<p>I have to say my experience is back in the day that ANdrew Lloyd Webber ruled the theatre. Miss Saigon was in a very small theatre compared to Broadway, so was everything else we saw produced by him…it might have been his thing to use small theatres.</p>
<p>I would also look into seeing what is playing at the Royal Opera, we saw Frank SInatra there in 92. I remember going thinking that Bullet and I would be the youngest (27), but it was filled with people are age, and very few people from his heyday!</p>
<p>I LOVE visiting London. It is great for history, architecture, museums, theatre, premier league soccer, the London Eye, the Harry Potter Tour, etc … whatever your interest London is great (except maybe food). To the OP if you tell us more of your interests we can be much more specific. Some random comments
I agree using the tube is great
I recommend a one day trip to Eidenborough
To get out of London proper my family prefered a train ride versus packaged bus tours
The bus tours in London are a great way to get an initial overall lay of the land in town
I’m OK driving in England but I agree avoid a stick shift if you can (stay left!)</p>
<p>Have fun … if you need someone to carry your bags around I volunteer!</p>
<p>More thoughts: We didn’t have a problem getting an automatic car. You have to pay extra, but we’ve had them on two trips. The theater in London has everything. There’s a half-price tickets place, but we found that the full-price tickets felt like a bargain. We saw Avenue Q for a fraction of the price it would have cost on Broadway. We did not do this, but you can actually see a lot just by taking day trips out of London by train: Greenwich, Windsor, Cambridge, Bath (longer–1.5 hours).</p>
<p>I have to second Kew Gardens and Westminster Abbey. We strolled from Westminster along the Thames, walked by Scotland Yard and Cleopatra’s Needle, and eventually ended up in Trafalgar Square. On the way to Trafalgar Square, we wandered through some quaint covered alley which was quite charming and gave us the feel of what old London might have been like. Try to make time to just stroll in London. You’ll get a good feel for what London is all about. In Trafalgar Square we discovered The National Gallery. Don’t miss The Execution of Lady Jane Grey which is housed there. </p>
<p>We strolled Hyde Park almost daily while we were there. The north end of the park just east of Kensington Gardens has a lovely garden area which has a statue of Edward Jenner (of smallpox fame). We had a picnic there and enjoyed it immensely. You can even catch bunnies out if you go at dusk. The Rose Garden on the south side should be starting to bloom at the end of May. We were there for the month of June, and it was in full bloom. Gorgeous. While on the south side of Hyde Park, stop by The Albert Memorial and Royal Albert Hall. (Then you’ll know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall.) Which reminds me, you may want to find Abbey Road, if you are a Beatles fan.</p>
<p>The Victoria and Albert, or V&A, is another great museum. It seems to have everything you can imagine including an exhibit of wrought iron works that are quite beautiful. (If you’re into that kind of art.) </p>
<p>Too much to see and do in a single visit. Get youself a good guidebook and pick out what interests you most. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy.</p>
<p>I strongly advise you NOT to rent a car to drive to York. It will be quicker, cheaper and easier to go by train. the train takes 1.5-2 hours from kings Cross station (and you can see Platform 9 and 3/4 while you’re there). Driving would take about 3-4 hours of solid traffic on a jammed motorway (the one called A1) and would be no fun. no view, just cars and more cars. the you spend an hour trying to find a parking space when you arrived. train tickets are a bit like airline tickets in the UK. They get more expensive closer to the date of travel. tickets go on sale 12 weeks in advance. If you bought a return to York on the day it would cost about £100, but in advance it might be £15 or £20. The web-site for train tickets is national express east coat (google them). You can pay online and then collect your tickets at the station by putting your credit card in a machine.</p>
<p>A few years ago we did one of those daylong bus tours out of London where we saw Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, and Bath. It was a long day and, of course, we would have loved to spend more time at each place. But given we only had a day, it was an easy and comfortable way to see these places. I quite enjoyed it.</p>
<p>so my D needs to take a train from Heathrow to Leeds- she doesnt’ have decent internet where she is in india ( and she just had her phone stolen)- so I have been assigned to research.
( plus if she had her wallet stolen as well- along with her debit card- what can I do?)</p>
<p>Take the tube to Kings cross. This takes 45mins-> 1 hour roughly. £4</p>
<p>Overground train to Leeds
buying a ticket on the day would be extremely expensive (£100+ I’ve just checked tomorrow and an off peak return - that’s a “round trip”- would be £84). In advance you can book for about £20 (random dates in May are looking like £12.50 each way - weirdly sometimes two single tickets are cheaper than one return ticket. It is also cheaper if you choose a specific train rather than an ‘open’ ticket valid on any train. After 9.30am is usually “off peak” and less expensive)</p>
<p>Book on this web-site, colelct at station.
[National</a> Express > Home > Train tickets for travel to London, York, Leeds, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Glasgow](<a href=“http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com%5DNational”>http://www.nationalexpresseastcoast.com)
National express also do buses but this would be a long drive. Probably about 5 hours but most likely direct from heathrow bus station at terminal 1. </p>
<p>Your other option is to fly from heathrow direct to leeds/bradford airport (this is one place there aren’t two separate airports. Just one somewhere between Leeds and Bradford). Never been there though.</p>
<p>I’m with the people who say to take the train. I love European trains and take them without reservation.</p>
<p>I would NOT rent a car in the UK and have never tried it. That’s because I have trouble crossing the street–I look the wrong direction. Even as a passenger in my London-cousin’s car or a taxi, I constantly want to be on the other side of the street. (In New Zealand, I hired a driver when I needed to go out into the country.)</p>
<p>(Lest you think I’m a complete wimp, I don’t mind driving in Italy at all. I just rent the smallest car I can.)</p>
<p>Has anyone mentioned a trip (by train) out to Hampton Court, the palace of Henry VIII? It’s kind of amazing.</p>
<p>First thing, tour the Tower of London. Be sure to hook-up with one of the guides. Be sure to tip him at the end of the tour.</p>
<p>Then, from the Tower, take the boat trip down the Thames to Greenwich. Their is a guide on the boat who explains what you are going past. Again, be sure to tip the guide. Once in Greenwich, walk up to the Royal Observatory, home to the prime meridian. Be sure to see the Harrison clocks. Tour the Royal Navy museum. Look for Lord Nelson’s coat with the fatal bullet hole in it.</p>
<p>Then, walk under the Thames and take the Tube back to London. Stop at Canary Wharf, which you will have seen from the boat trip, and walk around a bit. Nothing historic, just amazing to see a huge urban renewal project that was finally successful after multiple mis-starts.</p>
<p>dmd77 just reminded me - make sure you look ‘both ways’ and especially to the ‘right’ before crossing any streets. People have been killed by only looking to the left before stepping off the curb.</p>
<p>I second ‘alwaysamom’ on Windsor castle. It’s very close to Heathrow and the adjacent Eton (famous for the private boys school) is intersting. You sometimes can see the castle as you’re landing at Heathrow. If you’re flying out of Heathrow, you might want to stay at an airport hotel the last night for convenience. If you do, you might want to see Windsor castle then.</p>
<p>Regarding auto versus manual transmission - if you’re comfortable here with a stick I wouldn’t worry about trying to get an auto over there since the transition to shifting with your left hand versus right is really no big deal. I personally enjoy driving a stick. However, they do have some automatics there and once they see you’re an American are liable to ask you if you want/need one (as the thought enters their head condescendingly).</p>
<p>As you can tell by the responses, you could use more time there. If it’s a possibility, you might want to think about extending your time a bit so you can see more and be a little more relaxed about it. </p>
<p>And, don’t forget to get your fill of fish-n-chips while there and avoid American fast food places if you can.</p>
<p>If your first day is a good weather day, consider a day long ticket on the double decker bus. It provides you a great overview of the city and good sunshine to help you adjust your body clock. I also agree with the water taxi and water tours. And the Tower…Fabulous! </p>
<p>I try to watch my pennies when we travel without missing out on the things most important to us. To keep the cost down and your stomach happy (you will need to search for green leafy things), consider stopping at a market to pick up fruit, veggies, cheese and bread for a breakfast or lunch in a park or on a bench. It’s a great way to meet the locals and much cheaper than the alternative. I can’t say enough about the pubs! Hearty food and a great way to find the hidden gems from the people who know best.</p>
<p>If I remember correctly, Selfridge has a large deli with lots of picnic food options. That’s where we went to get our picnic fixings (I think). With all the choices, everyone got what they wanted. Selfridge was located just north of Edgeware Road and the Marble Arch. </p>
<p>Seekingknowledge is right. The pubs are great. Make sure to check out all the “local” ales and lagers. Can’t remember all the different names, but the bartender will be glad to help you along. If you get half pints you can try more varieties.</p>
<p>The train is good for getting from point A to point B but to really get out and see the countryside at-will one really needs to either drive or take a tour bus. There are tour buses, however, that head out from London and hit Stonehenge, Bath, and a few other spots. A car isn’t needed or desired in London - their subway gets you anywhere and many of the sites are fairly easily walkable (London wasn’t so big hundreds of years ago).</p>
<p>I actually enjoyed driving over there but I like doing driving trips. Remember that petrol is much more expensive there than here so factor that in. The last time I was there I rented a diesel Audi A5 with a stick that seemed to get really great mileage although I didn’t measure it.</p>
<p>Another vote for London Walks. They are great and not expensive. We did the one of Westminster Abbey and I highly recommend it. One note though, they can get very crowded. We went to the meeting place early and hung out. Got a chit from the guide right away…others were not able to join the group. Also, if you time it right (I can’t remember the schedule but you can look on tripadvisor.com or on the website for the Abbey) you can hang around after the walk and go to Evensong for free. I will forget being at that service, the music is beautiful. My favorite memory of a trip to London.
I would also recommend the Big Red bus, the hop on/hop off double decker.<br>
Harrod’s in general just for looking unless you are ridiculously wealthy but then the food shops. You can get an really good ice cream sundae in the food shops area. Worth the price but split it with someone, they are huge.
I would also recommend Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theater. The atmosphere is perfect for the show.</p>
<p>If I were going to London right now, I’d do a thorough of investigation of what live theatre is currently on stage. London rivals and often surpasses New York in that department, though much of what’s been showing in the West End lately is Broadway retreads. I’d avoid those shows and look for original productions. Generally more “straight plays” (as opposed to musicals) in London, but scan the reviews online before buying tickets. The musical “Billy Elliott” may be a big exception; haven’t seen it but it sounds fantastic, and when it comes to Broadway you can tell all your friends you saw the original West End production. A reliable ticket broker (they’ll charge a commission but provide good service) is Albemarle (look it up online).</p>
<p>I’d also visit the British Museum, find a few good Indian restaurants—best Indian food I’ve ever had has been in London, and British fare is nothing to write home about—and plan to do a ton of walking. The paid walking tours are good to introduce you to some sights and get a general lay of the land, but once you’ve got your bearings, London is just a great walking city. Bring comfortable walking shoes, chart your own itinerary with the help of a couple of guide books or online suggestions, and set out hoofing it to see the city. In May, make sure you spend some time in the parks–Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, St. James’s Park, the Green Park (and Buckingham Palace), Regent’s Park. Hike around Bloomsbury, the literary neighborhood around the British Museum and University College. don’t miss The City (St. Paul’s—Christopher Wren’s magnificent cathedral–as well as the Inns of Court, Fleet Street, the financial district, the Tower of London).</p>
<p>For lodging, I’d book online. You can often find relatively reasonable accommodations in Kensington (south of Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens, near Harrod’s and walkable to Westminster and the Houses of Parliament/Big Ben) or Paddington (near Paddington Station just north of Hyde Park, convenient rail access to/from Heathrow), but I’d try to stay close to a tube stop. The British pound is way down right now, under US $1.50, and the British economy is even more in that tank than ours, so if you book soon you should be able to find reasonable (by London standards) prices.</p>
<p>bclintonk, I gave a link for London theatre listings on the previous page that is fairly comprehensive. I agree about using a ticket broker, which is what we always do for London theatre. They always have excellent seats. By the way, Billy Elliot came to Broadway last October. :)</p>
<p>Shopping-wise everyone will mention Harrods, Selfridges, Fortnum & Mason, etc.</p>
<p>My favorite department store is Liberty. Started as an importer of oriental and indian textiles. Very interesting old Tudor building. Give it a try, if you have time.</p>