Go to your bank and get some British Pounds; it’s much cheaper than changing money at the airport.
Try to find a hotel near the Underground (tube). Public transportation in London (and most of the rest of Europe) is good, while gas (petrol) is very expensive. You won’t know the roads or where to park so travelling by car can be a nightmare.
Do your homework. Go to the net, look up articles like “first time visitors to London”, “Things you need to know before visiting London” and one about British money. Here are some sites I recommend:
http://www.hostelworld.com/videos/18/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-london
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g186338-s409/London:United-Kingdom:First.Time.Visitors.html
http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/city-guides/free-london-traveler/
http://projectbritain.com/money/coins.htm
Get a money belt. There are a lot of pickpockets in London, and they target Americans. Buckingham palace is especially notorious, as well as places like McDonalds, Starbucks, etc.
You will want to order tickets for Buckingham Palace and Windsor castle on Day 4. You can have these delivered to your home or your hotel. I highly recommend you buy tickets for Buckingham to start at 9:30 or so and Windsor for about 2:00 in the afternoon. This will allow you just enough time to see Buckingham Palace and then take the train to Windsor so you can see both in one day.
You should also have a transformer to change voltage from 220 to 110. You can buy this at Radio Shack for about $20. Don’t try to save money by buying an “adaptor” plug. You might fry your laptop.
You should consider buying an Oyster Card or Traveler pass in advance.
Try to get four hours sleep on the plane. If you have trouble sleeping take a sleep aid with you on the plane.
Day 1
When you get to London expect the passport officials to ask a lot of questions, some of which may catch you by surprise. The British are pretty security conscious; don’t forget the bombing of the underground in 2005.
Before you leave the airport stop at the tourist office and get a map, one that shows the underground (tube) stops.
While your still at the airport buy tickets for the underground or tube. I recommend first timers get an Oyster Card; that way you don’t have to worry about how many zones you’ll be travelling through. Start with about 50 pounds; when you exit the stations your balance will be displayed so you’ll know when to add more money. When you leave London get the balance on your card refunded.
Go to the hotel, take a nap, eat and go to bed. Without a nap, you may have jet lag for the next several days. Check on the net to see if there is a changing of the guards tomorrow. Just google it.
Day 2. This is a long but wonderful day. You need to start early; to be at Westminster by 8:30 you should plan on getting to the tube about 7:30.
Take the tube to Westminster station and follow the signs marked “Westminster”. When you exit you’ll see Big Ben, Parliament, etc. Take pix and stroll around Parliament.
Richard the Lionhearted statue in front of Parliament.
Westminster Abbey opens at 9:30 a.m. so you should be there then. Admission is now 20 pounds, about $ 30 a person, so if you don’t want to enter the grounds are nice by themselves. Inside you can see where people like Shakespeare and Kipling are buried. It’s closed Sundays.
Next you want to walk to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard. To get there you want to follow the road that crosses the Thames River to the palace, so you will want to walk away from the bridge. The road is Bridge Street but changes its name to Birdcage Walk. The walk will take you about a half hour. Note: this is the area that has the highest concentration of pick-pockets in all of England so make sure all your valuables are secured. The ceremony starts at 11:30.
If this is one of those days when there is no changing of the guards, you may want to take a boat ride up the Thames. Just walk down the stairs to the river.
Now take the tube to St. Paul’s Cathedral. You will either want to use the St. James Park or the Green Park stations. When you exit the signs will direct you.
I recommend you go up the stairs at least to the second floor, even though it’s about 257 steps. This is the whispering floor where you can hear the conversations of someone across the dome because of the acoustics. The next floor is another 119 steps and the final floor is 152 steps. The view from the top is very inspiring, so I hear.
No doubt your tired now, but the last stop is the best, the Tower of London. Go back to the tube and take it two stops to the Monument station. Walk south a couple of blocks (toward the water) and turn left on road A3211 and follow it to the Tower of London. This is where many people lost their heads, literally---they were executed. Be sure to see the crown jewels.
The Tower of London seen from the Thames.
Day 3. An easy day. A visit to the British Museum.
Before you go: Since this is an easy day consider having a “full English breakfast”. Do this once before you leave London, even if you get a free breakfast at your hotel.
A statue in the Asian area of the British Museum.
Take the tube to the Holborn station. The tube was running either east-west or west-east. You want to walk north two blocks to Great Russell Street. Turn left onto Montague Street and walk one block to the British Museum, the world’s largest collection of stolen merchandise. Admission is free. Spend the entire day here. For lunch you can go to the café in the museum, which is a bit expensive or one of the many nearby cafes.
Suggestion: try a fish-n-chips place.
If you’ve still got energy you may want to visit Harrods Department store. Take the tube to Kinghtsbridge station and walk two blocks south.
Also, or alternatively, before your visit ends you will want to visit a British pub. There are plenty everywhere; check the net or ask your hotel concierge for a recommendation or find one on the net. Be sure to do this at least once before you leave.
Day 4. This will be your most expensive day but well worth it. You want to take the tube to Victoria station. The tube runs east or west. You want to walk north to Buckingham Palace about 3 blocks. You’ll need to have ID, tickets, check your camera, etc.
Windsor Castle.
When you leave, return to Victoria Station. Take the tube to Paddington Station. Here you will need to buy a train ticket to Windsor Central station. When you arrive at Windsor you will be on the right hand side of the platform. Just walk to the left hand side of the platform and get on the train for the final part of the trip. Just follow the signs to the castle. Don’t miss the staterooms! They are the best part, but a lot of people don’t know about them and go home.
Day 5. Another day at the museum. The Victoria and Albert Museum.
Take the tube to the South Kensington station. The tube runs east or west. Walk northwest on Old Brompton Road a few blocks to the Victoria and Albert Museum. Spend the day; it’s free. The museum has its own café but you will have passed a few places to eat on your walk from the tube.
If you finish early, perhaps you will want to walk to Kensington Palace a few blocks away. This doesn’t have the grandeur of Buckingham or Windsor but it is a castle, where Will and Kate are raising their kids. There is a fee for the castle but the very large gardens are free.
Perhaps tonight you will want to see a play. London is second only to Broadway with everything from Shakespeare to Les Miserables.
Day 6. For World War II buffs. Take the tube to Westminster station and exit on Bridge Street. With the bridge to your back walk about 3 blocks and turn right. (St. James Park will be on your left). Walk about a block north to the Churchill War Rooms.
Walk back toward the Westminster station. Take the very last right turn before the bridge. Parliament will now be on your left. Walk south a few blocks (you will see Victoria Tower Gardens now) until you get to Lambeth Bridge. Cross it and continue on until you see a park (Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park). The Imperial War Museum is in the park.
Day 7-10. You will want to take a day trip.
There are a lot of options. If you still have two days, think about going to Edinburgh, Scotland. There’s so much to do, you can’t do it all in one day: Edinburgh Castle, Old Town, National Museum of Scotland, the Royal Yacht, Edinburgh Dungeon, etc. By the way, you can take the overnight sleeper train both ways. That way you don’t have a hotel bill.
http://www.seat61.com/CaledonianSleepers.htm#.ValmU9TbLcsIf you only have one day left, your best bet might be Hampton Court Palace. Take the tube to Waterloo Station and then take the train to Hampton Court station.
http://www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace/planyourvisit/gettingthere
For single day trips see the web site
beenthere-donethat.org.uk
Be sure to click on the “Day Trips from London” icon. They cover the list pretty well; Stonehenge, Canterbury, Oxford, Cambridge, and some others you’re probably not familiar with. By the way, it’s even possible to combine trips, like one place in the morning and one in the afternoon, though it might be a stretch for most people.