Just booked Anthem, questions about London.

12nts Spain and Canary Islands in June...woot! Price has gone up $1500 since I booked a week ago...this WoW sale is impressive.

Flight arrives at 7:40am and cruise leaves at 4:30pm, I assume we have enough time to get through customs and take a shuttle to the boat?

We're staying two extra days, get back 13th and flying home 15th. Can anybody recommend a good location to stay in London and top highlights to hit? My kids have never been to europe and may not get back for a while.

Last, when is the best time to book airfare? I've got my kids Sky Miles tix and obviously need the same flights. Booking through airline today is $2000, choice air for same flights is about $1600. Should I jump on the $1600 and not have to worry anymore?

With regard to London info, you might also want to post in the Britain forum:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=233

Check air fares one or two days earlier - the savings may pay for your extra day(s) in London. The prices don't move much this far out - check prices for a while to see if there's any movement.

While I always opt for flying in for the cruise the same day in the US, doing so internationally is gambling a bit more.

12nts Spain and Canary Islands in June...woot! Price has gone up $1500 since I booked a week ago...this WoW sale is impressive.

 

Flight arrives at 7:40am and cruise leaves at 4:30pm, I assume we have enough time to get through customs and take a shuttle to the boat?

 

We're staying two extra days, get back 13th and flying home 15th. Can anybody recommend a good location to stay in London and top highlights to hit? My kids have never been to europe and may not get back for a while.

 

Last, when is the best time to book airfare? I've got my kids Sky Miles tix and obviously need the same flights. Booking through airline today is $2000, choice air for same flights is about $1600. Should I jump on the $1600 and not have to worry anymore?

$1600 for a return flight to the uk in the summer is about average, so I would probably book it to make sure you are on the kid's flight - even if you get it $100 cheaper in a couple of months at least you are ensured you are on the same flight.

Check air fares one or two days earlier - the savings may pay for your extra day(s) in London. The prices don't move much this far out - check prices for a while to see if there's any movement.

 

While I always opt for flying in for the cruise the same day in the US, doing so internationally is gambling a bit more.

My kids are locked in so I do need to be on same flights. I think we'll be okay flying in same day, problem of course is canceled flight. I'll make sure I get insurance for that possibility. We're staying two days after the cruise in London.

12nts Spain and Canary Islands in June...woot! Price has gone up $1500 since I booked a week ago...this WoW sale is impressive.

 

Flight arrives at 7:40am and cruise leaves at 4:30pm, I assume we have enough time to get through customs and take a shuttle to the boat?

 

We're staying two extra days, get back 13th and flying home 15th. Can anybody recommend a good location to stay in London and top highlights to hit? My kids have never been to europe and may not get back for a while.

 

Last, when is the best time to book airfare? I've got my kids Sky Miles tix and obviously need the same flights. Booking through airline today is $2000, choice air for same flights is about $1600. Should I jump on the $1600 and not have to worry anymore?

I would suggest a hotel in the Westminster area of London and then you can do tourist highlights of Buckingham Palace, Houses if Parliament, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, Downing Street, The Mall and many others on foot or a short tube ride to Covent Garden, Picaddilly Circus, Leucester Square etc etc

Enjoy.

We paid $1600 this past August to London from Philadelphia. It was the cheapest I could fine. Usually the fares were $2000 so you can book it or take a chance.

We were in London for two days before the cruise. We took the HOHO bus. It was great. It stopped at all the popular sights. Just a warning for Buckingham Palace. They don't do the changing of the guards ceremony every day, it was every other day so be sure to check before you are standing at the palace waiting.

We stayed in the Trafalgar Square area in London and it is the perfect location for getting everywhere. Highly recommend that area.

The Citadines Prestige Trafalgar Square is a nice moderately priced hotel and all the rooms are large and have a kitchenette in them.

 

Flight arrives at 7:40am and cruise leaves at 4:30pm, I assume we have enough time to get through customs and take a shuttle to the boat?

Personally would never fly in the same day as a cruise - even in this country - flying international would really worry me! If the cruise leaves at 4:30 p.m. you probably have to be on board around 3:00 or 3:30 p.m.

What airport (assuming Heathrow) but it could be a different one. Also, are you sailing from Southampton (again assuming). Also, when you say shuttle to the port are you taking a RC shuttle? Again, could be a couple of hours to the port.

If you give more definite details, maybe someone could give you a better idea of timing.

12nts Spain and Canary Islands in June...woot! Price has gone up $1500 since I booked a week ago...this WoW sale is impressive.

 

Flight arrives at 7:40am and cruise leaves at 4:30pm, I assume we have enough time to get through customs and take a shuttle to the boat?

 

We're staying two extra days, get back 13th and flying home 15th. Can anybody recommend a good location to stay in London and top highlights to hit? My kids have never been to europe and may not get back for a while.

 

Last, when is the best time to book airfare? I've got my kids Sky Miles tix and obviously need the same flights. Booking through airline today is $2000, choice air for same flights is about $1600. Should I jump on the $1600 and not have to worry anymore?

We are on this cruise. It does have an established roll cal that you might find helpful.

if the cruise leaves from Harwich it takes about 1 hour and 50 minutes to get there from central london by train (from memory) and potentially longer by car

or from heathrow. Remember to factor this in from your arrival.

When in London I like to stay somewhere near the Picadilly line as you can catch the tube all the way from Heathrow and it is the same line for Buckingham Palace, Harrods and many of the sights.

I also like the hop on hop off bus :)

I was just in London in May and agonized over hotels. I was staying with my parents and 3-person rooms were not just as easy to come by. I ended up staying at the Villa Kensington and I really liked it ... the room was clean (and included breakfast with our rate), it was in a quiet and safe neighborhood, and was about a block from restaurants, a tube station, and hop-on-hop-off busses drop point.

If you stay where the action is, you are probably going to pay dearly for it.

Please don't miss the tower of london and the what they allow you to view of the crown jewels - this is a must see. I have been to Buckingham Palace and it is a great home but if I had to make a choice between BP and the tower I would go to the tower every time. At least you can into the tower and walk around.

if the cruise leaves from Harwich it takes about 1 hour and 50 minutes to get there from central london by train (from memory) and potentially longer by car

or from heathrow. Remember to factor this in from your arrival.

 

When in London I like to stay somewhere near the Picadilly line as you can catch the tube all the way from Heathrow and it is the same line for Buckingham Palace, Harrods and many of the sights.

 

 

I also like the hop on hop off bus :)

Anthem only sails from Southampton.

My wife and I stayed in London for 10 days this past May/June. There is just so much to see and do in London that 2 days will give you only a small taste.

We split our visit between two areas: South Kensington [affordable hotels with good tube access to everything] and West End [more pricey hotels in a fashionable theater area]. The link below is very helpful in learning about London areas, hotels, transportation, etc.

http://londontoolkit.com/

You do not mention the ages of your kids, but in the South Kensington area you will find free or cheap quality museums (Science, Natural History and V&A museums). The V&A museum is mind-blowing for any age.

For a short visit, I definitely agree with doing the HOHO bus tour. You can save a few bucks buying tickets online. You can briefly hit the major attractions this way on the first day of your visit.

As previously posted, the London Tower also makes a good day-visit. Advance tickets will also save time and a few bucks. Tickets lines onsite can get really long. Perhaps you can also consider a river cruise on the Thames which can be boarded near the Tower.

If you had just one more day (i.e., a 3rd day) and if your kids enjoy Harry Potter, I would recommend the Harry Potter Warner Bros. Studio Tour (20 miles NW of London). This place was wonderful, even for adults. And I am told it is much better than HP attraction at Disney World.

You really should not go in the day of your cruise. We were set to fly from Atlanta to Copenhagen with a connection in Chicago - a 20 minute thunderstorm in Atlanta cost us the connection and we did not arrive until a day later losing one day of sightseeing in Copenhagen, but not missing our cruise.

Giving yourself on extra day will take away the worry of arriving and getting to the ship especially since it is not in the city. Insurance takes care of the money, but not the disappointment.

Visitors can actually tour INSIDE the Palace. Google their website for dates/prices (wont be available if HRH is in residence).

Certainly can take 2/3 hours but very interesting.

Visitors can actually tour INSIDE the Palace. Google their website for dates/prices (wont be available if HRH is in residence).

And it's not HRH being in residence that's as important as whether HM is. ;)

I was just in London in May and agonized over hotels. I was staying with my parents and 3-person rooms were not just as easy to come by. I ended up staying at the Villa Kensington and I really liked it ... the room was clean (and included breakfast with our rate), it was in a quiet and safe neighborhood, and was about a block from restaurants, a tube station, and hop-on-hop-off busses drop point.

 

If you stay where the action is, you are probably going to pay dearly for it.

Glad to hear you liked this hotel. I will be traveling solo next year and had this hotel on my list of possibilities due to its location and on the piccadilly line from Heathrow.

You have come to the right place. You can find out all you need to know about London on this Port of call message board. I started a thread for my TA and got lots of information. I am not sure if any of this will be useful to you--but, here is the link.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1990590

Enjoy your cruise. :D