What are her interests now? Eg Dario is a huge Chelsea FC fan so a trip to their stadium was a must.
And yeah, I’d think long and hard about London Eye. It’s a time sink. Maybe if your feet are aching from walking it’d be a welcome respite.
Yeah, I’m persuaded that the Eye is not a great idea. Kids have been on plenty of Ferris Wheels and will indeed begin to ask, “how long are we stuck on this thing?”
We have 2 girls of a similar age. They have enjoyed all the following suggestions.
Do a guided walking tour of st james/Mayfair and/or the city. They really are fascinating and they’ll take you into all the little back alleys and mews that you would never find on your own. Google London walking tours or I can recommend a lady if you want a private tour.
Other places:
Hampton Court
Leeds Castle - outside London but easy to get to by train and a true fantasy castle with moat
Harry Potter at pinewood studios
Alternative to claridges for afternoon tea is the orangerie at Kensington palace (book online in advance)
Kensington palace
Tower of London
Tate Modern
I don’t have a rec but that does remind me that you should try to avoid eating around the London Eye. Lots of tourist traps with mediocre food (we got caught).
re walking tours, we love these:
You’ve got some great suggestions above - we went 2 years ago with a 13 year old and an 11 year old, so I’ll relay those things where we had the most success -
To visit -
British Museum
Museum of Natural History
Harry Potter sets at the studio, an hour or so out of town, takes roughly an entire day
Boat tour of Thames, on and off at Greenwich
Tea at Kensington Palace (others may be more luxurious, but this one was pretty solid)
London eye (took maybe 2 hours total, we didn’t feel stuck on the wheel at all)
Tower of London (a must, take the tour also which I think is free, but worth it regardless)
To eat, casual and very kid friendly -
Wagamama (casual noodles, very easy and pretty good)
Ottolenghi (amazing vegetables and salads, casual w/ counter service, there is a more formal restaurant as well called Nopi)
Less success with the Tate Modern (kids thought it was creepy), didn’t do high end dining with kids except for Nopi (did do it alone though - Hedone in Chiswick/West London).
Enjoy - it’s a great city. They win in my book for “most improved player”…
Any 13 year old girl will love Harrods. Also, theatre sounds great. We loved the British Museum, the Tower of London and Buckingham Palace.
We spent a day on a day-long bus tour that went to Windsor Palace, Stonehenge and Bath. It was great.
We loved the boat ride out to Greenwich a lot. You can take the tube also.
The Churchill war room/bunker was awesome for our son.
Tower of London Beefeater Tour is a must
Came back to mention Greenwich. Cool boat ride and museum at the other end.
This will suffice, it was a fine rat hole in 78.
One other, quite general comment. The sheer density of famous landmarks can leave quite an impression, as it’s easy to ‘stumble’ upon a famous site without planning it
Our kids loved the Ceremony of the Keys at the Tower. Google it and try to get tickets. Hard to get them - only 50 people each evening.
I took my teenage daughter to London and the following were her favorites:
Tea at Sketch is a must. My daughter loved it. https://sketch.london/
Shopping at Harrods. The food court at Harrods is great for snacking, too. Fortnum & Mason also.
Since you will be in Marlyebone, stop in at La Fromagerie. https://www.lafromagerie.co.uk/
You’ll also be close to the Golden Hind, mentioned above, which I thought was okay but nothing more.
Hard to get doesn’t appear to tell it.
Booked. Thanks. Gagnaire joint, eh? Sounds lovely.
Also, when are you visiting? We happened to be in London during the Lord Mayor’s show 2 years ago and found it surprisingly fun.
Looks like that’s in November. We’ll be there in June.
But between a west end musical and tea at Sketch, I’d say my kid’s bday is gonna be a success. Thanks all.
Have a great time creating memories.
Hey have a blast! I’ll prob be there by the end of June and I think the first thing I’m looking forward to is grabbing something to eat at Borough Market while slowly walking the South Bank from Tower Bridge to Waterloo. I F%*king love it there.