Arrival - A week in London - 1
St. Paul's Cathedral and other destinations in the city center
The rain takes its toll
Canary Wharf
Kew Garden
Southwark
One last morning and back home
Sat, Aug. 30, 2025 - Arrival
The drive to our parking lot near Munich Airport is just as relaxed as the shuttle ride to the terminal. We quickly check our bags at the terminal and don't have to wait at security either. So now we have a lot of time to kill before we can board.
As Jürgen has lost his frequent flyer status, we head to an Asian snack bar instead of the lounge. Neither of us feels like eating the food that is available on the plane.
The short flight to London is smooth and actually on time. Even the suitcases arrive quickly, which is not always the case at Heathrow.
Now we just have to get into the city. Of course, we could take a taxi. But that's not only expensive, it also has to battle through London's notorious traffic. So, it's great that Heathrow is well connected to the train and metro network. The metro is called Underground here, by the way, and the local trains are called Overground.
We want to take the Elizabeth Line to Farringdon Station and change to the Circle Line there. Five stops later, we should arrive at “our” station, Tower Hill.
The signposting at the airport is good, but the distance, like everything else at Heathrow, is long. There are ticket machines in front of the barrier to the platforms, but you don’t actually need them. The old Oyster Card is no longer needed either. Simply hold your credit card up to the reader and you're on your way. When leaving your destination station, just make sure you use the same card. Billing is automatic. Even the daily maximum is supposedly taken into account. What's nice, by the way, is that there are staff at the barriers at all stations who are happy to help with any questions.
Unfortunately, trains on the Elizabeth Line were canceled this morning and the delays have built up until now. The platform is completely overcrowded, and the staff have their hands full just keeping a passageway clear. When our train arrives, however, it is largely empty (it only came from one of the other terminals) and we both get a seat.
The first few stops are skipped to make up for some of the delay, but a red signal ruins everything again. At Farringdon, we have to leave the station and change to another one across the street. Although the Elizabeth Line is part of the London Underground system, it is operated by a different company. Accordingly, the Underground sign is not red, but purple.
Once we arrive at Tower Hill Station, we only have to turn the corner to reach our hotel [↗].
Our impression of the hotel is mixed. The lobby is nice, with lemon or cucumber water available to drink, and check-in is smooth. Unfortunately, the room doesn't match up. It's not actually that small, but it's extremely impractical. The shelves and storage space are perhaps okay for a single traveler. A third of the closet is taken up by a minibar and a (unusable) refrigerator. The safe takes up additional space and the coffee machine blocks part of the only table. We would have expected something different for the price.
Otherwise, it is clean and everything works, even if the mattress has seen better days. On the positive side, there are enough power outlets and the wifi is very good. The fact that we had to realize in the following days that room service rarely managed to tidy up the room by 5 p.m. fits in with the overall picture.
We set off rather quickly to take our first evening photo of the London skyline. The weather is not exactly promising, and every now and then a few raindrops fall. We walk along the Tower and under Tower Bridge, looking for the way to the Thames Path. But we turn left too early and end up walking around a large harbor basin. The area is nicely laid out with small restaurants and expensive apartment buildings.
Finally, we reach the Thames Path and have a wonderful view of Tower Bridge from here. Unfortunately, there won't be a nice sunset. So, we go back to the restaurants near the bridge and decide to have dinner at an Italian restaurant. Sadly, our enjoyment of the meal is greatly diminished by the really loud people at the next table. Afterwards, we go back to the viewpoint. It is now quite dark, and the illuminated Tower Bridge looks more impressive than before dinner, even if the picture is certainly not award-winning. The sky is too boring for that.
To round off the day, Freya wants to have a sundowner in the outdoor area of the hotel bar. The Aperol Spritz is overpriced and very weak. Oh well, it fits the picture.
