We’ve had the chance to spend a bit of time in England in the past couple of years, always a few days here and there, and have throughly enjoyed our time. We’ve done some sightseeing in London and some relaxing in Cornwall and would love to explore other areas of the country at some point. On one stay we rented an apartment in the Marylebone neighborhood, close to Hyde Park.

We spent most of our time walking, walking, walking to get a feel for the city. When visiting new places, we like to mix up seeing the main tourist sights with discovering little treasures that are hidden in plain sight and the best way to do that is to slowly stroll through the city. London did not disappoint on either front!

We (along with a million other tourists) caught the Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace. That is one of my favourite childhood memories so I wanted to share that with the girls, but they weren’t as enamoured as I thought they would be. I’m still glad we were able to see it!

Then we walked along “Birdcage Walk” to Ben Big and Westminster Abbey before walking across the Westminster Bridge. Then we walked northeast along the Thames until we reached Tower Bridge which we used the cross back to the other side of the Thames, ending at the Tower of London. We got a special treat at the gardens of the Tower of London when we spotted Princess Anne!

It was about a 4 mile walk from Buckingham Palace, which was a good length for our group. And the weather was perfect.

We also made sure to stop by Kensington Palace, mostly because I really wanted to see the Princess Diana Memorial Garden, specifically the statue. And it is beautiful!

On a separate trip to London we stayed at the YHA London Central (a hostel), not far from the apartment we had stayed in previously. But this trip was all about Harry Potter! We saw Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre, went on the Warner Bros Studio Tour, and a walking tour through London showing us both spots that were used in the filming as well as spots that inspired JK Rowling as she create the amazing and complex world of Harry Potter. It was a very special to share these experiences with our huge Harry Potter fans as Harry Potter holds a special place in our family’s heart. We did manage to fit in a bit non-Harry Potter sightseeing, some shopping and a lot of delicious meals, most of which were accompanied by a game of Qwixx Longo.

And finally, we got a taste of non-London England when we spent a week at the Alexander Cottage in the small town of Harbour Village, on the southwestern part of Cornwall. We visited the Cornish Seal Sanctuary, went to Land’s End to see the most westerly point of mainland England, had a quaint meal in the adorable village of Helford Passage, visited St Michael’s Mount in Marazion where the tide determines if you can walk or you need to take a boat and finally, biking the Camel Trail in Wadebridge. All in all, we really enjoyed exploring the area!