Myself and 14 year old son trip to London, what do we do during the evenings?

[Confused92739572]

Im taking my son to London for 5 nights next week. I have tickets booked to the attractions and an itinerary planned but will only take me up to about 5pm
What do we do after that time? I must admit I feel slightly vulnerable and dont know if i will feel safe after a certain time.
But also dont want to be stuck in a travelodge room with him from that early either.
We are staying in tower bridge area. Area looks abit sketchy. Want to get a taxi back to the hotel each evening.
Am I being silly? Any ideas of things to do? We will eat during the day so won't want to go out for an evening meal and he won't be interested in seeing a show

Dinner and wander around St Katharine Docks - not sketchy at all. Wander across to
Tower Bridge for an evening wander and something to eat.

Not sketchy at all, there will be loads of professionals and people socialising.

It's not a sketchy area. It's very touristy and there will be loads of people about.

The Ghost Bus is really good! Also the Horrible Histories boat tour. Get the Uber boat up to Embankment and have a walk around Covent Garden and watch the street performances.
Tower Bridge (and most of Central London) are very safe. Be wary holding your phone on the edge of the pavement but other than that, unlikely you will have any issues. Have a lovely time!

@Confused92739572
I just had a look at some of the street views around Tower Bridge and suddenly get your concern.

Those pictures must have been taken EARLY in the morning on a gray day in term time for it to be so quiet.

After work / early evening those walkways and pavements will be TEEMING with people
and in the Summer Holidays
lots and lots and LOTS of families

The pictures around the London Eye must have ben taken around 5am for it to be that peaceful !!!

I’m a Londoner and think there’s always something going on along the river / south bank.
It isn’t a sketchy area and you’ll be absolutely fine walking around during the evening.

14yo son might like to see Camden, about 5 is a good time to go - tourists dwindling and the nightlife not yet started. All the shops will still be open if it’s not a Sunday. Bars to sit in, things to see. Mostly free. There’s an indoor rollercoaster/ amusement thing in Camden too, quite good for young teens.

Feel much better about it now thank you!!
We live in the country side so very different. Also we alwsys go everywhere as a family but my husband isn't coming with us. Never done anything like this just myself and son. Im very excited, just want to get there now!!
Is it easy enough to get a taxi from
London Euston?

Genuinely, I would take the tube. Easiest might be to walk (a very short distance!) to Euston Square tube and then take the circle line to Tower Hill (make sure your train is a circle line train, but it will say); or you could get the northern line down to Monument and then change to circle or district and go one stop to Tower Hill. It will take about 15 mins and there's a daily TfL fare cap of £8.90 in zones 1 and 2 so unless you are going nowhere else that day it will cost v little. even if that is the only journey you are making on the day you get there it will be cheaper than a taxi, which will take longer.

Part of the ‘London’ experience is getting the tube! Don’t bother with taxis at all.

Another vote for the tube, it's very easy from Euston and could even be quicker than a taxi depending on when you arrive. Tower Bridge area is very nice, not sketchy at all. There's some nice places along the river, plus if you find Bermondsey Street it's full of cute restaurants which might be nice for the evening.

Have you checked to see if any of the free skyscrapers have evening availability? Like Skygarden or Horizon 22. That could be a nice thing to do just before sunset.

If he has any interest in art, the Tate Modern has late night evenings some nights. That
Is walking distance away. Pretty cool space to pop into for a bit even if you aren't massive art lovers, and it's free entry.

Tower Bridge area is not remotely sketchy. What makes you think that?

Loads of great suggestions in this thread.
Not sure where you’re travelling from (or if it’s already been mentioned) but as you’re staying five nights. you could hop on a Thameslink train to Brighton from Blackfriars station. Might be fun if you want a change of scene. Takes about an hour by rail.

See my post about the Google Street view pictures ....
Londoners know they are taken very early in the morning so make it look deserted
those from outside London may not

We took our daughter to Amsterdam - she had had enough after a day's sight seeing and in the evening we played scrabble in the bar (which turned out to be her favourite part of the holiday!).

Go to Borough Market for dinner, it's amazing! You have endless options and still be very close to the hotel. Aim to get back around 8-9pm which is more than enough if you've been on your feet all day.

But London by the river is magical in the evening.
Id get back to the hotel for say 5 pm, rest a bit ( son can scroll on phone) and then go out at 7 ish again if only to mooch by the river and have a drink.

OP download the Citymapper App.It is brilliant, and you will see how easy it is to get around by public transport or walking.
Have a great time.

Just being nosy now- what’s on your itinerary?

@Talkinpeace just to reassure you, the tower bridge area is full of tourists and not known as a sketchy area. You will be perfectly safe. Have a great trip.

Part of the ‘London’ experience is getting the tube!

Just remember to stand on the right on escalators!

The Tube has very good signage. If you plan your journey and know that you need, for example, the Circle Line eastbound, you will see signs telling you where to go.

use www.tfl.gov.uk for bus and tube route maps, journey planning and how to pay.

Also Google maps has a feature which shows bus stops, and when you click on a stop, it will show which buses go from there and how frequently.

I am not the OP
but you are right
the street view pictures give a misleading impression of that part of town.
She and her son will have a blast

OP I can see why you are planning on taking taxis, it feels like the quickest way to get from A to B, but I promise you it's not. You'll end up sitting in traffic for ages, moving at 5mph and watching the meter (or app) climb up. Use the tube or bus (sit upstairs at the front!) and spend the hundred quid plus you save on something tasty :)

Seriously, look at the bus and tube maps and plan your days, so you don’t end up criss-crossing the city and west end unnecessarily.

The tube is definitely quickest and really easy to navigate. And if you do end up on the wrong line, or going in the wrong direction, just get off and trace your way back and/or use the TFL to tell you where to go.

But do take the bus as well. It’s the best way of getting a feel for where things are, particularly if you have a bus map on your lap. For instance the number 15 to Trafalgar Square, or the number 9 from the Aldwich/Covent Garden to High Street Kensington.

NB: do visitor centres still hand out bus maps? You may have to print one off yourself… Though I know there are still tube maps.

Plus walking, of course. London is a very walkable city. Especially London Eye to Tower Bridge, but also just wandering around the West End and down to Parliament Square.

ETA: Don’t believe that Londoners are unfriendly - many/most are happy to help.

A game I used to play with my mum in hotels in the evening when I was young was 'fives' which just involves pen and paper. Object is to guess opponent's five-letter word which should be made of five different letters and no plurals (though the word can end in S). It's a bit like Wordle actually, my parents played fives in the late 60s / early 70s so not sure where it came from (don't think they invented it but I never asked).

Each person writes a full alphabet at the top of a bit of paper, then adds two columns - one with their word in one, five blank spaces in the other. First person says any 5 letter word (can have duplicate letters like PUPPY or POPPY or all different like POLAR) and other person says how many letters match with their word. Not which letters, not their position. So if my secret word was WALTZ then your first two guesses of puppy/poppy 2 score zero as no letters in common, and polar scores 2. Turn-taking continues until you have enough letters removed from play or likely candidates (or definites) from which you can strategise further.

E.g. if puppy scored 0 but poppy scored 1 you know that O is in and P, Y and U are not (which generally wipes out Q as well).

Winner = has correctly guessed the other's word exactly (not an anagram).

Games can be paused and picked up later so make sure you go out fearlessly in London and enjoy yourself and just play it at breakfast or in cafes :D

Jo

Since people are posting about walking along the South Bank in the evening, I feel a need to post this, the commuter's anthem and one of the most instantly recognisable intros to a song.

Bugger, can't get the link to work properly, will try again in a new post.

Here: