London Itinerary for October

If you are a Tudor fanatic like me...you must include Hampton Court Palace ...you can train one way and boat on the Thames the other way or vice versa depending on tides and schedules. Also Greenwich is a must see. I am reading "Death and the Virgin Queen" by Chris Skidmore and "Wolf Hall" by Hilary Mantel (about Cromwell and Henry VIII). I presume that you have watched the series "The Tudors"...a lot of that was fiction but some of the most awful stuff was not. Very early Saturday is best for Portobello...you could do Hampton Court in the afternoon. You could do Greenwich after the Churchill Museum. Check the days things are open to be sure.

You're well grouped geographically except for day 7 when you've got the Tower on the east end of London, Westminster Cathedral (do you mean Westminster Abbey maybe?) on the west end, and the Savoy in between. No reason you couldn't do all these on that day but you'd be riding the Underground or buses. The Hampton Court website is http://www.visitlondon.com/attractions/detail/427279-hampton-court-palace, or you can Google it. Definitely a good place for Tudor fans, especially the kitchens. BTW, I understand that no one in Britain uses the term "chunnel," it's the Channel Tunnel, or the train to Paris is the Eurostar.

You may want to add a tour of the Globe Theatre. The National Portrait Gallery has a few of the Tudors too.

http://www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace/ On Day 1 might add Kensington Palace visit. On the website above will show info on the Queen Victoria exhibit that is there. You could also have some afternoon tea at the Orangery (it's on the website) on the walk back from Portabello market in Notting Hill. http://www.portobellomarket.org Would make for a nice day. On Day 2 start at Westminster Cathedral (completely different from Westminster Abbey), walk over to Buckingham Palace, down the Mall to the Cabinet War Rooms, from there walk along Horse Guard Road back to the Mall, a right turn and over to Trafalgar Square to the National Gallery. Maybe lunch in St. Martin of the Fields? Have you considered theatre in the evening? From here if your feet are tired take the tube to Leicester Square and visit the half price ticket booth. This website will tell you what tickets are available for purchase that day.
http://www.tkts.co.uk Theatre is London is fabulous. Casual dress. Ice cream cups at intermission. One of the best theatre performances I have ever seen in the world was the definitive American musical Guys and Dolls. Lots can be seen in London in a day if you pace yourself, walk, use public transport and always find the time to sit in a pub and enjoy a respite with the locals.

Kensington Palace: i have found this disapppointing, unless there is a special exhibition you want to see- (and they seem mostly to be dresses). Hampton Court however should not be missed- especially as you say you are interested in tudor history. Most of the rooms are set up as in Tudor times with a great audio guide. Gardens, maze etc definitely worth seeing. Will / should take most of a day. I usually take a train about 9.30- 10 am from London. Unfortuanelty you really dont have much time in London. i would definitely delete Kensington palace and spend a day at hampton