jsfBoat

Comming back from Amsterdam to JFK next month, I have about 10 hours between the arrival of the Amsterdam flight and the flight leaving for JFK (in Heathrow). I'm thinking of going into the city for a few hours and was wondering were to go and what to do to get the minimal London experience for the 4-5 hours or so I figure that I have. I've never been to London before. I need about 2 hours to get there and back, 3 hours to get through security. I hope I'm playing it safe.
Thinking, the eye, parliament, tower of london.

vagabond

I am partial to the British Museum and the Imperial War Museum and the Cabinet War Rooms. But then I'm a WWII buff.

Last time I was there, I bought a ticket on one of those Hop On, Hop Off sighseeing double decker buses. It stops at all the usual places like Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's Cathedral etc.

Have fun. And don't forget to eat a Ploughman's Lunch or some other type of pub grub!

Jakob

Well, 4-5 hours are really short. I was there last february for an entire day (landed 0730, left 1910) and I just basically walked along the Thamse. The weather was really good and I had a great time, although my feet started to hurt after many hours of walking. I went from LHR into the city with the Picadilly (sp?) Line and got of at the buckingham palace (I forgot the name of the station but you'll be able to find that out) and then started my walk alongside the palace and down to the river. If you have less time, I can definatly recommend taking the bus. There are some very interesting routes. I would recommend buying a city-map. If you do chose to go by bus, which I did later in the day and I was able to see a lot, you should buy a day ticket at the airport. As far as I remember it was about 9 Pounds which is a lot cheaper than buying a ticket for every direction.

So I would recommend you taking the bus as you will be able to see a lot of the city in little time. With a little bit of luck you might even be able to hop onto one of the old, classical busses. I think they only go on one route though...

If you have any other, more specific questions I'd be happy to help out. If you understand German, I can send you a trip report I wrote back then where you might find some additional information.

Enjoy London, it is a fun city! However take enough time to get back to the airport. The city is very full and it could be risky not to have enough time.

Best wishes
Jakob

Dog Breath

I did this also. Best way to go when your time is limited.

Yak Driver

From LHR, it's the Piccadilly Line (the blue one). Click HERE for the map. LHR is at the bottom left corner.

You can either get on at the terminals or at Hatton Cross, which is right next to the BA engineering base. For the central London sights, get off anywhere between Green Park and Covent Garden. If you can get hold of a tourist map, you'll see most stuff is relatively close by although the nearest station for the museums is South Kensington.