Trips from Paddinton Station

Kira, you hit the nail on the head. I'll print out your post and tuck it in my planner. The Tolkien, Lewis thing is really exciting. Thanks you so much!! If you think of anything else to add about London, Kira, I'd love to hear it.

Big options from Paddington for day trips would be Windsor or Oxford. But you should be able to reach any London station fairly easily from there, don't just restrict yourself to Paddington.

Last week we did the trip from Paddington to Windsor. It's 30 minutes, maybe. You have to change trains, but it is EASY. And the price is right - 9 pounds each, round trip. We just walked up to the window and bought tickets. Super easy. Windsor Castle is... wow. Grand!! Spendy - the tour is almost 18 pounds per adult, but IMHO worth it. Especially as I'd just seen a "Time Team" special about Edward III's Round Table being found under the Queen's lawn! Astounding. http://www.channel4.com/programmes/time-team-specials/episode-guide/series-119/episode-1 For shoppers, Windsor is a treat. There's a great shopping arcade in the old train station, and a nice shopping street. We also walked into Eton. The walk is lovely - over the river past flocks of swans. We rambled along the little high street and part of campus (mostly closed). It's gorgeous. Really old venerable buildings, delightful high street. Lovely! In Eton we had a pint at the Crown & Cushion's bar, and in Windsor had another at the King & Castle. I recommend both. I don't know if you can get John Smith's Extra Smooth in Greensboro, but we don't have it in Seattle. I tried it in Eton, and am hooked. It's excellent. (http://www.johnsmiths.co.uk/brands/extra-smooth.html) The Guinness at the King & Castle is excellent, BTW. And for "The Office" fans, a little coolness. To get to Windsor from Paddington, you change to the shuttle at Slough! Yes, that Slough, from the original "The Office." Hah! Have been to Oxford, as well, but we rented a car and drove. But as Philip notes you can get there from Paddington Station, and I recommend Oxford highly! We loved loved LOVED it. Best pub in our estimation was the Eagle & Child. It's where C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkein met weekly to gossip and talk about writing. Does not get more AWESOME than that. Good pints, too.

Windsor and Oxford are both fun. Oxford has better shopping and one of the world's great bookstores, Blackstones. It's an hour by train from Paddington. The Oxford station is an easy walk to the town center. You can also do Bath in a day out of Paddington, with planning. It's about a two-hour trip. Leave early, spend the day in Bath, have dinner, and come back.

Six days in London can easily be filled up with things in London. That said, I agree that Windsor is a great day trip and I recommend you stay for evensong at the chapel in the castle. I don't know if there might be any train issues; but if running normally, you should still be able to be back in London by 8. If you are staying near Paddington Station, you are on the circle line and are only a short tube ride to any of the train stations. You can do day trips to Cambridge, Canterbury, Dover, Plymouth, Salisbury and many other great spots. You could push the envelope and go for York. That's about 2 hours each way and York is so worth more than a day.

Blackwells is the Oxford bookshop, not Blackstones.

if you are in Oxford it is worth visiting the Covered Market: Keith is right about that. And if you are on the High Street side of the Market have a milkshake from Moo Moos. You'll love it.

Thank you to everyone. This is great. Keep the ideas coming. Also, I'll take any info you have to share about London. Advice on Oyster cards, train travel and safety.

Oyster cards - buy one! I'd never done so before this trip, and boy is it a great time and money saver. You'll need to pay a five pound "deposit," but it turns out that you can spend that on tube travel, so not sure why they call it a "deposit." Beer - do you know about/have you checked out CAMRA? http://www.camra.org.uk/ Many many many pubs in the UK are now chains. That's not necessarily bad as it pertains to enjoying a good pint in a nice place, but there is a certain same-ness to a lot of places - and chains limit the beers you can get. CAMRA is all about preserving real ales, local breweries, and real (non-chain) local pubs. They even have a guide, which I think would be worth getting. For shopping, we loved the Camden Stables Market and Covent Garden. http://www.camdenlock.net/stables/index.html & http://www.coventgardenlondonuk.com/shopping/page/1. Yes, there is tourist tat and it has a certain grungy feel, and it can get crowded, but the Stables Market is still FAB-ulous! If you take the Edgware branch of the Northern line and get off at Chalk Farm, you can walk down Chalk Farm road, explore the Stables Market, and then walk down Camden High Street to the Elephant's Head, a cool pub with an excellent DJ. Then from the high street you can catch a 168 bus to Covent Garden, for more awesome shops!

Thanks, Phillip, for correcting me about Blackwells. By any name, the Oxford store is great. And, I can second Nigel's recommendation for Moo Moo shakes in Oxford's Covered Market. I remember, too, a very aromatic cookie stall up front.

Bath is a great day trip, and the city is small enough to walk everywhere you need to go. Tour the Roman Baths site ( how Bath got is name )...very interesting, and only a short walk from the train station