Southwark/Vauxhall vs. Lancaster Gate/Hyde Park for family summer visit to London

[shwang]

We have 4 girls ages 6, 8, 11 and 17 and will be visiting London in summer 09. In June we will be renting a flat for 10 days in Little Venice. We return to London for 10 days in July and are deciding whether to rent a riverside holiday flat on ALbert Embankment between Vauxhall and Waterloo....or a holiday flat near Hyde Park on Lancaster Gate. The latter seems a more child-friendly location ,but it's significantly more expensive, and we'll have already been in North London in June. Is south-of-Thames a child-friendly area, close to the Eye and Tate ? Any advice greatly appreciated. Thanks so much !

It depends what you mean by child friendly. There is plenty to see along the river and and museums to visit as well as resteraunts, but no playgrounds and parks as such. If you want that, you would be better off near Hyde Park.

Thanks, IlanaK. I also posted on the UK travel section and received similar if not more negative feedback about the Albert Embankment area--sterile, dull, etc. I had hoped that Lambeth/Vauxhall had some great parks, kids museums, etc, but I guess we'll head to the other side of the river!