First and foremost I want to thank this forum for being such a wealth of information that greatly helped me plan our 9 day trip. I used the advice and suggestions from so many people and even dating back a few years by using the wonderful search function. Rick Steves' travel books, videos and maps were also essential as we did this trip independently.
For the report, I am going to break it up I think because not only did we do SO much, I have so much to say :)
Fri. June 24 into Sat. June 25 We departed Dulles in the evening on United and had an uneventful (but somewhat cramped) overnight flight to LHR. Based on what I learned after we returned, we lucked out because United had multiple issues that weekend. We were Basic Economy and on an 777 that we think had yet to be renovated (the flight back was much better- more leg room and cleaner). Not sure if I will do Basic economy with them again. It was really tight going over. We took the Piccadilly Line right to our flat in Ennismore Gardens- Kensington area of London. Got there about 9:30 am. I had asked for an early check in so we were able to drop off bags, take showers, and decompress a bit. We used Ivy Lettings for our accommodations. They were really great to deal with and I would recommend them to others. The flat was a basement unit that slept three. My two adult kids and I did OK with the sleeping arrangements, but the flat did get really stuffy and warm. It was in the high 20s the first three days there and even with the fans running, we were not comfortable at night. It would have been much better had we been able to open a window. Even in the later part of the week, when the temps were nice, it still was like walking into a musty, still closet upon returning. The W/D combo did not work sufficiently and we did need to have a service call for the bathroom fan. I would use Ivy Lettings, but would next time really consider whether we could get cross ventilation of some sort with working windows, or in the summer opt for an air conditioned hotel. Even though the flat's location was great, I don't think I would return to it. I know we are spoiled by AC here in the states during the summer months, but I am mentioning it in case other folks want to consider this as well.
We started out in Hyde Park and wandered all around, just enjoying the sunshine and the park. Had lunch near the playground and then took a city bus downtown and saw some of the city that way. We walked all around Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus and Covent Garden, shopped a bit there. We loved Covent Garden! Such a cool place. We took the tube back to grab groceries and avoided going to sleep until about 8 pm. Fortunately none of us felt much of jet lag in the following few days, so I think staying up and active (being a nice day to be out) helped a lot!
Sun. June 26 Tower of London in the am. We got there early 9:15 ish and there was already a line for the 10 am opening. It went smoothly as we had purchased tickets ahead of time. Such an amazing place. We thoroughly enjoyed seeing the Crown Jewels. I went back on the little conveyer belt twice to take it all in. To see these pieces right after seeing them in the coronation was especially cool! We walked all the walls and went into all the towers. Amazing. Had a really nice lunch in the cafe there. Great selections of salads, hot and cold meal options. We then had tickets for 1:00 for the Sky Garden. We went up and in without any wait. It was a beautiful clear day and we saw all of London. The setting was really nice with the gardens and there were quite a few people having lunch/drinks in all the restaurants. We decided to head over the bridge to do our tour of Burrough Market and RS Bankside Walk. We loved Southwark Cathedral, and would have taken many more pictures there, but there was a service and we couldn't stay. The exhibits inside were really interesting, though.