So I’m probably the only person who actually does this, but last month I registered for a half marathon in London and first weekend in April. Yesterday I found a great deal on a frequent flyer ticket to London
So now I have a flight for 10 days in London. I know I’m not spending 10 days in London and I know I’m not probably spending it in the United Kingdom. Am I the only person who booked the flight and then figures out how to make a vacation work?
I’d spend 10 days in London without a 2nd thought.
Favorite city on the planet.
Have you been?
I agree with Claudia. London is my favorite city as well. You could add on day trips from London.
spammy post above reported. don't click that link. (spammy post now removed, play on...)
Clarifying Questions:
What are the dates, or at least days of the week? Are you leaving Day One/arriving Day Two and then Departing Day 10? Or is it ten full days?
When is the marathon in your stay? How many days before and after the marathon do you have? Do you want to travel away from London before the marathon, or only after?
How long of a flight are you willing to take from London? Direct only, or are connections okay?
Lol. You are not alone. I bought concert tickets for Nov. in the UK, then found a flight with miles. Then I changed those flights at least twice (I mean, it was free) - both times to add days. I mean, why not? 4 nights still undecided, but whatever I do will be fun.
Carol, let your heart be your guide, and best of luck in your half-mary.
I suspect a lot of people book the flight when they see a good deal, and then plan the rest. No problema, senora. (Yes, I'm practicing my Spanish without Googling!)
It depends on how many days you have before the race and how many after. How many nights do you have in total?
Why do you not want to spend more time in the UK?
I was wondering the same thing - have you been to the UK? And by the UK, I'm also including Wales and Scotland. There is also Ireland, which is not far away, and France is a hop, skip and jump across the water.
I fly on FF miles usually, and those need to be booked far ahead, and it can be difficult to fly exactly where you want to fly, so yes, I book a flight and then plan a trip.
I've done likewise before, ie, booking the flight first from SFO to Frankfurt or Paris since the itinerary will only cover Austria, France and Germany. Even more incentive to do that if the price offered is a motivating factor.
Following that then the itinerary is worked out using just train travel, both day and night options.
It’s one of my and my husband’s favorite pastimes in the dead of winter and we need a trip to look forward to- we sit at brunch and shop airline miles for European destinations. We look at routing, the options the location will provide for us and then we book it. And then we figure out the trip. It really is a pick me up in the middle of gray skies for months. 😊😊
All of that said, I do love London also. Not sure I would spend 10 days there though. Scotland is an excellent option. You can train to Edinburg, take a Rabbi tour into the highlands, etc. Or Paris is easily reachable from London and that would certainly be amazing for a week.
Please know this was just a general question I really didn’t expect you to plan my vacation for me. So I won’t be giving out the dates etc. 😁
as for spending 10 days in London if I hadn’t spent several weeks in London over my life I probably would consider it but it is more expensive than a lot of places and I don’t think I want to spend 10 days there.
I’m actually considering going to Madrid. I’ve been there before I loved it and I haven’t been in quite a while so it might be a good option. plus in early April it should be warm but not unbearably hot.
Thanks.
Cheap, quick and frequent flight, London to madrid. I like the idea of that - a London/UK Madrid/Spain itinerary
Carol, just throwing this out there as an idea, being a generous kind of fella and all, but how about Normandy and the D-Day landings? It's a beautiful area.
Good call on Spain in April.
Speaking of which; April, my wife and I have a different favorite pastime in the winter, wink-wink.
