layover

Enjoy the many amenities of Heathrow. Five hours won't be enough for immigration, customs, getting much of anywhere, and returning in time to check into your connecting flight, clear security, and board. Sorry. :-(

Julie,

It will not be a true 5-hr layover as Dick just explained. Plan on it being a 1-1/2 to 2 hr layover. You may need to go thru their security, also.

Cheers!

Thx for the replys, I should have mentioned we arrive at 7 am and leave to Prague at 7 pm. I guess I thought that gave us 5 hours in London. (long layover, yay Delta for changing our flights yet again)
Julie

With that time span (7 am-7 pm) you have time to visit Windsor. Take the bus (or pay for a pre-arranged hire car - not a black taxi from the taxi ranks). You should be able to be in Windsor around 9:30-10:30 IF you plane is on time. You could tour the castle if you want, or just wander around the town. Windsor had a good French style Christmas market when we were there last, but that was more than 7 years ago now. It is a great walking and shopping town, too. You could have lunch there, too. There are several good pubs and restaurants. I'd head back to the airport no later than 3:00-4:00ish to ensure you have plenty of time for security, and getting to your gate. You'll probably wind up with time to shop for snacks or window shop at the airport- or even have an early supper. But better safe than sorry.

If you don't want to take the risk, Heathrow has excellent shops and several good airport lounges. If you don't qualify to visit one based on mileage, credit cards, or other means, you can purchase a day pass. Some even have showers, and offer free food and drink. You would clean up, do some shopping at the airport shops, and rest.

Besides Windsor, other choices are Hampton Court Palace and London itself. If the weather's bad, I'd go with London by tube rather than Windsor or Hampton Court to avoid possible traffic delays on the roads.

Be sure to get your boarding passes for the flight to Prague when you check in for the London flight. With an early morning arrival, you'll have time to go to your departure terminal (if it's not the same as your arrival terminal) and check your hand luggage before heading out.

In London, you won't have time for a matinee, but there are great museums and afternoon tea, or holiday window displays in Oxford Street, and the giant Xmas tree in Trafalgar Square.

So with actually 12 hours between arrival and departure you have quite a large opportunity for fun.

Can we assume that your luggage is checked through?

And can we assume that by "this holiday" you don't mean the actual days of 24th, 25th, or 26th of December? If that assumption is wrong then all bets are off because on Christmas and Boxing Day you can't get to and from London because of the non-existence of London Transport (Tubes, Underground, trains) on both of those days, and on Christmas Eve the airport will be a madhouse and transport will be chock-a-block.

But if those assumptions are correct -

7 am touchdown.
8:30 having cleared Immigration, Customs, going to the toilet and locating and buying a ticket to London (best to buy an Oyster card with pay as you go cash on it) you can be on the Piccadilly Line Underground.
9:30 you can pop off the Tube and start a little sightseeing. British Museum, or change trains to the District Line at Hammersmith and come off at Westminster and see Big Ben (actually you can't see the bell, but that's what the Queen Elizabeth II Tower is popularly called), walk along the Embankment and look at the River, or walk past the Houses of Parliament, walk through the beautiful even in the depths of winter St James' Park - famous for its wild pelicans and many other exotic birds wandering freely - go up to check out Horseguards Parade or Buckingham Palace.
12:00 get some lunch at a Pret a Manger sandwich place or similar
3:30, start to head back to the airport, get a Tube heading that way or to a connection with the Piccadilly.
4:30, back at Heathrow with plenty of time to check in 2 hours before a European flight, and with plenty of cushion if things on the Tube get a touch slow.

Enjoy ..... but tell me you aren't trying this on Christmas or one day either side?

Thank you all so much!! Awesome ideas!! May I ask about a carry on? We follow Rick and only travel with carry on's . :D Yeah Rick! ;)
Are there lockers? Thx!

May I ask another question, So we thought to take the express into London to Paddington station . Does anyone have a site where we could figure out how to get to Tower of London and Westminster Abbey? I figured on the tube? or would a hop on off bus be better? ( can you tell I am a bit daunted) Also its for Tuesday the 23.
Thanks

Julie -- Here is the "Transport for London" website with info and maps about the tube. The Circle Line (yellow on the map) will get you from Paddington to Tower Hill (for the Tower) and/or Westminster (for the Abbey), which are far apart. The Abbey is much closer to Paddington, the Tower on the other end of central London. Realizing that you have more time than I thought reading your original post, I'd still urge you to pick just one of these destinations and take the time you have to appreciate it, and maybe walk around its neighborhood a little. I'd pick the Abbey but you may prefer the Tower even though it's farther away.

And leave plenty of time to get back to the airport and checked in! Better to waste a little time there than miss the flight and mess up your whole schedule.

Thanks Dick, I think your advice is good and we will just go see the Abbey this time. Thanks for the tube site. Eases a few worries of trying to figure it out. :D
Happy Holidays!!

There are no left luggage lockers at Heathrow any more for security reasons. But you might think it worth the cost to park your baggage for a few hours at one of these places. Then you can spent the time in London with just your handbag/purse. I wouldn't make an advance booking for the left-luggage place as you can't tell how long you will take to get through immigration and customs.