June Itinerary assistance

I am going to London in a few weeks and always like the idea of doing the HOHO Bus the first day of traveling to get acquainted with the city. You may want to consider the free tours they have if you purchase a ticket (Thames River Cruise, Changing of the Guards, Jack the Ripper). You are able to do these free tours within 24 hours of purchasing or validating your tickets, but a River Cruise might be a nice way to relax for a while.

Great idea to go to the Tower of London when it opens!

Hope you enjoy :)

Just some personal reflections, note that anyone over age 15 is considered an adult in the UK for tickets and lodging. In Paris, 16 or 17 is a child which is often free of charge.

Thur June 16TH Arrive early am

Light day and say outside

HoHo Bus tour London is a sprawling and disorienting city so it isn't likely one loop around will orient you much, but can't hurt

The eye

Might try war museum or parliament in the afternoon

Friday 17th

Tower of London 9am plan on a 4 hour visit to see most things

Boat to Westminster Abby

Westminster Abby This is already a big day before getting to the church, I'd keep it to one mega attraction (in this case the Tower)/day, unless you plan a short church visit, but as it is quite expensive to enter I'd feel like I needed to stay 90 minutes at least

Parliament or war museum You are overloaded already this day, note that Parliament tours are limited in days offered and quantity, and hugely expensive, last time I checked they were free to UK residents

Saturday 18th

Stonehenge

Bath

Windsor castle I assume this is a guided tour day, nonetheless you will all be exhausted

Sunday 19th

East End Not sure what this entails

Notting Hill markets Likely bore your teenage son, the idea bores me

Royal Air Force Museum Unless you are hitting a major attraction like Greenwich on the east side, this day seems light

Monday 20th

Day trip to Paris. I know but was a must do for my son. If you must. Be sure to get Eiffel Tower tickets in advance and know where to queue for the Louvre to save time

Tuesday 21st

Buckingham Palace changing of the guards be there by 10 always sounds like a boring idea to me, but never tried it

National Gallery

British Museum Both of these museums are mega attractions, keep to one per day, maybe save one for a rainy day?

Missing: the Bankside area: Tate Modern, Millenium Bridge, St Paul's, Globe, really the heart of London.

Thursday 16th - Westminster Abbey / Parliament / The Eye
Friday 17th - Tower of London / Riverboat to Embankment / National Gallery
Sunday 19th - Imperial War Museum / Royal Air Force Museum (direct connection on Northern Line)
Tuesday 21st - Buckingham Palace (changing of the guard) / St Pauls / British Museum

From Gloucester Rd Tube
District or Circle Line will get you to Westminster & Tower of London
Piccadilly Line to Green Park for Buckingham Palace
Piccadilly Line to Piccadilly Circus then Bakerloo Line to Lambeth North for IWM

Heathrow to Gloucester Rd Station is easy peasy. You can catch the Piccadilly line at the Heathrow station. At the same time you can purchase oyster cards so you can use the underground all over London.

Please keep in mind.

1.) You are traveling in the height of tourist seasons. Major sites will be jammed. Patience and flexibility will be needed.
2.) Notting Hill markets ( I'm assuming you are referencing Portobello Road which isn't open on Sundays)

3.) As already advised you are trying to see too many things in a day. You need to couple places together that are logistically close to one another. To accomplished this use the Google Earth satellite option. You'll be able to see whats close to one another and what isn't.
4.) unless your Saturday schedule is a tour it will difficult to accomplish.
5.) It's a wonderful thing you are doing with your son. Great city to explore.

where in the East End?

More commentary, but obviously it is your trip

You have 6 days in London; the first one is the arrival day so not really a full day. You have planned exhausting day trips on two of those days, and then filled up your London days with too many sites. Are you sure that you will never return to Europe and that you have to squeeze so much in this trip? Will you never give Paris a more thorough visit? Saving money on this trip by doing fewer things makes a second trip more likely.

Paris: Your London hotel location is convenient to Heathrow and several museums (none of which is on your list) and that’s about it. Trekking all the way to St Pancras for the Eurostar might be close to an hour with walking and waiting for the tube, each way, and you need to be there at least 30 minutes in advance. Then Gare du Nord in Paris is not near anything so add at least 30 minutes to get to the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre, then 15 minutes from the metro to the ticket line. You will lose more time orienting yourself at the Louvre, which is a multilevel monstrosity not made any easier to navigate by the crappy maps you get handed. If you plan on formal sit down restaurant eating (IMHO often a frustratingly long process in Europe) you will get surprisingly little done in Paris even with a late arrival back in London and hardly be in any condition for an 8 am get out the door sightseeing day the next morning in London.

London lodging: The spike of trendy, expensive hotels runs from St James's Park northwest up past Marble Arch, with rooms higher than most want to pay. Lodging east of here is I think the sweet spot for value and location, and west of here in Kensington, Earl's Court and Pimlico and around Paddington Station is less desirable-- that's where your lodging is. You could consider relocating your hotel east: anything on the south bank, St Pancras/Kings Cross, or around the British Museum will save commuting time every day, then spend your last night at a Heathrow hotel for expediency.

For London pick one big thing a day: the Tower, RAF Museum, British Museum, whatever interests you the most, and then pick a smaller attraction nearby (or maybe a large attraction that you plan on spending less than an hour at), hopefully within walking distance. I’d probably skip the National Gallery unless your son is really into paintings. Maybe that first jetlagged day walk around the Bankside area in the afternoon and early evening, get some quality scenery in right away. That day or another consider an Evensong service at one of the big churches (Westminster, St. Paul’s) both for the ticket savings as they are both expensive to visit as a tourist, and for the calm rest, and it is nice to see the churches being used for their original purpose. Classic music is a major component of English worship services and it is of high quality. It appears to be quite selective who gets the honor to play or sing at these services. You don’t have to dress up as it’s all tourists, but I would not wear shorts and flip-flops-- although people do.

As suggested above, plan out the transportation time involved in getting to sites as you plan your days, and budget 1-1/2 hours for a sit down meal unless you are eating on the go.