Could Any Londoners Offer Advice on Coach Tours/Day Trips or Self-Driven Ones?

Hi, I like to flexible. these trips may show you all the hot spots, but you are always bound to their schedule in some way. The way I usually plan my trips is as follows: Don't plan at all. Rent a car, get a SatNav and see what you want, when you want. hope that helps making your decision.

If you try to see everything, you'll exhaust yourself and end up needing a vacation from your vacation. Allow yourself a few rest days here and there and you'll have a better time over all. I've taken one coach tour with a friend to Stonehenge and Bath. It was enjoyable and we had plenty of time to see what there was to see and still get back to London by day's end. That said, we spent the rest of our time in the UK driving a hired car and that was fun, too. No guide to tell us about things, which may or may not be a good thing, but we got to places the tour buses don't go. Get maps ("London A-Z" is essential for walking around the city and available at any news stand or bookseller) and a book listing all the Bed & Breakfast places from the AA office in London's West End. Public transport is excellent in London and you won't need anything but a London Transport pass to get around by bus and subway. I suggest writing the British embassy, telling them you're going to visit their wonderful country and asking their advice on what to see and where to go. They'll likely send you a fat envelope full of brochures for tours, hotels, rental cars, museums and, most important, discount coupons for all of the above. Enjoy your trip and try not to wear yourself out. You can't see it all, so think of the parts you miss as reason to go back again.

How long are you staying for? None of those places are in or near London itself. Windsor is the closest and that's probably 1-2 hours each way from central London. Although England is small in relation to Canada it's congested and getting anywhere takes time. If you are here for a week then stick to London. Plenty to do and see in the City itself. Buckingham Palace, Houses of Parliament and Tower of London are good for history. Convent Garden, Camden and Borough for colourful markets, Oxford street for shops. A ghost walk or Jack the Ripper walk are good in the evenings or catch a major show. A trip down the Thames, greenwich, the cutty sark, lots of museums (the imperial war museum is good). Get about london by Tube and Bus, don't attempt to drive it's horrible plus parking is nasty and you will be charged congestion fee (£8 per day) in central London. Getting out of town by train is easy or coach trips for the closer places (Windsor, Bath)