Travel Tips for London, England

Westminster Abbey:

Visit us | Westminster Abbey

Explore a place that’s touched the lives of kings, queens, and statesmen, poets, heroes and villains. Westminster Abbey has been the coronation church since 1066.

Houses of Parliament:

Visit

Visitors are welcome to take a tour or watch debates and committees at the Houses of Parliament in London.

Sky Garden: (FREE!)

London Eye:

The London Eye – Tickets & Prices

Book online today and save up to 10% on your London Eye tickets! Save time with our mobile e-tickets when you arrive.

Tower of London:

Tickets and prices

Save money by booking your tickets online in advance for the Tower of London. Here you will also find information on prices, and how to book tickets over the phone.

Kensington Palace:

Tickets and prices

Be sure to get the best deal when purchasing your ticket to Kensington Palace by booking online.

Tower Bridge:

Bridge Lift Times | Tower Bridge

Dates and times of when the Tower Bridge will be lifting for vessels that are sailing up or down the River Thames.

British Museum: (FREE!)

Welcome to the British Museum

The Museum houses a vast collection of world art and artefacts and is free to all visitors. Find information about visiting, including admission and opening times, events and exhibitions, gallery guides and teaching resources. Search highlight objects of the collection and view current research proj…

Victoria & Albert Museum: (FREE!)

V&A · The world’s leading museum of art and design

Welcome to the V&A – the world’s leading museum of art and design

Wallace Collection: (FREE!)

Free museum in London | Museum near Oxford Street and Baker Street

A free museum in London with a collection of paintings, sculpture, furniture and arms and armour. Upcoming exhibition, Henry Moore – The Helmet Heads opens 6 March 2019.

There are a couple of options to get to and from the airport.

Underground:

It is possible, but it is a long ride to central London and you may have difficulty finding lifts (elevators) and escalators which make traveling with luggage difficult. And even if you do find an escalator – it may not be working – which I experienced (luckily without baggage) at the Angel station with the longest escalator.

The link below is for the visitor Oyster card: (if you planned your trip ahead of time)

Visitor Oyster Card | TfL Visitor Shop

Buy your Visitor Oyster card online from the TfL Visitor Shop and have it ready to start travelling once you get to London.

If you haven’t planned ahead of time you can purchase an Oyster card for 5 GBP plus the top-up. The machines take credit cards – and you can get a refund of your unused portion at the end of the trip. There is a daily cap so it works like a travelcard.

Fares

Information about fares for all TfL services

Since the underground is complicated I recommend using a smartphone app like Moovit or CityMapper to choose the quickest route.

Heathrow Express:

This is the convenient method (and quickest) to getting to the city center to and from the airport. There is a luggage rack on the train and it is easily accessible with lifts (elevators). The express service (leaves every 15 minutes) is a direct train from Heathrow airport to London Paddington train station. They have lines on the ground in Paddington station between the train and the taxi queue. The train also has charging plugs to keep the mobile devices charged.

Heathrow by Train | 15 mins from London with Heathrow Express

Heathrow Express is the fastest way between Heathrow & Central London. Transfer from all Heathrow Terminals to Paddington. One way tickets from just £5.50

​ 

Don’t forget your adapters to charge your electronics. Here is a good website with the information you need for all the places you want to go.

Plug & socket types – World Standards

This is an overview of all electric plugs that are currently in use around the world. There are 15 types of plugs in use today, each of which has been assigned a letter.

​ 

Before you leave the United States it is highly encouraged to register with the U.S. State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. You will receive security messages from the Department of State and the Embassy of the country you are visiting. More information regarding this free program can be found on the U.S. State Department’s website shown below.

Smart Traveler Enrollment Program

​ 

The last thing anyone expects on vacation is rain… To protect my camera (and hide if from pickpockets) I recommend a ‘dry bag’. This is usually used for people enjoying watersports (kayaking, boating, etc.) and available at most outdoor stores (as well as online retailers).