Expert: Michael - 1/5/2006

Question
Hello Michael,

   I am planning a family trip with my wife and 2 daughters(both 20 years old)during the Christmas time period. I have alittle flexibility of the exact dates before and after the holiday to travel, but we want to be in england for at least 2 weeks. I'm coming from the philadelphia/new york area to Heathrow. I would like to spend 2 nights in the city of London to see he sights, then we will spend the rest of the time with relatives we have in England. Which hotels in the city of london are a good deal? and do you know which days are the cheapest to fly there? Is there a way I can get just 1 room for the four of us, instead of 2 rooms (would they really mind)?

             Thanks for your help,
                                    Dan

Answer
Hi Dan,

I'm not sure I'm going to be a great deal of help to you. Living so close to London I don't have much call for using hotels, much less for 4 people.

I would suggest that you contact the London Tourist Board via their website at www.visitlondon.com . If you contact them outlining your situation, I am sure they could get someone to look into it for you. Certainly my experience of tourism officers in the UK is that they are always keen to solve a new challenge!

As for flights, prices will depend in part on your airline. If you book a flight with a UK-based company (such as British Airways or Virgin Atlantic) you'll probably find the fares are higher on different days than by booking with an airline stateside. I can give you the websites for the main UK carriers if that helps:
www.ba.com
www.virgin-atlantic.com
www.flybmi.com [tends to offer cheaper fares if you book well ahead]

I hope that this information has been of some use to you, and I hope very much that you enjoy your stay in the United Kingdom!

Regards
Michael