We will be in UK June 3-12 with my daughter, her husband and four girls (12,10,7 and 9 months). So far we have planned 4 nights in London and would like to take them to see more of the country but don't want to go too far and it needs to be accessible by train. I would appreciate any suggestions as to where we should go, what to do and where you suggest staying. also, if we should extend another night or two in London.
Thank you!
Kelle
I return to London tomorrow for two weeks. Been visiting since the 70’s and always find something I’ve not seen before.
Thus my recommend to add days to London.
If you want to children to see Warner Brothers Studio Tour Harry Potter better book your tickets NOW. It’s about a 30 minute train ride from London to get there.
Countless things in London to see with the children.
London Zoo, Mudshute Farm, Diana Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain, https://www.visitlondon.com/things-to-do/family-activities/101-things-to-do-with-kids-in-london
As far as countryside by train. Rye.
If there is any interest in plants the Kew Gardens is a great place. https://www.kew.org There is an aerial walkway (currently closed for maintenance) that is fun. I would also suggest a train to Windsor. The castle is quite a sight, there are some decent places for lunch, a little shopping. If you time it right you’ll see the guards come marching up the street accompanied by the band. Get the RS London book, it’s got lots of suggestions.
Might be further than you’d like, but Warwick Castle is geared to children. It’s a real castle owned by an amusement company so has a theme park feel. There are a lot of activities children would enjoy. The castle is very impressive and well maintained. Believe it can be reached by train.
My kids (ages 11, 8, and 5) loved England! In London their favorite things were: Tower of London, Princess Diana Memorial Fountain (on a hot day!), in Kensington Gardens the Diana playground, Lego store, M&M store in Leicester Square, playground in St James Park, boat ride on the Thames, Natural History museum, riding the tube, riding in the first row on the top of the double decker buses, souvenir shopping...
They also loved Warwick Castle as someone else mentioned (although we were traveling around the country and stopped there en route from Cotswolds to York). They also loved the city of York (walking the castle walls, York Castle Museum, the Shambles - big Harry Potter fans, watching the street entertainment, and the York Minster had a child's explorer backpack they could borrow with activities, magnifying glass, etc to make things more interesting. We also visited Windsor Castle.
Our first trip to London we rented an air bnb in the Pimlico neighborhood. Very easy to hop on the Victoria line at Pimlico. Also very good bus options nearby.
We are planning a return trip with the grandparents over spring break. We're basing our stay in London with a couple day trips - one day to Canterbury and another day to Hampton Court Palace. Can't wait! Our upcoming trip we're staying at a Premier Inn near the London Eye.
We visited Wales and England for four weeks in 2017 and loved the countryside.
Warwick Castle had more children than we have seen anywhere in Britain. Kids seemed to like it.
I have traveled with children, some less than 10 years old and found kids can't handle museums for very long. My kids loved the gondola ride in Venice, the Eiffel Tower in Paris and going to the top of the Zugspitze in Germany.
With the little one, you will need to pace yourself, but can still see a lot. The Cotswolds are very scenic, but you need a car to do justice to the Cotswolds. You might need a van for six persons.
Draughts is a fun cafe where you can play any number of games while you grab a bite to eat.
B Bakery bus is an afternoon tea that is on a bus that travels around London to take in the sights and is fun for kids.
Tower of London and Tower Bridge
You can get a great view of London at Duck & Waffles for the cost of a breakfast or lunch or even a coffee, or head up to any of the roof bars for a coffee with the kids and skip the Shard as it's expensive to go up to the top!
Changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace is fun to watch....or the Horse Guards Parade!
In addition to the already excellent recommendations, how about boat trip to Greenwich, walk up the hill to the Royal Observatory and spend some time exploring . Have lunch in a local pub, explore the National Maritime Museum, the Cutty Sark, planetarium and the list goes on. My grandkids were 7 and 8 and 10 years later they still remember that day. We also walked back UNDER (wonder if you can still do that?) the Thames to the “other” side of the river to return them to their parents (who had enjoyed their day “off”).
York seems a long way away but is only 2 hours by train and it has lots to interest children-including cat statues on top of buildings if your girls like cats.
