London with Son and Granddaughter

well I've never heard of Apex but there seem to be nine of them, at least 3 in London.

Which one do you mean? Then we can have a shot at telling you advantages or disadvantages of a location

The Hotel is Apex City of London

Apex Hotel is on 1 Seething Ln

How many nights do you plan to stay in London?

How old is your granddaughter?

Well, I just looked up your hotel and it is higher on the budget than what I would usually spend. I like to stay at Premier Inns when in London with the Premier Inn Waterloo (Westminster) my favorite. It is walkable to Westminster and easy access to tube and bus for the rest of London. There are many well located Premier Inns.

I think that if you can pick about two major sites a day in London to focus in on and then group geographically, that will help. It is really about what interests you and your family. Don't feel pressured to see someone else's "must sees." What interests you?
I probably wouldn't try for more than 1 day trip out of London as there is so much to see in London.

Easy day trips:
Hampton Court Palace. Catch the train right at Waterloo station
Windsor Castle
Harry Potter Studios
Bletchley Park
Still good day trips, just further:
Arundel Castle
Portsmouth (Historic Dockyards)
Bath

I have found the City Mapper app extremely helpful for navigation London and its public transport system. I would download it onto your phone.

Use the tube to get around. Pre book the Tower of London which is a short walk from the Apex. So is Leaden Hall Market, the last glass covered market in London.

Oxford is about an hour and a half by train from Paddington station.

Bath about 2 hours.

London has so much to see and do. Free museums, theatre, historic buildings, street markets.

From seeing fallow deer in Richmond Park, to visiting the Greenwich Observatory, to watching the Royal Horse Guards, to dinning in the Gherkin, to strolling along the Thames Path.

For Christmas gifts check out Spitalfields Market, museum gift shops, and the British Library gift shop.
You could also spend time looking at the vendors wares at Hyde Parks Winter Wonderland. There’s also a great book market on the Thames Path. Pretty certain there will be vendors and street food by the London Eye in Jubilee Gardens.

We’re there for 8 nights. Wanting to use London as a base and taking day trips from there. I know London is expensive but, thought finding a good location in London would save time visiting local historical site and finding a place to jump on a train to locations like Dover, Bath, and Oxford. When I was in England 20 years I was on a tour of Scotland and England and didn’t get much time in some locations. I went to Harrods for tea, are their any recommendations for afternoon tea? Any tour guides or tours we should consider? Thanks for much for all your wonderful input. Granddaughter is 15

In 2019 we took our 2 teenaged granddaughters on a couple of these walking tours with this popular, on this forum, company. Let your granddaughter help with the planning!

https://www.walks.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gmb-listing

Keep in mind that London has many train stations; different destinations are served from different London stations.

Oxford trains depart from Paddington or Marylebone; the Marylebone trains are often far cheaper.

Bath Spa is served from Paddington; those trains can be very expensive.

Dover Priory is served from St. Pancras International, Charing Cross or Victoria. It appears trains from Victoria depart only once an hour.

You can potentially save quite a bit of money by buying your train tickets sooner rather than later. However, you need to be careful about not buying non-refundable tickets before you're certain about your schedule. That can be difficult if you have destinations for which you want to be sure of having decent weather. You may find savings on same-day return tickets. Check schedules and fares here: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/

Your desired daytrips will require travel to different train stations. And why Dover? What is there you want to see? You can use the National Rail website to figure out the train connections. Enter London (all stations) in the starting column and it will pick the right station. Trains to both Oxford and Bath originate at Paddington.

https://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/personal/home/search

Looks like the Apex Hotel is in the City of London, which is a small area of greater London, nice but maybe not central to your goals. Is it three of you staying together? You might be more comfortable in an apartment setting, specifically in an “aparthotel” which is like a hotel with reception, etc. but the rooms are apartments, with equipped kitchens and more space than a hotel room.

We stayed last month near Paddington in an aparthotel by Native. It was clean, comfortable, spacious, and convenient. They have other locations, such as Mayfair and Bankside (the most stylish). The Paddington location is called Hyde Park on their website, as it is close to that park.

https://nativeplaces.com/aparthotels/

https://nativeplaces.com/aparthotels/

London Walks. www.walks.com

I’ve taken many. See if any are of interest.

Biscuiteers is nice for a pleasant and affordable afternoon tea. There’s one in Notting Hill.

Lastly, the 15 year old might find it “ cool “ to have lunch in a pub. Gorgeous pubs in the city center:
Old Shades pub on Whitehall
The Old Bank of England
Churchill Arms in Kensington
The Albert on Victoria Street

With only 8 days in London, In the UK, I’d stay in London rather than spending time getting town from a lot of places well outside the city. You say your son and daughter have never been to the UK before - have you asked them what their preferences are?

Here is some info on train costs and length of travel based on the National Rail website:

Dover. Approx 2 hours each way, £40-£50 per person one way
Bath. Approx 1.5 hours each way, £26 per person one way
Oxford. Approx 1 hour each way £32 per person each way.

These are all regular fares, if you can take the time to figure it out you can get some better deals by leaving and returning by specified times. It’s complicated!

There are some other sites outside the city which are attractive. Richmond, great Park and Kew Gardens; Hampton Court, Henry VIII’s great palace and gardens, Windsor Castle and the Great Park,

Within London…Greenwich Royal Observatory, easily reached by river boat from Westminster Pier - wrap up warmly, it’s cold on the River! Great trip along the Thames with its fascinating history. Can also stop off at the Tower of London…that is a great day trip in London, do the Tower first and then lunch in Greenwich.

Hyde Park and or Kensington Gardens, check and see if they are still doing teas in the Orangerie - might be summer only. Buckingham Palace and Horseguards parade. The walk along the South Bank of the Thames. The London Eye if the weather is clear. Parliament Square and Westminster Abbey. And then there are the Museums, and the churches. The Inns of Court where the lawyers have their offices.

And Department stores, Selfridges on Oxford Street. Liberty’s just off Bond Street with imports from all over the World. Harrods of course do visit the food court it’s displays areworks of art. Also Fortnum and Mason a superior food store. All these places will be able to offer you afternoon tea as well.

As for hotels, I am with those who suggest the Premier Inn, particularly the one at County Hall. It is convenience plus. Also look at what is going on at County Hall, the skating rink might be up and running and the have/used to have all sorts of interesting events going on. And don’t forget a night at the theatre while you are in London!

You will easily fill your 8 days without leaving London.

https://tfl.gov.uk/

Another tool for your planning. This government site will help plan your excursions on public transit around London (but not railroad journeys). Google Maps has a similar service but with less info about fares. You can reach most tourist attractions by either bus or Tube. The website above explains how the fares work -- the prices vary by zone. I have visited London several dozen times and have yet to see "all the sights". It is constantly changing which is why I keep coming back. But you need to set the whole family doing research in advance to maximize the time available.

You will find that the City of London, the Square Mile as we call it, known in the US as a Financial District, is convenient to The Tower Of London and City sights including St Mary le Bow and St Pauls, but not to much else.

The two small train stations, Canon Street and Fenchurch Street, don't go anywhere that a normal tourist would. The large station on the northeast side of The City, Liverpool Street, has slow trains to Cambridge and East Anglia, as well as Southend. Again, not the best choice.

There is a tube line from Bank to Waterloo for Waterloo trains but I didn't see any in your list.

The places you have listed to visit are from stations across the city, a fair bus ride or tube ride away.

I don't know Ianlubber where got their train fares from but they are miles out
For example London to Oxford starts from £5.40 Advance Single where you have to travel on booked trains
Even if you buy tickets on the day the Off Peak Day Return is only £30.00 and you can use that on the 9.01 from Marylebone
How many people are 16 or over in your party? You can get approx third off some rail tickets for three or more people including the £30 quoted above
Suggest you consult www.seat61.com for information on rail travel in UK including how to book tickets from abroad

The Chiltern route to Oxford is not as good or reliable as it was pre-Covid. There are more stops on most journeys which makes it slower in general; considerably so on ones that make calls at the likes of South Ruislip and Northolt Park. The number of carriages has also been reduced and if late running they can be turned round early at Oxford Parkway. There is a reason why the cheap seats are available at short notice.

As for Bath Spa, look for splitting tickets at Didcot Parkway if coning from London. Also if using non-Advance (with a capital "A") tickets to make as much use of returns as possible which can be only marginally more expensive than singles on many off-peak day returns.

Take a tour to Stonehenge, Bath and Avebury . We went with a company where you travel with an expert archaeologist, it was the most amazing experience ever! We learnt so much detailed information and the guide was super friendly. The company was Archaeologist Guided Tours https://www.archaeologistguidedtours.com/

Dear Nigel,
We are now staying at Citadines Trafalgar Square. Thought it to be a little better location than Apex. It’s hard to fine rooms to accommodate 3 individuals.

Your 15 year old might like the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland which opens on the 18th of November. Everybody I know who has gone there has really enjoyed it.... https://hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/blog/whats-new-at-hyde-park-winter-wonderland-2022/

Citadines Trafalgar Square in the back of Charing Cross station, walking distance to lots of things, convenient to Embankment and Charing Cross tube stations (Northern Line Charing Cross Branch, Bakerloo Line, Circle Line, District Line) and an easy walk across the river to Southbank. The train from Charing Cross won't be much use to you probably, but you could take the slow train from there to Dover. (If I were going to Dover I'd go up to St Pancras station for the high speed Javelin service on the same lines as the Eurostar which is much faster and stops much less frequently).

I haven't read the reviews but I would be cautious about noise - either trains or traffic.

Be sure to include the granddaughter in the decisions about places to see and things to do. Doing so will add greatly to her enjoyment of the trip.

hey hey chchampness3
are your 8 nights including arrival and departure days, so a total of 6 days? don't forget the day after arrival could be jet lag for all of you. with so much to see and do in london, i would pick one day trip if that.
wowcher.co.uk
free, email & password
under more click things to do. click afternoon tea, many are 2 for 1
b-bakery.com
big red bus afternoon tea tour of sights/attractions in london, look at theatre matinees
withlocals.com/ london
maybe "the royal family tour" if interested. other tours there
shoreditchstreetarttours.co.uk
streetsensations.co.uk/ markets
show picture of the map
stmartin-in-the-fields.org
cafe in a crypt or just visit
freetoursbyfoot.com/ london
look at the tours, afternoon teas,
canopymarket.co.uk
open weekends, music, food, craft/design artisans, produce,
changing-guard.com/ household cavalry museum
a walk away from buckingham palace at horse guard road and whitehall. less crowded. we happened upon the changing of guard at buckingham palace and it was great but a total nightmare, packed to the gills, standing for hour/hours, people pushing and shoving, if you're short get as close to fence as possible to see the horses, the marching, many bobbies "cops/guards" directing movement. i saw it once and do not plan it again. plus you are there at busy thanksgiving time with many people wanting to see and do the same thing you want.
mms.com
largest m&m store in leicester square new covent garden
londonboxoffice.co.uk
want to go see a theatre show
piccadilly circus and trafalgar square and regent street and covent garden
stop at any of these places to see "free entertainment", people watch, photo ops, shops, restaurants, cafes, pubs.
we stopped somewhere and sat outside for fish and chips.
thamesrockets.co.uk
mattbarrett-travel.com/ london
lots of info if you need it along with many posters here. they tell you good, bad, and ugly. they looking out for you and your gang to have a great time, when your research has been done, it's so much easier. some go with no clue. london is a big metropolitan city with many people and expensive but the pound is dow helps you out. carry small bills and coins, not large one. we were there few years ago and it was 1.60lbs currency then. we had a great time though. enjoy and hope this helps some
aloha
fast boat rides on the thames
wear warm clothes, gloves, scarves, waterproof shoes, ear muffs. when you're cold it's miserable. never know what weather will be like just be prepared
have your son and granddaughter do some research what they wish/want to see. book attractions early, sell outs happen

One place my son wants to go is it ‘The Blind Beggar pub in Whitechapel. Wants so see the place where the Krey twin gangsters murdered a man in the 1960’s. They love M & M’s thanks for the tip.

Changing hotels again and staying at The Queens Gate Hotel near Hyde Park and got a good deal on the room. It has three separate beds which is good for us. Hopefully will get a good night sleep.
We are in London for a full 8 days, plus two travel days. I’ve been to Western and Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, and others about 25/30 times but, only once in England with a tour of England, Wales and Scotland 22 years ago. My kids haven’t cross the pond as yet. So I’m very excited to have one of my kids with me. My ancestry is Irish, English, Italian and a little French. Want to see the Magna Carta which an ancestor or two signed. I love History, Baking, and shopping. My son is easy and wants to see what we can and the pub mentioned. I would like him to find a nice suit in London for an upcoming wedding. Granddaughter 15, wants to go shopping, take in all the main attractions and I hope ice skating since she is a proficient skater. We all love everything to do with Christmas.
Know of B Bakery on the tour bus and will book it. Thanks.
Back in 2013 I watched Rick Steves sitting on a bench looking out onto the water in Positano. Wanted to say hello but I didn’t.
This week I’ll work on mapping out our days. We like being flexible and leave room for surprises.
You all have been so helpful. I miss my travel agent. Because of COVID, she retired. An agent booked my flights but she flaked on booking rooms. It was very strange.

just to say that the Blind Beggar is drinks only now - no hot food