My family and I will be traveling to London for the first time in July. My wife and I have two daughter who are 16 and 12. We will be staying in the South Kensington area and I am considering signing up for a private tour for one or two of the four days when we are in London. My question is which private tour companies would you recommend and why? Rick's recommendation for "Blue Badge Tourist Guides" and "The TOUR Guy" There are so many choices I am a little overwhelmed. I want to make the most out of our trip and would like to avoid traveling from one side of the city to the other and spending too much time on public transportation. The private tours offered by The Tour Guy have "London in a Day Tour" seems to be a great day hitting a lot of the major attractions. Has anyone taken this tour?
Posted by
Land of La
9261 posts
Blue Badge.
You should also peruse the London Walks website.
I’ve been going to London since Nixon was in office. For the last decade I’ve signed up and enjoyed every London walk I’ve taken. Last one was Inns of the Court in 2022. The walks are always informative with small groups. www.walks.com
As far as sites believe the 16 and 12 year olds will enjoy Carnaby Street, Spitalfields, Portobello Road, and Harrod’s Food Halls. Should also walk across Westminster, and/or the Millennium Bridges. Also check out the Royal Horse Guard parade in the morning to see the Guards prepare to attend the Changing of the Guard at the Palace. Suspect they’d also enjoy watching the buskers at Covent Garden. Maybe a walk along the canal adjacent from Camden Lock market place up to Coal Drop Yards.
Great city to explore. Enjoy.
Posted by
Charleston & Birmingham
4627 posts
Off topic, but are you planning to have afternoon tea? I think your daughters would enjoy doing that. Our favorite is the pricey(can be that night's dinner), but atmospheric, Fortnum and Mason. It is elegant, but you don't have to dress up. They also have an ice cream parlor.
You might want to let your daughters look at the London Walks tours being offered during your visit and see if any of them appeal to them. You could also let them look at Rick's videos of London on this website to see what they're interested in seeing. I have been to London 8 times, twice with my young adult daughter. Many of the things that people feel obliged to do(London Eye, Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, Rick's list of things to see) we had no interest in doing. I'm sure you know that you can't even scratch the surface of London in 4 days and I personally wouldn't waste the time on an overall tour with a guide, but instead focus on the things each of you really want to see.