London has many attractions to offer to a visitor. It is one of the largest cities in the world and a very popular destination with travelers. And so, some planning is needed to enjoy the city the most. Though, a few days are not really enough to explore everything.
If you are buying a package from a tour operator, then many of your difficulties are solved. They will plan and schedule your itinerary. They will map out the major landmarks that you will want to see. They will get the best deals in hotels and provide transport too.
However, if you are venturing out on your own, make some pointers beforehand.
First, make a list of all the places you want to see in London. Map out the distances between them. Find the modes of transport that will help you get across.
Four locations have been labeled as World Heritage Sites in London. These are:
1) The Settlement of Greenwich
2) The Tower of London
3) The Royal Botanic Garden at Kew, and
4) The site that contains the three structures of Westminster Abbey, St. Margaret’s Church, and the Palace of Westminster.
These are very popular as far as sightseeing is concerned.
London is well-connected to almost all the world. The Heathrow Airport here is the busiest one in the world by international flights.
London is steeped in history. London houses several museums like the Imperial War Museum Cabinet War Rooms, the British Museum, Science and Natural History Museums, and the Victoria & Albert Museum. Much of London’s appeal lies here. They are open on all days but it is better to visit them on weekdays when they are less crowded.
The city possesses some beautiful parks where the weather can be enjoyed. The Hyde Park forms amongst largest green open spaces in London and it is one of the Royal gardens. The St. James Park is also one of the oldest Royal parks in London. Another is the Green Park.
The easiest way to travel around the city is with the London Pass. It is a pass that is used for sightseeing at a fixed rate. This is a one-time payment that you can make and this includes 55 places. It also comprises of a river cruise. This way you can visit and revisit museums and other places. You will also receive a free guidebook for London. You will also get discounts at some restaurants and cafés.
The primary shopping area is the Oxford Street. It possesses several designer showrooms and department stores. Apart from these, street vendors are also located here. Popular shopping malls are situated here as well. Plays, operas, exhibitions, and shows are regularly organized at the Covent Garden and the Leicester Square.
The weather in London is rather erratic. It, of course, is primarily rainy. But sometimes, the weather turns sunny just as suddenly. The months of September and October are usually ideal. Summer is over by then and the weather is pleasant and not too cold. There are several plays scheduled around this time. If it’s the Wimbledon you want to catch, then is suggested you drop by in June. Lots more happens in June too, like the Covent Garden Festival and City of London Festival of theatre and music, as well as the Derby and Ascot horseracing. July is just as good too, because there are open-air plays at the Regent’s Park. The Albert Hall hosts concerts.
London has something going on every month, but check which weather suits you the most.
Today I would like to tell you about one of the most charming hotels I have ever visited – hotel sausalito. It belongs to such places you fall in love from the first sight. I mean it. So some facts I liked the most about it:
- the Hotel is a three-story, 102-room California Craftsman style building
- all rooms are not very spacious but stylish and beautifully furnished
- the rooms are cleaned daily
- friendly staff and the owner
- most rooms have large towels, a view out to the bay and a flatscreen tv with cable
- the location if perfect for shoppers, people in love, friends, party-goers. It is located within walking distance of numerous shops, restaurants and night attractions
- this place has everything even the most demanding traveler needs: markets, transport, friendly people, nature sightseeings
- perfect for active people, because here they will find great opportunities for hiking in Muir Woods, sailing and ocean kayaking
- great for honeymoons, picnics, small and long vacations
Love this hotel and the contrast of really chilling and peaceful atmosphere in it and hustle-bustle of the Bay out of it!
Peak fall foliage season starts at the beginning of September and runs through to the end of October. To get yourself in an appropriately autumnal frame of mind then, plan a trip to Clyde’s Cider Mill in Old Mystic. Visitors can watch the cider mill in action – this is the only such mill in the country still powered by steam – and then purchase alcoholic or nonalcoholic cider in plastic jugs. As soon as you’re properly hydrated and fortified at the mill, head west to the town of Essex where the Connecticut River Expeditions runs a Fall Foliage Cruise aboard the RiverQuest.
About 30 miles north of Mystic, the Blue Slope Country Museum in Franklin is essentially a celebration of all things bucolic. During the fall season, life at the museum gets even more interesting: how about pie-eating contests and Amish outdoor furniture for sale?
On the opposite end of Connecticut, the Litchfield Hills region is the state’s other major destination for serious leaf-peeping. Incidentally, it’s also a popular region in which to visit one of Connecticut’s sugar houses, producing Connecticut’s famous maple syrup. Tours are given daily at Lamothe’s Sugar House in Burlington.
About a half-hour drive to the west is the fifth-generation Bunnell Farm where you can pick-your-own flowers or embark on a horse-drawn hay and tractor ride. Both these trips lead to a PYO pumpkin farm, which is naturally at its peak during fall foliage. And like many PYO farms, Bunnell is solidly in on the corn-maze craze as well – if you happen to arrive after sunset, they’ll even loan you a flashlight and let you stumble around in the dark.
Before venturing north into Massachusetts, stop by one more of Litchfield County’s PYO farms, the Ellsworth Hill Orchard & Berry Farm. This farm is home to a particularly challenging six-acre corn maze. And naturally, berries, plums, peaches, and apples can be snapped right off the vine by your very own hands.
Continue heading north, and cross the state border to reach this trip’s next stop, which is in the northern Massachusetts town of Deerfield. The historic Deerfield village itself is a collection of 14 houses, all decorated in the popular styles of the 18th and 19th centuries. Visitors are led from house to house by a well-informed guide, and for those without a strong grounding in American history, a larger building known as the Flynt Center for the Study of Early American Life does a decent job of explaining it all in smaller and more easily digestible chunks.
Travel north for about 90 miles along I-91 to reach the town of Woodstock, VT, and the Billings Farm and Museum. Billings is a working dairy farm, and visitors who tour the grounds here are taken to a horse barn and a calf nursery before going on a self-guided tour through a series of 19th century barns.
From Woodstock, hop right on I-89 north and take it all the way to Burlington, which sits directly on the shores of Lake Champlain; the Adirondacks of New York are located on the opposite side of the lake.
Burlington, of course, is home to a wealth of indoor and outdoor activities, so if you’d like to briefly get off the cycle of country farm- and fall foliage-specific activities, the Lake Champlain Valley, as this area is known, is a great place to do that.
One of Vermont’s most unusual and most visited attractions, the Shelburne Museum, is seven miles south of Burlington and right in the heart of Lake Champlain valley. Founded in 1947 by Electra Havemeyer Webb, a woman with a truly unique artistic vision and a serious shopping compulsion, the museum is home to nearly 200,000 pieces of distinctive American folk art and crafts. But Webb also collected buildings and historic structures, and her art is now housed in literally dozens of them, including a jail and a 220ft-long steamship.
Drive east – I-89 south, then Rte 100 – to Stowe, where anyone in search of a truly unforgettable culinary experience should run directly to the Trapp Family Lodge. This Austrian-style alpine mountain resort is still operated by the same von Trapp family that inspired the musical and movie The Sound of Music.
You’re now about 120 miles away from this trip’s next stop, which happens to sit atop New Hampshire’s Wildcat Mountain: the zip cable ride known as the Wildcat Express Gondola is well worth it, and the views of Mt Washington will blow your mind. And no, you won’t be hanging on with your fingers: the Wildcat is essentially a cross between a hammock and a chair. It does soar at speeds of up to 45 mph, though, and the trip is a half mile long.
Hiking or driving to Mount Washington State Park is a popular activity, and reaching the peak via the 7.6-mile Mt Washington Auto Road makes for one of the most remarkable drives in New Hampshire.
This trip comes to its decidedly laid-back conclusion in the resort town of Kennebunkport, Maine, where generations of writers, artists, and even world leaders have come for a mix of inspiration and down-time. Kennebunkport is about two hours by car from North Conway. When you arrive, check into one of the 16 designer Cottages at Cabot Cove, which, yes, actually are lined up inside a breathtakingly gorgeous tidal cove. And while the prices are admittedly high, they graciously include beach passes, a fully equipped kitchen, and the use of kayaks and rowboats. In fact, the only serious downside to staying at the cottages is that you probably won’t ever want to pack up and leave.
For the last three days, we were crazily shopping at the nearby Leesburg Corner Premium Outlets (or factory outlets, er… not like Singapore Factory Outlet hor =P). The famous brands were cheap and nice! We bought from Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike, DKNY, Coach, Esprit, Levi’s, Timberland…couldn’t recall more.
We also went to Tyson’s Corner Center, the largest mall in the D.C. area. I exchanged my Coach bag for a different model after I realised that I was not used to hand-carry bag. No question asked and their customer service was so good. We bought many chocolates from Godiva and they were a lot cheaper than those in Singapore too!
And we love the big and yummy cheese cakes at The Cheesecake Factory!
I bought a few tops from Mango and they were really cheap. I saw the same top in Singapore after I returned and it was selling at 2 times more expensive.
We bought a talking toy for Devin on the last night of our stay and coincidentally, the family was celebrating Devin’s 9-month-old birthday; so the talking toy became the birthday present for Devin. The birthday cake was a big ice-cream cake filled with chocolate, strawberry and vanilla flavours. Connor hates chocolate and he spat out the chocolate when he tasted it in his cake. This was the first time we saw a kid who hates chocolate so much!
The U.S. hotel industry reported increases in all three key performance metrics during summer 2010, according to data from STR. Overall, summer occupancy rose 6.8 percent to 65.6 percent, average daily rate increased 1.3 percent to US$98.76 percent, and revenue per available room was up 8.2 percent to US$64.78. The summer season comprises June, July and August.
Demand rose 8.8 percent to 293,077,058 rooms sold, the highest summer room demand since STR started tracking hotel performance during 1987.
"The industry achieved an all-time high for absolute room demand during the June-to-August time period, which was a welcomed surprise," said Chad Church, director of special services at STR.
In summer weekly performance, 13 of 14 weeks reported positive RevPAR year-over-year percent change, hampered only by a shift in Memorial Day in late May/early June that drove the comparison week down 1.2 percent, Church noted.
July reported the largest occupancy increase among the three months, rising 7.0 percent to 67.9 percent. July also experienced the largest RevPAR growth, up 8.5 percent to US$67.35. August reported the largest ADR increase, rising 1.5 percent to US$98.69.