London advice pls for Antipodeans

[Woodenlight]

We are visiting London for a week in October, with DP and DDs (11 and 13), as part of a big European trip. Coming from Down Under, so this is trip of a lifetime stuff. I have been before, but not for 20 years, and it will be first time for the others.

How to decide between the big attractions? Are Tower of London, Buckingham Palace etc worth going inside? I previously mostly visited the free museums/galleries.

We will probably visit the HP studios because both my DC love Harry Potter. Any advice on navigating this, as I know it’s very popular?

Any hidden gems or quirky, fun attractions anyone can recommend?

If you love history and your kids are old enough, do a London Walk? Jack the Ripper is absolutely brilliant and takes in lots of sights you wouldn’t ordinarily know about.

Central London is as lot smaller than tube maps suggest, so you can easily from Leicester Square to China town to Piccadilly Circus for example.

I have lived in London all my adult life and never bothered with a visit inside Buckingham palace or been to Harrods so can’t see the appeal of either tbh! It’s prob worth seeing Buckingham palace from the front, see the guards etc. You could combine Big Ben/Houses of Parliament and Buckingham palace in a day. Start on Westminster bridge (go early it gets so crowded there - it’s a right pain having to cross it to get to work!) see Parliament, then walk down King Charles st, between the treasury building and foreign office (this has security by it, and I think loads of people assume you can’t walk through, but you can - and in fact you and see right at the door of number 10 downing st about half way down the road, as the foreign office building has a big pathway through it). You could go to the cabinet war rooms which are down the steps at the end of King Charles st, then head walk through st James park to Buckingham palace

I’m not a fan of Camden, the market is really really crowded. But regents canal walk is nice, and the new development north of kings x is great. Camden passage by angel is much nicer than Camden itself imo. So another day I’d walk along regents canal as all these places off it

greenwich is nice, and the queens house / naval college are in loads of films so you will probably find your kids recognise it. Def get the boat either there or back

id recommend a theatre trip one evening, not necessarily the west end. The national theatre or barbican are more affordable for families as kids tickets cheaper, and the modern theatres are more comfortable and views from even high up good. I’m also a fan of the brutallist architecture of the both these venues, especially the Barbican. It’s a totally unique place and worth a visit even if not seeing a show there. The conservatory within its like a small Kew hot house, you have to book but it’s free

of the more costly attractions, I think the Tower of London stands out, as does Hampton court (though that is further out of town so would be a full day trip).

get the city mapper app for navigation - it’s great and will always give a good walking route as well as public transport. Buses are slow in central London and walking between sites generally faster than bus and sometimes even tube for short distances . Cycling has become a great way to get around the city in the last 20 years as there’s now loads of protected bike lanes so if you are up for it I’d also recommend using the Santander or other hire bikes. Cycling is generally the quickest way to get around within travel zones 1-2.

This or similar might be fun for the children: https://www.mysteryguides.co.uk/products/londonfleetstreet

Buckingham palace is only open during summer.

The Tower is really good. Go when it opens and go to the Crown Jewels first. You are on a travelator so can’t stop and stare but if you are very early, it’s quiet and you can go slowly and look closely. The rest of the Tower is easy.

Have a look at the Tower calendar closer to your dates. We were there during a schools choir festival which was marvellous.

And if you look at the Tower Bridge site, it will tell you when the Bridge is due to open, so you can be ready to watch. You can see it from the public walks on both sides of the river.

If you’re history nerds then definitely do one of the Yeoman Warders tours at the Tower of London. I also really enjoyed the Ceremony of the Keys there, but you definitely need to book in advance for that and really depends how lively your children are (not recommended for kids who can’t stand quietly)

I’d avoid the British Museum in October as the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition is on. You won’t get tickets for that if you don’t already have them and it’s likely to mean the museum is even busier than usual.

I’d actually look to do a day trip out of London if you’re here for the week, perhaps to somewhere like Bath or York.

My favourite place to go when I lived in London was Highgate cemetery which is amazing and very atmospheric. Doing a guided tour is really fascinating. Also, walking down the south bank is lovely and Just meandering through London admiring the architecture is a great way to spend a few hours.