Arriving London Early Morning - What activities to do before hotel check-in?

As you probably already know, many places that you might want to visit don't open until 10 am, though it looks like the Tower of London opens at 9.

By the time you get out of the airport, to your hotel to drop off your bags, and perhaps stop for breakfast, that will have eaten up several hours. You could find a self-guided walking tour of any part of the city, and walk yourselves on that, and/or go to any of the parks and walk around there. Then, at 10, you could go to your selected place to visit. Your group will have to decide what activities are not too taxing. I find that staying active, and in sunlight if possible, on the arrival day is the best way to get over jet lag. One time we took a Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus on our arrival day, and that was a battle to stay awake!

You didn't specify, but I assume you'll want to have your hotel hold your bags til check-in. So depending on where your hotel is may help determine what you do til check-in. I agree with the suggestion to get breakfast after you drop your bags. HOHO bus is a good way to orient yourself to the city. Also consider taking a boat ride on the Thames for that same purpose.

Re the car, I cannot strongly enough advise you to get your car when you are ready to leave London. Getting one at the airport would be a huge waste of money (because taking the tube/bus/ride share/taxi/walking around London is by far the better plan) and also because of the challenge of driving in London commute traffic, on the other side of the road, after a transatlantic flight, is not an ideal way to start your vacation.

Definitely don't rent a car at Heathrow. That would be a massive pain in terms of traffic and parking. London has a great public transit system, and it's extremely easy to use. You just need a contactless credit card, you don't even need to buy an oyster card or individual tickets.

I would take the tube in from Heathrow, drop your luggage at your hotel, and ask how early you can check in. Then, go get a coffee or a full English breakfast or something, and then take a walk. Hyde Park is nice. Or take the tube to Green Park or St James's Park, walk through that area past Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey and Big Ben, across the Thames at Embankment with the nice pedestrian bridge to Southbank where you can walk straight to Borough Market or across the Millennium bridge to St. Paul's. Then, I probably stop at a pub and have a beer. Something like that. Consider that you're probably going to be tired and jetlagged though so maybe only do 20% of that.

Rent the car from the airport when leaving London. Use the tube and busses in the city.

What to do depends on where your hotel is. We stay by the Gloucester Road tube stop and after dropping off our luggage we walk around. A few years ago we walked up the Hyde Park, looked at some buildings with the blue plaques on them, and stopped to have breakfast. This past December I walked to the Chelsea neighborhood to see a Banksy mural on a building to kill some time.

If nothing else you can just walk around to get a feel for the area you’re staying in.

For me, I need to keep moving until check in. A boat ride or hop on bus would put me to sleep immediately.

Thank you for the suggestions. I still need to book a hotel so we’ll figure out where we can walk to/eat breakfast.

Book your accommodation NOW!

1.) Depending how many other flights land around the same will determine how long it will take for all of you to pass through immigration. So does the length of time to retrieve your bags.
2.) how are you getting from LHR to your hotel? Elizabeth Line? Heathrow Express? Piccadilly Line?
Taxi?
3.) have asked your accommodation if you can store your luggage there until check in?
4.) will you have eaten on the plane?

Been staying in London for over 40 years. Once you’ve booked your hotel and Share I would happy to suggest things to see and do.

I would head to your hotel, have them stash your bags(If not an actual hotel, then look into baggage storage options) then maybe head for coffee or a snack. By then, it will be pushing 9 AM.

My favorite first activity for me, and when I travel with others, is to take the tube to Westminster station, as you come out of the station, your first sight is of Big Ben, a great start to a trip. From there, you can do the self-guided walk in Ricks London or other England books that takes you around Parliament, Westminster, up Whitehall into Trafalgar Square. There are several other walks that would take you through Covent Garden, onto the Strand, to St. Pauls, and across the river into Southwark. You could maybe get to Borough Market by lunch, getting back to your hotel around check-in. My walking tour usually includes a few Pub stops, your two older kids might like to have a first pint, maybe not.

Your first day is well spent wandering and walking outdoors. The walks above will give you a nice overview. Another option would be to hit Hyde Park, or one of the other greenspaces, possibly heading to Greenwich and wander up to the observatory. You might also look at some of the water routes of London Transport, sort of a cheap boat tour.

Your flight may indeed land at 630 in the AM, but realistically you won't be in your hotel lobby before 9 or 10. So this may not be the issue you think. You could always park in a Pret for an hour having a nice breakfast.

Personally I think taking the hop on/off or a boat ride after an overnight flights rates about a -5 on a scale of 1 - 10. We did that once and were instantly asleep on the boat. We have far more success with an afternoon nap of no more than an hour and half or so. Rent the car when leaving London or even after arrival at you next location.

I mean this kindly: That you even considered renting a car at the airport and using it to get around London concerns me. There is no major European city where a private car is the best way to get around.

If this is your first trip to Europe, you're in a "You don't know what you don't know" sort of situation. I urge you to get hold of Rick's guide to Great Britain and read all the introductory material. He's excellent on logistical issues and can potentially save you a lot of money.

I've only been to England once, 20 years ago, for work, so I'm clueless. We do know we want a car to drive the rest of England and into Scotland, and I figured it would be better to use the Tube and such around London. The last time I was here, I stayed in Romsey and drove to Southampton every day. Only had one day in London where we trained in from a small town and just walked around.
Sounds like we need to just go straight to hotel, stow luggage, and walk around a bit. My daughter is excited to try her first drink, so maybe trying first pints will be that first day! Thank you all for the suggestions.

A first drink - happy memories!

Be aware that beer in English pubs is typically 'Ale'; a style of beer that is not fizzy and is served cool but not cold. American/Canadian style beer is called 'Lager' and that is fizzy and cold. if you or anyone would like to try Ale, a good barman will give you a small sample to try for free. The most common type of Ale is called 'bitter' and it's an acquired taste and may not be to the liking of a teenage girl.

Also, the strength of the beer in terms of alcohol content varies - the sign that are usually placed on the handles of the beer pumps indicate the strength is ABV (alcohol by volume) %age. These can vary from about 3.5% to 5.5%

Also, be aware that the blood alcohol limit for diving is lower in Scotland than in England

My daughter is excited to try her first drink, so maybe trying first pints will be that first day!

Since I raised the subject, I'll add...

As someone mentioned, England's beer is ale, preferably a Cask Ale, that they draw up from the keg. They tend to be mild in flavor, I might suggest a Fullers Pub, since they are all over London (They also usually have excellent food). Something like their "London Pride" would be a good example of an English Pint.

If you happen to be near Covent Garden or Trafalgar Square, then there is a wonderful pub, The Harp, with a nice selection of craft ales. The barkeeps there would be glad give some samples, find a beer for you.

The Harp also has a nice selection of Ciders, which I suggest you all try, they might also have a Perry available, made from pears rather than apples. She may not be impressed with the beer, but should like cider, depending on her tastes.

When I fly into London in the early morning, I jump on the Heathrow Express to Paddington and either take a train out of London or a taxi to another train station and take a train out of London. That way I'm not hanging around half the day. I hit London at the end of the trip.

Did you book a hotel?

Always good to explore the neighborhood where your accommodation is located. Closest tube station, pharmacy, cafes, restaurants, and food trucks. Is there a weekly food market that’s nearby.

Park? Pub? Museum? Gallery? Theatre?

As far as daughter’s first drink was/is she a Harry Potter fan? Could always take the DLR to Limehouse and stroll over to the Grapes. Part owner is Gandalf
( aka Ian McKellan) https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grapes,_Limehouse

Decades ago I enjoyed my first pint at the Red Lion off Whitehall. Pleasant conversation with a member of the House of Lords.

Lastly, down The Crown Passage is the tiny Red Lion pub.

All of the above good for her first drink.

Ciders, which I suggest you all try, they might also have a Perry available, made from pears rather than apples. She may not be impressed with the beer, but should like cider,

just be aware of the wallop that cider can give - a high alcohol drink that lays some folk out flat.

Nevertheless it is popular - and the first drinker would have a story to tell her friends who likely would have a completely different idea of what cider is.