half term outings in London that aren't madly crowded...

[time4tea]

am taking best friend with her DS (7) DD (4) and my DS (3.5) and DS2 (6 months)

what will keep the children happy but not be absolutely ridiculously crowded. my ds loves the Science Museum. any other tips..?

should know all this myself, but as my DS is a pre-schooler we tend to do outings mid-week during term-time to avoid crowds...

1. What are your half-term dates? Compare them with the London schools dates (see LEA websites) - you may be lucky and have different dates from the mass.

2. Even if you're lucky (as above) everything will still be pretty crowded. So, general recommendations are: do things for which you can buy tickets in advance for a specific time (eg London Eye); or go First Thing in the morning. (Latter is in fact a general recommendation for doing anything touristy in London - even on a wet Saturday the Science Museum is fine at 10 am, but mobbed by 11.30.)

3. Check Time Out listings for special events at less well-known & less central places - eg Geffrye Museum, Kew Gardens, Museum in Docklands, etc. Those are often much more fun (I think) than the sort of tick-list headline places everyone's aiming for - more effort put in by organisers, and usually less crowded.