Travel Diary: London, England (including a Harry Potter Tour for Muggles)

Happy Thursday! In 2017, I visited Europe for the first time ever. I tagged along on a girlfriend's trip around Portugal for a week, then I flew to London to meet up with my then-boyfriend (now-husband!) for London, Rome, and Paris. Today I am finishing the last travel diary of the trip, with London!

Since neither my husband nor I had been to Europe before, and we weren't sure when we would come back, we wanted to make the most of our time on the continent. So we decided to hit several countries' capital cities, rather than limit ourselves to staying in one city or even one country.

We knew that this meant we'd be constantly on the go and that we certainly wouldn't have enough time in each city, but we were okay with that trade-off if it meant getting to see London, Rome, and Paris.

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tips and advice:

• When we were planning our trip, we chose this itinerary based on prices and flight times, but I would have preferred to end or begin with Rome in order to visit London and Paris consecutively. That would have enabled us to maximize our time on the ground and spend less time in the air (and maybe travel by train between London and Paris). It sounds obvious, but if you're planning a multi-country trip, it's definitely worth looking at a map in addition to prices and flight time. (Rookie mistake by us!)
• Though I liked London, it, like Lisbon, felt more familiar to me in a way that Rome and Paris didn't. I think it was because I had lived in New York City for a few years by that time, and it just had that big city feel.
• There are many day trips you can take from London by train! 
• In England: Blenheim Palace (birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill), Bath (for Jane Austen fans), Bletchley Park (home of the WWII Codebreakers), Brighton (a beach town that was the summer retreat of King George IV), Bristol, Cambridge, Canterbury, the Cotswolds (designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), Oxford (for Harry Potter fans), Mayfield Lavender Farm (depending on the time of your visit), Rye, Stratford-Upon-Avon (birthplace and burial place of William Shakespeare), or Stonehenge. (FYI: It's definitely possible to combine a few of these into one day trip, so be sure to check if that's an option if you want to visit multiple sites outside London!)
• International: Amsterdam, Brussels, Paris, or other parts of the U.K. like Edinburgh.
• While we experienced nearly perfect weather of sunny skies and mild temperatures in early September, it's worth carrying an umbrella or raincoat. When we visited Windsor Castle on our second day, we had to buy an umbrella at the gift store (which we now consider one of our trip souvenirs!).
• London's metro system (known as the Underground or the Tube) is an easy and affordable way to get around London, and you can buy a Visitor Oyster card to pay for both the Tube and city buses. Learn more here.
• You can save yourself time, money, and headache by buying the London Pass instead of separate tickets and passes. The London Pass grants you access to more than 90 attractions, discounts at certain shops and restaurants, and a 1-day hop-on, hop-off bus (which are my favorite - I've done them in Crete, Paris, Rome, and Sydney). Learn more here.
• Book as much of your trip as possible in advance! This could save you time from waiting in line, money from rising last-minute prices, and disappointment if you're unable to snag tickets last-minute.
• Bring a travel adapter! You'll need a Type G plug adapter for the U.K. This is the affiliate link for the one I have.

itinerary:

Hotel: We stayed at the Holiday Inn London Mayfair, which we found very conveniently located and affordable, but it looks as though it closed during the pandemic.

Day 1: Travel day! We met up at the airport in London and headed to our hotel, where we grabbed dinner and drinks nearby.

Day 2: While we didn't have our itinerary extensively planned, we had a list of sites we wanted to see. We started our day early by heading to Buckingham Palace, then walking through St. James' Park to the Churchill War Rooms -- which my husband and I both highly recommend. Afterwards, we walked along the Thames River to see Westminster Abbey and Houses of Parliament, the London Eye Ferris wheel, and St. Paul's Cathedral. We ended our day with dinner at Portland, where we did the tasting menu.

Day 3: We had another early morning, this time taking the train to Windsor Castle. When we returned, we took a 2-hour Harry Potter tour of London (called the Tour for Muggles), visited Borough Market and Trafalgar Square, and then had dinner at Sexy Fish. 

Day 4: We left for Rome!

photo diary:

Stopped to get coffee and scones

In front of Big Ben -- with scaffolding, sadly... but with perfect weather!

Purposely breaking the "no white after Labor Day rule" because rules were made to be broken and I particularly dislike this rule, haha!

Obligatory Buckingham Palace tourist photo

Some photos from the Churchill War Rooms! I was very thankful we were able to do this before our tour of Normandy.

This quickly became my new favorite trivia fact

Dinner at Portland! It was pricy but delicious.

Dress: Banana Republic

Visiting Windsor Castle the next morning

When we returned to London, we took a 2-hour walking tour of Harry Potter through London. This stop was to show us where in the Tube (Westminster) they used as the entrance to the Ministry of Magic in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix!

Looking at these photos now is so funny because it's litch-rally just the London Tube but I was EXTREMELY excited at the time :-)

The alley that supposedly inspired Diagon Alley...

.. and the alley (Godwin's Court) that supposedly inspired Knockturn Alley

Our tour guide showing us filming locations for Harry Potter and the relevant scenes 

Do you recognize this spot from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows? Scroll down!

If only I had a Molly Weasley-knitted sweater...

This is at the intersection of Great Scotland Yard and Scotland Place, if you want to go yourself!

The tour also brought us to MinaLima, which created all the graphic design elements and props for the movies.

The Howler Mrs. Weasley sent to Ron in Chamber of Secrets

Sadly, this is my only photo from Sexy Fish -- but look how much detail went into just the cocktails!

Leaving this here from Portugal, since I left Portugal and arrived in London just in time to catch the Hogwarts Express from Platform 9 3/4 on September 1 :-)

where to eat and drink:

As always, be sure to check if they're open on certain days and if they require reservations!

• Monmouth Coffee
• Kaffeine (a café)
• Peggy Porschen Cakes Bakery
• Sketch 
• Farm Girl Café
• Camden Lock Market
• Portland
• Sexy Fish
• Duck and Waffle
• The Palomar
• The Mayfair Chippy
• Bob Bob Ricard
• Taqueria
• Dishoom
• Dalloway Terrace
• Sticks’n’Sushi
• Rosewood
• Mr. Fogg's Gin Parlour
• Cutter & Squidge (for Harry Potter fans)
• SkyGarden Darwin Brasserie for views
• GŎNG at the Shangri-La Hotel for ($$$) views

what to do:

• Churchill War Rooms!!! #1 recommendation
• Warner Brother Studios tour of Harry Potter
• Afternoon tea
• Tourist sites like Big Ben; Buckingham Palace (which you can tour during the summer and certain times during winter and spring); St. James Park; London Eye; Tower of London; and Tower Bridge 
• Westminster Abbey
• Borough Market
• A free walking tour
• Take a hop-on, hop-off bus or boat tour
• Rent a bike or take a Fat Tire Bike Tour
• Visit Notting Hill district or Covent Garden
  
• Take a Clipper boat along the Thames River
• Museums -- there's the British Museum and Natural History Museum, among others

links I used or recommend:

• The Blonde Abroad: "Ultimate London Guide"
• Alyson Haley: "London"

The next time I post about London, it will be a travel diary of London at Christmas time! My husband's office closes the last week of December, so we're flying to London on Christmas Day and staying for a few days, then heading to Edinburgh in Scotland for New Year's Eve. Fortunately for us, it looks as though at least a few of the Christmas markets will still be open in London. And we were lucky enough to buy some of the last tickets available to tour the Harry Potter studio. Because of the time of the year, the studio will be decorated for the Christmas season as part of its "Hogwarts in the Snow" event... I can't wait!

love from