how far ahead to book tickets for major attractions in London?
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Anonymous
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We are going to London this summer in early August - first trip for our teens. We like to have an idea of what we want to do, but then leave ourselves some room to decide each day. But, I also want to secure tickets for the attractions that we won't get into otherwise. For these attractions, how far out do we need to book them - keeping in mind it's summer travel season? Or can we just show up or book within a few days?
Tower of London Westminster Abbey St. Paul's Cathedral The Globe tour British Museum London Eye an afternoon tea somewhere (suggestions??) |
Anonymous
| Following and adding hop-on bus |
Anonymous
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You don't have it on there, but if you want to do the Harry Potter tour, book that as soon as you can.
Most of the ones on your list can be bought pretty close to your date. British Museum is going to be very hot and very crowded in the summer, and not sure if they are still doing timed entry tickets. |
Anonymous
| I would book ahead if you can. My experience is that for some European cities (Amsterdam for instance) you absolutely need to book online ahead of time. London is not quite as much that way, but booking ahead is still more the norm there than here. |
Anonymous
| What is “ahead of time”? Like two weeks? A year? |
Anonymous
| Westminster Abbey does book up, you might still be able to get entry close to the time but I’d secure that one. Afternoon tea the better one’s book up far in advance. We loved Claridge’s but there are lots of great ones to choose from. London Eye you definitely don’t need to book in advance but if you book last minute the price is higher. It won’t sell out, though. Restaurants you should try to book in advance for dinner if you want specific places. We wanted some specific ones and those book up. |
Anonymous
Thanks! I think I'll do what we did for Paris last year, which is just scope out the websites of places we're interested in and see how far out they let you book tickets. Then check periodically to see if it's selling out and book if so. |
Anonymous
| The ritz has a great tea- it does book up early. Fortnum and Mason is second choice |
Anonymous
| We visited London a couple of years ago during spring break time. We did tickets for the Tower of London and Westminster Abbey a couple of weeks in advance. Just walked up to the London Eye and British Museum. I think if you want a specific afternoon tea that may be more in advance. We also went to a Wednesday matinee of The Lion King, definitely arranged that well over a month in advance. I'd recommend if there are "must sees" on your list, do those in advance. Then the other stuff you can plug in when you have time. |
Anonymous
| See if there's a performance at Royal Albert Hall |
Anonymous
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We liked the teas that have a bit of a theme. Our favorites were One Aldwych (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) and The Ampersand Hotel (science the
Ed tea). Def have to book ahead for these. One tip that the waiters don’t necessarily tell you - you can get free seconds (and thirds, etc) of any items that you want. So don’t be afraid to ask! https://www.onealdwych.com/food-drink/charlie-the-chocolate-factory-afternoon-tea https://ampersandhotel.com/eat-drink/the-drawing-rooms/science-afternoon-tea/ |
Anonymous
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I would book the Tower of London in advance and instead of, or in addition to, doing a tour of the Globe, consider seeing a performance (which you will want to book at least a month out, maybe more).
We had a very nice tea at the Bloomsbury Hotel over Christmas -- tea is on the "Dalloway Terrace" just off the bar, which was beautifully decorated in December but would be even nicer in good weather. You would want to book in advance but it doesn't fill up months in advance like Fortnum & Mason. (And is not as expensive.) Since you are traveling with teens, my kid's favorite stop this winter was Broadway Market, which is open on Saturdays. (I prefer Columbia Road Flower Market on Sundays ...) |
Anonymous
| See a show on the west end - Matilda or wicked for example. Get tix now. |
Anonymous
You can always get tickets at the half price booth. |
Anonymous
| We booked the London Pass for each of us (2 older teens) and did all of the things you mentioned except the tea (less expensive than buying the individual tickets). Be sure to allow lots of time at the Tower of London - we ended up leaving early to get to something else we had reserved, and felt we missed out |