Yes you can certainly do Paris in a day and that’s fine if you just want lunch and a quick jaunt up the Tour de Eiffel but I’d consider staying one night there to make it less of a rush and to get a chance to take in the city.
You have to allow for three hours to travel each way (2 and a bit journey plus 30 min check in but it’s city centre to city centre at least) so it’d be a very early start and late finish if you want to see the sights. St Pancras Station (the London end of the Eurostar) is genuinely one of the most beautiful train stations in the world if you like that sort of thing.
Much of Paris closes on a Sunday so bear that in mind. Also bear in mind that Eurostar return tickets are cheap (from £69) if you book well in advance, but get expensive if you make it a last minute decision. And having been a regular Eurostar traveller, you’ll have to book almost as soon as the tickets go on sale to get inexpensive tickets around Christmas and New Year. From memory I think they go on sale 3 or 4 months in advance but browse around the Eurostar site to see how far in advance they are selling tickets for and the sort of prices you can expect.
I think someone in a previous thread about London might have recommended the 159 bus route as a cheaper alternative to those hop on, hop off buses. It goes through loads of sights. Start off in Brixton for a wonder round the market and a nice pizza at Franco Manca.
Pick up a TimeOut (which is free these days)…they normally do a double-issue before Christmas but if you email the concierge at the JW, they will ensure you will have a copy in your room when you check-in. The magazine has a section on what to do with kids in London for the week
I really enjoy museums and London has some of the best. I spent a day at the British museum and saw a pretty wide range of objects, from the Rosetta Stone to the cocktail napkin from the Hamburg bar that Paul and John wrote the lyrics to “Hey Jude” on. They usually have vendors selling roasted chestnuts outside and even though it will be past Christmas when you are there, you can channel Dickens and try a bag. I though they were awful but you guys can decide.
Another interesting one to check out are the Royal Museums in Greenwich. You and the girls can stand astride the Prime Meridian, walk through the tea clipper Cutty Sark, and tour the Queen’s House. The National Maritime Museum is there as well and they have some excellent exhibits as well that document the years of maritime exploration and adventures that the UK has enjoyed. I caught a short boat ride up ( down ?? ) the Thames from the Tower Bridge but you can take the Tube as well.
Not really. It’s a 2 hour train ride (not including getting to St. Pancras), and there is an hour time change. Train fare is about $120 round trip. It can be done, but it would be a loooong day. We did it last year–7 am train to Paris, 7pm coming home. If you decide to go, book Eiffel Tower tickets now. Frankly, it wasn’t worth it for a day.
I also wouldn’t bother with the Tate Modern. We went this summer, walked in, and walked out. Talk about a steaming pile of… See the Changing of the Horse Guards, walk around Parliament/Big Ben at night. I always recommend walks.com for fascinating tours. Long lines at Westminster.
Must have sticky toffee pudding. And Ben’s Cookies.
Just a caveat – Covent Garden and other shopping precincts are absolutely heaving in the week after Christmas. Many, many tourists, plus people who have time off from work. I like London just before xmas, but avoid it completely between the 26th and the 31st when it comes to shopping or tourist attractions (from the 2nd, though, loads of great sales, and everyone’s gone back home!)
Barely any elbow room at all - if you’re claustrophic, you might find it unpleasant.
Ditto the Tower being very expensive; a pal who works there says they refer to it as ‘The Fleece Machine’
Ditto what teacake says about New Year’s Eve fireworks: plans are afoot to limit the number of people (by ticket) to 100K – unless you get down to the Embankment early and are prepared to wait for 6-8 hours, there is a huge crush of people all trying to get to a good vantage point. Last time I went, Waterloo Bridge was just a solid wall of people. That said, I tune in on telly every year, hoping that this year will be the year they’ve overpacked the fireworks on one side of the Millenium Wheel, and it will go shooting down the Thames like a giant Catherine Wheel.
Grrlbrarian Is that what in the heck all the crowds were doing at Kings X this summer; I admit being probably the only person on planet Earth with no interest in the Harry Potter juggernaut, and know nothing about it, and was baffled by the queue of people waiting to have their photo taken by a brick wall
Drumbum – The Beatles stuff moved up to the British Library when they moved house about 15 years ago or so, but the BL has a terrific display room of a changing variety of manuscripts.
If you do go to Forbidden Planet, you’ll be right on top of Covent Garden (just cross over the road and go down Neal St). There’s a lot of chain shop tat on the main thoroughfares, but if you go off the beaten track you can still find second hand and quirky shops.
