3 Weeks in London with a 1 year old, what can we do.

Wetherspoons pubs are pretty child-friendly, and there are several in central London. I've also seen lots of parents with children in strollers at the Tate Modern (which I believe is free except for the special exhibitions). There is a lot of visually interesting stuff there (of course). A ride on one of the Thames ferries might be fun as well.

I left England when my daughter was 1.5 but did manage to take several trips to London with her before we left. She was pretty amazed by just about everything there. I pushed her around in her pram through the streets of London and she loved it all. We spent a lot of time in local cafes - she especially liked the ones with lots of art on the walls. She really liked going to play zone type places. We lived in oxon and there were a few there. I looked up London and found http://http://www.london4kidz.co.uk/play-zones.html which provides a whole bunch of contacts for kid friendly stuff in London. Also http://http://www.kidspaceadventures.com/looks like a place that was similar to where I used to take my daughter. However it is in Croydon and that may be a bit of a drag for you. Hamleys has got a bit of something for everyone but I personally prefer the toy floor at Harrods which has most of the same stuff but isn't a zoo like Hamleys. Harrods Toy floor would let your little one enjoy the surroundings without being overwhelmed. When we were there in the summer they has really good sales on stuffed toys. We found the prices to be the same as any of the other department stores and the service to be better. You can also stop in at the food halls or have afternoon tea whilst you are there. The London Aquarium would also be suitable for a toddler. I think it's a little pricey but with all the museums free now you could maybe afford to spend a little at some of the paid attractions. As far as pubs go - I never really paid much attention when I was there as to whether they were "kid friendly" specifically. Pubs in the UK seem to be quite used to families - perhaps less so in London than in the counties but if you are there for 3 weeks you could hire a car and take a little time away. Stop in at MotherCare once you arrive and ask them if they have any suggestions - if you go to a local one they may also provide you with local play meets - a good way to meet some people whilst you are there. Have fun.

I forgot to mention that there are regular train links from Lutton to St. Pancras. That will likely be the cheapest and most stress free way to get into London. We've hauled around two kids on public transport since the day they were born. The initial schlepp from the airport with your bags can be a drag but people tend you help you out.

The Science Museum is right in the middle of a number of museums, including the Natural History Museum and the V&A museum, which are all pretty kid-friendly. However, what isn't very kid friendly is London transport. Buses are probably better than the Underground, and you can get a bus map from most major info centres.

Child friendly restaurants - try http://giraffe.net/ (it is a chain but you won't feel out of place with baby). There is one near to Spitafields market which is nice to amble around.

The two things our daughter has loved since she was old enough to toddle around are http://www.zsl.org/zsl-london-zoo/ and http://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/. As a bonus, both places are great for grownups, too. At the Transport museum, I believe your ticket entitles you to re-admission at any time for the next year; with a three week stay, if you end up making repeat visits, it could end up being a very good deal. With black cabs, we've just kept out kids in the buggy and loaded the buggy into the cab. We've never had a problem doing so. For a minicab, I'm pretty sure there would need to be a child seat in the car-- but on the plus side, most minicab companies I've dealt with have child seats available, if you ask in advance. I don't have a specific minicab company to recommend for Luton (the company we always use only does Heathrow) but you might try http://www.kabbee.com/, which lets you do price comparisons and check ratings for various minicab companies. (I haven't used the site but it seems legit.) For general public transport info, check out . You can tick an option for "I can't do stairs" and it will plan out a step-free journey for you. Once you have kids, you will be amazed to discover how many playgrounds are around. isn't too far away from Fleet Street. If you keep your eyes open (and/or ask any neighbors with kids) I'm sure you'll find a small playground no more than a few blocks away from you. They're just everywhere. I've found most restaurants in London to be pretty child friendly, but decent chains that are always reliably so include http://www.wagamama.com/, http://www.nandos.co.uk/, and http://giraffe.net/classic (although Giraffe is a bit loud for my taste).

If you're staying on Fleet street I think there is a http://www.leonrestaurants.co.uk/ nearby. Its fast food, more 'restauranty' than Mcdonalds and healthy and child friendly.http://pollockstoymuseum.com/index.html might be fun although possibly a bit old for a one year old. http://www.goldenhinde.com/i s a full-sized reconstruction of a Tudor warship and he might also enjoy http://www.information-britain.co.uk/showPlace.cfm?Place_ID=2562 Depending on when you are going there are good season specific activities for children and adults. If you are arriving in the next few weeks before Christmas something like http://www.hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/attractions will be fun to visit.

The http://maps.google.ca/maps?q=London,+United+Kingdom&hl=en&ll=51.509507,-0.187234&spn=0.002788,0.006968&sll=44.670606,-63.424072&sspn=0.407741,0.891953&vpsrc=6&hnear=Westminster,+London,+United+Kingdom&t=h&z=18 at the northwest end of Hyde Park is pretty cool.

If you take up Flashman's suggestion of the Princess Diana Playground, the http://www.taylor-walker.co.uk/pub-food/black-lion-bayswater/pid-C3606 is a nearby pub on Bayswater Road (you can see it in the map Flashman linked to) which is a relativley "kid friendly" pub you could have lunch at. I was there just last week and there were two families in there for lunch.