Where in London for 10 year old son

[Megsro]

Due to travel to London for a short trip with my son (mostly to see a football stadium) flying into Gatwick, where is the city centre of London that has shops, restaurants, etc? So we know where to get the tube/bus to when we leave the airport. Been years since I've been in London.

Thanks in advance.

What football stadium are you going to? How long are you in London for?

The main flagship stores are in Regents St/Oxford St but shops are all over London. Marylebone for example has some nice boutiques plus the chains and Covent Garden. Camden if you're looking for something a bit more alternative (a teenager might like this area).

Stamford bridge

You do realise that Gatwick is quite a distance outside of London.
You need to get the train to London itself.
It's about a 30 - 40 journey plus waiting time for a train.
This might actually cut down your time in actual London.
What sort of shops would he be interested in?

Yep, I know the distance from Gatwick into London itself. I'm just wondering the name of where I actually aim for. Just sort of you're average city center, restaurants typical shops, etc

Are you going to the stadium first?
West Brompton Station is nearby. You could get the Overground train to Shepherd's Bush which is the stop for the massive Westfield Shopping Centre.
It has loads of restaurants there and shops like the Lego Store if he likes that type of thing.

Every area of London is wildly different and have their own "centres".

If you're just after bog standard shopping and food then head to Oxford Street.

You'll need to get over to Fulham to go to Stamford Bridge.

Ah this is helpful! Thank you 🙂

Train from Gatwick to Clapham Junction, then the Ginger Line (London Overground) to Imperial Wharf (one stop). Then a 20 minute walk to Stamford Bridge.

You could then get the 211 bus from outside the stadium to the King's Road, Chelsea, or Battersea Power Station.

Westfield in Shepherds Bush is the obvious choice if you are going to Stamford Bridge.

Marylebone has nothing for a 10 year old boy! I would count it as “Oxford/Regent St” anyway. Very different vibe but geographically, it’s just off Oxford St.

The Tottenham Court Road End of Oxford Street could also be good for shopping. The big screens at the Now Building are fun, as is the food court at Centre Point, for tweens. Denmark Street is interesting if he is into guitars/music. Covent Garden market with street entertainers and good tween friendly restaurants (eg Shake Shack) is nearby. It’s also near Chinatown, the M&M store and Lego store and some non money laundering not fake sweet shops eg Sugar Sin. There are some good comic book stores if he is into that eg Forbidden Planet.

He might be a bit young for the Camden Market/Portobello years 😂 Have a look at them online to see what you think.

I'd be inclined to take him on the underground to see Platform 9 3/4 & the Harry Potter shop at Kings Cross Station. Plenty of places to eat in the station concourse too. You can get the tube to everywhere in London from there. Covent Garden might be good, they often have street entertainers and there is also the London Transport museum. Something a bit different might be Leicester Square, which has a massive Lego shop and close to Chinatown.

If your over Stamford Bridge way I'd go to Battersea Power Station before / after depending on your timings, look it up - they've just done it up it's amazing lots for the kids to do, the building itself is impressive enough there's art inside and out, usually some extra free bits going on (they had some bikes powering lights at one stage that sort of thing) there's a really cool food hall he might enjoy eating at and a Lego shop where you can play

But be aware if you do go to look at platform 9 3/4 there is always a long queue to get a photo and I think the shop were charging about £15 for it.

DH and I were staying at the Premier Inn near Kings Cross just recently and went in to use the station shops and restaurants occasionally. It seemed whatever time of the day or night there was a queue