June 28 - July 1, 2013 (5D4N):  There is so much to do in London that 2013 marked my 4th time visiting London.  London is also the gateway to the rest of Europe; you can take a train to Paris, a short flight to Ireland, or fly anywhere in Continental Europe.

*Highly Recommended

Day 1

• Evening arrival in London Heathrow

• Take Heathrow Connect/Express to London Central

• Check-in @ Chamberlain Hotel

Day 2

• Breakfast @ KFC near the Tower of London

• Tower of London (Suggested duration 2.5 hrs)

• Walk to Tower Bridge

• South Bank neighborhood:

  • London Bridge

  • London Eye (Buy tix online)

  • Oyster at the market

• Bus to London Bridge

• Lunch @ Borough market*

• Shakespeare global theater (pic only)

• Tate Modern (Free admission)

• Millennium Bridge

• St. Paul’s Cathedral

• Dinner @ Tayyabs*

• Meet up with friends @ Callooh Callay

Day 3

• Ride the double-decker bus to Leicester Square

• Trafalgar Square

• National Gallery (Suggested duration 1 hr; free)

• Coffee @ Pret

• Changing guard @ Buckingham Palace

• Westminster Cathedral

• Westminster Abbey

• House of Parliament (The first time I visited London, I sat through a debate, and it was quite interesting)

• Big Ben (pic only)

• Lunch @ Old Monk Room

• Churchill War room

• Harrod’s @ Brompton Road

• Dinner @ Strada

Day 4

• Charles Dickens Museum

• Walk to Oxford Street

  • Chanel (New Bond St.)

  • Burberry

• Walk to Piccadilly Circus

• Take the tube and train to Oxford:

  • Sheldonian Theatre (pic only)

  • Oxford University Museum of Natural History

  • Afternoon tea @ Old Parsonage Hotel*

  • University of Oxford

  • Bridge of Sighs

  • Town of Oxford

Day 5

• Tube & train to Hampton Court Palace

• Lunch @ Rock & Sole Plaice*

• Walk to Covent Garden

  • Apple store

  • Coffee/dessert @ Laudree

• Walk around Liverpool Street Station

• Bus to Stansted (1.5 hrs) to catch the flight to Shannon, Ireland

Other points of interest & food

• Old Spitalfields Market

• National Portrait Gallery (free)

• High tea @ The Lanesborough Hotel or The Georgian Restaurant @ Harrods

• British Museum (free)

• Victoria & Alberta Museum (free)

• Sherlock Holmes Museum

• Olympic Park

Tips

• National museums are all free in London, be sure to take advantage of them!

• Check the time for the Changing Guard, we saw it between 11:30 am to 12:30 pm.

• Westminster Abbey closes from time to time due to private function, please plan ahead.