Please show off your London hacks and tips!

[evtheria]

Giddy with the thought of restrictions easing, we booked 3 (refundable) nights in London for autumn. We are not familiar with the city, and it will be the first time for our DS (who will be 7 by then).

What are your best tips and tricks for London visits? What should we splurge on? What should we miss? What did your young kids love? Do we go to Harrods or Hamleys for a gawk?
I’ve read a great MSE article with helpful info, but know Mn is full of founts of knowledge! Thank you in advance

Book for the Tower of London for as early in the morning as you can, so you get in before the crowds. The Yeoman Warders [Beefeaters] do brilliant tours.

Maybe do the museums and the National Gallery eg the Science Museum, British Museum later in the day. As they're free you can dip in and out of these and not try to do too much in one go.

Get a Tube app/Citymapper for your phone. A free one is fine and will plan your routes for you for the bus and Tube.

I'd do Hamley's for kids and skip Harrods myself, YMMV.

Have the best time, London is utterly wonderful in every possible way!

Definitely a tube app. I'm not familiar with London but it was so easy with the app.

Mudlarks at the Museum of London Docklands is an amazing interactive play area is for under 12s.
Coram's Fields is a free 7-acre playground and park. Pet's Corner is popular, and the sandpit is good if it's dry. There's a cafe onsite too.
Climbers and Creepers is a really popular play area at Kew Gardens. It’s so popular that you need to book a time slot, and that was pre Covid! Children get in to Kew for free, and at one point you could get 2for1 adult entry with your railcard.
The pelicans in St. James's Park are fed fish at 2:30 p.m. each day. The park is quite big so you need to head for the opposite end to Buckingham Palace and they are fed from behind Duck Island Cottage, near Horse Guard's Parade. The pelicans know when it's time as they wait there and keep watch for the man with the fish. Throwing the fish out takes just 10 minutes or so, but it's fun to watch.

I'd recommend getting Big Bus Tour classic ticket. On the bus, do a complete lap of the Red Route without getting off. It takes just over 2 hours and includes Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, Big Ben, Mayfair, London Bridge, Hyde Park, Tower Bridge and Buckingham Palace. There's live commentary in English but Italian is an option for the pre-recorded headsets.
The ticket also includes a one-way river cruise along the Thames from Westminster Pier to the Tower of London, or vice versa. I'd start and finish the bus tour at Westminster Pier so afterwards you can catch the boat straight up to the Tower of London. If you're up early, you could be done with the bus tour by mid morning and be at the Tower for lunch. The are about 3 different cafes and a kiosk where you can buy food. Then allow 3-4 hours for the Tower. After you're done, head over Tower Bridge and walk along the river to Southbank in time for dinner. You could then go on the London Eye in the evening if you have time . At weekends it's open until 8:30.
There are loads of street performers at Southbank, such as magicians and singers, as well as restaurants and cafes with good views across the river. Just behind the Southbank is the Jubilee Gardens where there is a great adventure playground and lots of grass for a picnic and play.
If you fancy a trip on a bus without paying for an open top bus tour, the RV1 bus from Tower Gateway to Covent Garden goes past many of the big sites taking about 30 minutes. It’s a great alternative if you think your DS would like a trip on a bus but you don’t think they will sit still through a long tour.
The Diana Memorial Playground in Kensington Gardens has a huge wooden pirate ship, sensory trail, tepee and a beach.
The Lego store in Leicester Square is an experience in itself - it’s the biggest Lego shop in the world and has some massive models of London landmarks and movie characters. It’s also right next to M and M world which is great fun.
Changing of the Guard usually attracts large crowds. An alternative is to head for Horse Guards Parade where the Queen’s Life Guard change at 11am Monday – Sat and 10am on a Sunday. There are smaller crowds and no railings between visitors and the guards taking place, and the whole event takes about 30 minutes.

If you are heading to Leicester Square and the M&M world and Lego store then you can have lunch in China town and tackle Hamley’s after that.

The Science museum and the Natural History Museum are fantastic and will be packed during school holidays.

Greenwich is lovely, and you can take a river boat there or back.

Great ideas, and I really appreciate the suggested itineraries!

I'd include a ride in a Thames Clipper down to Greenwich or the Tower of London ("Tower Pier"), do a bit of mudlarking, look at Tower Bridge, walk along the river, see Cutty Sark, possibly into Greenwich Park for a picnic and visit to the National Maritime Museum and walk up to the Prime Meridian Line in the park.

When you are in Regent Street to go to Hamleys, look up. Away from the shop facades, it is a beautiful Georgian street.

Don’t bother with Harrods. It’s just a shop. If you want something interesting Liberty (also Regent Street) is more impressive imho.

There are lots of tucked away places to eat and drink. Little independent cafes and restaurants. Much nicer than a chain.

The British Museum is remarkable.

Tate modern too.

Hamleys is rubbish, dark, hot and dingy. Definitely do the big red bus tour! A must for first timers.

We took our boys this time last year. We booked a 3 in one ticket for a bus tour, Madame Tussauds and the London Eye. It was great to have pre booked tickets for thise last 2 and it worked out cheaper. We did go to the Natural History museum which is awesome, but the queues were horrendous to get in. Our final stop before the train home was the Ice cream parlour at Fortnum and Mason which was fab. Again, do book in advance!

I think going on the tube is part of the experience. Also a ride on a river boat of some sort

Hamleys, Camden market, science museum and history museum my favourite places. A musical makes a good experience too.

This thread has made me miss being able to go into London with the kids even more!

So many great suggestions already, but just wanted to add the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden. We spent many an afternoon there when my children were younger.

Enjoy! It's lovely having something fun to plan and look forward to.

Definitely do a trip on the Thames, it's fabulous. I liked going from Westminster to the Tower of London on it. The Crown Jewels are amazing by the way. Sapphires the size of eggs in one crown as I recall

Just a couple of things to add - the science museum now charged for the main kids area. Lots is free but the Science Labneeds to be booked and paid for. Tubes and buses are all free for a 7yo. Buses are good as nothing is far apart but traffic can be awful. The best app is Citimapper as it will suggest walking options. Eg Covent garden and Leicester Square are less than 10 mins walk but you can spend that long going down and up on the tube.
Kew is lovely but it is far outof the centre. Depending where your hotel is the princess Diana playground in Hyde Park is a good option.

Citymapper is the best app. Set your hotel as 'home' and then you can get routes back to it with one button.

The classic hop-off the back Routemaster buses still run on routes 9 and 15, past a lot of the sights (every other bus is a modern one).

Covent Garden also has the London Transport museum and a ticket for an adult (kids are free) is valid for a year, so could go a couple times if that's your kid's thing.

Look at a map - central London is less tall north-south than it looks on maps, so walking from say Waterloo via Covent Garden to Neal's Yard and the British Museum is little longer than the tube (well, the direct route is - you'd want to meander round the pretty bits).

The Natural History museum and Science Museum are next to each other in South Kensington. Unless your child is obsessed with dinosaurs, avoid that bit of the NHM in school holidays (as it's packed), and consider using the back entrance to the museum. Science is less bad, especially in afternoons. The shows are good for age 7.
If you cross the road to the V&A, there is a huge courtyard with paddling pool and much-less-crowded cafe.

If looking for an excuse to go on the DLR (and pretend to drive), go to Yi-Ban for dim sum and you can watch planes landing/leaving at City Airport as well as boats, trains, DLR, buses...

Don't do Hamleys. It's stupidly overpriced. Anything that's a branded toy can be bought elsewhere for much cheaper and their 'own brand' stuff is nothing special. Harrods isn't anything special either. If you want a 'special' shop Forbidden Planet is awesome if your child (or you) likes Harry Potter, Star Wars, Pokémon type things. Foyles bookshop is good too. Has a lot of American books you can't always get elsewhere. And of course the Lego Shop (if you like Lego obviously) because you can get exclusive stuff there. The M+M Store is across from Lego. It's an..... experience that's all I can say. There is no where like it on earth*. It's sooo weird and bizarre.
If your child like trains etc the London Transport Museum (in Covent Garden) is good. If you don't want to do the museum you can just go in the gift shop.
*I am not sure if there are any other M+M stores in the world. There might be.

For finding your way around I would recommend Google Maps - it will tell you what your quickest option is, be it walking, tube, bus or any combination. It will even tell you which bus stop to use and when to get off the bus.

Don't bother with a travelcard or even an oyster card for adults - use your phone or contactless card instead. It's as cheap as oyster and will automatically tot up your fares so you never pay more than the daily total. Bus is the cheapest option - £1.50 per journey - even if you change then you only pay once from 1 hour of the first time you tapped in. Maximum daily charge of £4.50. Children can get a junior oyster and pay reduced fares, but you need to sort this out in advance I think.

The London Eye and Shard are quite expensive but you can get an excellent view of London for free if you book tickets to the Sky Garden at the top of the Walkie Talkie. You do need to book in advance though.

Citymapper is a life saver.

I think Harrods is worth a visit, and afterwards I always love to walk from Knightsbridge to South Kensington to gawk at the gorgeous houses.

A trip to the theatre, walks through Hyde Park/Regents Park, the M&M store (though beware it's expensive).

I would give Madame Tussaud's a miss.

Transport museum in Covent Garden is great if your son is keen on trains/buses etc. And Covent Garden has some lovely lunch places. If you’re there over a weekend, a good market wander is a lovely way to spend a few hours. Portobello is good or brick lane. A river cruise is great too

If you are going to Paddington Station catch the tube to Lancaster Gate and walk, via Westbourne Terrace and Pread Street. Its about a 5-8 minute walk and you avoid the argy-bargy on the Circle Line.

Hello, London parent here.

Definitely get the regular bus rather than spending out on the open top one. You can just use your bank card to pay your fare on every bus (and the tube).

If you're going to the Natural History or Science Museums, head there for opening time to do the popular bits (dinosaurs etc) before the crowds build up. You could tie this in with Harrods/Kings Road too.

For a view, the Skygarden is free, tickets are released for booking every week, for up to 3 weeks in advance. Spitalfields/Brick Lane area are interesting to walk around.

The view from the top of the Tate Modern, also free entry, are also good. My DD (7) enjoys the Tate itself too.

The Southbank is well worth a visit even though it is very touristy and gets busy. We come into Blackfriars and the walk from there to Waterloo is fun, with street performers etc. The Wahaca by the South Bank Centre is a favourite lunch spot of our kids.

The walk the other way to London Bridge is good too, past the Globe Theatre etc., and Borough Market is a great lunch destination.

Greenwich is lovely for a day out, get the Thames Clipper and visit the Cutty Sark, Maritime Museum etc. Greenwich Market for lunch on the go or there are also some gorgeous pubs such as the Trafalgar Tavern.

We really like London Zoo, and Regents Park/Primrose Hill are lovely for a walk.

Chinatown is a fun experience for lunch if your kids are more adventurous eaters. Very close to Oxford St if you're doing that.

Enjoy! It's a very child friendly city to mooch around.

Most important....wear comfy shoes.

I would try a walking tour or a bike tour- you can get lots of family friendly ones. We've done a few and found them more engaging than the buses. The monument to the great fire is relatively cheap and has some amazing views (lots of steps though!)

skygarden.london/
Fabulous free views of the city from here, you need to prebook.
The V & A museum of childhood was really enjoyed by our kids (Bethnal Green and free I think)
The museum of London was great too. We visited in half term and there was lots of free activities for them to do.
Keep an eye on the what’s on pages of museums so you can prebook things.
Enjoy, I love London miss it so much now we’re moved!