<p>nearest stations would be Lewes, Eastbourne and Brighton… all about an hour from Victoria. But driving or a bus tour would be preferable</p>
<p>Hampton Court is in Zone 6 so you can use your Oyster card to get there. Trains go from Waterloo and take 35 mins -HC is the end of the line so no worries re missing your stop. You can walk or cycle along the river from HC back to Kingston and then Richmond if you want and then take the train back from there.</p>
<p>Windsor - regular suburban train from Waterloo (Windsor and Eton Riverside station) or Paddington (Windsor and Eton Central). Both take about an hour and both Windsor stations are in the town center.</p>
<p>Canterbury trains go from Victoria or Charing Cross and take 1.5 hours. </p>
<p>Suggest you choose a nice bright sunny day for out of London trips. It all looks much better in the sun!</p>
<p>Love this thread because it makes me want to hop on a plane! S is thinking about grad school in England, and his parents are selfishly pleased. Have a great day wherever you go, Rodney.</p>
<p>My favorite day trips from London were Hampton Court, Oxford (including one of the most beautiful gardens by Capability Brown at Blenheim) and Stonehenge (but now behind a fence most of the time ) and Bath. All of these trips aren’t particularly museum heavy and are better on a nice day. Hampton Court is probably the best in the rain.</p>
<p>We have gone to the Globe Theatre a couple of times. Wow. Got seats up in the top section for very reasonable prices (~$20/ea.). They hold performances mainly in the summer, but they also offer tours.</p>
<p>Imperial War Museum is a big hit at our house.</p>
<p>DH did the one-day Stonehenge/Bath tour.</p>
<p>We go to to the Tower of London pretty much every time we visit. Greenwich was a good day trip (we took the boat).</p>
<p>Three summers ago (by pure dumb luck) we were in London in June and went to the parade for the Queen’s birthday. (Her birthday is in April, but they celebrate in June when the weather is glorious.) Could barely see her during the ceremonies, but we happened to be walking alongside the the road back to Buckingham Palace and were able to get close-ups of the Queen, Wills and Henry, etc. Afterwards we wound up where the guests were meeting to go to the Palace, and the morning suits and women’s hats outfits were the kinds of things you just read about. </p>
<p>I left DH and the guys to visit the Tower of London one time and went to Kew Gardens (accessible on the Tube and a nice walk). The photo bug in me was happy. :)</p>
<p>Remember that the weekend after Easter this year is the Royal Wedding and we have the Friday off. It’s going to be pretty manic here - but lots of fun!</p>
<p>On a nice spring day, you can’t do better than Kew Gardens, and it’s accessible on the Tube, so you can go back into town and catch a show in the evening.</p>
<p>If you want to get well out of London and a little off the beaten track I have a couple of suggestions.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Chester. 2 hours from London by train. Absolutely charming walled city. We stopped there to rent a car before continuing on to Wales and were so sorry that we weren’t able to spend more time.</p></li>
<li><p>Chatworth House in Derbyshire. Owned by the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. 2 1/2 hours by train, then you take a bus. The 700 (or so) acres of gardens are simply beyond belief, and the house is one of the grandest in Britain. It was the inspiration for Mr. Darcy’s estate of Pemberley, a must-see for Jane Austen fans.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>I’d recommend Oxford - very easy access by train and the whole town is ‘walkeable’. The Bodleian library have extended tours which take you into the parts not usually accessible and the Divinity room and Duke Humfrey’s libraryparts of it are beautiful medieval rooms that were film sets for the Harry Potter films.</p>
<p>Most of the colleges allow tourists although a lot charge nowadays which can add up if you want to see a lot. The 13th and 14th Century ones are very impressive.</p>
<p>Try a coffee upstairs at Blackwells the famous bookshop as well. </p>
<p>There are a lots of walking tours available although any sunny day will make all the streets very busy with tourists.</p>
) and Bath. All of these trips aren’t particularly museum heavy and are better on a nice day. Hampton Court is probably the best in the rain.</p>