London at half term

[moveoverhogger]

We have 2 nights/3 days in London over half term & would grateful for any hints/tips/recommendations. It's me, DH & DD10 going. I have hotel sorted, Harry Potter booked for the afternoon of day 2 & sky garden booked for afternoon of day 3. We also plan to go on the emirates cable cars at some point. There are no tickets left for natural history museum unfortunately.

1. What other things could we spend our time doing?

1. Am thinking of doing a hop on hop of bus to see the main sights. Any recommendations for which company to use? And should I book in advance or do they have offers if you buy on the day?

1. I've heard there's an Uber boat, can you tell me more about this and if it's worth it?

Thanks

walk along the south bank - over the millenium bridge & up to St Pauls.

walk through the parks - St James Park / past Buckingham Palace / Green Park then Picadilly Circus & Regent St

Tower of London & Tower Bridge & other walks along the river around there

Book a free play session on the giant piano in Selfridges and pretend you’re in “Big”.

Lego Discovery store and M&M world in Leicester Square. Chinatown borders Leicester Square and is worth a quick walk through. When were in that area, we also make a trip to Chin Chin Dessert labs. Try and include some time to browse around Covent Garden and to watch the street performers. If there's time in the afternoon or evening, you could see a show.
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.
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. Head over Tower Bridge and walk along the river to Southbank in time for lunch or dinner. You could then go on the London Eye if you have time . At weekends it's open until 8:30.
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.

Uber boat is definitely worth it. If you get the cable car over to North Greenwich you can then pick up the Uber boat from there and go down the Thames on it. Good places to get off would be the Southbank or Tower stops but there’s loads so just pick wherever fits with your plans

These are all great, thanks all

I would not do a big bus tour- number 11 bus covers most of the sights.

City Cruises to Greenwich are very good (from Westminster).

I wouldn’t plan much for day 2, Harry Potter is going to take much of the day with travelling

On the day you go to the Cable Cars I’d include a trip to Greenwich (it’s a couple of miles from North Greenwich, where the cable car station is). You could get the river cruise to or from Greenwich and wander around the UNESCO world heritage site, go to the market for food, look around the Royal Park and up the hill to the Observatory.

@PaniniHead were not booked into Harry Potter until 3.30, what time should we leave to get there?

Where are you staying OP?

@Stretchandsnap we're staying at the Hard Rock Hotel

How are you getting to Harry Potter - train? Think you’ll need to leave a good 1.5 hrs to get there by public transport from Marble Arch as its out in Watford and you don’t want to be late.

@Stretchandsnap yes was going to get the train, will definitely leave with plenty of time, do not want to be late 😁 thank you

I’d give yourself at least two hours to get there. The buses from Watford Junction aren’t London buses and can be quite loose with the timetable. Traffic is a nightmare too. If you’re using the shuttle, remember to buy the bus tickets in advance.

Harry Potter is at Leavesden, not London. It’s near Watford.

The main centre is a lot smaller than you think, and a lot of the places that look far apart on a tube map are quite close together.

Buckingham palace - St James park - the mall -Trafalger square

Covent Garden and West end

Camden market

Big Ben - Westminster - riverside walk

Harrods