Yes, the museums need to be booked but they've both got loads of slots available atm so, assuming I don't dither too much (which, frankly, is fairly likely 🤦‍♀️) we should be OK.

Thanks for the food tips, @greensteps. Weirdly, this is the thing that worries me the most... Finding somewhere to eat is always so stressful for my family - we invariably leave it until we're on the cusp of hanger and then nothing seems right so we're all frazzled messes by the time we've found somewhere.

Does anyone know if there are likely to be travel issues (eg closed stations /replacement buses) if we go on a Sunday? I remember this being a prob years ago but it's been a looooooong time since I was in London on a Sunday 😁.