Expert: David Stewart White - 1/2/2011

Question
Hi David,

I am taking my 16 year-old and two of her friends on a jam-packed UK/Dublin school vacation week vacation.  On Saturday morning of that week we arrive and hire a car to take us to Bristol, where we will visit with some of my friends - getting to Bath and the surrounding area. I will get the girls to London for one full day (Monday) before we get up super early on Tuesday, take the train to Gatwick and fly to Dublin - to visit family for five days.  So I got advice last night that Victoria may be a good place to dock for the night so the girls can see some of London (Conventry Garden?, etc).  So where would you suggest staying and what would you put as a top 10 list for the day (16 year old girls.....)  Thanks.

Sharon

Answer
Hello Sharon,

Yes, Victoria is a good location to stay in central London when traveling by train to/from Gatwick. The other option if you have a very early flight is to stay at the airport (a Hilton and a Sofitel are physically connected to the terminals; all other hotels require a shuttle bus ride). In this case, you could still use the train from Victoria to sightsee in central London.

There are a number of hotels near Victoria rail station—some are quite nice and some a a bit dodgey. In the former category, the upscale Goring Hotel is nearby, as is the Grosvenor Thistle. Just a bit further are the Thistle Westminster (which I'm not familiar with), 41 Hotel (upscale), and the popular Rubens at the Palace. On the less expensive side, there is a Holiday Inn Express Victoria (although not really that close to the station), and if you can take a short taxi, the Sanctuary House Fullers Inn is less expensive, for this area, and nice.  There are any number of smaller hotels and some B&Bs in the Victoria area...I'd suggest looking through TripAdvisor.com, taking care that a few of of the reviews on that service can be "fakes" planted by hotel owners.

With just one day in London, you could take two approaches: one is to use a hop-on/hop-off bus tour that takes you past the major sights in the city, allowing you to get off and look around as time allows. The other is to focus on an area and explore it in a bit more detail.

Actually, right near Victoria is an area worth exploring: the rough triangle formed by Buckingham Palace on the west, Westminster Abbey/Parliament on the southeast, and Trafalgar Square on the center/north.  Within that you can see the Palace (or the outside of it at least), the Abbey, Parliament, the London Eye, Churchill Museum/War Rooms, Trafalgar Square/National Gallery, St. James's Park, shopping on Piccadilly, etc.

Covent Garden is another area, as you mentioned. It is a more commercial spot, with fewer legitimate tourist attractions, but the shops in and around the Market should be of interest to 16-year-olds (warning: the Apple Store in Covent Garden is the largest in the UK and it could drain away much of your time and money).

Outside of this, I'd mention the Tower of London as a top spot, if that is of interest to the girls. You can reach the Tower via a boat trip on the Thames from Westminster, which is a good combination trip.  Pick a museum that is of interest (if any): Victoria & Albert, Science Museum, Natural History, British Museum.  You could spend most of a day in any of these—a rainy day plan perhaps.

I hope this is helpful. Enjoy your visit.

Dave White