London sightseeing with teens advice? How many days and where??

[Ilikeyoursleeves]

I'm thinking of booking a surprise trip taking my family to London in the Feb break next year.

I have 3 boys who will be 11,14 and 16 then, plus my husband. I don't know London at all although have been a few times when I was younger. Budget is around £2k and this will need to cover transport from Scotland (prob by train), tube/ buses/ taxis, hotel, food, sightseeing and shopping.

I'm thinking 3 nights and in a hotel in one room for the 5 of us. I thought Airbnb but I'd like someone to clean and give us breakfast!

Is 3 nights enough and if so what is best to see and do?!!

Any recommendations for where to stay as a family of 5??

Thanks in advance!

Speed boat down the Thames and London dungeons. Great for teens

@PinkArt yes I def plan on asking them what they want to see and do. I've not told them yet (or even DH!) as I might surprise them all at Xmas with it. That will give us a few months to research and plan!

My eldest would LOVVVE to go to Tottenham Hotspurs ground but I've no idea where it is and I don't want to spend the day at a football ground when we really only have two proper days in London!!

All the Oyster / travel info is great thanks. My youngest said that if he ever went to London the best but would be going on a double decker London bus 🤣

China Town also sounds delish. Any particular recommendations or would we just wander around? Where is it??

I def want to do things we wouldn't be able to do elsewhere

It’s fantastic but definitely not higher than the Shard.

Great walk:
Start Houses of Parliament, cross over to South Bank, check out Leake Street Arches for amazing street art, walk along river bank past London eye, and Tate Modern, if that's enough for one day cross over Millennium Bridge to St Paul's Cathedral.
Or walk further along South Bank past Shakespeare's Globe to Borough Market, then either carry on along South Bank to HMS Belfast then over Tower Bridge to The Tower of London, or cross over at London Bridge and head to Sky Garden, 120 Fenchurch or Horizon 22 for great views.

You can get the Uber Boat by Thames Clippers from central London to Greenwich Pier via Canary Wharf, great to see the sights from a different angle, the Cutty Sark and Greenwich Old Royal Naval College (popular film location if your DC are into films, was used in Thor for example) worth a visit.

Camden market, Spitalfields, Covent Garden and Oxford street all popular with my DC too.

China Town is right next to Piccadilly Circus.

Hop on Hop off really isn't a great idea for London, because the traffic is so bad and they're not something you can use as a mode of transport. I've done HOHO in other cities and they're great, but they're not advised for London.

Normal buses are much better, probably quieter/less crowded depending on time of day, and there are routes than go right by some of the most iconic sites in London.

Download CityMapper to navigate around.

I agree with taking the Uber Boat to Greenwich. Riding the DLR (or driving the DLR) might be fun?

If you wanted to spend a day or an afternoon outside of central London I might suggest taking the Uber Boat to Greenwich, looking around Greenwich (stop in Greenwich Market for lunch - the satay stall and the gigantic Portuguese custard doughnuts are my personal favourites), then walk through the Greenwich Foot Tunnel (cool and kind of eerie experience knowing that you're walking underneath the Thames), visit Mudchute Farm, then take the DLR from Mudchute Station to Canary Wharf (stand at the very far end of the platform to be try to sit right at the very front so you can "drive"), then have a quick look around Canary Wharf which is fascinating and now very buzzy, then take the Elizabeth Line back to Tottenham Court Road.

It's not ridiculously far out, but the travel would massively eat in to your day, even if you were doing other stuff north of central. And it's nowhere near Kensington. At 16 though maybe they could head to see it separately and you all RV later in the day. There are some rough areas near to the stadium so I'd do a bit of research first to see how it sits with your own risk assessing.
I'd definitely get a bus at some point when you aren't right for time, especially if it's on the wish list. Even having lived here for 20 years I still enjoy taking routes I don't know and seeing different parts of town. Don't underestimate the fun that walking can be either. There's history and interesting stuff to see everywhere. I love walking through The City and stumbling across bits of the old Roman walls.
When you've got a bit of a collective wish list, I bet we could all help hone it to make the most of the time you've got here. It might be that just you'd hate say the Dungeons but the hive mind could have a lovely cafe suggestion nearby while the rest of the family went in.

If you are staying I'm Kensington anyway, try to walk past the 'skinny house', not an attraction as such but its great to see.

This is the only suggestion you need. Absolutely perfect

Wow thanks so much for all your amazing suggestions! So helpful for someone who doesn't know London at all! I will have a think and a chat with the family (when I tell them about the trip that is!) and def come back to this thread to firm things up. It's not til Feb but it will be here before I know it

@Parapapampam ’s walk is a fantastic suggestion. Just do that! You will see loads of things along the way too.

If you do go on a bus, old websites will suggest the number 11, but the route has been changed so just be aware it’s not covering as much tourist stuff as it used to. Apparently the number 26 is a good alternative.

Im taking my teen to London next week. Thanks for all the brilliant suggestions.
You're going to need nire tgsn one visit op 😀

Need more than

I’ve just returned from a trip with my neatly 16 year old. She’s a bit nerdy and shopping not a priority. She love Natural History Museum, particularly the minerals (physical geography nerd). Loved Covent Garden and wandering from there to Leicester Square and Chinatown. Said the meal there was the best she had ever eaten.

Really enjoyed St Paul’s. The climb to the top was fun and you can see the whole of London from the top, so much better than London Eye. We spent an afternoon in Camden which was far too crowded but the food was great and there was plenty of interest. Some very cool shops and stalls.

We went to check out the renovated Battersea power station, now a designer mall. Then Thames river bus to Embankment and walked through Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus and Oxford St shops.

@Parapapampam 's walk is perfect. If they haven't been before, it's a great way to see lots of the sights.

Are you committed to the premier inn at Kensington? I always use the Aldgate one now - 10 mins from KX on the tube, walking distance to the river, handy for Spitalfields and Brick Lane.

Tower of London is a good day out, Tower bridge is quite fun (and then walking distance to Borough market for food, lots of little stalls and vans).

Lego store, M&M store and Forbidden planet have all been popular shops to visit (around Leicester Square area, also not far from Covent Garden and Trafalgar Square).

The young visitor discount is a bit of a faff, speak to a staff member at the ticket office when you arrive (may only be available at mainline stations, we struggled to find someone last time).

Me and DS (16) went on the IFS cable car recently. Really good fun, amazing views and not too expensive. We enjoyed a poke round the O2 afterwards too (Nike and Adidas outlet shops, among others) and then took the Uber boat to Greenwich to go to the market and Queens House (I was the most interested in this but DS tolerated it!)

Check out Groupon for London deals- we went last summer and I got tickets for a boat tour for £6 each. We also got a really good deal for a sharing meal at The Real Greek.

Our teens absolutely loved Back to the Future if it’s still on.

Food wise I'd do one night Chinatown or during the day for dumplings.

Flat iron and Pho are good chains that aren't crazy money.

Tower of London is good to spend quite a few hours and you can get a river boat.

London Eye is meh to me, I wouldn't bother.

There are some cool walking tours about graffiti or jack the ripper.

I think you'll need a bank card for your older ones, you can do apple pay and a card. It automatically stops at a certain amount. Buses you can get multiple in an hour and only get charged once.

If they are into comics, superheroes, alternative culture The Forbidden Planet superstore is a good place to go. (179 Shaftesbury Avenue). The Orcs Nest is good for Warhammer style modelling (and there's a shop for mystics on the other side of the road).

My daughter loves Spitalfields market and the vintage shops in Brick Lane. The famous bagel shops are in Brick Lane too (choose before you get to the front of the queue and pay quickly or you get the LOOK from the staff). Other haunts are Camden (naturally) for food and fashion and Coal Drops Yard in Kings Cross.

If you have timed slots booked do not rely on busses. 🙂

Hello all! I've still not told them we are going to London! I've just seen that Stranger Things is on at The Phoenix Theatre... my boys LOVED that program. Does anyone know if it's any good?! The stage show that is. It's pricey for all of us so keen to know if it's decent?? Thanks

Or any other good shows for teen boys?

Update- didn't book Stranger Things but booked Cirque De Soliel!!! Has anyone been to that?

I have not been to cirque du soleil but have heard very good things. Is that on at that royal Albert hall? You’ll have a blast!

@Snowpake yes! The Royal Albert Hall which is 20 mins walk from our hotel in Kensington, result! I've always wanted to see it and The Royal Albert Hall is so famous too