Anonymous
07/13/2025 18:20
Subject: London with Teens questions
Just got back from London with a young teen and a tween, so slightly younger so YMMV
We totally would have fallen sleep on a bus tour the first day. I tried a boat tour and tween was sound asleep in a few mins. Maybe the Eye? Get timed tickets. If you walk north/east under the jubilee bridge there are food stalls and such and apparently a big beer garden.
Teen really wanted to go to Borough market but timing just never worked for us - Covent Garden and Camden market were both big hits though.
We did tea at Brigit’s - the tea and food was good, and the price was great, but it’s smaller than i thought and the ambience was more “cute cafe” and less “fancy high tea.” However teen got a big kick out of the stupid Instagrammers at the table next to us.
We did a WWII walking tour that ended at the Churchill war rooms and included tickets. This turned out to be a big hit with everyone! I will warn you that they give you audio guides in the war rooms and depending on your family, some people might finish like 2 hours ahead of others….
We totally would have fallen sleep on a bus tour the first day. I tried a boat tour and tween was sound asleep in a few mins. Maybe the Eye? Get timed tickets. If you walk north/east under the jubilee bridge there are food stalls and such and apparently a big beer garden.
Teen really wanted to go to Borough market but timing just never worked for us - Covent Garden and Camden market were both big hits though.
We did tea at Brigit’s - the tea and food was good, and the price was great, but it’s smaller than i thought and the ambience was more “cute cafe” and less “fancy high tea.” However teen got a big kick out of the stupid Instagrammers at the table next to us.
We did a WWII walking tour that ended at the Churchill war rooms and included tickets. This turned out to be a big hit with everyone! I will warn you that they give you audio guides in the war rooms and depending on your family, some people might finish like 2 hours ahead of others….
Anonymous
07/13/2025 17:49
Subject: London with Teens questions
I've always wanted to go to Dishoom and try the legendary Ruby Chicken and Black deal. Haven't made it yet.
Anonymous
07/13/2025 17:43
Subject: London with Teens questions
Has anyone gotten the half price theater tickets? When/where do you buy and how good were the tickets?
Anonymous
07/11/2025 14:45
Subject: London with Teens questions
Anonymous wrote:Traveling to London with 2 older teen daughters in a few weeks and planning to do all the major sites (Tower of London, Globe, Westminster Palace and Abbey, Buckingham Palace). Will be there there for a week so have some questions:
- For arrival day (when we are jet lagged) is there a specific walking tour or bus tour your teens have enjoyed?
- Any specific tour guide recommendations for the markets? (Camden, Spitalfields, Portobello) I know we could also just do these on our own, but sometimes a walking tour guide is nice
- A tea recommendation? Was thinking of maybe the Orangery at Kensington or Swan at Globe? Brigit's tea bus? But definitely open to other suggestions
- Any shows really recommended right now? We've been very lucky that we've seen quite a few already
- Day trip recommendation? Windsor, Cotwolds, Hampton Court Palace
- Shopping recs? Love bookstores, thrifting, looking for dorm decor, typical teen clothes
- Museum Wise - V&A, Tate Modern?
- Restaurant recs? Would love to find a trivia pub night teens could go do? Have gotten requests for "conveyer belt sushi" and Indian? Have a vegetarian n the group. Italian / Pizza always popular but open to a variety of foods
- Staying near Tower Hill tube stop and have a 10 AM return flight out of Heathrow? Best way and time to get get back to the airport?
- We did the Tour for Muggles on arrival day - fun, easy-paced tour of Harry Potter movie sites that kept us moving and also helped orient us to the city
- Tea at Fortnum & Mason was a terrific experience!
- For Indian, our who family LOVED Dishoom - both for the food and the vibe. Ended up going twice with our teens, then again when my husband and I went back to London 6 months later.
Other suggestions: We all loved Borough Market (we did a tour with Totally Tailored that help us discover some delicious things we wouldn't have tried on our own) and a bike tour with Tally Ho
Anonymous
07/10/2025 22:57
Subject: London with Teens questions
Any other special restaurants with any combo of fun vibes? Great food? Views?
Anonymous
07/10/2025 22:10
Subject: Re:London with Teens questions
Jamovar for Indian.
Absolute can’t miss
Absolute can’t miss
Anonymous
07/10/2025 22:02
Subject: Re:London with Teens questions
Favorites for my kids were Boroughs market, the bus tour to Windsor Castle and Stone Henge - there were a couple of other stops but those were the ones they loved. The Churchill War Rooms were a real surprise hit but an amazing highlight.
You can get same day half price tickets for West End Shows much like in NYC.
One thing my kids missed was the street near Lloyd’s of London (near where you are staying) that looks like Diagonal Alley. I saw it after they left and was disappointed not to have known about it earlier.
And one thing they were not impressed by was the food. It was fine but neither of them had a favorite.
Have fun.
You can get same day half price tickets for West End Shows much like in NYC.
One thing my kids missed was the street near Lloyd’s of London (near where you are staying) that looks like Diagonal Alley. I saw it after they left and was disappointed not to have known about it earlier.
And one thing they were not impressed by was the food. It was fine but neither of them had a favorite.
Have fun.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 21:55
Subject: London with Teens questions
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:OP here - thank you do much for all the amazing recs!
Do you think for the return we need to get to Heathrow 3 hrs ahead ? So leave hotel st 5:30 am to get to Heathrow by 7 am for 10
Am flight?
I would allow plenty of time, but I’m quite risk averse. I’ve also had the experience in London of having to drag bags out of a car in gridlocked traffic to a tube stop and also being stuck on a delayed train then having to sprint through the airport.
You really don't need more than 2 hours. They don't have exit passport control in the UK, so it's just drop bags, then security, then out to the gate
And you don't need 90 minutes from Tower Hill to Heathrow. It's an hour on the train- 5 minutes on Tube, 10 minutes to change trains (max), then 35 ont he Elizabeth Line. I'd leave at 6:45 for a 10 AM flight.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 21:49
Subject: London with Teens questions
Anonymous wrote:OP here - thank you do much for all the amazing recs!
Do you think for the return we need to get to Heathrow 3 hrs ahead ? So leave hotel st 5:30 am to get to Heathrow by 7 am for 10
Am flight?
Officially the recommended is 3. I've sat around for ages typically but one time my bag got pulled for extra screening and they took forever to go through a long line of bags. Heathrow can be chaos.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 21:41
Subject: London with Teens questions
Anonymous wrote:OP here - thank you do much for all the amazing recs!
Do you think for the return we need to get to Heathrow 3 hrs ahead ? So leave hotel st 5:30 am to get to Heathrow by 7 am for 10
Am flight?
I would allow plenty of time, but I’m quite risk averse. I’ve also had the experience in London of having to drag bags out of a car in gridlocked traffic to a tube stop and also being stuck on a delayed train then having to sprint through the airport.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 21:32
Subject: London with Teens questions
OP here - thank you do much for all the amazing recs!
Do you think for the return we need to get to Heathrow 3 hrs ahead ? So leave hotel st 5:30 am to get to Heathrow by 7 am for 10
Am flight?
Do you think for the return we need to get to Heathrow 3 hrs ahead ? So leave hotel st 5:30 am to get to Heathrow by 7 am for 10
Am flight?
Anonymous
07/10/2025 17:41
Subject: London with Teens questions
We had tea at the Royal Palace Theater Drury Lane and it was really good. Very traditional, beautiful decor and the food was really tasty. Not as expensive as some places and easier to get a reservation. My teen found it reviewed on some site.
https://thelane.co.uk/eat-and-drink-venues/grand-saloon-afternoon-tea
We also really liked Hyde Park -- we rented bikes and rode around and had a picnic and ice cream. There is a flower garden there where you can take really beautiful pictures. Some of my favorite pictures of my kids are in that flower garden.
I'll also recommend the Rick Steve's 90 minute audio tour of the British Museum. It was a perfect length for teens, and we could stop it to look at different things as we pleased. There is a nice pub across the street called the Tavern Pub and I thought the food was really good -- it's a very old pub so gives you that classic Victorian England pub experience. I think the kitchen closes late afternoon though, after lunch and before dinner, so you have to get your orders in before the kitchen closes.
https://thelane.co.uk/eat-and-drink-venues/grand-saloon-afternoon-tea
We also really liked Hyde Park -- we rented bikes and rode around and had a picnic and ice cream. There is a flower garden there where you can take really beautiful pictures. Some of my favorite pictures of my kids are in that flower garden.
I'll also recommend the Rick Steve's 90 minute audio tour of the British Museum. It was a perfect length for teens, and we could stop it to look at different things as we pleased. There is a nice pub across the street called the Tavern Pub and I thought the food was really good -- it's a very old pub so gives you that classic Victorian England pub experience. I think the kitchen closes late afternoon though, after lunch and before dinner, so you have to get your orders in before the kitchen closes.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 17:21
Subject: London with Teens questions
We just got back from London and I have an 18yo. She saw Romeo and Juliet at the Globe Theatre and loved it! There is an outdoor street food mall under the bridge( turn left and continue walking after the Westminster bridge) and she met up with a friend and had a great time there Kate at night and felt safe.
Cotswolds- no. You must stay in the villages and it is very remote and hard to get to unless you drive and stay out there (2h30m from London). Also, regarding distance, Heathrow is not in the city as is Gatwick so plan on taking an Uber and dealing with traffic to get there unless you can take the (Elizabeth or Victoria TFL line to get there).
We went to the Orangery and loved it. My teen loved the town of Windsor and took one of the boats out on the water and fed the swans.
Cotswolds- no. You must stay in the villages and it is very remote and hard to get to unless you drive and stay out there (2h30m from London). Also, regarding distance, Heathrow is not in the city as is Gatwick so plan on taking an Uber and dealing with traffic to get there unless you can take the (Elizabeth or Victoria TFL line to get there).
We went to the Orangery and loved it. My teen loved the town of Windsor and took one of the boats out on the water and fed the swans.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 16:06
Subject: London with Teens questions
I just got back and stayed in the same area (which we loved!). On arrival day, our flight was early and we actually got to our hotel by 7am. We got super lucky and our room was ready so we rested for a couple of hours. My DS did not want to do a bus tour and was worried about falling asleep if we were passive, so we did the opposite. We had 9:30 Tower of London tickets, spent a couple of hours there, then walked along the Thames to get to Borough market and tried a lot of food! It kept us awake and happy. We then walked back and rested for a bit before dinner. It was a fantastic first day as we saw so much but it really wasn’t a lot.
For departure day, it is about an hour on the train, but give yourself 1.5 hours if going that way. Heathrow is easy to get through and very organized.
For departure day, it is about an hour on the train, but give yourself 1.5 hours if going that way. Heathrow is easy to get through and very organized.
Anonymous
07/10/2025 15:34
Subject: London with Teens questions
Just got back with teen DDs. Their favs were the Big Bus tour on arrival day (worked great for us), Westminster Abbey, the Harry Potter museum, the Wax Museum and shopping on Carnaby.