fun to do kids london england   Travel for Kids
England
   
     
   

London

london illustration
London has been one of the great cities for millennia. In Roman times, London, Londinium, was the administrative center of Britannia. Down through the ages, like the ebb and flow of the Thames, London is the continuity of Great Britain. As you travel through London with kids, it's like your own time machine.
London Photo Album
london photos album
 

Tower of London

    The City – St. Paul's Cathedral
    Bloomsbury – British Museum
    Covent Garden
    Trafalgar Square
    Westminster Abbey – Buckingham Palace
    Hyde Park – Kensington Gardens
   

South Kensington – Museums

   

Regent's Park

    Southwark – Globe Theatre
Greater London
  Hampton Court Palace
    Windsor – Windsor Castle, Legoland
    Greenwich
 

Before you visit London and while you're there, read our blog post: Tips for London

  London at Christmas – Delightful to visit London during December – Winter Wonderland carnival, ice skating, Christmas sweets, dazzling holiday light displays.
   

On our blog: "London: Christmas is calling"

 

Some of the best museums, such as the British Museum, in London are free, no tickets required!

     

Read our blog "Free Museums in London."

  Take the London Underground – Get a reloadable Oyster card, and ride the Underground all day if you like - it goes everywhere. Oyster card is also good for buses and trams within the zones of central London.
  Ride the double decker buses – What better way to see London than riding up on the upper deck of a bright red double decker bus!
     

Tip: One summer we arrived in London at 9 am, couldn't check into our hotel until late morning, so we rode in a loop around London on a double decker bus.

    Boat rides on the Thames – The Thames has always been a great way to travel. A boat ride on the Thames isn't just for sightseeing, it's a speedy way to go between the London Eye and Tower of London. Thames Clippers for info about routes and stops on the river.
    "Queen Elizabeth I in London" – blog post, places to visit that recall the life and times of this extraordinary queen.
   

Fun food

     

Take a break and try afternoon teas or "cream teas," in cafes. Scones, cakes and pastries are always a kid favorite. Drop into Fortnum & Mason to buy unusual candies and chocolates. And for snacks, there's always "chips" (french fries).

   

Shopping

     

London has no end of charming children's clothing and toy shops, plush animals such as Paddington Bear, policeman, Sherlock Holmes bears. Plenty of souvenirs to buy, Harry Potter wands, scarves, princess accessories and costumes, toy double decker buses and taxis.

family hotels london
Travel for Kids has so many fun things to do with kids in London, but you'll need a fun place to stay.

Here's our own Travel for Kids hand-picked list of family hotels in London, all styles and price ranges, in neighborhoods comfortable for families, and near to places you'll want to explore:

London family hotels
London family apartment rentals
London Heathrow Airport family hotels
family tours london

Explore the fabulous Crown Jewels and secrets of the Tower of London, not just kings, princes, famous prisoners, but also the ravens and animals. Take a two and half hour tour with stories and activities for kids and parents together:

    Tower of London Tour for Kids

The British Museum is a great and glorious museum, and there's tons to see, but just how do you make ancient artworks come alive for your kids? Take a charming three hour private tour with stories and activities for kids and parents together:

    British Museum Tour for Kids
family travel tools london
 

Make life easy with a London Pass, an all-one-card for the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Globe Theatre, Hampton Court Palace, Windsor Castle, and many more, plus free Thames or canal boat cruise, and Oyster Travelcard for unlimited rides on the underground and buses. Savings and no waiting in lines:

The London Pass

So many things to see and do in London, the Original Tour makes it a snap. Hop on and hop off the double decker buses at any of 80 well-marked stops (such as Big Ben, the London Eye, Hyde Park, Trafalgar Square), with 3 different routes, engaging kids' commentary and activity pack, and a free cruise down the Thames River.

London Hop On Hop Off Bus
kids books london england
     
This is London kids  

Take a trip through London, old and new – the smallest church St. Ethelburga, Piccadilly Circus, Guardsmen in front of Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, tea time at four, Tower of London, the Underground trains, mummies in the British Museum, the Old Curiosity Shop, and more. Whimsical illustrations capture the panorama and fun of London, this is a classic. (Picture book)

 

     

The Tower of London holds a thousand years of history and secrets – not only a mighty fortress and infamous prison, it had a private zoo, was home to kings and queens, storehouse for armor and weapons, and treasury for the crown jewels. (Chapter book)

 

 
where is the tower of london
     
London Calls!  
London Calls!
Gabby Dawnay, Alex Barrow

"Big Ben is chiming; it's a quarter to eight and London is calling, we mustn't be late." Take a charming tour around London, past lions and palaces, zoom on the tube, spot the Gherkin, Prince William's favorite teatime cake, and more. Irresistible illustrations! (Picture book)

 

     
Katie in London
James Mayhew

When Katie and her brother visit London, they meet a talking lion at Trafalgar Square. Climbing on his back, "Hold on tight," the lion whisks the children to see the sights in London. Fun for younger kids. (Picture book)

 

 
katie in london
     
a ghost tale for christmastime  

Annie and Jack are whirled back in time to Victorian London, and their quest is to find Charles Dickens. Almost arrested as thieves, how can they help the most popular writer in England? (Easy reader)

And don't miss the non-fiction companion book, Rags and Riches: Kids in the Time of Charles Dickens

 

     
The Case of the Missing Moonstone
Jordan Stratford, Kelly Murphy

Sparkling mystery adventure of The Wollstonecraft Detective Agency with clever girls Ada Byron and Mary Godwin, aided by youthful Charles (Dickens) and Peebs (Percy Shelly). Original and fun run around London. (Chapter book)

And don't miss the next adventure: The Case of the Girl in Grey

 

 
case of the missing moonstone wollstonecraft detective agency
     
enola holmes graphic novel  
Enola Holmes: The Graphic Novels
Serena Blasco, Tanya Gold

Imagine if Sherlock Holmes had a younger sister, and here she is, Enola Holmes, a spirited teenager, hot on the trail of Viscount Tewksbury, and her mother, who's also disappeared in The Case of the Missing Marquess. Plus two more mysteries, The Case of the Left-Handed Lady and The Case of the Bizarre Bouquets. (Graphic novel)

 

     

Mira time travels back to 1917 London, where suffragettes protest votes for women and German zepplins bomb the city. Searching for a spy's briefcase, Mira meets H.G. Wells, Beatrix Potter, and gets help from Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. (Illustrated chapter book)

 

 
mira's diary bombs over london
     
how it became a spy  
How I Became a Spy
Deborah Hopkinson

1944, London is under attack by the Germans. Teenage Bertie Bradshaw, a civil defense volunteer, discovers an unidentified woman and her coded notebook. Bertie and his friends go all over London, decipher messages, and search for a double agent who could betray the coming D-Day invasion. (Chapter book)

 

     

For Ted and his sister Kate, their favorite thing to do in London is “fly the Eye,” ride the giant ferris wheel. But when they take their cousin Salim to the London Eye, he disappears without a trace. Ted and Kate follow a trail of clues all over the city to find Salim, before it’s too late. (Chapter book)

 

 
The London Eye Mystery
     
a bear called paddington
 

You can't go to the Paddington train station in London, ride the escalators in the underground, or eat sticky cream and jam buns, without wondering if, you too, will run into that delightful "bear from Darkest Peru." This is a classic! (Chapter book)

Also, a picture book version, charmingly illustrated: Paddington

 

     

Delightful adventures of Dodsworth and his friend the duck, when they visit London. Mistaken for the Royal Duck, the duck entertains the queen at Buckingham Palace. (Picture book)

 

 
Dodsworth in London childrens books toddlers
     
my first london taxi  
My First London Taxi
Marion Billet

“Stop the taxi! we want to see Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square. Stop the taxi! We want to look at the crown jewels in the Tower of London.” Take a tour around London, stopping to see famous sites, full two page spread and the book is shaped like a black taxi. (Board book)

Also: My First London Sticker Book

 

     
Stickyscapes London
Robert Samuel Hanson

Fold out multipage cityscapes, one present day, the other historical London, and use 100 different reusable stickers to create scenes with Peter Pan, double decker buses, William & Kate, Sherlock Holmes, Queen Elizabeth I, Charles Dickens, crown jewels, ravens of the Tower, and more. (Activity book)

 

 
stickyscapes london
     
awesome travels london  
WiKIDly Awesome Travels London
Miranda McPhee, Suzanne Lifson

Bring this travel journal on your visit to London – draw favorite landmarks, check off what you see in Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Tower of London, try British food such as crumpets or bangers and mash, plus history and quizzes about famous London sights. (Activity book)

 

     
My First Book of London
Ingela P. Arrhenius

Take a trip through London see if you can spot a lion statue, Egyptian mummy, ravens, Crown Jewels, balloon animal, street perfomer, suit of armor, and more. (Picture book)

 

 
my first book of london
     
london city trails  
London City Trails
Lonely Planet Kids

Not a guidebook per se, nineteen different themed trails through London – mysteries and legends, surprising food, secret rivers, noisiest spots, glittering treasure, wild animals, unusual fashion, monster tales, and more. (Illustrated chapter book)

 

(More children's books on other London and England pages)
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