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London Itinerary Help

Hello! My family (all adults) and I are visiting London for 9 days in October for the 2nd time. I’ve been working on an itinerary, and would love some input! We are most interested in experiencing British culture while still visiting the main tourist sites. We want to go to a couple museums, but we aren’t interested in spending the whole day inside. We are staying in Notting Hill

Day 1 (Friday): early AM arrival
- drop off bags
- explore portobello market, notting hill area
- walk around Hyde Park
- V&A museum (late closing) - will we need an entry time slot?

I was unsure if we should go to Camden instead of V&A museum this day

Day 2 (Saturday): Westminster
- Parliament tour
- Walk around Big Ben, Parliament
- Buckingham Palace and St Jame’s Park
- walk around Mayfair
- Evensong at Westminster Abbey
- is Covent Garden worth going to for dinner or is it too crowded/a tourist trap?

Day 3 (Sunday): London Town
- Tower of London tour and Crown Jewels
- Leadenhall Market
- walk across Tower Bridge
- Borough Market
- Walk down S Bank if weather is nice or go to Tate Modern if bad weather
- 1830 play at the Globe Theater

Day 4 (Monday): unsure
- unsure if we should go to Windsor, Hampton Court Palace, or Greenwich
- Also open for things in London that I’m missing

Days 5 and 6: Cotswolds tour (staying in Cotswolds a night)

Day 7 (Thursday):
- British Museum
- Sir John Soane’s Museum
- Afternoon Tea (not sure where to go yet - nothing too fancy)
- West End Play

Day 8 (Friday): Combined Harry Potter Studio and Oxford tour

Day 9 (Saturday): Spitalfields and Shoreditch
- go to V&A museum if we didn’t have time first day
- Camden Market?
- open for suggestions

We have only booked the Cotswolds tour, so nothing else is set in stone! We are also interested in any unique performances/shows if y’all know any! The days I’m most unsure about are days 4 and 9. Thanks!

Posted by
378 posts

Day 8 (Friday): Combined Harry Potter Studio and Oxford tour

You could easily spend half a day at the Studios. Add in travel time and you will have virtually no time in Oxford.

Posted by
5865 posts

1) I have a hard time staying alert in museums on the day I arrive. I’d consider an outdoor activity that day (perhaps a London Walk https://www.walks.com/ ).

2) You don’t need a reservation for the general exhibits at the V&A, but there are some special exhibits that require a ticket with timeslot.

3) I don’t think there is sufficient time to visit the HP Studio and visit Oxford on the same day; is this some kind of organized tour? If so, it will be very rushed. It would make more sense to visit Oxford on your way to or from the Cotswolds. You change trains in Oxford to get to the Cotswolds.

4) Personally, I think Hampton Court is more interesting than Windsor. I’d choose between Hampton Court and Greenwich depending on your interests.

Posted by
2 posts

The Harry Potter Studio tour with Oxford is organized - I feel like it seems rushed as well. We did go to Hampton Court, Windsor, and Greenwich on our last trip to London (more than 10 years ago), so it may be a good idea to go to Oxford separately instead.