In this episode, we’re taking you to the heart of England London, a city where history, culture, and modern life blend seamlessly. From the grandeur of Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London to the lively streets of Soho and Camden, this episode uncovers the city’s best spots for first-time visitors and seasoned travelers alike. 

You’ll get insider tips on navigating the Tube, finding the best fish and chips, and exploring local favorites beyond the tourist trail. Whether you’re drawn to iconic landmarks, cozy afternoon teas, or London’s vibrant art scene, this episode will inspire your next British adventure.

If you want to take this exact trip, download our 2 day London Itinerary!

London Episode Highlights: 

• How to get to London
• Where to stay in London
• Weather in London
• Visiting iconic sites in London 

Our top recommended Hotels in London (pick hotels near Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, or Big Ben)

• Hyde Park International 
• The Caesar Hotel
• The Clermont London, Charing Cross
• Or check out these hotels in London 

This is our second episode on London, in our first episode on what to do in London we go deeper into some of the attraction’s tours and take a day trip to Stonehenge!

Check out our London Activities & Tours for all activities we recommend and even some that we wanted to do but couldn’t get to. Find a great flight deal to London by signing up for Thrifty Traveler Premium and get flight deals sent straight to your inbox. Use our promo code TSP to get $20 off your first year subscription.

Contains affiliate links, thanks for supporting Travel Squad Podcast!

2 Days in London – Episode Transcript

0:34

Welcome to this week’s episode of the Travel Squad Podcast.Today we’re taking you with us to London, England.

0:50

We spent two days in London and we hit the ground running and made the most out of our time there.This is actually our second time in London.The first time we spent three to four days, and this time was just two days.But we got to hit all of the major sites and do a ton of things.And so we’re going to tell you how to make the most of your time while you’re in London, even if it’s for a quick trip.

1:09

I am so glad that we’re doing another London episode.We have one that originally aired back in March of 2022.We’ve done it on Travel Tuesday flashbacks every now and again, and it is a very popular episode.And people love London.It’s one of the iconic cities of the world.

1:26

We’ve also gotten a lot of Flack for that London episode, so we better not mispronounce anything because that squat is just so you know, is our number one.Most commented and emailed on about how he pronounced the river Tames and a bunch of other things.It’s the Tim’s, Kim.It’s the Tim’s.

1:42

So just make sure you get it right.Yes, but it’s the Tim’s.So we do know this.Although ironically enough, I was listening to something the other day and somebody did say the tames.It’s.It’s an easy mistake to make, but I’m glad we’re doing another London episode because people love London.

1:59

You can go back a million times and have a completely different trip every single time.You guys packed a lot into this two day trip as well.We did.So of course, this is coming off of our Portugal trip that we had done when we went to Madeira and Lisbon.Our flights to Europe routed us through London.

2:17

So we’re like, well, we love London, let’s spend another couple days in London.And I’m really glad that we did.It’s an enjoyable city.I love it.The one thing I did dislike about London is not necessarily London in general, it’s the UK.Their money is a lot more powerful than ours, so I feel like I’m really getting it hard when I’m over there.

2:35

But it is an enjoyable experience nevertheless.And Kim, you weren’t with us the first time we went to London, nor were you with us the second time here we went.But you have also been to London one time yourself and you really enjoyed it when you had gone correct?I only did a stopover 12 hours in London, saw what I could but I loved it.

2:53

The food was great, the pub scene was awesome.The buildings are beautiful so I’m excited to hear more and I I’m dying to go back myself.One comment that we often get on our podcast is you shouldn’t just spend 12 hours one day, 2 days in a place, but we always say make the most out of the time that you have.

3:11

Kim, you were able to punch in a lot in your 12 hour trip.In our two days here, we were able to hit the ground running and cover a lot of ground in London, especially since we kind of knew the lay of the land.So doesn’t matter how long you have it a place, just make the most of it and it’ll it’ll be a great experience.

3:27

You can always go back if you want to.So let’s start off with the tips as we always do, Language English makes so much sense.Obviously the namesake of English comes from England, so it makes it a great place for first time international travelers and I think we’ve mentioned that before in previous episodes.

3:44

London and England is a great place to go if you haven’t really ever ventured out of the country for the first time because there is no language barrier and it makes it very simple and easy.In regards to money, their currency is the British # Jamal already mentioned it earlier.The dollar is weak compared to the British pound.

4:01

So just keep that in mind.I know, Kim, you said next year you’re only going places where the dollar is stronger, so London wouldn’t be on that list.But in terms of getting around, we used our credit card the entire time.We actually did pull pounds from the ATM but we didn’t even use them.

4:18

Did you return them?We didn’t return them often.What we’ll do is we’ll carry them for just in case when we go back or if we’re going to to another country like somewhere in Asia, we may exchange those pounds for their currency and it’s a stronger return rate.

4:34

So we use things like that sometimes.And we knew we weren’t really going to use the pounds that we pulled.We only pulled 50 lbs.And the reason we did it was twofold.It’s Europe.Sometimes you need to pay to use the restroom.We just needed some money just in case that happened to be the situation.And several times this is unique.

4:51

And I did not see this the first time we were there in what, 20/17/2018?I don’t don’t remember the first time that we had gone but they had some delicious smelling candied nuts roasting on many many corners and food vendors doing that and every time we pass them it smelt so good and we knew those vendors only took cash.

5:09

Unfortunately we didn’t buy those nuts but like we bought it just if there was going to be a one off if we passed them again and for the bathrooms.If you do pull money from the ATM, just make sure you’re not pulling from euro nuts because euro nuts are not associated with banks and they charge a very high surcharge to pull money from their ATMs. So always pull from a bank or financial institution.

5:28

In terms of getting around, getting around London is super, super easy with their mass transit or the Tube as they call it, which is their subway and metro system.Of course, they do have buses, overland trains, et cetera.If you happen to be going a little bit further.But in terms of of utilizing their metro and the tube, one thing that we recommend doing, we did it on our first time is getting an Oyster card.

5:51

You can get it upon arrival.These are cards that you can preload with money on it for your fares as you’re riding mass transit, whether it be the bus, metro, etcetera.They do have a daily cap on the fares.So if you use a certain dollar amount, at some point they stop charging you for the day.

6:10

And even with the Oyster card, the fares happened to be be reduced, not necessarily by a lot, and it really won’t make a difference if you’re utilizing it a lot and hit the daily Max.But if you’re not hitting the daily Max, it’s cool because it does give you reduced fares.Conversely, if you don’t want to take the burden and time to get yourself an Oyster card and preload it, London is great because they’re on the credit card tap system to go ahead and utilize the metro and mass transit.

6:37

So as you go in, all you need to do is tap your credit card.Your credit cards also have daily caps associated with it, but of course you need to use the same credit card every time.So if you’re travelling with multiple people in this situation, like me and Brittany, if we were to use our credit cards, we would each need to use our own card, tap in, tap out.

6:55

That way they can recognize which fare and person it’s being used for, and of course cap you as well.And with that being said, if you have that card on your phone, you can’t use it on your phone and then also your physical card at the same time it doesn’t recognize that it’s the same card.

7:10

So you do have to use either your phone the whole time, your watch the whole full time, or the actual credit card the whole time.Another tip for you is to stay at a hotel or an Airbnb near a tube line.London has a ton of public transportation options, but if you’re outside of a major tube line, that makes it so much easier to get all across the city.

7:30

And there are public transit lines from the airport as well, like the Heathrow Express and the Elizabeth line.We use the Elizabeth line to get to our hotel and our hotel had two major tube stations within like 1 was across the street and the other one was within a 4 minute walk.

7:46

Yeah, and so the Heathrow Express will be an express train to the city center of London.The Elizabeth line also gets you to the city center of London at Paddington station.It does have less stops than the Piccadilly line, which also runs to London Heathrow.

8:02

Elizabeth line is more expensive because it has less stops along the way.Piccadilly will also get you to central London, but has more stops, takes a longer time, therefore is cheaper.So just research your options of what you have, what’s better for you.You could take a bus maybe you’re not flying into London Heathrow, you’re flying into one of their other three airports that they have in the city area.

8:21

So just figure that out.But mass transit state near a tube line for a hotel.London also does have Bolt and Uber available as rideshare options, but the transportation in London is so good whether you’re walking or using the tube or the bus.So we didn’t use it at all, but in case you need it, it is there.

8:38

Kim, you mentioned how we got some people with comments on our London episode, and one of them was that we mentioned that London was dreary.And I’m sorry to say London is dreary.By that, I’m talking about the weather specifically.It could be sunny, then a little bit later, actually rainy, cloudy, etcetera.

8:56

That’s just the reality of it.I’m going to say it.So pack in layers, check the weather and bring an umbrella.You’re going to need it.It rained on us while we were there first day, when we arrived the next day, nice and sunny.So you never know what you’re going to get.When we talk about tips, we often talk about the bathroom, and I noticed this trip in particular, there was a lot of restaurants and small shops and coffee shops that didn’t have bathrooms available.

9:22

A restaurant did not have a bathroom.I went to a few coffee shops which you would think coffee makes you pee didn’t have it, donut shop didn’t have it.I don’t know if it was a true restaurant.I just mean like little small shops that do sell some Cafe OK type things.

9:38

And then we didn’t come across a ton of public bathroom with either.The only one we used was the one in Kensington Gardens.Jamal actually used it.I didn’t but it was 1 you have to pay for but you could pay with cards.So he was able to pay £0.20 with card.

9:53

It was only with card they didn’t even take cash.So I pulled out the cash and the one off that we would need to use a public restroom.Pointless on that.So there’s now seems to be just tap with credit card for you to use the public restrooms.And just a general tip and I’m going to say this simply because this occurred to me and I busted my brand new luggage that we bought on our first international vacation since getting it is when you’re exiting the metro, make sure you put the luggage in front of you and not necessarily roll it behind you.

10:23

Because when we were leaving Paddington station after taking the Elizabeth line from the airport.And again, Paddington station has metros and it’s a big, big train station for further transit throughout London and UK in general.You would think they would know people are strolling through here with big luggage is sometimes because they’re travelling.

10:42

That gate closed on me so quick that it literally grasped my luggage between the gates.And then because it came in with so much force and clasped on it, it busted my lift handle so I couldn’t push it back in and I actually had to take it to a Samsonite shop because it is a Samsonite luggage for them to be able to fix it like literally this thing chomped my luggage and busted it on 1st use.

11:09

So when you’re pushing through with your luggage while traveling, I would say put that through first, you behind it, because if it closes you, yeah, it’s not necessarily going to clamp you.It’s just going to kind of shut you out.But don’t let it bust your luggage because those handles are finicky.And yeah, my new luggage is ruined pending being fixed here further.

11:28

Well, they actually do have larger lanes that you can roll your luggage or strollers through, but sometimes those are crowded or congested.So if you use the regular ones, make sure you use this tip for sure.Squatty’s All of these tips and more will be in the London itinerary available for you to download through the link in our show notes or at shoptravelsquad.com.

11:48

We built our two day London itinerary that replicates its exact trip, but with the tips and optimizations that we learned along the way so that you can get the most out of your two days there.So we flew into London on a Sunday and we flew in from Lisbon, Portugal.

12:04

So if you haven’t listened to our Portugal episodes on Lisbon and Madeira, make sure to go back and do so.But we were really excited to travel to London on a Sunday because we were going to be having a Sunday roast this.Oh, I thought you were going to say Sunday.Sunday.

12:20

Well, Sunday funding as well, but also a Sunday roast.So we flew into London, we flew into Heathrow, we took the Elizabeth line to central London and then we got off at Paddington station.We took the Circle line to Bayswater, which is where our hotel was near and we wanted to drop our luggage off at the hotel.

12:42

Yeah, we wanted to drop the luggage off at the hotel because of course, we don’t really want to carry it around.Fortunately, by the time we checked in, it was only about a 20 minute wait before our room was available because we got there before 3:00 PM, so we were able to check in early.So we just had to wait a tiny little bit so we were able to drop off our luggage and then hit the ground running.

13:03

So we stayed at the Hyde Park International Hotel, which is right on the edge of Kensington Gardens.It’s an older hotel, but it was fine.It’s a mid grade hotel.I would stay there again.It was comfortable enough.As long as you’re not staying in like they’re just regular room.We stayed like in a room above.

13:20

Yeah, because rooms in Europe always are going to be small.So if you stay in the regular size room, you’re definitely going to be a little bit more cramped.But this was a beautiful, nice area, Brittany says.It was next to Kensington Gardens.If you don’t know what Kensington Gardens is, it’s gardens around the Kensington Palace, which is not the palace of the monarch, but members of the royal family live there.

13:43

Prince William, Kate, other members of the royal family live in Kensington Palace, that’s within Kensington Gardens.And Kensington Gardens also touches Hyde Park, which is a very famous park in London, hence the name of our hotel, Hyde Park International.So we were only a block away from these major attractions.

14:01

We talked about the weather being dreary and so this day it was a little drizzly.And another tip for you guys that we didn’t mention is often hotels will have have umbrellas to rent or use.So my umbrella actually didn’t make it out of Lisbon.

14:16

It broke while we were there.So I was able to borrow an umbrella from the front desk in London.So I took that with me.I just want to say if we harken back a couple episodes to our Madeira where Brittany claimed I may have had a freak out on the hike when it started raining and we had to walk under the waterfall.

14:35

Her umbrella broke because she walked under the waterfall that fell under the path and it just couldn’t.Oh, you left that out in that episode, Brittany.Actually, Jamal’s lying.That’s not what happened.It’s.Kind of what happened.No, the umbrella broke because it’s been used aggressively over the last few years and finally the spokes on it have kind of rusted due to water.

14:57

And so it snapped because it was rusty, not because it.Yeah, because of the weight of the waterfall, because it was.So yes, that context.It was windy, Jamal.I just want to say we’ll move on.I just want to throw that out.Cutting this I’m cutting this out of the.Episode Brittany’s having a freak out.

15:15

So anyway, by the time we arrived, it was close to 12:00 at the hotel.So yes, we were able to grab an umbrella for Brittany from our hotel that she was able to use while we were out.We knew the first thing that we wanted to go do was go to Borough Market, which is in the Mayfair area.

15:35

Kim, have you ever heard of Borough Market?I have not.Borough Market has literally been around for hundreds of years, maybe even thousands of years in this area.They’ve always just had a market.And of course, as time has evolved, it has become a lot more sophisticated, Known for selling really Kraft food such as mushroom risottos, paellas, you could get really high end sandwiches, all sorts of different things out there.

15:58

And it’s famous for the chocolate covered strawberries that are like viral right now on TikTok and Instagram.So point being, we wanted to go there.One for the history, but two for the food.This is one of the best places in London to go ahead and get food, so it is very close to London Bridge.

16:15

So we took the Metro over there, walked across London Bridge and then made our way to Borough Market.Yeah, the first thing that we got were the chocolate covered strawberries and they were so good.They have a huge line.They have this whole production system where the line moves super fast and you can go and grab your chocolate covered strawberries.

16:34

We ate those first.They hit the spot and then Jamal and I were debating what other things we were going to get.Top contenders wore a seafood paella or a mushroom risotto, but we ended up not getting either of those.We ended up getting a Mac and cheese which also had a side of cheesy potatoes and this was so good.

16:54

It really hit the spot because it was kind of cool and chilly that day and the Mac and cheese and the cheesy potatoes were nice and warm and filling.I would.Recommend.Very interesting combination.Well, it wasn’t a combination of both because you could get them separately or they sold it as a combo and they did it like as a half half so that you can actually taste it.

17:12

Ironically enough, the potatoes and cheese that they actually had I thought was better than their Mac and cheese.And we were originally going to get the mushroom risotto.We just decided not to because they actually give out samples of it, and they only give you samples of the risotto itself.

17:27

They have the mushrooms cooking right by the side, but they don’t let you taste that.So I’m sure with the mushrooms on top, it would have been better.But when Brittany and I both just tasted the risotto samples that they were given were like, well, this isn’t really that great now.Yes, again, with the mushrooms on top and the truffle that they would put on top, I’m sure it would have enhanced the flavor, but we weren’t too impressed to be like, all right, yeah, let’s try this after having that sample.

17:50

So point being, and the Mac and cheese was good, but the potatoes and cheese that they sold was better.One thing that I did not mention too, that’s also a really famous staple here is the Creme Brulee doughnut.It’s really, really famous.We did not get that also because when we were in Lisbon, we were at one of the markets they have there and they had a Creme Brulee doughnut.

18:12

And like, I don’t even know how it could have been any better.Now I know everybody talks about these ones.I’m not saying don’t get it, but we were like 3 days past having an amazing Creme Brulee doughnut experience and like, I don’t know how I’m going to top that.Let’s save our calories for something else.So that’s what we did.

18:28

Yeah, so there’s a bunch of different vendors to go to in Borough Market.It’s definitely a must stop if you are in the area.Highly recommend going and bringing your appetite.It is crowded, so just beware, like really crowded, your shoulders, shoulder sometimes pushing your way through.And this is a good spot to go on a rainy day because the market area or the majority of it is actually covered.

18:50

So you’re only exposed to the elements getting there.But once you’re there, you are covered.From here we decided to walk to Tower Bridge.So Tower Bridge is Londons most beloved bridge.It is instantly recognizable.It has the twin gothic style towers.It’s the blue suspension bridge.

19:07

People often think that this is London Bridge, but it’s not.London Bridge is quite boring in comparison to Tower Bridge.Tower Bridge is the beautiful one.It’s been completed since 1894 and it still functions as a bridge that allows ships to pass underneath it as well.

19:24

Yeah, so it functions as a drawbridge, so to speak, for all the boats that are sailing across the Thames.But this is an instant landmark that everybody knows.If you don’t know what it is, just Google it and I assure you, you’ve seen it before.So all we did was just of course, this day want to do see the highlights, being tourists for the day, seeing things that we had seen before, but still always fun.

19:47

So we walked over to here, we took our photos, enjoyed our time, walked across the bridge.They actually have an exhibition and tour that you could take within the bridge, within the towers, but we didn’t actually do that.So that’s something on our next time that we go to London that we may entertain doing.

20:05

When I was doing research for London, one thing that kept popping up was to get the best view of the bridge, go down the horsely down steps.So Jamal and I did do that and we did go down, but the lighting actually wasn’t that great.So even though that kept popping up, I wouldn’t recommend that tip.

20:22

Hey, Squatty.Well, I’m going to give you a little tip to save some money at least on their flights over there and that is Thrifty Traveler Premium.We’ve been using this service for quite a while and what it is basically is a flight alert service and they have hotels in there now as well.When a flight or hotel goes on sale and it’s a really, really good deal, you’ll get a direct e-mail letting you know about it.

20:41

You can customize your features for what areas you want to get alerts on and it can save you a ton of money.And we have a discount code for you, $20 off your first year subscription.Using our code TSP, you’ll get $20 off your first year subscription at thriftytraveler.com/premium.

20:59

So after we walked across Tower Bridge, we walked to the Tower of London.The first time that we were in London, we actually did the tour of Tower of London and I would highly recommend doing it.You could spend a few hours there.It is such an amazing tour.It’s worth the money to do it.

21:16

Tower of London has over 1000 years of history.It’s one of Britain’s most fascinating and storied landmarks, and it served as a royal palace, a fortress, a prison and even a zoo at one point.Yeah, the tour is really fascinating.So again, we didn’t do it this time, but I just want to say Brittany had mentioned when we had finished walking across Tower Bridge, we went here.

21:36

Tower of London is immediately across from Tower Bridge, so there’s not too much walking for you.It’s literally right there.But when we did this tour the first time, and again, if we had more time, we would have done it again because that’s how much we actually enjoyed it.You can actually see the royal family’s crowned jewels.

21:54

They are held here in Tower of London.It serves as a museum.It’s the famous site of the execution of the Queen Anne Boleyn, who was a wife of King Henry the Eighth at one time.And then also something interesting that we learned, I forget which king it was, but again, we learned this the first time when we did the tour.

22:13

He had passed away.He had two heirs, his brother by that the King’s brother wanted to be king.So in order to do that, he killed his nephews.They never knew what happened to them.That guy ended up becoming king.And when they did an excavation of this, they found two bodies that the size of those royal Princess who should have been king buried within the walls.

22:35

And they’re pretty confident that it’s them.So, I mean, this is the type of storied history that you get within the Tower of London.And I thought it was just really unique and cool.And again, I wish we had more time to do it.But still fun and fascinating just to walk by.Yeah, this is built by William the Conqueror in the 11th century, so it’s very old.

22:53

You can also explore the White Tower’s Armory, and you might even see a few Beefeaters on the grounds as well.Do you know what Beefeaters are, Kim?I do.I learned this in our last episode.Yeah, so if you squaties don’t know, they are the guards that wear the specific uniforms, not the famous ones that you see with the large, large hats that are like stone faced and don’t make any expression.

23:15

These are other ones they carry almost like stick and scepters and different style hats, puffy pants.So really unique and cool to see.And these Beefeaters are the guards of the Tower of London.If you’re trying to see them, is there a particular time of day that is more likely?

23:30

I don’t believe so.I believe they’re just stationed there and you can actually see them at anytime.It’s not like when they have the changing of the Guard ceremony that’s close to Buckingham or anything like that.They’re pretty much always on premise so you can see them if you’re looking.The first time we went, we saw them outside of the area.

23:48

They kept the crown jewels, so they might still be in that area.But since we didn’t go in this time, we didn’t see them this time around.But from Tower of London, we took the Tube from there to Westminster station to see Big Ben.

24:03

Everybody knows what Big Ben is.A lot of people actually think it’s the tower and the clock that sits right by the Parliament building.It is not.Big Ben is actually the name of the bell within the clock, but everybody just calls that tower Big Ben.But it’s one of the most iconic landmarks of all of London and a symbol of British identity, so everybody knows this.

24:26

You have to go and see it.The first time that we were there, I remember we just got out of Westminster station and boom, it’s right there.I was just so surprised.Like you walk out the Tube line and it’s right there.The first time, though, they were doing construction and restoration on it, so a lot of the tower was blocked off.

24:44

This time, not so much.So I was actually excited to see it for the first time unobstructed, which was pretty cool.Yeah, you get the views right as you come out of the station.And then if you turn around, you can actually have really nice views of the London Eye across the river.

25:00

The London Eye is 443 feet tall above the River Thames.And again, we didn’t write it this time.We wrote it the first time we were in London.And this day was rainy, so it wouldn’t have been a good day to write it anyways.But on a nice day, you can get really great panoramic views of the city below.

25:18

My biggest beef with London is that they close the London Eye down at 6:00 PM and the one time that I went, my flight got delayed and I just missed it.Oh no.Yeah, that’s unfortunate because from the London Eye, I mean, you can see so many things.Again, it’s 443 feet high, so you can see Big Ben, of course, because it’s not too far away from there.

25:38

Saint Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, pretty much everywhere within London, you can actually see an amazing modern skyline that they have as well.So kind of silly that they close it early because I think it would be beautiful.Really lit up at night, almost like Vegas.Not that London has those type of lights.

25:54

I mean, it does, of course, the city.But nevertheless, yeah, you would think it should be open during that time or at least a little bit later.And right across the street from the Parliament building in Big Ben is the Westminster Abbey, so we cross the street to get views on that.It was Sunday, so they were closed to the public that day, but Westminster Abbey has hosted every every coronation since William the Conqueror in 1066.

26:21

Yeah, and it’s the final resting place of countless monarchs, poets, statesman of the British Empire.And so this is a UNESCO World Heritage site.It has that classic Gothic architecture with it, stained glass windows, ornate chapels, etcetera.

26:37

So really, really popular landmark again any day but Sunday you can really go in here and it’s open to the public to go in and see.Really cool.Since we were here on a Sunday, at least when we were in this vicinity, we did not go in.But worth doing when you guys come to London.

26:54

So from here we took the Tube to Saint James Park, and Saint James Park is London’s oldest royal park and it’s one of the most picturesque.It’s framed by Buckingham Palace, the Horse Guards Parade and The Mall, and it has really nice flower beds.You can actually see the London Eye from some parts of the park.

27:14

I was on a bridge and you could see a beautiful look out to it.There’s lakes there which are home to Pelicans and other types of birds and waterfowl, so it’s worth walking through and it’ll lead you right up to Buckingham Palace.Hold on before we continue.

27:30

Yeah.And Saint James Park, of course, is a public park now.But at one point in time, it was a royal hunting grounds.So it was transformed by King Henry the Eighth into a Deer Park in 1532.We’ll leave that.I have to take that out.I don’t even want to go into that detail.

27:46

OK, then go into Buckingham Palace.And then from there, we walked to Buckingham Palace.Of course, Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch and one of the most recognizable royal landmarks anywhere in the world.And so so it has its grand neoclassic facade and the palace serves as a beautiful backdrop for iconic state events and ceremonies in the changing of the guard.

28:10

So we talked a little bit about the change of the guard earlier when we mentioned the Beefeaters.Here is the vicinity in which you can actually see it.So the first time that Brittany and I were in London, we actually did a tour of Buckingham Palace.They don’t do regular tours.

28:26

They only do it when the Queen.And the case of in which we went and did the tour was away.Now that King Charles is king, I don’t know what their rules are.They still have summer tours They.Still have summer tours?Of the staterooms.OK, when he’s away or even when he’s in the palace.

28:43

I don’t know for sure, but I looked up the schedule this year and the last day of the tours were the day that we were there, so that was like the last day of the season.So they are still doing tours of the staterooms during the summer months and you can find the schedule online.Yeah, so be sure to check that out because it used to be that they only opened it when the Queen was away.

29:02

But like I said, not too sure of the new rules now that it’s King Charles, let alone if those current rules are now going to be the official rules moving forward or just still because it’s so recent since she passed a transition till they figure it.Out.How cool would that be to see a royal in real life on your trip to London?

29:19

I think it would be really cool, although I would wager to say that days of the tours he would be nowhere near where it’s opened.Well, not even for a tour.If there was some type of event going on, that would be so cool.I think that would be really cool.And you know, we’re going to get to it a little bit later when we talk about going to Kensington Gardens.

29:39

But I mentioned that’s where they have Kensington Palace.Some of the Royals still live there, such as Prince William, Princess Kate and other high-ranking members of the royal family.So you can possibly see them there.Sometimes they’ll come out to the balcony and do their little waves from Kensington Palace, but they weren’t doing that while we were there.

29:58

So we missed the royal or so to speak to see them.So at the beginning of the episode, I talked about us flying in on a Sunday and participating in our first Sunday roast.So I made reservations for a place called Cadogan Arms and it came highly recommended.

30:16

And if you hearken back to our Lisbon and Madeira episodes, we were on this trip with another couple, Garrett and Melissa.Garrett and Melissa actually arrived in London the day before we did, so we didn’t actually see them until our dinner reservation on on Sunday because they had other plans in the morning and since our flight was getting in, you know, midday, they wanted to get their morning started and moving.

30:39

But Sunday roast and Melissa was really excited about this is a quintessential British dining experience.So usually it’s served in pubs or restaurants, a class London and it usually features like a slow cooked meat like beef or lamb or chicken, usually served with roast potatoes or vegetables, Yorkshire pudding, Grady’s, things like that.

31:04

And the Sunday roast, do you know, honestly, when we were planning this trip and Brittany mentioned how Melissa really wanted to do it, Brittany wanted to do it too.I had never actually heard of it in terms of it being an actual thing.I was like, well, what is this?And we’ll get into what we actually had now and how it is in modern day London.

31:23

But it’s origin traces all the way back to medieval England when they would have just big meals and feasts after Sunday church.So now that’s just became a tradition and a thing.We have big meals on Sunday and that’s when they went all out.And they still go all out to this very day having meals in restaurants, pubs and of course people cooking it in home.

31:44

But it’s very popular to find the good restaurants and go get your Sunday roast out in public in a pub or restaurant.We ended up getting the sharer board which was a mix of meats.We got rump of beef, shoulder of lamb, kind of like a prime rib cut.We also had some butter glazed Vegas vegetables, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, and then we had a few different gravy.

32:05

So we had a bone marrow gravy and we had a horseradish cream in a mint and herb sauce.And then at the very end, we topped it all off with sticky toffee pudding.This was delicious.I mean, if you are a meat eater, it was fantastic.The accompaniments on it were absolutely delicious too.

32:23

The vegetables, the potatoes, everything from even their condiments of the gravy, horseradish, etcetera.So, so good.Unfortunately, when we got got there, they said that they were out of the pork belly, so we did not get any of the pork belly on the plate that should have come, but they gave us more meat cuts of all the different other varieties.

32:39

So we did get that.But if you go to London and do a Sunday roast, of course do your research, find a place that you would prefer to go.But we really highly recommend Codigan Arms.I know when I was in London I had one dish that I’ve been thinking about in the years ever since and it’s the typical bangers and mash, delicious sausage, mashed potatoes, gravy, microgreens.

33:01

It was like the most flavorful and delicious thing I’ve ever eaten.You know, the thing about two days in London is there’s not enough time to eat all the good things like sticky toffee pudding, bangers and mash, fish and chips, shepherd’s pie.A lot of people think that English food is quite boring or bland, but they do got some good staples.

33:20

They do got some good staples.It’s known to historically to be boring and bland, but as time has gone on, they really do have a good cuisine and I really do love the food.Food here in London of all the different types that you get, the traditional authentic, from the pubs to the markets and even the infusion of different cuisines that you get from all sorts of immigrant populations that they have there as well.

33:43

London has an amazing food scene right now.Hey Squatty’s quick reminder, If you’re looking for any of the information that we’ve shared in this episode, you can go to travelsquadpodcast.com/episodes.We have a page for every single episode we’ve ever aired with links to everything we’ve talked about on there.

33:59

You can also find a link to our Amazon storefront where we mention our travel umbrellas and everything else that we recommend bringing on the trips that we talk about.And then of course, you can access our itineraries, guides, templates, everything there.So we woke up here on a Monday and it was going to be our last full day in London before we flew back.

34:20

Now Brittany mentioned how we met up with Garrett and Melissa, how they had gotten to London a day before us.That’s because they were leaving for back home here to the USA day before us as well.So today was their day that they left.So we didn’t even really see them in the morning.We said goodbye to them last night and this was a day just me and Brittany exploring and doing a few things in particular that we wanted to do other than seeing the major sites.

34:45

So if you’re a little nerdy like me and you like Harry Potter, a good stop for you might be Goodwins Court.I only did this because it was near other things that we were going to do.So we did stop in Goodwins Court.It’s kind of tucked away off in a little alley on the West End of London.

35:03

And you go through this narrow cobblestone alley and it’s lined with 17th century bow fronted windows.And so it’s what inspired Diagon Alley in the Harry Potter films.But walking through it, it just feels like you’re just doing a little touch of magic.

35:19

And they even have a little window for Potter heads because they have the owl, they have the doors.It says Wizards welcome, Muggles tolerated.So it’s just a little photo op that you can do and walk.Through.So from there where we walked to a donut shop, it was a luxury doughnut bakery called the Donut Lear Leicester Square, and it had a bunch of different really cool, amazing looking Donuts.

35:46

So we stopped in here to get one.We ended up getting a pistachio doughnut.It was good, I enjoyed it.I love crafts, specialty doughnuts.I know we were talking about how we didn’t end up getting the famous Creme Brulee one from Borough Market, but it’s the morning now.

36:01

We wanted something kind of sweet to start the day.I enjoyed it.If you’re in the area, I would say come here.If you’re not in the area, I don’t know if it’s worth coming out of the way, but we were doing other things in the area just as well, so it made sense for us.So good.But I wouldn’t say go out of your way and.

36:19

Then we needed to grab some coffee, of course, because we hadn’t had some coffee yet.So we went to a place called Attendant Coffee Roasters, and it’s housed in a converted Victorian era public restroom.So I know that sounds weird, but you go down these stairs and it used to be a public restroom with likely urinals and things like that, and it still has some of that in there.

36:41

Like you can still see where the water comes down through the tubing and whatnot.But they’ve upgraded it and restored the space, and now they serve coffee, pastries and breakfast items.What a wonderful coffee shop for you.I know, right?

36:57

Like Brittany’s like, I really want to go here.Apparently it’s really unique and famous.And when she said she’d go downstairs, imagine like you’re going downstairs from the surface, like you’re going down to the tube.It’s almost like that.And you go down and there just happens to be historically there, a restroom now a coffee shop.

37:14

So if you want to sit at the bar, do you know where you’re sitting, Kim?You’re sitting at urinals that have been converted with a bar top for you to actually sit.So there’s six urinals side by side and they go all the way to the ground.And then they just put a slab across to make it actually a table.

37:32

You have your seats, so each seat that if you’re sitting that happens to be tucked into the urinal.I know it sounds gross, obviously it’s clean and pristine now and it just fits the theme and motif.But pretty good coffee down here if you’re in the area.

37:47

Worth checking out.It is a cool photo op.And then from here, we decided to go to the Natural History Museum.We had 11 AM tickets.So the Natural History Museum is free to visit, but there’s also an option to reserve tickets online for a certain time slot.

38:03

Otherwise, they do have a general line that you can stand in and they’ll let people in as people filter through.So you don’t know how long a waiting line if you just wait in the general line, but if you get a timed entry slot then you go through an expedited line there.And I would definitely recommend doing it.

38:19

Of course you want to keep your day as free as possible so to speak, for just those kind of 1 offs or changes or pivots.But it’d be worth it to do this because I’ve seen stuff online where just the standby line takes forever to get through during peak season.Because of course they are trying to limit how crowded it is inside.

38:37

So you could spend a lot of time in the standby queue if you don’t have those reservations.And how was it when you were there?I loved it.I mean, it’s in a really cool building.And so obviously, I mean, that could mean something or nothing to somebody, right?But I appreciate like classic architecture just has that sophisticated museum look and building when you walk inside and on the outside.

39:00

So when you first enter, I mean, again, you have the hanging whale skeleton, but then you have a giraffe, you have dinosaur bones, you have this big foyer in these grand stairs.And then of course, then you have separate wings with different exhibits.They have one exhibit on the bottom level that’s dedicated specifically to mammals.

39:17

Then they have another wing that’s specific to dinosaurs.So even though you see some dinosaur skeletons in the lobby, you have the specific wing and you see all these sorts of different types.And so one of the best museums I’ve been into.Of course for Natural History you have to like that stuff, but I found it to be very interesting and very fun to do.

39:37

Yeah, they have sections for gemstones, birds, space volcanoes, so they have a whole bunch of different sections.We spent about two hours here because we were on a time crunch, but you can easily spend half a day here.You can go back multiple times and not even see it all, so definitely recommend going.

39:57

It was crowded, but it wasn’t unbearable.And then Kim the line outside.You can see people waiting, but it seemed like the queue was moving relatively well that day.And Brittany mentioned we were on a time crunch for two things.We were out and about early in the day, as you can see, doing the things that we were doing.

40:16

But we had afternoon tea reservations at the famous clergy’s.But before our tea reservation, we needed to go back to our hotel room because I needed to get my luggage to take it to Samsonite for them to attempt to fix it.So we ran from the Natural History Museum back to our hotel, brought my luggage over to Samsonite for them to fix.

40:39

They were able to fix the bend in the handle to be able to push it down.But they were like, this involves a little bit more work.I know you’re flying tomorrow.So we weren’t able to get it done.Don’t pull up the handle, but at least you could fly with it, push down.So that was pretty good on that front.

40:54

But I mean, the highlight of this day for me, and I know Kim, you love an afternoon tea.Was going to afternoon tea at.Clarity And I saw that you went there and I’m just shocked that you went back.I know you loved it, but there’s so many afternoon teas to choose from in London and you’ve already been to this one.

41:11

We have been to this one, but it is that good, Kim.And I know you’re like very particular that you want your afternoon tea served on a three tier plate and all of that.And I looked at other ones like I love Fortnum and Mason teas and I looked at their menu and we saw that the Ritz Carlton has an afternoon tea.

41:29

And I looked at that menu, but we kept getting drawn back to Clarity’s and we’re like, you know what, We know what we like and so why mess that up?We’re going to go back to Clarity’s.So we really did enjoy it.Everybody knows afternoon tea is a classic British staple.Clergy’s is a quintessential British experience.

41:48

And lots of people have had their afternoon tea here.Most notably, Princess Diana always liked to come here and have her afternoon tea.Winston Churchill.And this became a really popular area too, for even royalty to come have it.I mean, I know I mentioned Princess Diana, but other royal family members would come here and have their afternoon tea.

42:09

Tea room is such a beautiful room.There’s this huge chandelier hanging down.It’s in a art Deco inspired tea room in the hotel and the experience is just it’s top notch.So of course you go in and you can see the list of the loose leaf teas.

42:28

But for every single course, they recommend that you switch out your tea.And so they’ll actually provide you with different recommendations on, OK, you’re having your scones, so you should get this tea or you’re having your sandwich should get this tea.You don’t have to stick to those, but they are recommended.

42:45

And so we did stick to what they had recommended.Yeah, and why I really like clearages over other afternoon teas that we’ve done.And again, we haven’t done any other one in London.But for that very reason that Brittany just mentioned, I can choose however many different teas I want and I don’t even need to pair it with anything if I don’t want to.

43:02

If I want to have a glass of tea of every single tea that they actually have on hand, I can do that.If I really like this scone and their clotted cream, give me another, give me another.It’s unlimited.They’re sandwiches unlimited.All of them.So, so good.They give you 5 different varieties of sandwiches.

43:19

Let’s say you want your seconds and you don’t want one or the other, then you could tell them, give me this, give me that.Our waitress was so nice.She was like, do you want more sandwiches?Like, oh, we really can’t, we’re too full right now.Here, let me pack you some to go.And she even packed us some to go.So you get exceptional service when you’re here.

43:36

Like Claridge’s is a staple name in London in Mayfair area where this is actually located.And so they really do treat you right.I mean, they checked our jacket, which OK, whatever, lots of places have coat checks.But when I asked them where to go get it, when we were done, the person just took the ticket from me is like, stay here and they went to go get it.

43:56

And it’s like they don’t want you to do any of the work and they treat you really well for.So for all those reasons, we felt like let’s just come back to Claire just and we really enjoyed our experience.And about how much per person did it cost?95 pounds a person.So yeah, we started with the finger sandwiches, then we moved on the scones, then we went back for more finger sandwiches, and then we ended with the pastries.

44:20

Well, you forgot she brought more scones too?She asked.We want more scones, so we ended up getting more scones.We did get more.Were they just regular scones?Any kind of flavor.There was two different types, one was a regular and one was one with raisins in it.They were both really good and they were served with clotted cream and jam.

44:36

Was there any champagne involved?They do have an afternoon tea with champagne options as well.We did not go with the champagne option.But big mistake.Big mistake.But yeah, like Jamal said, just impeccable service in the tea room, outside of the tea room, getting your jackets, even the restrooms.

44:56

It is in part of the hotel, but there was like 3 attendants in the bathroom.And so right when you walk out of your stall, they start the water for you and then they hand you a towel, not a paper towel, but a real towel to dry off your hands.

45:11

So they have top notch service at Claridge’s.So I bet after eating all of that, I know I’m always stuffed after an afternoon tea.Did you walk it off?Yes, we walked it off first.We had to go pick up Jamals luggage and take it back to the hotel.But we mentioned earlier that we were staying across the street from Kensington Gardens, so we did decide to stroll through Kensington Gardens and walk off that afternoon tea.

45:35

Yeah.And so the gardens are home to the Albert Memorial, the Serpentine galleries, Italian gardens, There’s even a famous Peter Pan statue, statue of Queen Victoria, which, OK, some of these things may be of interest to people.But like I said, really the main thing about the Kensington Gardens is that there’s Kensington Palace right within the gardens.

45:55

They have a Princess Diana memorial there, which of course lots of people do love that.And then they have a beautiful lake with Swans and other type of ducks and birds.And I know it’s just be like, OK, well, whatever, Swans, birds.But in that setting in London with the palace in the background just right there, it just creates this beautiful ambience.

46:17

So strolling through Kensington Gardens is definitely something that is a must.And actually Kensington Palace is open for tours too.We didn’t do that.I think Kensington Palace is open for tours every day, but we just did not do that more.By the time we got to the gardens in the day, were they still open?

46:34

So that is an option for you to do if you wanted to.In Kensington Gardens, my favorite areas where the Princess Diana’s sunken garden and the Italian gardens.The Italian gardens were really beautiful.Kensington Gardens also touch Hyde Park, so they are separate and Hyde Park is 350 acres.

46:54

It is a very, very big park.This is actually one of the hunting grounds of the King previously, before it was turned into a public park.Yeah, so this is just a nice park with open green space.Again, classic London people know Hyde Park.

47:10

So if you’re looking for a place to go, just kind of calm down, unwind, get some beautiful nature within the hustle and bustle of the city, really recommend it.Especially if you’re in Kensington Gardens.There’s no reason to just cut over since they touch and get yourself into Hyde Park.But by the time we were done walking in the parks and everything else that we did, we needed to get back to our hotel to start packing because we had our flight the next day.

47:35

We did go to a local pub that was right by our hotel to get some fish and chips.Of course, fish and chips, classic London staple.So we did do that.But otherwise, that’s all that we did in this 48 hours that we had within London.

47:50

We packed in a lot.We’re really tourists, just seen the main sites doing a few things that we wanted to do, which was tea, take leisure at the museum, but otherwise really good, good time here.Well I’m glad you got to stop over and and see a little more of London than you did on your first trip.

48:06

Yeah.And I just want to mention lastly is one of the reasons why we stopped over in London was because we wanted to get to Portugal of course.But from LAX to London, it only cost 30,000 points round trip per person to do it, which I feel like is a great value.

48:22

So that is what made our decision to do the stopover in London.That’s awesome.You know, London has a lot of direct flights into U.S. cities, so it’s a really great hub to go through.The time that I did that 12 hour stopover, that was the same reason.It was just cheaper to go through London than it was to come back from Athens, Greece.

48:39

So squaddies, there you go.If you’re doing a little stopover, you have a couple episodes that can help you fill that time.Thank you so much for tuning into this week’s episode.