Weekend in London

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LordHaveMurci

Original Poster:

12,042 posts

169 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
OH want's us to take the kids to London for the weekend, both of their birthdays coming up. My lad wants to do the Imperial War Museum, I want to do Churchill War Rooms & see the Bomber Command memorial. OH wants to the dungeons so it should be a busy weekend.

She's gone online & seen train costs of c£250 from Exeter, she's seen National Express @ £50 but there's no way I want to spend 8-9hrs over a weekend on a bloody coach!

Anybody got any cheap train fare suggestions, or even somewhere to safely park my 996 outside of London & catch a train in? We'll need accomodation for the saturday night too, on a budget sadly, any recommendations?


jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Come in via M40 and park the car at Westfield Shopping Centre all weekend (they have reduced rate parking on at the moment).

http://uk.westfield.com/london/getting-there/car-p...


From T&Cs

If you intend to leave your vehicle in the car park for more than 48 hours you must notify the car park manager located in the centre management office.

Edited by jdw1234 on Thursday 9th October 13:10

toddygti

93 posts

138 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Park at Westfield Shopping Centre, Stratford. It'll be fine there. £8 for 24hours on a saturday/Sunday so great prices. Use Central Line from Stratford to reach your on going destinations.

Hotelwise, if you use Hotel.com you can get very nice central locations for a decent price.

jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Why Stratford from Exeter?


andy-xr

13,204 posts

204 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
When I was on the west side of London I always parked in Surbiton (used to live there so parked on sidestreets) and caught the quick train up to Waterloo.

You could drive to Paddington? Parking is £10/day there, it's where the train'd end up anyway I think.

Trainline.com should be able to do you a deal under £200

JackReacher

2,126 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Coming from Exeter I would stay somewhere like Woking, Fleet, Farnborough and get train in from there. Good train into London, about 30-50min for those places.

Willy Nilly

12,511 posts

167 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
I have done the Imperial War Museum and Cabinet War Rooms in a day, it leaves you absolutely frazzled mentally. Chuck in some light entertainment between then

jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Essex!!! Woking, Fleet, Surbiton??!!

Am I crazy? Would you not take M5 then M4 to get to London?


Bluebarge

4,519 posts

178 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Euston station has underground car parking with video surveillance etc for £7 a day at the weekends. Otherwise you can park in the Barbican centre (bit posher, absolutely no risk of visit from a station wino or ne'erdowell for £8 a day.

Are your kids happy to be folded in the back of a 996 for a long trip?

Hotels - usual Novotel/Premier Inn suspects (Novotel City may do weekend deals)guests will have gone or Citadines have various appartments (including one near the Barbican). Some of these hotels may have parking so check that first.

jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Bluebarge said:
Euston station has underground car parking with video surveillance etc for £7 a day at the weekends. Otherwise you can park in the Barbican centre (bit posher, absolutely no risk of visit from a station wino or ne'erdowell for £8 a day.

Are your kids happy to be folded in the back of a 996 for a long trip?

Hotels - usual Novotel/Premier Inn suspects (Novotel City may do weekend deals)guests will have gone or Citadines have various appartments (including one near the Barbican). Some of these hotels may have parking so check that first.
You have to drive accross the whole of central London to get there.

Just use Westfield in White City.


Bree

621 posts

211 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
If you buy a Network Railcard (£30/yr), all four of you can travel for £119 return (assuming you are travelling Saturday morning & returning Sunday evening).

LordHaveMurci

Original Poster:

12,042 posts

169 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Bree said:
If you buy a Network Railcard (£30/yr), all four of you can travel for £119 return (assuming you are travelling Saturday morning & returning Sunday evening).
We'll look into this as yes, we are travelling up Sat AM & back on Sun eve - many thanks for all the great info smile

anonymous-user

54 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Willy Nilly said:
I have done the Imperial War Museum and Cabinet War Rooms in a day, it leaves you absolutely frazzled mentally. Chuck in some light entertainment between then
I'd agree with that. The IWM has been made over recently so it may have changed but last time I went it was a very depressing place. Remember it's a museum of war, not a museum of tanks, fighters and military hardware and my impression was that they seemed to play up the human (and therefore usually quite harrowing) aspects.
It also made me realise that in several hundred years of modern warfare the only thing that's changed is the quality of the photographs. Maybe that's the idea? confused

Bluebarge

4,519 posts

178 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
jdw1234 said:
Bluebarge said:
Euston station has underground car parking with video surveillance etc for £7 a day at the weekends. Otherwise you can park in the Barbican centre (bit posher, absolutely no risk of visit from a station wino or ne'erdowell for £8 a day.

Are your kids happy to be folded in the back of a 996 for a long trip?

Hotels - usual Novotel/Premier Inn suspects (Novotel City may do weekend deals)guests will have gone or Citadines have various appartments (including one near the Barbican). Some of these hotels may have parking so check that first.
You have to drive accross the whole of central London to get there.

Just use Westfield in White City.
Beg to differ.

Euston - takes about 50 minutes from j.4 of the M40 or 55 mins from j8/9 M4 - he is travelling at a weekend, remember.

Barbican - takes another 20 minutes tops and he can then consider a trip to the excellent Museum of London, St.Pauls, the Tower, HMS Belfast etc, etc

Plus, wherever he parks rather depends on where his hotel is, doesn't it?.

Why park in the busiest shopping centre in London, in the middle of chav central ,and then rattle in 9/10 stops on the deeply sh*t Central Line, when you can park in central London and either walk or jump in a cab?

gaz132

284 posts

242 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
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Try this http://splitticket.moneysavingexpert.com/ might find your train journey cheaper.

jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Bluebarge said:
jdw1234 said:
Bluebarge said:
Euston station has underground car parking with video surveillance etc for £7 a day at the weekends. Otherwise you can park in the Barbican centre (bit posher, absolutely no risk of visit from a station wino or ne'erdowell for £8 a day.

Are your kids happy to be folded in the back of a 996 for a long trip?

Hotels - usual Novotel/Premier Inn suspects (Novotel City may do weekend deals)guests will have gone or Citadines have various appartments (including one near the Barbican). Some of these hotels may have parking so check that first.
You have to drive accross the whole of central London to get there.

Just use Westfield in White City.
Beg to differ.

Euston - takes about 50 minutes from j.4 of the M40 or 55 mins from j8/9 M4 - he is travelling at a weekend, remember.

Barbican - takes another 20 minutes tops and he can then consider a trip to the excellent Museum of London, St.Pauls, the Tower, HMS Belfast etc, etc

Plus, wherever he parks rather depends on where his hotel is, doesn't it?.

Why park in the busiest shopping centre in London, in the middle of chav central ,and then rattle in 9/10 stops on the deeply sh*t Central Line, when you can park in central London and either walk or jump in a cab?
Because on Sunday evening he won't have to cross Central London again and he can beat the traffic.

I am not suggesting he stays in White City, just dumps the car there.

Why on Earth would you want to stay in the City on the weekend?





Bluebarge

4,519 posts

178 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
jdw1234 said:
Because on Sunday evening he won't have to cross Central London again and he can beat the traffic.

I am not suggesting he stays in White City, just dumps the car there.

Why on Earth would you want to stay in the City on the weekend?
He will - on the Tube; how much traffic leaves London on a Sunday night? It's all coming into town

I know, but he will still have to travel to/from there with kids and luggage.

Because you can get a good hotel for much less cash than you could during the week, there is still plenty to see at a weekend, there are still plenty of places to eat around Smithfield, Barbican, the Tower, Liverpool Street and Spitalfields, it's only a 10 minute cab ride from the West End (or a 20 minute walk)and cabbies are always happy to go East in the evening.

jdw1234

6,021 posts

215 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
quotequote all
Fairy muff!

matt3001

1,991 posts

197 months

Thursday 9th October 2014
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NCP at Butlers Wharf (£20 a day) and stay at the Bermondsey Square Hotel.

I don't see the point on extra inconvenience for the sake of a few quid in parking, especially when considering the petrol cost of getting a 996 to London.

IWM is a quick bus ride from London Bridge area and the War Rooms are a short hop on the Jubilee line from LB station.

Both are fantastic imo. I actually went to the IWM on Monday - the holocaust exhibition stays with you long after you leave...

creampuff

6,511 posts

143 months

Friday 10th October 2014
quotequote all
Personally I'd just drive in and park in a carpark on Saturday (for a fee) and then move it onto the road on Sunday (street parking free). Or if you park near Victoria then it is free on Saturdays too. Most likely free on Sat around the Imperial War Museum too though I haven't parked there recently. The only reason I don't suggest parking on the street the whole time is that if you arrive early on Saturday, then street parking is generally limited to 4 hours which is not enough to take you into the uncontrolled hours. But as I said, around Victoria, it is uncontrolled all weekend. Park in pay and display, park on single yellows, all free.

I've never had a problem parking in London. It is not exactly short of expensive cars parked on the street.

Victoria is also pretty convenient for the stuff you want to see.

Edited by creampuff on Friday 10th October 15:13