Family Trip Report - London, Paris & Amsterdam - July 2016 LONDON DAY 4

London Day 4 - 7/4 continued

We were pretty early, but there were already a few people waiting in line. We got in line, which was a smart move. By the time the War Rooms opened, the line behind us was quite long.

The War Rooms were very well done. You really got a sense of what it was like during WWII. The area on Churchill himself was also very interesting, although by this point our son had reached his WWII limit & was ready to go.

Next on our to-do list was something for our son - a visit to Lillywhites, which is a huge sporting goods store with a large soccer department. He's a big soccer fan & plays as much as he can. The store is in the Piccadilly area, so we started walking. We came across the Horse Guards Parade Ground where they were all lined up getting ready for the changing of the guard ceremony. We took some pictures but continued on our way.

We finally found Lillywhites after getting a little lost. We were using CityMaps on my husband's phone & it kept directing us the wrong way. We got out our map & quickly found it. My son was in heaven! We headed straight to the soccer dept. & he ended up buying soccer cleats & some other small items. I don't even know how many floors this place has! We looked around a little bit, but it was time for lunch.

Lunch was at Pret A Manger just down the street. Much more reasonable than the British Museum!

That's a shame about your tour, and going to the War Rooms is a very good choice.

I'm surprised that you didn't continue to Paddington and take the train to Oxford and wander around on your own - it is such an atmospheric place. The TI has walks, and there are open top hoho buses which pass a lot of scenery. Oh well, you can't do everything, and it is good that the tour at least telephoned so you weren't left standing around like prunes.

Hi Nigel:

You're right, we should have just gone to Oxford ourselves, but I'm a bit of planner, so I was caught off guard with the last minute cancellation. It was just easier to do something I had already planned to do. My husband & I have already decided we'll be back in Great Britain in the next few years & will not miss Oxford on that trip!

London - Day 4 7/4 continued:

After lunch we started walking towards Trafalgar Square, eventually crossing over the Golden Jubilee Bridge. It was a nice day (cloudy but not cold) so we just kept walking along the river past the London Eye, taking in all the sights. We crossed over again at Westminster Bridge, then back on the Tube to the apartment.

We cooked in that night but after dinner walked to Hyde Park. Maybe a 25 min. or so walk from the apartment. We went thru the park for a while. Lots going on! We headed up to the Brompton Road & window shopped our way back to the apartment.

An early night to get ready for another busy day tomorrow.

Really enjoying reading your trip report halloween!

Enjoying reading your trip reports! Next time, for your Oxford trip, you may want to go with the London Walks Company. Have a look at the website www.walks.com and click on Day Tours Out Of London to see the list, which includes an Oxford trip. They do many walks around London, day trips to a variety of places, and have earned a Trip Advisor Certificate of Excellence.

Many people on the Rick Steves Forum (including myself) have gone on walks or day trips with them and have been very pleased.

Thanks, Susan! I'm realizing now I should have taken better notes. It's amazing how quickly you forget.

Hi Rebecca: we did take a London Walks our 1st day & we'll definitely try to do a few more on our next trip.

Tina