Sister’s Trip — London & Amsterdam (Part 1 LONDON)
I realized as my baby sister invited me to tag along on her work trip to Amsterdam that we haven’t traveled just the 2 of us hardly at all! I mean, we went on one overnight trip ever just us!!! (I literally CANNOT!! even believe that!). So of course I jumped on the chance to spend some quality time with her and explore this world of ours.
We decided that we should extend our trip outside of the work trip she had planned so we could also spend some time in London as she has never been. I actually went to London back in 2016 with Cole for a work trip so I was able to visit some of the sights then. Luckily for you, that means this blog post has more lived experience suggestions than what a normal 3 days in London would look like. So let’s start there, with London’s must do’s, must eats and where to stay.
Where to Stay
There are so MANY areas of London that are beautiful and tons of fabulous hotels. My biggest suggestion here is to stay where you are able to easily access Hyde Park as when on foot it is much nicer to walk through the park to get to where you are going than to stick to the streets.
This time around my sister and I stayed at a lovely 4 star hotel that has been around for forever. The architecture was stunning, the rooms clean and the staff super friendly. The Clermont has 2 great locations — one in Victoria (where we stayed) and one in the Charring Cross district. I would definitely stay here again which says a ton with my high standards. The only thing I would skip is the breakfast at the hotel. Their traditional English breakfast was marginal at best — but they did have some fancy cappuccino machines so that was great! Click HERE to learn more.
Now if you are looking for a bit of a higher end hotel, I would highly suggest looking at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House (we had High Tea there and I was impressed with the property) *Click HERE to learn more on the property* or at The Montcalm Marble Arch (we stayed here in 2016 and it was fabulous in all the ways). *Click HERE to check out the property*
What to Do
Churchill War Rooms: This is one of the tours I did back during my 2016 visit to London and it was an incredible look back into history. I highly suggest visiting. A few things to know…
*you will be going down into the actual bunker Churchill was in during the war—you will get to see the different rooms along with a large room that has tons of interactive information
*you must now book your tickets ahead of time and they seem to sell out a few days in advance, book your tickets HERE
* this is NOT a quick walk through site so plan at least 2 hours here (we spent like 5 as my history junkie hubby could NOT get enough!)
*you are in a bunker which means if you are sensitive to smaller spaces and dark areas plan your mind accordingly (this gal who is not the biggest fan of small spaces survived so you can too!)
Westminister: My sister and I walked through this on our own and I think we probably should have gotten a tour guide as it was beautiful but the book we got was a bit hard to follow so we didn’t actual learn too much! It is very very busy so just plan on it being difficult to get photos, see all the spaces and get through it quickly. I also advised to buy your tickets a day or 2 in advance as it sells out and rarely can you snag day of tickets. Grab your tickets HERE.
High Tea: What a fun English tradition to do while in London! There are so many places that offer High Tea but after much research and talking with a friend of a friend who is a local we settled upon going to the Gosvenor House at the JW Marriott. It was a beautiful experience that starting with a glass of champagne and choosing from an extensive tea menu. The tea is served with a granita to start to cleanse the palette followed by a 3 tiered plating of finger sandwiches, sconces and delicious desserts (check out the picture below of the pastry chef’s work of arts). This is another experience I highly recommend booking in advance so you can secure the time you want. I am also going to put a short list below of other highly recommended High Tea spots if for some reason you can’t get into the Gosvenor House.
Sketch – a bit pricey but worth it if you are a foodie as Sketch is a 3 Michelin Star rated restaurant!
The Rubens—the vibe feels like NYC and the pastry chef was the winner of a British baking show. It overlooks the Royal Mews of Buckingham Palace. The menu is vegan too for those looking for this option (the menu is why we ended up booking at the Gosvenor House as we weren’t thrilled with having to eat vegan).
What to Do cont..
London Globe: This is a big loud repeating YES!! You must do this as this was such a cool experience. The London Globe was rebuilt after a fire took down the original theatre where Shakespear performed. It is an exact replica as far as looks goes is what I’m told and it’s beautiful. This circular theater is comprised of wooden seats (make sure to rent the cushion!) plus a standing room. It is also open air as there is no roof. The performers were incredible and I cannot express how much both my sister and I enjoyed attending. Another perk…it is attached to an actual restaurant where you can grab a drink ahead of time or dinner.
The Beatles Tour: Okay, wow this was such a wonderful surprise! So let me start with saying I knew the basics about The Beatles before this tour – you know, I know a few hit songs and know of all the rumors about the fall out. My sister on the other hand is a HUGE Beatles fan and couldn’t wait to learn more. For both of us, it was a FABULOUS experience full of history (not just The Beatles history either!). I loved it! Our tour guide, Michael, was simply the BEST and I was so so pleased with every part of our tour. I highly suggest for you to look into this, click HERE for the TOUR info.
Tower of London: Another 2016 visit must! This is not just a tower BTW but a whole castle type of walled city to explore. It was used as a prison for a large portion of history. You will easily spend a couple of hours here so plan appropriately. At the time, we just walked up and grabbed some tickets but with what I was seeing in London this time around I am going to suggest to try to buy the entrance tickets ahead of time.
Museums: London has some incredible museums that you should at least go to one! We went to the TATE museum and loved looking at the collections. Here are a few to look at and see which one works best for your schedule, some are free to enter too which is lovely. Tate Museum, Saatchi Gallery, White Chapel, The Serpentine Gallery, Victoria Albert Museum, National British Museum
Where to Eat
If you have been following me for awhile you know I love a good meal and when it comes to traveling I usually base on daily activities runs where we are going to eat. Below is a list of some of the places that we visited and loved!
If you are looking for a beautiful view head to Min Jiang, it boosts views of Hyde Park while you get to dine on traditional Sichuan dishes. And if you are a duck lover you need to make sure to pre order their wood fired duck!
Wanting to go where the locals go, Casa Malevo was such a cute hole in the wall Argentina themed restaurant. We started the meal with a delicious Buratta Salad that the cheese was so fresh it had to have been made that day!
Fish & Chips is always a must when visiting London and we found the cutest pub to eat ours in— Two Chairman’s. The fish was perfectly flaky (needed a bit of salt – but that’s usually everything in London if you ask me) and the fries were freshly cut.