London with kids ideas

[bluebellsInWinter]

Going to London from in half term with my 12 and 10 year old boys as they say they want to see 'the sights!' They've listed Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, the Shard, Harrods, St Paul's. We usually do an actual activity so I'm a bit worried they will get a bit bored walking around and getting on and off the underground (especially my oldest). Can anyone recommend the following please:

• an actual activity we can do at some point during the day that might be good, happy to pay for something but ideally not hugely expensive or anything taking more than an hour or so.

• a restaurant for dinner that would be cool and appealing to their ages. We can't get the train back until after 7pm from Paddington to get the cheaper day return train tickets. Oldest has high functioning autism and food out can be stressful. He loves Chinese and anything quirky though!

Thanks so much!

There's a Chinese restaurant on a boat near canary wharf, that's quite cool. There's another one on the canal near Camden I think.
A boat trip down to Kew or upto Greenwich is good.

Do they want to do the Shard specifically or just get a good view? If it’s the view, I thought Horizon 22 (which is free, but you need to pre-book) was actually better.

In terms of restaurants, would Inamo work? https://www.inamo-restaurant.com/our-venues/inamo-covent-garden/

Last week I went to Ugly Dumpling 🥟 for food which was lovely. It's around the Soho area, wasn't too busy either.

Do your boys like board games/ video games? There are a few retro video games bars which are good fun, or a board game club in Waterloo called Daughts.

Tocca Social at the 02 (interactive football games). Horrible Histories Boat Tour.

My 10 year old loved the science museum and natural history museum when we went back in April.

Take them to camden market, they are an age where they will be impressed. There's also babylon park there which is an indoor fairground( Bit pricey though)

Twist museum is fun too in Oxford street, it's interactive and interesting.
Paradox is similar and opposite harrods( twist is better out of the two IMO)

River boat tour? You can get an uber clipper from various piers along the river just for the ride and the view.
Chinatown for a meal?
What do they like to eat? There's a vampire theme Italian restaurant in camden where the pizzas are black.

There's a Brewdog pub in the Paddington basin that sells food, but it's popular with people with kids because it has shuffleboard tables to use free of charge. Bondi green is a restaurant just behind Paddington station on the canal which is nice and would be convenient for the train.

If you give me info on what they are interested in and like to eat we might be able to help more.

Oh and you must let them go upstairs on a normal red double decker bus. This seems to be the biggest attraction as you can see so much of everything just on a standard journey from A-B. My children have shay's lived it and have lived in London an their lives!

uber boat hop on hop off you see all the sights and its really cool on the river

The Twist Museum would interest them. The science behind it would interest them. I second a river boat trip.

Thanks so nice everyone. A very delayed reply as I was away for work but really appreciate the ideas.

@ChangeItAgainSam oldest likes Chinese, but it has to have satay chicken (autistic son doesn't think it's Chinese without that!)! Can anyone recommend a good Chinese in China town please?

The free platform at Horizon 22 and the sky garden are fully booked. I was thinking perhaps the Tower Bridge experience as it doesn't take too long! We did the London Eye a few years ago and I'm not sure the Shard is great value unless anyone with similar aged kids thinks differently from experience? I can imagine them thinking that they've done it after 10 minutes!

In terms of interests, the younger one likes football but the older one hates it! They both like hands on activities, computer games, techie stuff and experiences.

I think if we are to fit in all the sights they want to see we will need the activity to be fairly central and not too long (otherwise the science museum would have been an option.)

Any other possible ideas and/or restaurant suggestions will be very gratefully received!

This place has several branches and ticks the 'restaurant that is cool' box. Its something different with them flinging eggs into their chef hat/flaming onions on the grill/spatulas flying etc. I can't see a satay option, but you could ring and ask.
https://www.benihanainternational.com/menus

They might like going in the outernet, it's a big building at Tottenham court road station. It has imersuve sound and digital displays all around you. Last time we went in we sat there for a good hour and watched through the whole sequence of films in both rooms. Kids loved it. It s very clever. Free of charge too. They're are benches, you cab sit in the door or stand. We sit in the for usually and look up.

WRT China town most if the restaurants are much if a muchness, just go and have a look. I don't eat meat outer so can't comment on where has satay chicken. It's more of an experience thing going for a meal there. And they will be loads of dishes that you don't get in standard Chinese restaurants to try out.

There's also a trait nice restaurant in Shekdin square which is immediately behind Paddington station if the timing is better that way round nice did, less exciting than China town though.

The Garden at 120is a Sky Garden alternative that you don’t have to book. I’d do uberboat from Southbank to Tower Bridge, great view’s especially when dark.

If your children have seen Horrible Histories, the National Portrait Gallery may be worth a visit, to see the portraits of many of the monarchs and others they will have seen.

Mittal tower could be good https://arcelormittalorbit.com/visit/experience/ you can ride the slide (might be a height/age limit). My kids went there some years ago (with family from London) but only the older one went on the slide I think.

The Terrible Thames was brilliant for my ten year old (on their FB page it says they are running in October half term) & the walk in queue for the sky garden wasn't long at all. I joined a FB group called London with kids and got loads of great ideas

Should have said Terrible Thames boat tour (it's 45 minutes)

Horrible histories boat tour

Cable car over the Thames tfl.gov.uk/modes/london-cable-car/

Tower of London

Hop off and on bus

Hyde park - hire a boat / pedalo

Add

Science museum

Natural history museum

British museum

Are you only going for the day? You'll struggle to fit all that in. The Kensington museums are of course great (especially the science museum's wonderlab) but they do suck up a lot of time and energy. They're practically a day trip in themselves.

If you're doing St Paul's, it's really nice to walk across the millennium bridge - keep an eye out for the tiny art in the floor surface, if the council hasn't callously stripped it away. Then you can poke your head into Tate Modern's turbine hall, without going into the rest of the gallery, and walk along the south bank looking at the buskers and the scenery.

This restaurant is fun if they like anime
maps.app.goo.gl/2AW2WnLcXdcUUjyu5

There are lots of escape rooms for families in London. Swingers is open on Sunday daytime for families to play golf but before 6pm.
There are som VR experiences that kids can do but you can do power up at the science museum for £12pp.

Science museum and book the Power Up exhibit and the Wonderlab. You don’t have to go round every gallery there if you also want time for other stuff- we live nearby and have annual passes to both and an hour in the Wonderlab, hour in the Power Up is plenty. There’s also a small cafe/bar in the Power Up so that can double as a snack break.

Also, your local one may do it but Chinese + satay might be a tricky one since satay isn’t actually Chinese… Maybe somewhere like the Ivy Asia as that’s more fusion-y?! My kids also really like it there for the decor and the fact that the kids meals come out on a bed of dry ice! IDK about satay but could be worth a look, there’s a few in various locations.

There is an EXCELLENT Chinese restaurant right behind Paddington called Pearl Liang xx

for an activity, the postal museum is cool and you get to go on an old postal train under London

Puttshack?