Otto the Orange
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Post by Otto the Orange on Apr 8, 2013 8:46:15 GMT -5
Hi, I think Ratchets is in England, not sure where exactly....And anyone else feel free to chime in.
Thinking about going to London for a week. Is there enough to do there to take up a week? Suggestions? I'll be traveling from Germany (Frankfurt area), so transport ideas welcome too (fly? organized bus tour? Drive / chunnel? other?)
thanks
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Apr 8, 2013 9:25:18 GMT -5
I didn't have any problem filling a week in the London area twice, personally. There are tons of different things to do and see in the city itself, depending on your interests. We also booked some local one-day tours out to nearby areas to see places like Stonehenge, Windsor Castle, Hampton Court, the Cliffs of Dover, Canterbury, and Stratford-Upon-Avon.
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Gardening Grandma
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Post by Gardening Grandma on Apr 8, 2013 9:35:30 GMT -5
We spent 3 days there on a stopover. It was nowhere near enough time. My favorites were taking a boat down the river to Grenwich and the Tower of London. Those two could easily take a whole day each.
I also liked just riding the tube (especially Victoria Station) and the double decker buses. Also just long strolls along the river.
London is a fun place to visit (very expensive, however)
For getting there from Germany, I'd take the train. You can google "The Man in Seat 61" for all kinds of good train info.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 9:36:51 GMT -5
Mr.Bill. I was in London over 20 years ago. I am assuming that places is almost same as before, especially tourist area. The 3 places comes to mind you might like to explore while you are in London. Westminster abbey. Piccadilly Square. And watch the changing of the guard. And while you are in London hop on the ferry go to France. If my memory serves me correctly it took me only couple of hours to get to France.Have a wonderful time! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png)
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 9:37:11 GMT -5
PLENTY to do in London for a week ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/grin.png) Debt Haven's husband is a Brit. I'm sure she'll be happy to give you a list. Trip advisor is also a great resource. It's also helpful to know what kinds of things you like to do. A lot will depend on the weather. If it's nasty you can spend a lot of time at the British Museum, "the nation's attic". Kind of like several of the Smithsonian museums all put together. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/wink.png) I just loved walking around, seeing the sights and using the "Tube". Don't miss the Victoria and Albert museum. I also enjoyed taking the train out to Windsor. Do your research beforehand though. Some of the museum hours are a little odd. I would probably fly from Frankfurt. When we lived in Bonn we had good friends who regularly drove, but it's difficult enough driving on the "wrong side" of the road if you're not used to it AND doing it from a left hand drive! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/shocked.gif) Besides London has a great public transport system and you don't want to even THINK about what it's going to cost to park!
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Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Apr 8, 2013 9:40:07 GMT -5
London has a great theatre district - if that's your cup of tea. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/wink.png) I hear it's also great for antiquing, although I didn't get a chance to do that.
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Apr 8, 2013 9:41:20 GMT -5
I studied abroad in London for 3 months and that still wasn't enough time in the city! I highly recommend a boat ride down the Thames to Greenwich and straddling the Prime Meridian! That is always a good time - being in two separate hemispheres. Tower of London, British Museum, London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, Kensington Palace, Hyde Park (my favorite), Regent's Park (my second favorite), Covent Garden, Picadilly Circus, going to the theatre, day trip to Oxford, wasting a day in Harrod's (I love that store!), etc.
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Tennesseer
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Post by Tennesseer on Apr 8, 2013 9:44:00 GMT -5
Not that London is so faraway from Frankfurt, but there are many other world-class cities closer to Frankfurt. So why London?
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Apr 8, 2013 9:44:50 GMT -5
Mr.Bill. I was in London over 20 years ago. I am assuming that places is almost same as before, especially tourist area. The 3 places comes to mind you might like to explore while you are in London. Westminster abbey. Piccadilly Square. And watch the changing of the guard. And while you are in London hop on the ferry go to France. If my memory serves me correctly it took me only couple of hours to get to France.Have a wonderful time! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png) Actually, I believe in something like 3 hours you can ride the train (the Chunnel) from Victoria Station to the heart of Paris. I always thought that would be a cool thing to do.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 9:52:55 GMT -5
Rocky,
I don't think train was available at that time but who knows it was over 20 years ago when I was in London. I might try it what you just said it sounds cool.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 10:14:11 GMT -5
London has a great theatre district - if that's your cup of tea. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/wink.png) I hear it's also great for antiquing, although I didn't get a chance to do that. ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/yeahthat.gif) we got a chance to see Les Mis there..... something about their accents makes that show even better and that is saying something!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 10:20:55 GMT -5
There is plenty to do in London for a week! But, it is very expensive. I love the Tower of London. Museums are free there, they have an amazing Science Museum and Natural History Museum. The Tate Modern is impressive. If you like theater go see a show, there are ticket booths all over. There are many huge parks and they all have their own "feel". Hyde Park (and Speakers' Corner) is a "must". ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png) The Eurostar (train between London and Paris) is only 2h15m now! Prices vary depending on when you travel. Tix go on sale exactly four months before the day, so earlier you book, the cheaper they are. Obviously Fri night / Sun night trips will be more expensive. Early morning trains are cheaper than later trains. I don't know the best way to get from Germany to London though. If you drive you can take the Channel Tunnel (with your car) or the ferry from France. There are ferries from other ports in Europe too but I'm not familiar with them. My DH recommends the website Londontown for hotel bookings. We've had good luck with it the few times we've used it (3?) Be careful where you book, because London is ginormous, and all the websites make it seem like you're right in the center, when in reality, you can be at the outermost edge of it miles away from the "tourist attractions". We've never managed to see the Changing of the Guard. It's always much too crowded, and I'm too vertically challenged. ;-) For day trips, I've never been to Greenwich but I would love to go one day. Oxford is beautiful, and so is Stonehenge. ETA: Bonny is right about the parking ... even if you want to drive TO London, you won't want to have a car IN London. Plus, you pay a daily "congestion charge" if you drive in the closer city limits. Parking is HELL there, and they tow VERY easily (it happened to us when we were in a place for less than 5 minutes, when I was 8 months pregnant LOL).
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Apr 8, 2013 10:24:27 GMT -5
It's a great city, if you like to sit around and have a pint of an evening it is great. One of the curious things to me was that there'd be a pub everyone wanted to go to meet at and you'd have a group of punks here and there drinking at their table, and some other distinctive fashionables at their tables, and then one or two groups of old men at another. But I'm not a real touristy tourist, going around snapping photos - I like to absorb the atmosphere and to the day to day things the natives do and feel the culture in that respect. Agreed. I made a point to schedule time in the evenings to sit around in pubs and have some drinks, and time in the afternoon to sit around outside having tea. You gotta stop and smell the roses! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png)
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 10:28:59 GMT -5
It's a great city, if you like to sit around and have a pint of an evening it is great. One of the curious things to me was that there'd be a pub everyone wanted to go to meet at and you'd have a group of punks here and there drinking at their table, and some other distinctive fashionables at their tables, and then one or two groups of old men at another. But I'm not a real touristy tourist, going around snapping photos - I like to absorb the atmosphere and to the day to day things the natives do and feel the culture in that respect. Agreed. I made a point to schedule time in the evenings to sit around in pubs and have some drinks, and time in the afternoon to sit around outside having tea. You gotta stop and smell the roses! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) "Shandy" anyone. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/grin.png)
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 10:37:29 GMT -5
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 10:53:30 GMT -5
@debthaven2 said
But he's got to get to Paris first. I think from Koeln (Cologne) it was a 3+ hour trip on the Thayls (sp?). Add another 45min to an hour from Frankfurt. That's a full day's journey if there are no delays.
I'd fly.
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skubikky
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Post by skubikky on Apr 8, 2013 11:17:53 GMT -5
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2013 11:22:46 GMT -5
You're right, Bonny, that wouldn't make any sense.
But I just wanted to point out that Eurostar is faster than 3 hours now lol.
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Otto the Orange
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Post by Otto the Orange on Apr 9, 2013 2:53:38 GMT -5
Thanks all, I will be in Germany for at least 2 more years so plenty fo time to see Germany on weekends here and there, want to use larger vacay's to visit places like London.
Already did Paris last time I was stationed here
Any more ideas?
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Otto the Orange
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Post by Otto the Orange on Apr 9, 2013 7:44:07 GMT -5
Also thiniking about flying Ryan air...thought?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 9, 2013 9:18:20 GMT -5
Also thiniking about flying Ryan air...thought? Just make sure you count up ALL the fees before you buy the ticket, know what airport EXACTLY you are flying into and make you set up your ground transport connections. If you're a single guy who travels light, is flexible, and won't be bringing back a bunch of stuff, you'll probably be o.k. I do have a girlfriend who would use them regularly but they had other military folks who could help shuttle them around. Landing in some of those secondary (or third rate flying fields) can be a real hassle and the extra transport costs can easily eat up the air ticket "savings"). We actually used Germany Wings as our low cost carrier while we were living in Bonn, mainly because they were flying out of major airports and we thought it was a lot less hassle. Also of the smaller carriers, we were most impressed by Turkish air who seemed to deliver really good value and service. Have fun! ETA: One other trip I highly recommend for the end of April/May (before the kids get out of school) is doing the Normandy Beach WWII sites. I've gone twice in the last 5 years and I'm not a WWII or military history buff!
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Apr 9, 2013 12:52:53 GMT -5
Mr.Bill. I was in London over 20 years ago. I am assuming that places is almost same as before, especially tourist area. The 3 places comes to mind you might like to explore while you are in London. Westminster abbey. Piccadilly Square. And watch the changing of the guard. And while you are in London hop on the ferry go to France. If my memory serves me correctly it took me only couple of hours to get to France.Have a wonderful time! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png) Actually, I believe in something like 3 hours you can ride the train (the Chunnel) from Victoria Station to the heart of Paris. I always thought that would be a cool thing to do. Last May I did a day trip from Paris Gare du Nord to London St. Pancras on the Eurostar TGV. Travel time was 2 hours 15 minutes. As I recall, it was about $200 round trip. There are better fares (around $140) if you go early in the morning or well into the evening. Very comfortable way to travel. Quick, clean, comfortable and quiet. The TGV sure beats the heck out of the plane flight I took over the weekend.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Apr 9, 2013 12:55:28 GMT -5
If you're interested in WWII history, Churchill's war rooms are about a block from Big Ben. Didn't visit, but highly rated in some guide books.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Apr 9, 2013 13:11:56 GMT -5
Also thiniking about flying Ryan air...thought? Just make sure you count up ALL the fees before you buy the ticket, know what airport EXACTLY you are flying into and make you set up your ground transport connections. If you're a single guy who travels light, is flexible, and won't be bringing back a bunch of stuff, you'll probably be o.k. I do have a girlfriend who would use them regularly but they had other military folks who could help shuttle them around. Landing in some of those secondary (or third rate flying fields) can be a real hassle and the extra transport costs can easily eat up the air ticket "savings"). We actually used Germany Wings as our low cost carrier while we were living in Bonn, mainly because they were flying out of major airports and we thought it was a lot less hassle. Also of the smaller carriers, we were most impressed by Turkish air who seemed to deliver really good value and service. Have fun! ETA: One other trip I highly recommend for the end of April/May (before the kids get out of school) is doing the Normandy Beach WWII sites. I've gone twice in the last 5 years and I'm not a WWII or military history buff! Bill, if you decide to take Bonn's recomendation for a Normandy tour, I think you'd get a lot more out of your tour if you use a guide. We spent a week in Normandy last May and were guided by Stuart Robertson of Normandy Battle Tours. We had a really, really great visit. Comimg home, we kind of felt like we were leaving history class and looking forward to our next class so we could learn more and hear more tales of D-Day. (Stuart is a story teller, not a university lecturer, so his presentation is really engaging.) Among our group of five, it was unanimous that we'd like to go back and spend another week or so with Stuart in the next year or two to learn more about the invasion of France.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 9, 2013 13:44:56 GMT -5
Things to do in London Margaret Thatcher's funeral! ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/grin.png) Too soon? ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/tongue2.png)
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Otto the Orange
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Post by Otto the Orange on Apr 11, 2013 3:05:09 GMT -5
I live in Germany, so better to drive on a long weekend from Germany to Paris/ France...don't see the point to fly to England to go to France based on this....sorry if that wasn't clear
no comments from ratchets?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2013 13:21:15 GMT -5
I live in Germany, so better to drive on a long weekend from Germany to Paris/ France...don't see the point to fly to England to go to France based on this....sorry if that wasn't clear I'm not sure if you are responding to my post about Normandy but if you are, let me clarify. I don't mean for you to go to Normandy, France instead of England. England is wonderful and you will have no problem filling that week. My intent was to encourage you to visit Normandy during another Spring since you will be in Germany for a couple of years.
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Otto the Orange
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Post by Otto the Orange on Apr 12, 2013 5:53:37 GMT -5
I live in Germany, so better to drive on a long weekend from Germany to Paris/ France...don't see the point to fly to England to go to France based on this....sorry if that wasn't clear I'm not sure if you are responding to my post about Normandy but if you are, let me clarify. I don't mean for you to go to Normandy, France instead of England. England is wonderful and you will have no problem filling that week. My intent was to encourage you to visit Normandy during another Spring since you will be in Germany for a couple of years. Oh, ok, I thought you meant I should go there while I was in England
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whoami
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Post by whoami on Apr 12, 2013 14:45:15 GMT -5
If you're interested in WWII history, Churchill's war rooms are about a block from Big Ben. Didn't visit, but highly rated in some guide books. We went to this. It was really cool to see and the guides are really informative. I minored in history in college and took mostly European history classes. It was neat to see the stuff we learned about in school.
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