Please comment on my London itinerary

Its doable- a little tight though. i would prioritize a bit - see my comment at the end of this entry Sunday: After the Tower- british museum, is northwest of the Tower, south bank walk goes South west- you are going away from the Museum. I dont think you can get there and be fair to the Museum in only 2-3 hours; substitute something else instead. (possibly Globe theater or National Gallery) Drop British Museum it really needs time- Unless there is something specific you want to see and then go strictly to see that. Best Chaging of Horse guards is in morning (i think its at 11am). Out of high season it only happens every second day. but even so, afternoon is better than nothing. Still much more colorful and accessible than Buckingham Palace. Buckingham palace Changing of Guard- with all the crowds, the time involved in getting where you can see ANYTHING is not worth it. And they are so far away. Swing by at some other time to see the front (the sentries will still be there). Also, if you need a closeup fix of soldiers in red uniforms, go to St James Palace, you can stand right next to them (and the horses at horse Guards). They even have a small change of guards at same time as BPalace On tuesday- other than climbing to the dome, i find Westminster Abbey much more rewarding than St Pauls. with the busy schedule you have, and limited time, I would structure my day with the most important (to me) sight first each day, that way you can do it full justice, and then adjust times for less mportant sights accordingly Tuesday night- take a deep breath and massage your feet. Enjoy!!!!

I don't think your plan is that unreasonable. But as previously advised, be ready to prioritize and adapt. Put your 'first choice' items first and if you take longer than planned, know what you will cut. I agree that the British Museum needs alot more time- But if you want just a taste, that is fine, too. Personally, I'd want some time in at least one of the markets- Covent Garden is close, Camden Locks, Borough, etc. are good, but farther away. Buckingham Palace is a nice walk from Westminster/Parliment/Big Ben. Pall Mall and St. James Park make a nice change in scenery from all the buildings.

Lori Why such a late start on Sunday? Can't you do the Bankside walk (or another) before you go to the Tower? Then you could have more time at the British Museum. Plenty of places to eat in the immediate vicinity of the Tower. St Pauls is quite close to the Tower. On Sundays you can have a coffee and pastry outdoors at Paul (the French bakery) near the north tower of St Pauls and listen to the most incredible ring of bells which ring changes at 9:30 for 45 minutes, and at 10:45 for another 45 minutes. Several other churches in the area such as St Vedast Foster Lane, St Clements, Bow, and many more also peal out around the same time. Good luck on doing the things that are important to both of you.

Of course this is doable. Tight but certainly doable. If you have to cut something it shud, in my opinion, be the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace.

I think this is doable. I've been known to have days like these. If you get tired, you can always stop. I would not waist any time on the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. I've sort of seen it a couple of times when I happened upon it by accident. I did not get any thrill out of it, and I didn't enjoy the crowds. I think St. Pauls' is far more beautiful than Westminster Abbey, so definitely stop there. And finally, with two of three hours, you are certainly not going to see the entire British Museum, but you will have plenty of time for a lot of highlights. Don't miss it.

Thank you so much to all who replied!! I will take to heart all of your suggestions and thoughts and will tweak our itinerary accordingly. I know it will be a whirlwind couple of days, but we will at least feel like we saw quite a bit of London, sore feet and all! Cheers!

Lori Definitely a sight packed 2 days. As much as you want to see all these sights, you might want to consider quality over quantity. St. Paul's is beautiful since it's restoration and although I haven't been in the dome, it's on my list. You won't need a lot of time there if you don't climb to the dome. Westminster is worth spending lots of time and the time you may find you want to spend more time there. The Tower of London deserves some time as well. Although I had no lines, and saw the crown jewels twice, I didn't make it to the dungeons and now I must go back. I like the idea of visiting St. James to see the guards. We had the pleasure of touring Buckingham Palace the last time we were there. We missed the changing of the guards. I can see how trying to see the experience would be a challenge. The British Museum will certainly take longer than you've alloted. If you are ok with seeing snippets of everything then your itinerary is perfect for you. So glad I read your post replies. Can't wait to hear the bells Sunday morning in a couple of weeks! Sue
San Ramon, CA

We just did 10 days in London this past May. Favorite place was the Churchill Museum. We did not do any of Rick's walks due to cold, chilly weather each day. If you are doing the Bankside walk to see the Tower and Parliament to take pictures, they were full of scaffolding when we were there. Not worth walking across the Thames for that. Wondeful little sandwich shops all over the place called Pret a Manger. One is near St. Pauls. Had a hot lunch at the Crypt near British Museum. I was very surprised to see that churches had such elaborate gift shops and cafes. Also good, clean restrooms. We did not go for the Changing of the Guard, We just missed it, but down the street we did see the Changing of the Horseguard at about 4 pm. We were driving by on the bus and just hopped off. Try to fit in a play. Do not waste your time on a river cruise. Highly overrated.

Sue I'm glad you will have a chance to hear the bells. There is a pretty good description of those at St Pauls here: http://www.stpauls.co.uk/Worship-Music/The-Bells If you wander around that site it will also tell you a lot about St Pauls including the free concerts on Sunday afternoons. If you'd like to hear them before you arrive have a listen to this (push the play button): http://www.soundsurvey.org.uk/index.php/survey/soundacts_re1/religious1/398/ Happy trails

Forget Buckingham and the Changing of the Guards..You can go to the British Museum and use Rick's book to locate the "must-sees" in a couple of hours. We liked Westminster better than St. Paul's-St. Paul's is beautiful but Westminster is sooo interesting-do the audio guide they have there. Don't miss the Churchill museum-we learned so much about WWII and London-it is his underground bunker from which he ran the war-exactly the same as the day he left!

My two cents. Ditto others who have suggested starting out Sunday morning at St. Pauls and listening to the bells. It is fabulous. Skip going to the top of the dome. Then to Tower. This may seem like heresy to some, but I would skip the crown jewels. Even if you get there first thing and go straight to the jewels (which we did) it is still slow going through there and you can better spend your time doing the free Beefeater tour, which is well worth it.