Long flight layovers in London are perfect opportunities to get out of the airport and explore this historic city. If you have several hours to “kill” consider taking a tour, either on your own or through one of the numerous tour companies operating in London. One company that offers great flexibility that is ideal for layovers is The Original London Sightseeing Tour.
The “Original” tour was started nearly 60 years ago and offers hop-on and hop-off service along three tour routes. Adult ticket prices are £25 (approximately $38) and are good for 24 hours. Discounts are available for groups of 10 or more. Included with the ticket price are three walking tours: Changing of the Guard Walk, Rock ‘N’ Roll Walk (which visits sites made famous by rock legends) and the Jack the Ripper Walk (which follows the footsteps of the infamous serial killer).
The yellow route, which is the original tour, covers the major London sites such as Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and Parliament, The London Eye, Downing Street, Tower of London and more. The red route is a city sightseeing tour with some overlap with the yellow tour but also includes Madame Tussauds wax museum, Shakespeare’s Globe and others. The blue route tours London’s top museum districts. All the tours have buses that run every 20 minutes and link directly into the other tour routes. You can start any of these tours near the Piccadilly Underground Station and they all last just over two hours—that’s if you don’t hop off. Get more details at www.theoriginaltour.com.
You can put together your own tour using London’s public transportation. The website www.transportdirect.info will give you detailed point to point instructions and travel times to anywhere in London. This is also a great site if you are trying to connect from a London airport to one of the city’s tours.
If you are going to be in London for a full day or a couple days, you may want to consider purchasing the London Sightseeing Pass from the British Tourist Authority at www.visitbritainshop.com. The London Pass covers the entry fees to 50 attractions, plus provides discounts and special offers. The nice thing about the pass is it also includes fast track entrance to some locations, allowing you to skip the long lines. Most of the major historic buildings and museums are included in the pass. Not included are the popular London Eye or Madame Tussauds, but discounts on these are also available from the tourist authority site.