London

London Bus

A Traveller’s Guide to London

A city that is home to over 8.5 million people and has welcomed over 17.4 million visitors in 2014, London is one of Europe’s perpetually popular cities.

Beyond just being the nation’s capital, the so-called Big Smoke has plenty to offer visitors hailing from the UK and overseas. From the historic city centre to world-famous landmarks, restaurants, shopping and much more; travellers passing through London have a great deal to explore.

Getting Around

There are numerous apps and maps that can help you navigate around London’s vast cityscape and various different methods of travel depending on what you want to see, your budget, and your level of fitness.

If taking in the main sights in central London (Travel Zone 1), visitors can make do with walking. However, if travelling throughout the remaining zones (Zones 2-6), availing of London’s excellent transport system is a great way to get around. While Day Passes are available, visitors planning to spend more time in London may want to consider an Oyster Card. Available to use on the tube and buses, this plastic card is reloadable with pay-as-you-go fares, and often works out to be the most cost-effective method of getting around if you will be travelling a lot throughout London.

Of course, these aren’t your only options. There is no shortage of historic black cabs in London, and the affectionately nicknamed “Boris bikes” for rent are a great way to explore the city, especially along the waterways of the canal.

(Helpful hint – the Citymapper app can help you navigate around London, calculating routes via tube, bus, car and on foot).

Things to See

When it comes to visiting iconic landmarks and historic sites, visitors to London are spoiled for choice. Some of the most popular attractions in the city include:

Big Ben – Officially called the Elizabeth Tower, Big Ben as it’s more commonly known is the clock tower situated at the end of the Palace of Westminster. Arguably one of the most recognisable sites in London, the clock has stood since 1858, and visitors can hear the bells ring out each hour, on the hour.

Houses of Parliament

Tower of London – Built at the dawn of the 11th century by William the Conqueror, the Tower of London has served as both royal residence and of course a prison to house some of the most high-profile criminals of the day. Today, visitors can explore more than 20 towers in this fortified stronghold, along with an impressive collection of Crown Jewels.

The Shard – Once the tallest building in Europe, The Shard is an impressive glass skyscraper situated in Southwark. From the top of the building’s 72 floors, you can enjoy incredible 360-degree panoramic views of the city.

The Shard
Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

London Eye – Another popular way to take in views of the city skyline is via a 30-minute “flight” aboard the London Eye, a large observation wheel on the South Bank of the Thames. Standing 443ft tall, the wheel enables visitors to view many of the key landmarks in the city.

London eye

St Paul’s Cathedral – St Paul’s Cathedral is one of the largest cathedrals in Europe, with only the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica being larger. It was built under Sir Christopher Wren, making it a true wonder to behold especially for lovers of Baroque architecture.

Buckingham Palace – Of course, no trip to London would be complete without a visit to the official London residence of the Royal family. Tours inside are available during the summer months, while visitors throughout the rest of the year can enjoy the majestic palace along with a walk down the historic mall.

Buckingham Palace

Other points of interest include the British Museum, Tate Modern, Westminster Abbey and Shakespeare’s Globe.

Areas to Visit

There are many distinctive neighbourhoods to discover in London. Mayfair is one of the most exclusive neighbourhoods, having been home to many famous artists, writers, scientists and philosophers over the last few centuries. In Mayfair, you’ll discover some of the most beautiful parks in London and some of the finest dining in the country. Many of the parks are lined with a number of breathtaking 18th century mansions, including the former studio of legendary fashion photographer Terence Donovan, which is currently on the market for a cool £18million.

Mayfair
Image Credit: Shutterstock.com

Notting Hill is also one of London’s most desirable and recognisable areas, filled with world-famous events, restaurants, galleries and theatres. Vintage lovers should flock to Stoke Newington to take advantage of pubs, cafes, and boutiques, while those who love the nightlife will have no shortage of things to do in Soho.

Final tips:

  • Buying tickets in advance can often help you save money, and there are plenty of free attractions to enjoy too.
  • Keep an eye out for happy hour offers to save on food and drink.
  • Explore markets to find great deals and experience authentic London.

 

Disney On Ice

Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Enchantment Review

Back in April we went to the Disney on Ice Magical Ice Festival for Eliza’s birthday and she adored it, with her favourites the Little Mermaid, Rapunzel and of course Anna and Elsa on the ice, acting out her favourite films so when I saw that Disney On Ice Worlds of Enchantment was on at the O2 over Christmas and New Year I knew we would have to go.

Last time I took Isaac but he wasn’t impressed that it was all Princesses so this time he didn’t want to go, so I took my nieces Mollie and Holly with me. I am kicking my self now as both him and Sebby would have loved it as it featured not only the Toy Story Characters but some of the cast of Cars too.

Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy were the compere’s for the evening and the first show on the ice was the Toys Story Gang. The toys, featuring all our favourites, were back in town with heroic action when Buzz Lightyear, Woody, Jessie and the Toy Story gang escape from the rambunctious tots of Sunnyside Daycare and race for home, in their most daring adventure ever!

Disney on Ice

There was parachuting, flying and of course skating – how some of them managed in their huge costumes, I will never know, but it was fun, fast paced and the girls loved it.

Disney On Ice

 

Next we got to dive into adventure with Ariel and The Little Mermaid’s undersea kingdom.  Sebastian lead a fabulous production of Under The Sea with lots of colourful sea creatures gliding around the ice and we all cheered when the Prince fell in love with Ariel and Ursula’s curse was broken.

Disney On Ice

We had a short break before Mickey and Minnie arrived back on the ice, this time in their trust car. Only it appeared that they had some car trouble and despite Goofy’s valiant efforts to fix it they needed a tow truck………..there were cheers from the audience as Mater arrived.

One by one some of the residents of Radiator Springs arrived on the ice with Lightning McQueen making an entrance through pyrotechics. We then got to see Mater and the crew of Disney Pixar’s Cars race across the ice.

Disney On Ice

The final show of the night whisked us away to the wintery world of Arendelle with sisters Anna and Elsa and pals Olaf and Kristoff from Disney’s Frozen, as they learn that true love comes from within.

Disney On Ice

Disney on Ice World of Enchantment has added more dates and will now be on at the O2 London from 22nd December 2015 – 3rd January 2016.

Brick 2015

Getting our LEGO on at Brick 2015

My boys, lets include Hubby in that statement, love LEGO!

It is always a staple gift for Christmas Day and this year was no exception, which every member of the family getting LEGO in one form or another.

The weekend before Christmas we got to indulge in all things LEGO at Brick 2015 and not only were there pre-built LEGO models to admire, but huge BRICK pits where there were over 3 million bricks in them and free building is positively encouraged and some fantastic creations were made by visitors, fans and professional builders!

Brick 2015

They even had a Duplo and a soft BRICK pit so Sebby could get involved and of course a LEGO Friends section for Eliza where she was super excited to meet the friends themselves.

Brick 2015

BRICK is home to the best collection of awesome fan builders and their LEGO creations – including LEGO towns, LEGO cities, LEGO Star Wars creations – there’s even LEGO railway layouts but my favourite had to be LEGO Hogwarts, complete with some of the most famous scenes from the Harry Potter films including a working Hogwarts Express.

LEGO Hogwarts

See how the professional do it with amazing builds such as a life-size woolly mammoth, and sabre-tooth tiger, as well as the amazing BRICKS in motion display, celebrating the history of transport with fantastic builds such as the Titanic.

Brick 2015

There was a very good mix of models to see and things to do. Hubby and Kian did go off to look at the models in more detail whilst I stayed with the younger ones to play in the colourful BRICK pits.

Brick 2015

Another favourite zone of the kids was the gaming zone where we got an exclusive preview of the brand new LEGO Marvel’s Avengers video game as well as Batman 3 and Jurassic World and being so close to Christmas we got to help make a giant Snowman and Father Christmas.

BRICK 2015

The focus of BRICK is to see all the amazing models made by professionals and fans alike as well as see all the sets that LEGO make.   Toys ‘R’ Us was their official retail partner and brought along an awesome LEGO pop up store.

We found all your favourite LEGO brands in the shop as well as exclusive, hard to find, limited edition pieces and offers exclusive to BRICK 2015 visitors – we picked up LEGO Doctor Who for Isaac and LEGO Big Bang Theory for Kian, both at significantly reduced prices than the shops. Eliza didn’t miss out with a LEGO Friends set and Sebby got a Duplo Tractor.

Brick will be back for 2016, keep an eye on their events page for more details as soon as the dates are announced!

HOWL’O’WEEN at Chessington

We have Merlin Annual passes and over the half term holidays we had planned to visit to Chessington, Legoland and Thorpe Park during the week but illness conspired against us and we were confined to home for four days.

By Saturday it was clear that everyone was on the mend but we had tickets to a local Halloween event so decided we would head to Chessington on the Sunday. There was a “yellow cloud of doom” weather warning for fog, but we were confident it would burn off by lunch time – it didn’t but that really added to the atmosphere.

We arrived at 11am and the first thing we spotted was Trick or Treat Wood. We walked straight in and was quickly met with a strange gentleman that blocked our path. It was here the path split into two and he had to decide who to send down which path. The rowdy older children that raced in behind us were sent down the “trick” path but he decided we were good and should take the “treat” path. Here we met the good fairy who we helped to make invisible fairy dust and faun who taught us a very special dance before walking past the bewitching tree to earn our treat. Each children got a packet of Bear fruit snacks.

Chessington

As we emerged from the trick or treat wood we spotted a commotion going on in the water and headed over to see what was going on. The Sealions were racing about, performing tricks and it was almost time for their show, so we hung around to see it. The show had a Halloween theme and it was brilliant fun watching the Sealions hiding behind their flippers and leaping out of the water.

Chessington

Just by Sealion bay are the Creepy Caves where the kids spotted reptiles, snakes and creepy crawlies, including pythons, tarantulas, frogs and even caterpillars!

Chessington

The kids loved spotting all the animals so we continued around the zoo and were quite surprised that all the animals were out in the dreary weather. We headed into the Sealife area too, which we haven’t been to at Chessington before and was pleasantly surprised by the size of it.

Chessington

There is a brand new walk-through enclosure to see the Penguins but sadly they were not interested in coming over to say hello, so we headed over to the petting area instead.

Chessington

Possibly the kids favourite part of the zoo was the AMAZU Treetop Adventure where they got play amongst real life monkeys and other amazing animals as they followed the adventure trail. It was quite un-nerving having a Saki jump over your head though.

Chessington

The live show ‘Operation Cheesy Dibbles’ was also a huge success and had the kids up and dancing along with their favourite Penguin characters. Isaac was also brave enough to feed the Rainbow Lorikeets although they weren’t very interested in food because of the weather.

Chessington

I think this is the first time we have ever been to a theme park and not done any of the big rides. I had wanted to do Dragon’s Fury but one look watching the whole track wobble as the car went around put even Kian off from wanting to try it. We did however do some of the smaller kids rides.

Chessington

We did find some of the rides were closed that we may have tried, such as Tomb Blaster however it didn’t spoil the day and everything we went on had no queues at all.

Country Kids from Coombe Mill Family Farm Holidays Cornwall
 

Kidzania

Fun in a child-size city where kids are in charge!!

Last weekend we were invited to Kidzania at Westfield in London.

Billed as a 75,000sq.ft child-size city where kids are in charge, I really was not sure what to expect but after initial nerves about joining in Isaac and Eliza adored it!

You need to book a slot to go in and we arrived 15 minutes before our time. We were then “checked in” at a British Airways style check in desk and given RFID security bracelets for each member of our party. These are issued to ensure your child remains safely within the City, and can only be checked out with you present. You are allowed to leave children aged 8 and above to go shopping however children under 7 must be supervised. They were also given 50 KidZos that they could use to buy experiences or things from the shop.

Kidzania

Once inside Kidzania it is like being inside a small city with 60 real life role-play activities to try. Four hours is not long enough to try them all but the kids tried their hand as a pilot and an air stewardess, firemen and even made their own ice creams!

As it was Halloween week there were zombies on the loose and the Kidzania Police, made up of kids, patrolled the streets and warned of zombie attacks.

Each of the jobs they tried gave them a real insight into working life, in a fun way. Some jobs paid them more KidZos and others that required more training, such as the Pilot, they had to “pay to train” and Eliza paid to dance in their dance studio where she learned the Thriller moves.

Kidzania

With the exception of the dance studio, you are not allowed inside each room to watch what they are up to, although we did get invited on to the Kidzania plane to see Eliza do her stint as cabin crew. All the rooms had large windows though so you could watch what was going on.

Kidzania

The best way to approach Kidzania is to make a decision about which activities the kids most want to try. A 4 hour slot gives you the opportunity to try between 4 and 6 activities and one of both Eliza and Isaac’s favourites was the Fireman. Not only did they do safety training but they got to zoom around Kidzania (well at walking pace) in a Fire Engine and put out a fire!!

Kidzania

Isaac also had a go at being an animator in the Pokemon studio and a surgeon performing a liver transplant in an operating theatre, whilst Eliza was a midwife helping to look after newborn babies.

Kidzania

Both Eliza and Isaac earned more than they spent and were keen to spend their wages in the shop. This was probably my only disappointment as they didn’t have enough to buy pretty much everything in the shop and came away with a plastic ring and a pen between them. However, if we were local and frequent visitors we could have joined their banking system where children can save their kidZos, request a debit card and manage their finances at the bank branch or through the ATMs in the city. Kids can open a personal savings account at any time during their visit to deposit and save the money they have earned for their work. There are some pretty good toys in the shop and saving KidZos is a great way of teaching children the value of money.

As for Sebastian, there was a toddler room where he could play, but we prefered to stay with Isaac and Eliza to keep an eye on what they were doing.

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