London for 5 full days Plus add a side trip to Bath before heading to Paris

Hi Paula,

First of all, that depends a lot on where you'll be staying and at what pace you'll be moving too.

You can group the House of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, the change of guards and Buckingham Palace together for one. And then the National Gallery, the Churchill War Room Piccadilly, the British Museum and Hyde Park are all close by. The Tower Bridge is a bit farther off, but you can also add the Tower of London and maybe Tate Modern and make another group out of it.

Thank you- as of now staying in West end. Open to ideas for better place though.

I just made a similar trip in March - London (5 days) then Paris. The previous advice is good. You have left out Tower or London/Crown Jewels and St. Pauls. You have a great trip outlined but here are a few thoughts:
Flying to Bristol will use up a lot of time at the airports on both ends as well as travel to Bristol. St. Pancras tube station is so convenient for the Eurostar, though it is much more expensive in summer months. Also more convenient on the Paris end.
Why Bath? I was there years ago and I can think of so many more interesting places. (Cotswolds, Oxford, Cambridge, York)
Why not make room for Windsor Castle - it is very impressive - everything a royal castle should be.
Changing of the Guard is a bit disappointing for the amount of time in the middle of the day that it requires.
Take in a good musical while in the West End. We did Phantom of the Opera and loved it.

Gosh, I love Bath. Spent 3 nights there a couple of years ago and will be spending more there in September. I love the juxtaposition of the Roman Baths with the gorgeous Georgian architecture. It is very easy to do a Mad Max day tour from Bath to Stonehenge if you don't want to drive.

Not that it matters, but I am not understanding the thing about flying "in to Bristol and on to Paris". Will you go by train from Bath to Bristol and then fly from Bristol to Paris? That's EasyJet, right? Make sure if you fly EasyJet you read and thoroughly understand their Terms and Conditions. If you are not sure if your suitcases will meet their strict guidelines (ONE carry on, not including a purse etc), pay for checked baggage when you purchase your tickets.

From a very practical POV take some time to use the birds eye satellite view on Google Maps. Type in Big Ben London United Kingdom to get started. ALL within close proximity are Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, The London Eye ( across Westminster Bridge), Westminster Abbey, Churchill War Rooms. Then up Birdcage Walk through St James Park, and onto Buckingham Palace. About 8 long blocks. You could also walk up Whitehall from Parliament Square to Trafalgar Square to the National Galley. Via the tube you can exit at Piccadilly Circus. Any sports fans amongst you. Lillywhites is right there for jersey's etc.

Once you've gotten the hang of Google Maps you can see what distances between locations are via public transport and walking. For example, Tower of London, Tower Bridge, Leadenhall Market (to find the door to the Leaky Cauldron and because it's a gorgeous glass covered market) St. Paul's and The Museum of London (excellent for first timers) are all in and around the same area and that could be one day of exploration.

Research here about the best way to travel to Harry Potter. Excellent intel which will ease your planning.

Harrodsburg? Well the store is huge but I doubt it's become it's own village. LOL. think it has it own postmark though. Again nearby places of interest would be the Natural History and Science Museums, the V and A and Hyde Park and the Prince Albert Memorial. A bit further Kensington Palace and Gardens.

Google maps can help you group things. Have fun. Great city!

I'm with the others in saying many of these can be easily grouped by day based on proximity. And you need to add Tower of London...maybe St.Pauls too. And if you like military stuff (you have the Churchill War Rooms), you need to add the Imperial War Museum (huge, and free!). And I think you can add these things because most of your list are "walk-by's" and not tours. Also, because it's interesting, convenient and quick (even if not essential), check out the Royal Mews right by Buckingham Palace. The queens carriages, horses and a car...about 90 min tour. Enjoy!

Wonderful help!! We will add the sites of Churchill war room and Imperial War for sure as well as the Tower or London/Crown Jewels and St. Pauls. If we must not do something is it best to drop the Bath, Stonehenge sightseeing? We only have 5 full days and part of that is arrival from west coast USA. Looking forward to the experiences. We would like to stay in Westend to be closer to all this...any opinions?? Buget $1,000-1300 US for that time period

We will not have a car!!

My suggestion would be to check out apartment rentals. I searched for quite some time and decided on Ivy Lettings. You can check their website if you are interested. They had a range of prices and locations. I ended up letting an apartment farther out; about a 15 minute tube ride to Big Ben area, but they have locations throughout the London area. My opinion is you get more bang for your buck with a rental than a hotel. Are you staying 6 nights? That would be about $215 per night.

You don't EVER need a car in London. One of the best public transport systems in the world. Simply buy your Oyster Cards and off you go. Upstairs in the double decker busses in the front row are nearly floor to ceiling windows which are wonderful to watch London pass by. I fly in from the West Coast as well. Usually the red eye. That way nearly a good half day in London since arrival time is around noon
LOndon time the following day. Bath is a nice train ride. Use public transport.