Help planning London and surrounding areas summer holiday with 11 year old and baby

[Catbells7]

I am going round in circles trying to decide what to do for our summer holiday this year as we will have a one year old along with our 11 year old, have been weighing up whether to fly somewhere in Europe or cruise from Southampton, some sun would be great but they both have their cons with a baby so I'm now thinking of exploring London and surrounding areas as our son has never been and would love help to plan a great trip for my 11 year old.

We will be travelling down from Scotland and will likely bring the car as thinking of doing a fortnight and seeing more of southern England which we haven't done much of - we absolutely love the Lake District so was thinking of some busy days in the city then perhaps somewhere more relaxed with gorgeous scenery/walks but I don't know the areas well enough to know where best to look. Potential ideas are:

• Son is a huge HP fan so would like to do the studio tour;
• Would love to visit some of the main museums, Tower of London and looking for ideas of must see/do for his age group;
• tying in a day at a theme park would be good;
• I had thought about a week in Devon as never been, and be nice to be on the coast, after a few days in London but there's quite a lot of driving between them so wondered if there were any better suggestions?
• Or wondered about somewhere near rivers/lakes with lovely parks?

Basically open to all suggestions from people more in the know than me! Wondered about areas which would be a more relaxing base to travel into London on the train easily instead of hotels in the centre as thinking a cottage/airbnb/lodge etc will be better so we aren't having to be quiet in hotel room at night while baby sleeping.

I wouldn’t do London in August with a baby in tow. ( I live in London ). Id save that trip for a cooler, less crowded time of year.

Not thinking of August, it would be early July, before English schools break for the summer - is there much difference in crowds between early July and August?

Yes, there's a difference in crowds between early July and August.

Ignore the first post, some people really love to be negative here! It sounds like a fab holiday for an 11 year old!

Harry Potter World would be great. I'd suggest also the Natural History Museum or the Science museum, both are brilliant. They're right next to each other but we've given up trying to do both in a day as there's so much to see.

The Tower of London is a good call. I'd be tempted to combine that with a trip along the river for the novelty value.

Your instinct to get somewhere out of town and come in by train (or tube) is sound not only so you don't have to tip toe round a sleeping baby but also because of the car. London is set up to be actively car unfriendly! Or, perhaps an AirBnB in London if you can find one with parking. That would be ideal if you can find something that doesn't cost an arm and a leg!

I assume when you mention the Lakes you mean you'd break the journey on the way?

I think it’s an excellent age to visit London with your 11 year old, will be harder work with your one year old of course but everywhere is at that age 😬.

Definitely yes to HP studios and the Tower. Paddington would be a great theatre option for your 11 year old - it’s genuinely uplifting, but maybe don’t include the baby on that one.

Getting the Uber boat along the Thames is a fun thing to do, you can see all the key sights easily. A good route is from Embankment to Battersea Power Station. Your 11 year old is the right age to get a lot from the one hour audio tour of the Houses of Parliament, you’d need to book. Walking through St James’s Park and along the Mall to see Buckingham Palace is an interesting route.

Museums - proceed with caution in August, they’re really busy. My top tactic is to limit a visit to an hour or so and be really targeted about what you’ll see. So decide to go and see the Egyptian section at the British Museum for example and get in and out. The V&A might work well for you, there’s a paddling area and garden in the centre which is a bit of an oasis. The Tate Modern is pretty special, again I’d plan what you’ll see in advance and be targeted.

Re where to stay, you’d don’t want to add a long tube journey to your day so I wouldn’t stay too far out.

The south of England does not have many clean rivers/lakes suitable for children sadly so I’d aim for at least some hotels with pools.
London does however have great water play areas for children, especially Granary Square fountains in King’s Cross and the Diana fountain in Hyde Park.

Along the Thames to the west of London is lovely, water generally clean and some paddling spots. Walking on the Thames Path around Cookham/Marlow for example is a good day out.

Re beaches, I love Devon but it’s a long drive. Beaches are often pebbly near London but you could consider West Wittering or Dorset beaches if you want sand. Kent has good sandy options, for example Broadstairs or Margate.

If you visit the museums on a week day in July, you'll be grand.

If the baby will be in a buggy (and not a sling) then your route will need a bit of careful planning if you're going to use the tube - make sure you're using stations with a lift ideally. Escalators with a buggy are to be avoided if at all possible!

TFL has guidance on this tfl.gov.uk/transport-accessibility/wheelchair-access-and-avoiding-stairs

I think it's a great idea. This could be a good base: lodges and private rooms in the Hertfordshire countryside - with good connections into central London: https://www.yha.org.uk/hostel/yha-london-lee-valley

Rather than Devon, I think I would look at Norfolk for the rural bit of your stay - beaches, broads, boat trips and enough to do - but heading back in a vaguely north direction, rather than another long detour to the SW.

Things both kids will like - art galleries, Tower of London, Hampton court, London aquarium, uber boat, open top bus, London dungeons

Warner Brothers HP studios is actually located in Watford, not London.

I would look at staying in the likes of a Premier inn as these seem to be well located near good transport links.

Would suggest you research carefully where you stay on the outskirts of London and choose somewhere with good transport links into it. Do not whatever you decide to do drive into central London. Traffic is horrendous, parking is scarce and you will have to pay the congestion charge daily.

Thank you, I think it would be a great holiday for him too, will make a note of your suggestions. We are both happy driving long distances but definitely don't fancy driving into central London.

Not necessarily planning on staying in Lakes - that is an area we love so was wondering about suggestions of a new area to stay once we have done a few days in London that is similar in regards to scenery/lovely walks/parks etc but further down south to explore somewhere new.

Devon is quite a long drive from London.

how about Norwich and the Norfolk coast? Beaches, Norwich castle, bewilderwood etc.

Thank you for your suggestions - that all sounds brilliant. Will make a note of them and great to have ideas for places that will be good for giving baby a break too. Sounds like we could do the whole fortnight just soaking up all the London attractions!

I had looked at Lee Valley caravan park as there are apparantly fast trains to London in 30 mins - do you think that is too far out time wise?

I had also looked at Dorset as an option, thanks, will take a closer look as think a Devon holiday is better on it's own another time as too much of a trek from London before coming all the way home again.

Great tip, thanks for the link, we will take buggy and sling.

Thank you, will take a look at that site and had just started to think last night Norfolk could be a good option, it is somewhere we haven't been before and probably does make sense to choose north of London for coming home . Lots to look into later when baby sleeping.

Maybe stay somewhere on the Elizabeth Line?

Perhaps the Hampshire coast would be good , with its proximity to the New Forest, maybe a day out to Portsmouth if you like maritime heritage? We used to go to Highcliffe and Lepe beaches a lot when I was a child. There's also a nice sandy beach at Christchurch (think that's just in Dorset)

Otherwise, the Isle of Purbeck area in Dorset is lovely and relatively close to London.

Thank you all for taking the time to reply, it is much appreciated! Going to make a note of all the suggestions for things to do in London and get my son to look online to see what he is most interested in and start looking at the different areas to stay 🙂

The nearest theme parks are Chessington and Thorpe Park. The fountains in King’s Cross are nice for children and free, British Museum is near there. Natural History Museum gets crowded. A better palace for me would be Hampton Court rather than Tower of London, you could bring a picnic, lovely gardens and I think it’s on the uber Thames clipper route. Greenwich also nice for kids.

I’d actually suggest an air b n b rather than hotel. Relatives did this in London for February half term. Just ensure you’re near (you should be) to a mini supermarket but you can eat out for lunch/dinner.

I’m not sure about Lee Valley tbh. It’s a lovely spot but will add a hassle to your days out in London. It would (I think) mean a train from Broxbourne into Liverpool Street, then the central line east, then a change onto another tube line.

It’d be easier to stay close to a tube line. Maybe the Elizabeth line as pp suggested which is great, or one of the branches of the Northern line north, for easy access to Harry Potter.

Or stay central. A friend stayed at the Premier Inn in Westminster recently and it was surprisingly quiet. Would need to leave your car somewhere on the outskirts though.

I agree with pp. I went on a charity event there and it was a bit of a pain to get to and from.

How could you forget the joy which is Legoland 😁

A lot of east Anglia does have fairly clean places to swim - obviously there is the Norfolk/Suffolk coast but there are plenty of rivers around that area - I live on the Norfolk border and there are many wild swimming groups and spots to go to.

if you are particularly interested then look for Norfolk bluetits groups on Facebook as they will have details of local swim spots.

I agree, Norfolk on the way back is a really good option.

@Donotgogentle @Gonnagetgoingreturnsagain thank you, will discount Lee Valley as that sounds too faffy for each day with several trains/tubes and look along the Elizabeth line instead.

There is also not a lot in Lee valley (someone may come along and correct me!) apart from the water sports place there. That’s great but I’m not 100% sure how suitable it is for a 11 year old, certainly not younger child!

I’d get a tourist boat rather than an uber. They’re fab and not as expensive as you think. I’m from London and still take them 🤣
Take the driverless DLR ( front carriage) to Greenwich . Get a sandwich from M&S and sit by the river watching the boats. Explore the Cutty Sark or the Maritime Museum ( I think the 11 year old would prefer the cutty sark personally) but if time, do both as Greenwich park is lovely.
Then take the tourist boat from Greenwich to Westminster. I like Thames-river-cruise.com. Often very funny live commentary !