We visited London when my son was 2.5 to meet up with one of our best friends who was stopping there on her way home to visit family in Germany. We all spent a few days together in London, then she went on to Germany while we stayed behind to head up to Oxford and finish a few “must sees” in England, before we joined her to continue our trip in Germany and the Netherlands. There are so many itineraries and “72 Hours In…” posts for London so I thought I would just share what we particularly loved with our toddler.

LONDON TRANSPORT MUSEUM

The child ticket was free and the adult tickets were £24. You purchase an annual pass for the adult and then book your time slot. Something nice is if you return to London within 12 months, the pass is still valid! The museum was full of interactive displays, full size busses, train cars, etc for the kids to play in, and two cafes. We will absolutely go again next time we’re in London. It is near Covent Gardens just off of the Strand so it was easily accessible.

WORD ON THE WATER - LONDON BOOK BARGE

This is a houseboat turned into a bookstore that is near King’s across station on the canal. They had a great book selection and my toddler thought it was so cool to look at books on a boat.

GRANARY SQUARE SPLASH PAD

I assume this is weather dependent, but in June the plaza of Granary Square has a huge free splash pad/fountain area. We happened upon it and spent almost an hour playing and enjoying the live music in the plaza. There are excellent food options nearby in the Coal Drops Yard shopping area.

LITTLE VENICE TO CAMDEN CANAL TOUR

This was about a 45 minute boat ride from Little Venice to Camden (drop off is right next to the very popular Camden Market). It also returns Camden to Little Venice. The tour guide was very fun and it was a cool way to see this part of the city. Adult tickets were £14.50 and kids 4 and under are free.

THE LONDON ZOO

Very easy to get to and located in Regent’s Park. Tickets were £31 for adults and free for kids under 3. It was a great size and we were able to see it all in an afternoon. They have several interactive experiences and a petting area with goats. The staff was also wonderful - my son tripped and wiped out pretty badly and out of nowhere a staff member appeared offering help and first aid.

REGENT’S PARK PLAYGROUND (MARLEYBONE)

Great playground right near the English Gardens in Regent’s Park. All of the parks have great playgrounds but this was a favorite.

We also did a day trip to Oxford and highly recommend it - we got a bus directly from Hyde Park that was £19 round trip for adults, free for under 3. In Oxford, we loved:

London with Kids