London

#TouchDowninLondonTown!

London at any time of year has loads to see, the winter months with its outdoor ice skating rinks and Christmas markets, the summertime with its good weather and unlimited opportunities for picnicking in the park. No matter when you visit, expect to find yourself in a serious conundrum narrowing down what to do and which historical sites to visit.

I have now visited London in both the summer and winter months. My best piece of advice: strap on your walking shoes or boots, load up your Oyster card and let the exploring begin.

The winter months give London an extra-festive boost with outdoor ice skating rinks, Christmas Markets, and oh, the unmissable Coppa Club dining Igloos. It's a photographer's dream, even for us regular travelers carrying our mere iPhones.

A QUICK NOTE ON AIRFARE

Highly recommend travel to the UK during Thanksgiving. First of all, this is not something they celebrate. Depending on your airport of origin, check out Air New Zealand and Delta - both carriers have great flight deals (and perhaps even rack up loyalty miles on Delta).
I booked directly with Air New Zealand (after comparing prices on Google Flights and third party sites like Skiplagged) for less than a flight home to Hawai’i and enjoyed the benefits of a free checked-in bag. If the price between booking directly with the airline vs. third-party site is not significant, always book directly with the airline to ensure better customer service if there’s any issues.

A Quick Note On Airports 

I have now experienced 3 of the 4 main airports in London: Heathrow, Gatwick and Luton. Landing in Gatwick and going through customs is a breeze for US Passport holders with LGW’s automated passport-scanning machines. Flying OUT is a different story. Be prepared for power-tripping, overly angry TSA workers who have lost every bit of British charm; it’s been replaced with hostility and condescension. 
Biggest tip is to be diligent in separating all your liquid items and making sure they all collectively fit into a sandwich style ziploc bag.  And god forbid you leave any electronics in your bag. 

Happy to report that Luton and Heathrow have pleasant workers. Luton even has a prayer room.

FIRST THINGS FIRST:

• UK is on the pound (£)

• No visitor Visa required for US Citizens (for a stay up to six months)

• The tap water IS safe to drink. Bring a Hydroflask and refill everywhere.

• Bring a universal adapter (the outlets are different than plugs throughout the rest of Europe and the US)

• Oyster cards: Buy the card for £5 and top up as needed (£30, £40, £50, etc increments). This allows you to use buses and trains all in one fell swoop. £55.00 got me through 7 days of heavy usage.

• SIM card: Easy to purchase once you arrive at most small mini markets. Top up with data credit. 3 GB for £15 acoss 8 days was more than enough.

• Apps:

  • Tube Map for easy train navigation

  • Apple Maps for iPhone users. Use for everywhere you go. It’s easy to navigate between mode of transportation - walking or train - and train options including least transfers, fastest, shortest walking distance, etc)

  • Oyster app: Top up and check journey history and remaining credits

• Leave most of your USD at home! You won’t need to convert if you have a credit card that doesn’t incur foreign transaction fees or a debit card (through an account like Schwab) that doesn’t incur foreign transaction or ATM fees. You really only need spare change for bathrooms, tipping and maybe small ticket items like water bottles which you can probably easily break pounds for pence with a local.

• Paying for bathrooms (my nemesis) was primarily at major train stations, usually ranging from 30 to 50 pence. Inside attractions like Westminster Abbey or Tower of London, etc all have bathrooms to use for free.

• When dining out, there is often a service charge tacked on to the bill, around 10-15% of the total. You can actually omit that from the total when paying and instead just give tip directly to your waiter to ensure they actually receive tip. (In most restaurants, service charge goes to the house and not any of the waiters - not cool).

PACK

• portable charger (especially if you’re using navigation apps)

• Hydroflask or any reusable water bottle

• umbrella (rains year round)

• thermals (during winter months)

• comfy walking shoes or boots

• universal adapter

GETTING AROUND

UBER

Uber is alive and well in the UK and can totally pick you up from the airport! There’s a fare estimator (as pictured above) that you can use prior to your travels so you have a general sense of when and where you’d like to use Uber.

Tip: If using Uber in the UK, make sure that the credit card on your account is one that doesn't incur foreign transaction fees. I made that mistake of having the wrong card on file. Also check your bank statement after your trip. I got hit with a funky additional Uber charge (not the exchange rate difference or the fee to come into the airport - which is already absorbed in the original total) that I had to dispute.

New to UBER? Hit this LINK and use Promo Code: 5n3u3 for a discount off your first ride (discount will vary, depending on area).

By Foot

The city is very walkable. This is also the best way to explore.

TRAINS

As long as you’re close to a train station, having accomodations outside zone 1 and 2 is not a big deal. You’ll just stay on for a few more stops and pay a bit more for any travel outside zones 1 and 2, but the additional cost isn’t substantial.

The weekends are not as reliable for train travel outside of the major city. We experienced “replacement bus” activity where trains will shut down and be replaced by buses. Expect schedule delays.
Trains experience repair delays, massive overcrowding on certain lines in the city during rush hour commutes and sometimes skip certain stops altogether due to overcrowding at some stations (get ready to walk). Just a few of the quandaries I encountered.

Pay £5 for an Oyster card and keep loading that bad boy for usage on both buses and trains.

DINING  

Apart from Canada, London my first international trip where trying the local cuisine wasn’t huge on my list of priorities. The idea of bangers and mash or fish and chips didn’t really speak to me. (Afternoon Tea being the exception, more on that later).

Nevertheless, London is still home to a host of elite dining options, including bomb Indian and Thai food, so I stand corrected.

One thing you’ll soon discover is that halloumi cheese is a big thing here. And Peri Peri chicken. And lots of neighborhood doner and kebab places that are really good.

*Tipping: Don’t forget - you can omit the service charge when you pay and just give tip directly to your waiter to ensure it goes to them and not the house.

Dining recommendations below:

Borough Market 

Borough Market is less than a stone’s throw away from the London Bridge underground station. Instagram’s algorithm always dutily informs me of trendy and delicious food choices, so I was intent on trying Gourmet Goat at Borough Market for the sustainably-sourced kid-goat (they also serve rose veal). 

The day we went, Greedy Goat (not to be confused with Gourmet Goat) was closed; so sadly I missed out on ice cream made with goat milk and activated charcoal cones, but that’s on my list for next time. 

Gourmet or Greedy Goat aside, there’s endless food stall options to choose from at Borough Market, featuring all different flavors and cuisines.
You can definitely pair lunch at Borough Market and an early evening tour of the Sky Garden since it’s in the same area. 

$ Saving Tips

Dropping pounds £ (but not in the way you like)

• Do cream tea (the shortened version of Afternoon Tea just including tea, clotted cream and scones) instead of Afternoon Tea (especially if you’re not a dessert person or not trying to eat 5,000 cals in one afternoon)

• Bring a reusable water bottle (the tap is fine, coming from a fragile American stomach)

• Cook in Air BnB's. Tesco and Co-Op are both very reasonably priced supermarkets (Tesco being cheaper of the two - we had four slices of steak for £2.50). For affordable accommodations, also refer to Booking.com - many places have free cancellation options.

• Do pre-fix menus at restaurants (usually a three-course meal)

• Determine which attractions and sites to actually buy tickets to and which to just walk by and snap photos (London Eye, for example)

• Plan visits during off-peak hours (visit Kensington Palace after 2 pm on weekdays and save £)

• Buy tickets ahead of time online to save both time and money (London Tower and Tower Bridge are both around 15% cheaper online, Westminster Abbey gives fast track benefits online)

• Kill many birds with one stone by touring the different parks, they’re free to enjoy! London parks are as scenic as they are expansive. Get fresh air, reduce your carbon footprint and get in some exercise. It’s cold in the winter but you can still bring a warm blanket and curl up to a picnic or at least a hot cup of coffee. We visited St James’s Park, Kensington Palace Gardens, Regent’s Park & Primrose Hill, Hyde Park and Gladstone Park.

• Take advantage of free attractions like London’s Sky Garden (more on that below under “Sights & Attractions”

AFTERNOON TEA

I've been obsessed with Afternoon Tea since my 7th birthday tea party at the Moana Surfrider in Waikiki (with many subsequent birthdays since).
Most Afternoon Tea in London is served around 2 - 5 pm.

I cross referenced multiple lists including “best afternoon tea”, “budget-friendly afternoon tea” and “best afternoon tea for men”. Quality, wallet-friendly (nothing over £40.00/person), great ambience and guy-friendly was my criteria, knowing that I’d be dragging my man all over London with me.

Here's what made the cut:

Orangerie at Kensington Gardens (recommended by many, including friends). £28.50 each, far end of Hyde park. 3 - 5 pm daily, no res. At the current moment it’s been moved to Pavillion at Kensington Gardens.

*Side note: when we toured Kensington Palace we did peer in and see the desserts being served - I wasn’t too impressed. Looked like a lot of cheap cupcakes.

Modern Pantry, St John’s Square. This made the GQ list of “best afternoon tea for men”. 3 - 5 pm M-Th. 12.50 £ for cream tea, £23.50 for regular. Great reviews and images on social.

The Wellesley, Knightbridge Hotel. Free online booking. £35.00, great menu, I enjoyed looking at the dessert options on IG. 3 - 5 pm M-F, 2-6:30 pm weekends. Interior, fancy looking.

OXO Tower, South Bank. One of the most stunning views and the menu looks good! (Also a fair share of really eye catching posts on IG when you search the hashtag). £35.00. If we had time, we definitely would have hit this one up. 3-6:30 pm M-F, 3:30 - 6:30 pm weekends.

La Duree, multiple locations. The French macaroon chain is infiltrating the globe and rightly so. Enjoy macaroons, hot chocolate and other decadent items like brioche or chocolate croissants)

Ultimately, the best places for us were places that offered Cream Tea. The perfect solution for people who only want coffee or tea, the scones and CLOTTED CREAM.

Rest assured, you’ll run into great options everywhere you go.

Other places that serve Cream Tea

Modern Pantry - £12.50/person, wish we had time to try this Modern Pantry. Will report back once I finally try this place - the cream tea menu looks unique and amazing (Cheddar, caramelised onion and sumac scone, Lemon and ajowan scone, créme fraiche, passionfruit curd). I mean.... 

The Wolseley -  £15.75/person, wish we had time to try this too

Saatchi Gallery - £9.00/person

The Fan Museum - £9.00/person, after £5.00 admission to the museum

Not Feeling Afternoon Tea? still Get your obligatory British scone + clotted cream fix 

Gail’s Bakery

Craving scones and clotted cream without the additional ensemble of desserts that comes with traditional afternoon tea? Go to Gail’s! Now that my boyfriend lives in the UK, I am committed to having this whenever I visit. 

Gail’s is very affordable - two scones with clotted cream and a spinach cheese pastry was about £6. Usually an order of cream tea for one person clocks in around £8 on the cheaper end. Sure, half the fun of cream tea or afternoon tea is the presentation and the multitude of desserts, but if you’re trying to save some money and some calories, then this is for you! Locations are everywhere in London.

THOUGHTS ON THE LONDON PASS

Even the most avid and ambitious sightseers should pass on the London Pass. Whether you get the 1, 2 or 3 day pass, chances are you:

1) Still won't fit in all the sights that you want to see, even if you strategically plan it out geographically

2) Will be paying for access to places you don't care about

3) In order to try and knock out every landmark/sight to maximize pass usage, you may not give the places you really want to see the proper amount of touring time

4) Sights like the London Eye aren't even on the London Pass

It's a matter of doing the math. Currently, in Winter 2018, the London Pass rates sit at:

1-Day: £64, £84  w/ transportation

2-Day: £94, £114  w/ transportation

3-Day: £105, £135  w/ transportation

Windsor Castle wasn’t going to fit in our itinerary due to distance so that lowered the London Pass incentive further. Also with the sun going down earlier in the winter months, your window of daytime sightseeing is even more narrow.

When we determined which places to visit and buy admission tickets for, our total was £76.20 pounds per person, and this was over the span of a week rather than being stressed, trying to fit it all into 1-3 days.

OBLIGATORY MUST-SEES

Ultimate Summer Pairing: Churchill Arms Bar, Notting Hill & Kensington Palace Gardens

Churchill Arms Bar is easily one of the best ‘gram spots of London. We didn’t stay until nightfall but I’m sure it looks great then too with the Christmas trees lit up in the winter! During the rest of the year the exterior deco is flowers on flowers on flowers. We still haven’t tried the Thai food that they serve inside (the interior is one part bar, one part restaurant) but from many very reliable travel sources, I hear it’s good!

Having also been to Kensington Palace Gardens in both the summer and winter months, it’s nice to see the summer change of decoration with brighter colors and bountiful floral scenery and having both seasons to compare.

Coppa Club Igloos

Coppa Club opens up their reservations for the igloos in October (in 2018 it was October 9th) so you MUST book as soon as you can. Or stalk their reservations profusely thereafter. Lunch hours did have igloo availability, but it’s just more stunning at night. Igloos seat parties of 8, but if you have less, then perhaps you’ll have to share an igloo.

London Phone Booths

No trip to London is complete without faking a collect call in the iconic red phone booths sprinkled throughout the streets of London. Pick a booth and get that iconic snapshot.

SIGHTS & ATTRACTIONS

Purchase as many admission tickets in advance to not only save a few £ (which adds up), but to also avoid waiting in long lines. Especially crucial during winter months when you only have until about 4 pm for daylight (some places like Kensington Palace Sunken Gardens just photograph better in the sun). There’s equally as many sights to see when the sun goes down (Christmas lights at Piccadilly Circus or Leicester Square, Coppa Club Igloos, outdoor ice skate rinks) - just be strategic.

Big Ben

Under construction until 2021 for conservation reasons. It admittedly took us forever to realize this (I guess this “under construction” detail slipped through the cracks during my research when I was planning my London itinerary - oops) Anyhow, we were really confused as we rounded the corner of Parliament and heading towards the river looking for it. Here’s what it looks like, late November 2018.

London Eye

Not necessary to go up if you've ever been on a ferris wheel or ski lift (save yourself long wait times and £25.50 (£33.30 for Fast Track) per person. It’s just as fulfilling to take a picture along River Thames with it in the background. Instead, view the city from either Tate Modern (free) or walking over the Millenium Bridge.

London Tower

Buy tickets ahead of time and save at least £5.00/person. London Tower accepts mobile vouchers, so you can buy it day of. It’s quite a big area with its various towers, so there isn’t much of an entrance line which is good because you won’t have to wait in line to enter! (side note: if you need to use the bathroom when you get there, buy your tickets first then go inside and use the free bathrooms, rather than the pesky bathrooms outside by the ticket booth that you have to pay for).  Save 15% at London Tower with online purchase - £22.70 vs  £26.80 with the added bonus that you can buy it on the spot on your mobile phone and present the electronic voucher)

Tower Bridge

I was really looking forward to this! It’s probably not more than a 45-minute visit, the elevators take you up to the overhead walkway where the transparent floor lets you see traffic on the bridge below. If you time it right, you can be there when the bridge lifts up to the let the boats pass through! The west wing has a mirror on the ceiling which is perfect for obligatory photos. We lucked out and went on a sunny day. Buy tickets ahead of time and save!! (£8.70 vs £9.80)

Shakespeare Globe Theatre  

Decided it was worthwhile just to view the building exterior and interior lobby display rather than do a guided tour of the stages (the tour is £17.00). I come from a thespian background and am into this kind of thing but decided that the videos I’ve seen on YouTube of the stages were enough for me. (It’s also possible that I’d be too jealous that I wasn’t performing, I acknowledge)

Westminster Abbey

Definitely get the fast track tickets online in advanced. You don’t want to be waiting in long lines just to purchase tickets (let alone entrance lines), especially in the cold. You’ll blow half your day without fast track advanced tickets. (Advanced tickets saves £2, on top of saving a lot of time… and time is money!)

Kensington Palace

Purchase tickets ahead of time! If you go during non-peak hours (after 2 pm on weekdays, you will save about £4.00 on entrance fees (£17.60 vs £21.50). We went at 2 pm in late November and found that to be perfect (the sun is still up) You can even get away with going in 15 minutes early or so, they aren’t too strict with exact times. One note on Kensington Palace tickets - you do need a hardcopy print out of these tickets, mobile scan codes do not suffice. (We had our Air BnB host graciously print for us).

Notting Hill - Portobello Road and Churchill Arms

Just north of the main zones is Notting Hill, made famous by that classic Hugh Grant/Julia Roberts movie. Portobello Market Road is extensive, this could easily take up half the day browsing shops, street vendors and partaking in street food like paella.

Piccadilly Circus

Piccadilly really lights up in the winter months! It reminds me of Vegas. You could stroll the sidewalks for hours and hours and still only cover a small span of ground.

Covent Garden

Do a bit of shopping for unique gifts, maybe eat a macaroon or two at La Duree, stop by for some Cream Tea at The Ivy, or just stroll around and admire all the surrounding lights.

Leicester Square

Leicester Square has a really cute (small, but cute) Christmas Market that opens around mid-November and runs through Christmas. Grab a hot dog or some fudge from one of the vendors and then stroll through the Christmas Market and then all the shops (big department stores, souvenir shops, etc) that encompass the famous square.

Buckingham Palace & Changing of the Guard

Plan this right! It’s ceremonious, traditional and a great way to kick the day off by standing with the crowds and watching the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. It only happens on certain days (Monday, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays) at 11:00 am, but get there at 10:00 am if you can for a good view. Also note, Buckingham Palace is only open for public visitation during the summer.

Sky Garden (free!) 

I hounded the Sky Garden site months and then weeks in advance to get the desired visiting time slot. On the day-of, we arrived about an hour early and was let in, so the time slot doesn’t matter so much as the date, and the fact that you have a ticket. 
Tickets get released about three weeks in advance, usually on a Monday. 

Sky Garden has an incredible view! You can see the Shard, a panoramic view of the London skyline and a wide portion of the Thames river. It’s especially enjoyable during dusk, which is why we selected the latest time of 5:00 pm in the summer. 

While you’re up there, frequent one of four food/drink venues. 

SHOPPING

• Primark: Thermals are a must. They also have a whole bedroom/home section. It’s almost impossible to walk into Primark and walk out without a purchase.

• Harrod’s: Famous department store, on the upscale end

• Covent Garden: Pick up artisanal and unique gifts in the marketplace

GIFTS

• Peri Peri chicken flavor bags

• £££ Pounds and pence (both my boyfriend and I collect foreign currency so this makes for a great gift. Who can say no to money??)

• Tea (to keep consistent with the Brits and their famous Afternoon Tea), perhaps from Harrod’s (they have their own brand) English Breakfast, anyone?

• Something/anything to do with the Royals

• Basically anything from Primark (100% leather gloves for £10, thermals, )

• Harry Potter fan mementos (you’ll find everything from scarves to baby clothes to homeware at the Oxford St Primark) and at the actual Warner Brothers Studio Tour itself