London with kids - avoid tube

[User908752157]

Planning to use train to visit London. Would like to avoid the tube during three day break. Where to stay to do this? How do I do this - city siteseeing bus?

Where is good for primary aged children in the evening as do not really want to be stuck in a hotel (not detrimental if good location during the day). Could we get to theatre for a family evening show and stay in hotel nearby/still avoid tube?

We never use the tube when visiting centrally, it’s an absolute nightmare with a buggy and I hate the sensory overload.

A lot of places are within walking distance of each other. What are the main attractions you’d like to see?

I don't really like the tube but will do it sometimes as it's so much quicker - I get by on a mix of trains/buses and walking.

There are some buses (no 9 esp - see here) that cover great ground in terms of London - and will only cost you adult bus fare (kids are free). I would recommend using contactless cards and they will automatically cap it at the max daily rate.

Don't forget the uber boats along the river, if you get one that goes east beyond Tower Bridge they really speed up - and most of them have bars on too so you can have a drink. Worth it to go to Greenwich, can then head up to N Greenwich for the O2 and then the cable cars across the river to the DLR

Have fun

The tube is absolutely brilliant with primary age dc. Can fit so much in to a day hopping on and off and dc likely will love it. If it's really not an option then just get the bus - much slower and a trickier to work out ime. London is huge so you'll be pretty limited if you want to stick within walking distance

During the day - 9:30 - 4 the tubes are quiet. I’ve travelled a lot during these times and more than once had a carriage to myself. It’s also a lot harder now to get lost!!

The copy mapper app also lets you know the next part of the tube for the exit of the station you are getting off.

The app is also excellent for the buses showing where the bus stop is, when to get off. The various travel times for all the modes of transport.

There’s also loads of child friendly places but scattered all over london. V&A toy museum, science museum, various parks, Kew Gardens, South bank street entertainment, cable car and much more.

Take ample water with you. For starters public transport can get extremely hot. It’s can also be very overpriced in tourist areas.

Oh and dlr (docklands light railway) is often enjoyable by young children if you sit at the very front. It’s driverless and massive window to see the tracks and more. Again go in the quiet times

I always use cabs , I can’t go on the tube due to severe motion sickness.

The 'tunnel trains' were the highlight of my DC visit to London.
They actually were getting very good at knowing the routes to get to the museums etc. We actually let them show us how to get back to the hotel on the last two days,and they managed it!
Bus travel in the city is slow and tedious during the week.

You can also travel via mainline in some parts of London e.g St Pancras to Blackfriars etc.

But St P to Bfriars is underground, so if op has a phobia about being underground, that won't do.

I agree it's good to take kids on the Tube, for the experience, and so they can begin to learn how to navigate it.

You can plan your journey quite easily using the Tube map or tfl site etc, and once you know that (for example) you need the Central Line eastbound, it's very well signposted in stations.

Just stand on the right on escalators and have your ticket/card ready as you approach the barriers. If travelling with children, best to aim for the wide gate at the end of the row.

DLR is also fun if you're going that way. If you get the front seat, you can 'drive' the train. Though I've never managed to do that!

To get the front seats in DLR avoid holidays, weekends Also easier to get the front seats if you start at the beginning, especially in the morning depending on what’s going on at the O2 arena @HonoriaLucastaDelagardie

Just to point out that while the Elizabeth Line is often quiet during the day, it can be absolutely heaving (as in, can barely elbow your way inside, definitely no seats) during rush hour, late at night, and especially at weekends.

It’s very easy to avoid the tube in central London. I really love walking around London and the buses aren’t too bad either.
What do you have planned already?

Many of the theatres are on the 38 bus route.

And obviously Natural History Museum and the Science Museum in South Kensington.

We avoid the tube too, one of my DC really doesn't like them (and that isn't likely to change, he's a young adult, he has tried the tube many times but will always prefer the bus I think now), we get around easily enough on foot and buses. I used citymapper for years but the apple maps app is just as good now, just use the public transport option. Tells you exactly which bus stop to go to, live times and you can track your journey as you travel.

I would stay centrally - Southbank is a good shout. You can just use buses. It's free for the kids and you can you use your credit card / debit card. Google maps allows you to search routes using buses / walking only. If you are scared of the underground I would avoid the Elizabeth line as in central London it's effectively another tube line (though accessible if you have a buggy or wheelchair)

Southbank is a good area to stay - also not as expensive as central London. Very easy to walk, get a bus or take a riverboat from there to anywhere you might want to go.

I lived in London for years and mostly used buses to save money - to the extent that my friends would tease me about how much longer it took me to get places. But I had a book and was happy.

Anyway, it really is easy to get around by walking and using buses. The only issue will be how long it might take in traffic and how patient your kids are. My guys tend to enjoy the bus for a certain amount of time and then boredom strikes, but it totally depends where you’re going. Just bear in mind that buses can get busy and that can be a bit stressful.

I wouldn’t necessarily say no tourist bus IF you had a day to see things and just wanted a fairly easy way to do it. But not for general getting around purposes over several days.

I hate the tube. It's noisy, smelly and I hate how no one talks to each other and avoids eye contact. I always get black cabs when I'm in London. Which isn't often.

This is so rude

OP hasn't said why they want to avoid the tube, juts that they do. Why can't you just respect that?

I stayed in Holborn which is walking distance of a lot of the main things but also really good bus options too.

I assumed it was a joke, since clearly non-UK resident (and dead) Einstein, and millionaire Arsenal players, do not use the tube…

Like saying “You know who else didn’t use the tube? Hitler”

I've seen an Arsenal player on the tube. And a Spurs one had an Oyster card!!

With kids those age I would actually suggest staying in Greenwich. You can spend a whole day just locally, with the museums and the park and planetarium, and there's lots of family-friendly stuff going on. Then for transport you've got local trains, the DLR and the river boat, e.g. you can take the river boat to central London which makes the journey also a bit of a fun adventure.

My best friend refuses to take the tube. A lot of people do. No big deal.

There is a brilliant bus service in London. It gets crowded and takes longer than the tube, but it’s used by many, many people and pretty reliable.

Depending on where you want to, you can also take overground trains to some destinations.

If you’re planning on staying central and it’s not pudding duwn with rain, you could just walk a lot?

Black taxis (pricey) and Uber are plentiful in London, too!

There might be a wheelchair, double buggy or other mobility issue involved. If you're not familiar with London then I can see why it might be preferable in those cases to just avoid the tube for a short trip. The OP hasn't given details so shall we take her word that she doesn't want to use the tube?

However if it is that, the tube map has a wheelchair symbol that indicates there is a lift at that station.

You can go on TFL and plan your journey from place to place, choosing what modes of transport to use. Just deselect tube. Overground, buses, DLR, river boat and trams are all accessible. Walking is often the quickest centrally, for instance between Covent Garden, Leicester Square and Picadilly Circus up to Oxford St. What activities do you have planned? It would be easier to suggest where to stay around any existing plans as there are interesting things to do everywhere pretty much.