London Dopers, care to show me your city?

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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OK, I’ve been talking about vacationing in England this year, and today I plunked down the Visa and bought my plane ticket and 8 day railpass. I’ll have two weeks (September 8-23) to explore London and greater England.

I plan to spend first week exclusively in London–museums, theater, and some of the other “touristy” things, and then I’ll do what will probably amount to a whirlwind tour of Wales, Scotland and Northern England.

So I was wondering if there are any locals who would care to make recommendations on what to do and see, maybe show me your “world” if you’re so inclined. Perhaps even a Dopefest could be arranged…

And if any travelers would care to recommend a clean, affordable (preferably less than $100 US per night) hotel or bed and breakfast in a safe place with good access, I’d appreciate it.

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Well, there’s a few of us around London who I’m sure would be willing to help. There’s a chance I may be in Germany for a week or two in September, and I’m in Brighton for a long weekend around the 15th, but otherwise I’d be happy to help.

I’m afraid I don’t know much about the state of hotels, but do not stay in Central London, since I’ve only heard bad things about the prices. Good sources of information include TimeOut Magazine and The London Evening Standard (the daily London newspaper).

Both have quite good sightseeing sections, if I recall.

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Hi there!

Also hello to Mattk and all other London dopers who read this post. I live in sunny Brighton at the moment, perhaps you should venture down (about 1 hour on the train, if the railways do their bit properly…), I would thouroughly recommend it…all joy of London without the stress and a seafront. (this is our standard Brighton slogan) I would be up for a few pints of Guinness (or drunk of our choice) if you did.
Cheers.

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When I was in London visiting RickQ, we stayed at a wonderful guest house near the Finley Park tube station. I think Rick found it through an online guesthouse locator called smoothound 1,000's of Hotels, Guest Houses, Lodgings - UK Accommodation Directory for England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland The addy for Ossian House (where we stayed) is http://www.ossianguesthouse.co.uk

I would highly recommend guesthouses, which are similar to American bed and breakfasts, over hotels. The ones we stayed at were clean, friendly, more personable, and cheaper than hotels. Plus the English breakfasts were wonderful. :slight_smile:
(post edited to fix links - remember to include a space before and after the URL for automatic URL parsing)

[Edited by Arnold Winkelried on 07-21-2001 at 12:45 PM]

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Thanks for links guys! I have to get going to the Dopefest/Art Fair in Ann Arbor now, but I’ll be sure to check them out in detail. (I already looked over some of the live theatre possibilities in the one link… Anne Archer in the Graduate & Jonathan Pryce in My Fair Lady! Cool stuff… haven’t seen either movie yet.)

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If you come ‘oop North’ to Yorkshire then I’d be gald to show you around some of the local sights.

Please e-mail me and if there is anything specially interesting to you, let me know, and I’ll do a little research before acting as your guide.

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mrblue92 - I’m away the weekend of 14-16th September & I may be busy the rest of the time, but if someone (hi mattk ;)) wants to arrange a London Dopefest for a different date, I’ll try to make it.

I’ll also suggest that you look at this thread, where OpalCat & UDD were coming to England - they had very similar plans to you and there was advice and recommendations about where to stay, what to see, good places to visit in London, Scotland and Wales & I think a few other places in England too.

Have fun :).

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Places to stay: I’ve had very good luck with Comfort Inns in the past–one by Victoria Station and one in Notting Hill, but there are several others in- & outside of central London that are also quite good. Motel/hotel rooms generally tend to be small by American standards, but there’s so much to do in London, you’ll usually just need the place for sleeping.

Things to do: The Big Bus Company does a good job of showing you all over London, and it’s a hop on & off ticket that’s good for 24 hours. When you buy the bus ticket, you also get discount tickets to some of the West End shows as well as the Tower of London (plus you skip the line).

Favorite Museums: The Tate Modern & Tate Britain, the Imperial War Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the British Museum. Most of these (including others like the National Gallery) are free so they’re great bargains.

Overrated: The changing of the guard in front of Buckingham Palace, Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, the Millenium Dome & Wheel. Westminster Abbey is worth the price but the Tower Bridge Experience isn’t.

Other things: Shakespeare’s Globe–the performance season will end while you’re there, and even if you can’t get a ticket (though there should be plenty of 5-pound pit standers available), the tour’s still cool. Hyde Park is big & lovely, St. Paul’s is a must (climb to the top if you’ve got it in you), the basement/food market of Harrod’s is tremendous (though they’re the most expensive toilets I’ve ever seen, so go beforehand), and mattk is right–Time Out is your friend, especially for special events and daily walking tours. Plus, I really enjoyed the brass rubbing centers.

Wow! I’m missing it already (I lived in the UK when I first signed up as a Doper). Have fun!

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Hope you’re feeling much better, fierra!

I would try and arrange something, but I’m away the same weekend as you, and I’m also hoping to go to the Dublin gathering in October. I’ll see where I am nearer the time.

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OK, I’ve pieced together a loose itinerary…

Sat 8 Sep - Depart Detroit 5:22 pm
Sun 9 Sep - Arrive Heathrow 9:25 am, Depart for Bath by train, perhaps check out the Roman Baths for a couple hours, crash from jet lag.
Mon 10 Sep - Avebury/Stonehenge Day Tour
Tue 11 Sep - Train to Blackpool, Pleasure Island?
Wed 12 Sep - Train to Edinburgh, Royal Mile
Thu 13 Sep - Edinburgh Castle, Open
Fri 14 Sep - Train to York, Walking Tour/York Castle Museum
Sat 15 Sep - Open (Doper gathering perhaps? Yorkshire? Brighton? London?)
Sun 16 Sep - Train to London

“Shopping List” for the week in London:

Bus Tour & Westminster walk-around
Tower of London
British Museum
RAF Museum
Imperial War Museum
National Maritime Museum
National Gallery
St. Paul’s Cathedral
Cabinet War Rooms (yea, I’m a history buff…)
Globe Theater (hopefully King Lear)
Perhaps a show or two on the West End during the week…
…and maybe visit a pub or three

Depart Heathrow 8:00 am Sun 23 Sep
Arrive Detroit 3:29 pm Sun 23 Sep

Drive home.

8:00 am Mon 24 Sep - Attempt to stay awake at work.

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When you’re in London you could pop into Windsor on the train. It’s about 30 mins-1 hour away from the big city and it’s quite pretty. It’s got the castle and souvenirs and stuff.

WARNING: it is VERY touristy, but also ‘quaint’ as you Americans would say. :slight_smile:

If you’re stuck for something to do I’d recommend it for a good half day out.

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Here’s my take:

Sat 8 Sep - Depart Detroit 5:22 pm
Sun 9 Sep - Arrive Heathrow 9:25 am, Depart for Bath by train, perhaps check out the Roman Baths for a couple hours, crash from jet lag.

Mon 10 Sep - Avebury/Stonehenge Day Tour - drive by Stonehenge, spend time at Avebury. Much more interesting, IMHO

Tue 11 Sep - Train to Blackpool, Pleasure Island? - May God help you. I’d be tempted to forgo the pleasures of Blackpool in favour of the Lake District but it’s a personal choice

Wed 12 Sep - Train to Edinburgh, Royal Mile
Thu 13 Sep - Edinburgh Castle, Open - which Open (Golf ?) - nah, can’t mean that, it’s just finished

Fri 14 Sep - Train to York, Walking Tour/York Castle Museum
Sat 15 Sep - Open (Doper gathering perhaps? Yorkshire? Brighton? London?)
Sun 16 Sep - Train to London

“Shopping List” for the week in London:

Bus Tour & Westminster walk-around and
Cabinet War Rooms (yea, I’m a history buff…) - belong together (same area)
Tower of London - yep. But get there at opening time (9.30 maybe ?.
British Museum - yep, absolutely.
RAF Museum
Imperial War Museum
National Maritime Museum - Greenwich has a lot to offer, a nice street market, other museums… Excellent, excellent museums if into Naval history
National Gallery
St. Paul’s Cathedral
Globe Theater (hopefully King Lear) and* the essential cultural experience; Tate Modern (they are next to each other)*
Perhaps a show or two on the West End during the week…
…and maybe visit a pub or three - a pub…a pub…definitely heard the term…

Depart Heathrow 8:00 am Sun 23 Sep
Arrive Detroit 3:29 pm Sun 23 Sep

Drive home - anywhere near West Bloomfield ??

8:00 am Mon 24 Sep - Attempt to stay awake at work.

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London_Calling:

That verifies what I’ve read about them…

I’ve read Blackpool is “as English as can be”, the British Coney Island. You’re just ashamed that you Britons can be as tacky as us Americans, aren’t you? :wink: Besides, it’s only one day.

“Open” simply meant there’s some unscheduled time that I might use to relax a bit or do things I’ve not planned for if possible…

I am interested in military history in general, including naval history, though I like battleships more than galleons if you get my drift.

I’ll add Tate Modern to the list, but my art knowledge is nowhere near as deep as my military history background (and even that’s not incredibly deep). Honestly I’ll probably have a greater appreciation for the RAF and Maritime Museums…

Perhaps you’d like to show me a few? (How warm do you drink the beer there?)

Nope, home is about ninety minutes north of Detroit. (It’s about half the price to fly from the closest big city versus my local airport, over $500 difference.)

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By all means, climb up Arthur’s Seat. It’s quite a hike up but it’s short walking distance from the city and you do have a fantastic view from the top. Give yourself three to four hours–it’s best/easiest if you do this early and then relax for lunch before hitting the castle (which doesn’t take that long to do). Also, along the Royal Mile is a very good Children’s Museum (that is, museum about children, not just for)–quick to go through and well worth it. And by the castle is one of the world’s relatively few Camera Obscuras. Don’t know what a camera obscura is? Go here

They’re performing Lear the 19th, 20th, and 21st. You can book in advance here. Being in the yard (for only 5 pounds) is a great experience, but you do have to stand-stand the whole time.

I absolutely loved the Tate Modern, but my brother-in-law who went hated it to the point of severe disappointment. He had very little grounding in modern art and obviously didn’t “get” most of the pieces (or the design principles at play in the building at large). Across the Thames is the Tate Britain, which is more accessible and actually has a unique method of organizing its material that makes for interesting comparisons of pieces a hundred years (or more) apart in age. The National Gallery is the most “traditional” but has quite a lot of famous pieces. I know which one I’d recommend, but your comfort level with art (especially the “weird” stuff) should be your guide.

You could do a Liverpool/Machester run on the way back. The former has several excellent museums (plus all the Beatles stuff) and the latter also seemed to have a lot to do (I was there on business and too briefly).

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bump

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Yep, you’re right. I think it’s fair to equate Blackpool with Coney Island. Probably great fun in a ketch kind of way.

Definitely up for a beer or two whilst you’re in London. Unfortunately, these things seem to take more planning than D-Day. It’s early, I guess, (if you’re coming in a month or so) but if you’re in a position yet to know which days you’ll be in town, perhaps the date elimination process can begin ?

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ketch ? What the hell - I blame Twisty, it was that last pint.

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Helpful hint: Reserve your seats on the train as early as possible. They fill up quickly.

Me, I think the Tower of London is vastly overrated (especially for the price), but liked the London Eye (a.k.a. the Millennium Wheel). If you’re planning on doing the Eye, be sure to bring binoculars.

A nice day (or even half day) is a walk from the South Bank Centre (by Waterloo Bridge) along the Thames to London Bridge. You pass by Gabriel’s Wharf, the Tate Modern, the Globe, Vinopolis (if you’re really into wine, it might be worth a look), the Clink Prison, the Golden Hind, Southwark Cathedral, and you can have a pint at the George on Borough High Street when you’re done (a pub I recommend for historical reasons anyway). You can also go on to see the Old Operating Theatre, the London Dungeon (which I’m told is rather tacky, but what the hey), and the HMS Belfast. And if you’re in the area and on foot, be sure to wander through Hay’s Galleria to see the funky fountain. Some of these things cost money, some are free. But it’s a good walk if the sun’s out. Wear comfy shoes.