What to do in Central London with moody 12 yrs old girl?

[Autumnwibess]

We are going to London for a day with my daughter who is 12 and she feels it will be boring and tiresome and all she wants to do is talk to her friends on the phone in her room!
My and DH went to London last month and had a good time especially in Abbey Road, pouncing around London but she doesn’t want to really go.
So far I booked a cable car across the river.
She is not into museums or anything like that, so no point going there, to be honest I did all these myself 25 yrs ago and personally I am not into it much either.
I sadly can’t afford any attractions like London eye or Madame Tussaud’s,
I am on the a strict budget.
Any tip’s please?

Ahhh the fickledom of tweens/teens, this I am familiar with. Sound like plan it what you think she might like along with things you like. I know my DD wants to do silly things like eat bao buns and get bubble tea, not really exclusive to London per se, but she is more willing to do other things if these are also on the radar.

I will be visiting for 2 days in November with a 15 year old that does not want to come either so am really grateful for these great ideas too.

He is too young to leave at home so he has to come with us. I hope he enjoys even a tiny bit of it.

Speed boat down the river?

Ask her what she would like to do on this trip, make suggestions and get her to look things up; if she still insists she doesn't want to go, don't make her. The idea of a day out with parents at her age would have bored me.

If you are not going to be back until late at night, organise for her to go to somebody else's house or for them to come to yours. At 12, she would be OK on her own for a while during the day.

Alternatively, you could postpone your trip until she is back at school and could go to a friend's afterwards where you can pick her up on your return.

I hope you enjoy your day out, London is wonderful.

My 12yo unexpectedly enjoyed the Sky Garden (free but need to book).

@Yoyo2021 my old friend lives there so we went there to visit. Only did some shopping and so not too much but she enjoyed it there actually.

To be fair the cable cars not that great unless you really love cable cars, all you see is the O2, it's too far east too see any great views. There's an outlet in the O2 if she's into that.
Chinatown and Covent Garden are probably some of the better options

Go to Artbox in Covent Garden, they have a huge selection of BT21 merch (products from the band BTS). Stuff like stationery, stickers & notebooks are fairly cheap so she can plan a budget with her pocket money.

If you are going to the cable car, I would take the driverless DLR train (sit at the front) one way and the riverboat back past all the sights (St Pauls, Tower of London, London Eye, Houses of Parliament).

Camden Market is always the (excellent) default option for moody teenagers 😂There is a branch of Oseyo, the Korean supermarket, and several Korean restuarants.

It's not too far from there to Bloomsbury to this Korean beauty store that has a nail bar and Korean tea room, if you want to treat her to a manicure:

https://glamtouch.co.uk/blogs/edits/the-most-instagrammable-k-beauty-store-in-the-uk

Not far from Bloomsbury in the opposite direction (especially if you are considering going to Covent Garden, Soho, Oxford Street etc), Tottenham Court Road has a few Korean restaurants and a couple of Korean supermarket at Centre Point/St Giles. It's a shame you missed the Korean Now festival there... The Arcade Food Hall at Centrepoint is also fun for teens. The Outernet on Denmark Street, nestled among all the guitar shops, is an impressive music venue with free immersive experiences on giant 360 degree screens inthe Now building. There is also a rooftop restaurant:

https://www.outernetglobal.com
https://www.arcadefoodhall.com/arcade-tottenham-court-rd

This tiny automaton museum is nearby in Holborn and fun:

https://www.novelty-automation.com

Just seen a story on the news about six children stuck on a cable car!

Not sure how much this is, but it’s an immersive experience of optical illusions, so might be pretty cool…

https://twistmuseum.com/

@Diospyros thank you.
I never used DLR before.
I plan to get to Greenwich Peninsula by Jubilee line, take the Cable car to the Royal docks and then take( DLR? )To go Canning Town to change to Tube?
I never actually went that part of London before, ( I lived in North London) is there a better way to do this? Maybe to do it in the opposite direction? Please advice..

Also was planing on the Sky garden, didn’t realise I have to book 3 weeks in advance.

Oh! And also check out where some instagrammable places are. Then incorporate them into your routes and your DD can show off to her friends.
I hadn't realise how much my DD was bothered about shopping or having cool back drops to photos until we were somewhere where it was an option. I also got kudos for knowing where these places were and DD clearly appreciated that I'd put some thought into this rather than going to another museum (which is what she seems to think her entire primary school years were made up of).
Moody teen actually turned into delightful child and we had a really good trip. Clearly I daren't repeat this!

It rather depends where you are coming from or going to, @Autumnwibess !

If you want to take the cable car from the Greenwich Peninsula side, you should do it the other way round to be on the correct side of the river. Take the riverboat from Westminster to North Greenwich (to see the main sights like the London Eye, Big Ben etc). Then take the DLR back from Royal Victoria.

If you are short on time, just take the quickest route to wherever you are going instead of the DLR. I just suggested it because most teens visiting London for the first time are fascinated by the idea of a driverless train and it's a bit like a rollercoaster in parts if you are sitting in the front carriage, especially in the front seats where the driver would sit. The best bit is near Bank though, which you would have to change DLR lines for at Canning Town. If you are short on time and can only do one, the riverboat route is more impressive!

Actually, on reflection, if I remember correctly, the best DLR journey is into Bank as that way you are downhill on the rollercoaster bit and you get the view of the Shard (you would have your back to the Shard if you take the DLR to the cable car). So maybe it's better to take the boat there and then, if you have time and it works for wherever you are going next, take the DLR back to Bank.

Here are the route maps and the travel info for the cable car:

https://tfl.gov.uk/maps/river?intcmp=40403
https://content.tfl.gov.uk/dlr-route-map.pdf
https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/london-cable-car/opening-hours-frequency?intcmp=1453

I plan to get to Greenwich Peninsula by Jubilee line, take the Cable car to the Royal docks and then take( DLR? )To go Canning Town to change to Tube?

If you do it that way round you're very near either Royal Victoria or Custom House DLR which will take you to Canning Town for the Jubilee Line.

London dungeons

Brick Lane has some cool shops and you can do JunkYard golf which is good fun.

@Diospyros many thanks.

The Ice Cream Project by Anya Hindmarch has weird ice cream flavours such as tomato soup/mushy peas.
Also has more appetising flavours!

Sephora?

The Carnaby area is not the tourist trap it used to be, lots of shops that appeal to teens now. Great places to eat in Kingly Court. And can walk from there to Chinatown, or Covent Garden, where there is a great indoor food court/market in an old banana warehouse just off Neal St. Cov G has a good Urban Outfitters that is always full of teens.

charing Cross road has lots of Korean shops selling make up, food, teas, comics.

There’s a really cool eating area in North Greenwich (where cable cars are)

I think they’re still showing films on the canal at King’s Cross which DD loves

My nieces love going to Peckham when they’re here but might not be the day out you’re after 😉

https://group.canarywharf.com/press-release/gdif/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwuZGnBhD1ARIsACxbAVgrOsR3QkH3dYrxAyjWEDjp3ZxC1hiGAjswfiJpbhaZBK89I9IAjVUaAmDfEALw_wcB