my road to travel…the road “more” traveled

 

The Tower of London

If you’re an American lucky enough to be planning a trip abroad, and your biggest decision is deciding where in the world to go, stop and picture yourself:

- Gazing in awe at the Tower of London display case in which is nestled the 12-th century Coronation Spoon, last used for the Coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953.  It’s the oldest piece in the Crown Jewel Collection.  You’ll also see St. Edward’s Crown, which contains gold remnants of the crown of King Edward the Confessor, whose reign began in 1061.

- Gliding along the streets of London on a open double-decker tour bus, just like the ones you’ve seen in all those movies.

- Spanning centuries of drama by visiting the New Globe Theater, a replica of the 16th century edifice in which so many of Shakespeare’s plays were debuted, and taking in a production yourself if you’re visiting London in the summertime.

- Indulging in high tea at Harrods, The Georgian Restaurant, where you can come face to face with real cucumber sandwiches, scones, and clotted cream. 

- Heading for Buckingham Palace (you can actually view some of the interior during August and September, when the Queen goes to Balmoral) and taking the guided tour of the Royal Stables, finishing with the Gold State Coach.

- Doing a pub crawl after hours, stopping in at the local drinking establishments to mingle with the natives and knock back a pint or two. 

- Spending your days immersed in those marvelous British accents from Cambridge elite to East End Cockney, just as if you were a character in a Charles Dickens novel. 

Westminster Abbey

You can almost certainly come up with a dozen more reasons of your own why you should visit London, and that’s almost certainly why you’re planning a trip!  London is an ideal destination for honeymooners, retirees, students of history, and even families with kids.  Visit the London Eye, the world ’s greatest observation wheel, to get a bird’s-eye view of many of London’s famous structures in a single glance, and to see just how large its 609 square miles really are!   No matter what draws you to London, you’re guaranteed something to do every minute of every day of your stay, and all of it will be fun!  

 You’ll walk the same streets where royalty has walked (or morel likely, ridden) for centuries.  You’ll shop in the same establishments frequented by celebrities and can treat yourself to Carnaby Street or Savile Row fashions.  You can visit Westminster Abbey, where the monarch of England have been crowned since the days of William the Conqueror, and where many of them, including Elizabeth I and Henry V are buried.  You’ll also see Poet’s Corner where some giants of English literature, including Chaucer, Samuel Johnson, and Dickens, are entombed, and others, including Shakespeare, T.S. Eliot, and Dylan Thomas, are memorialized.

If you have an interest in the occult and the mysterious, London is rich in haunted areas, like the Ham House in Richmond-on-Thames.  Or book a hansom cab ride through the streets made famous in the works of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, accompanied by both Homes and Watson!

London is one of the world’s most diverse and culturally rich destinations, and no matter how many times you visit, you’ll always find new reasons to return!

Remember to book your trip at myroadtotravel.com

 When you imagine your trip to London, you may be thinking in terms of the Tower, Big Ben, Buckingham Place, and the hallowed stones of Westminster Abbey.  Hardly a street in London is without historical significance and a monument or two.

London, however, has for centuries been one of the world’s great mercantile centers, and remains so today.  No trip to London would be complete without a day exploring its legendary shopping opportunities.  Here are just a few of them: 

Harrods

Harrods is undoubtedly the best-known of all London’s department stores, and the one most appealing to tourists.  Its seven floors contain over a million square feet of retail space, and is so large that shoppers are advised to pick up a Shopper’s Guide at any of its information booths.  Don’t miss the Food Halls on the ground and lower ground floors, where you can purchase all sorts of delicacies from clerks garbed in Edwardian dress. 

If you’re touched by the story of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed, you might appreciate the memorial to them by the Egyptian Escalator.  If you have the kids in tow, ride the Escalator to the fourth floor, where you can find the toy department and child-sized Mercedes automobiles which actually run.  Finish your day with a proper English High Tea at the fourth-floor Georgian restaurant, where you can munch pastries and finger sandwiches to music played on the world’s costliest piano.

Harvey Nichols

It may not be Harrods, but Harvey Nichols was once the favorite retail establishment of Princess Diana, and it has prices to match.  It’s still frequented by well-heeled Londoners, and its fifth floor contains a four-star restaurant, a gourmet grocery shop, and a fresh sushi bar.  If the weather permits, do as Londoners do and order sushi to go for a lunch in nearby Hyde Park. 

The Portobello Road Market

If you’re a flea market lover, don’t miss two thousand-stall Portobello Road Market where you can find everything from the freshest of produce to the mustiest of antiques, separated by stalls of books, apparel, and assorted rummage sale regulars.  Saturday is the day when antiques take center stage.  The market is closed on Sunday.

Hamleys

If you’ve brought the kids along on your visit to London, they deserve a trip to Hamleys in Piccadilly Circus.  Hamleys is not only London’s, but Great Britain’s, largest toy store.  Its staff of two hundred is in charge of more than 28,000 toys spread over seven floors.  Kids of all ages will love the idea of having their very own Teddy Bear created on the premises as a “skin” they choose is filled and stitched together before their eyes at The Bear Factory.

Waterstones and New Age Mysteries

When you’ve exhausted the possibilities at Hamleys, escape from the bustle of Piccadilly Circus by heading for the quiet of Waterstones.  Waterstones, on Piccadilly Street, is the largest bookstore in all of Europe with seven well-organized floors of volumes on every conceivable topic.  The fifth floor has sits own bar where you can relax with a drink while enjoying your purchases or the knock-out views of Big Ben and the Houses of parliament.

If your taste in literature runs to the occult, head for Covent Garden and New Age Mysteries at 9 Monmouth Street.  You’ll find plenty of reading material. If you’d like a glimpse of the future, you can arrange an appointment for a personal numerology, tarot, or crystal ball reading.

Remember to book your London Vacation at myroadtotravel.com

If you really need a reason to book a guided tour of London, here’s the best one:  every minute of your stay in London will be precious, and you deserve to fill it with as many memories as possible.   Greater London covers a total of 609 square miles, and the chances of finding your way to all their well-and-not-so-well-known attractions on your own are quite remote.  So unless you’re moving to London permanently or expect to be returning at regular intervals, participating in one of the many excellent guided tours is the way to go. 

If you’re still not convinced, however, here are a few more reasons why you should take a guided tour of London.

A Guided Tour Will  Help You Focus: If you did any research at all on London attractions while planning your trip, you already know that it might be impossible to reach all the far-flung must-sees in a single trip.  But by choosing guided tours which focus on particular interest, like museums, art galleries, churches, royal or historical sites, you’ll ensure that you get the high points of each of them.  If you see something you’d like to come back to, make a note of it and work it in during free time or on a later trip. 

A Guided Tour Will Remove the Guesswork: When confronted with a city on whose every street, it seems, history has left its mark, you may simply feel overwhelmed. Taking a guided tour of London will ensure that you don’t miss anything essential, and it will also help you fill the gaps in your understanding of British history and culture.  How?

A Guided Tour Will Put You in the Company of a London Tour Guide: This is one of the major reasons why you need to introduce yourself to London with the help of a guided tour.  Your tour guide will know not only where to take you, but how to explain all the murky English history behind such landmarks as the Tower of London, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, and the Houses of Parliament.  You’ll finally get the names of Henry VIII’s six wives in order, and realize that he was personally responsible for the deaths of only two! 

Guided Tours of London Can be Tailored to Your Interests: If you’re fascinated with the story of Jack the Ripper, you can arrange a private guided tour to the sites of his crimes and to the cemeteries where some of his victims were laid to rest.  If you don’t have the budget for a private tour, you can find a group tour which manages eight major attractions, including lunch, a River Thames cruise, and a stop to see the Changing of the Guard in a single day. Your guided tour may be a walking tour, or a trip on one of London’s classic double- decker buses.  If you want a real adventure, sign up for a duck tour on an amphibious vehicle which will be equally at home on land or water! 

Guided Tours Provide Safety: Any time you’re in a foreign country, even if it’s just Merry Olde England, you aren’t quite as safe as you would be in familiar surroundings.  Your tour guide will be up-to-date on which London attractions may be unsafe, and why.  And with 609 square miles of London at your doorstep, you need to have someone who will keep you from getting lost!

My wife and I took a guided tour of London, and quickly realized that we would have never been able to do all that we wanted to on our own. Remember, book your guided tour through London at myroadtotravel.com