I recently wrote a list for Metrotwin about some of the best upcoming Christmas Carol concerts in London (although it was published under the name of the editor Candice due to a bug!)… anyway, there are several concerts in the capital that you might consider taking your children to:

Carol Singing Around the Courtyards at Hampton Court
This annual singalong of festive songs takes place in the magical palace courtyards and gardens of Hampton Court. Your voices will be accompanied by a silver band. Words booklets will be provided and the event will last for about an hour. As this is an ...

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Finding childcare is always stressful, no matter what your circumstances. So, any way to make this daunting task a bit easier is very welcome, particularly if it is affordable!

Mother of three, Georgiana Walsh, has recently written a book to tackle this subject called How to Find Childcare You Will Love

Individual chapters are dedicated to each type of childcare with simple tables and guides to make deciding what is right for a family as easy as possible. Inside you will find:
- Examples of questions to ask each type of childcare to help find the right one for your ...

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Yes, the winter is upon us and with shorter, colder, wetter days, parents need to know where you can take your kids in the capital. That is why I drew up this list for Metrotwin and I thought I would share it here too:

Climbers & Creepers
An indoor interactive botanical playzone

Eddie Catz, Wimbledon (formerly Tiger’s Eye)
A great place for families on rainy days

Snakes and Ladders
One of the largest indoor playgrounds in London

Tumble in the Jungle
A jungle themed indoor adventure playground

Zoomaround
A great play venue in North London

Bramley’s Big Adventure
Indoor Adventure Playground for Kids

Gambado
All sorts of indoor fun for kids

Topsy Turvy World
Exhaust the kids before you go shopping

It’s A Kid’s Thing
Indoor Fun in Earlsfield

Eddie Catz, Putney
Indoor fun for under 5s

Source: Rob Inh00d @ flickr

You have planned a trip to the Big Smoke with the kids. There are hundreds of attractions to choose from, so where do you begin? Well, you won’t go far wrong if you start with one of the favourite attractions:

* The Science Museum
* Madame Tussauds
* The London Dungeons
* The Tower of London
* The London Aquarium
* The London Eye
* The Natural History Museum
* Tate Modern
* The Museum of Childhood
* London Zoo

Click on the above links to find out a bit more about each place. If you have been to any of these places yourself, we would love to hear your experiences of visiting these places as a family so please feel free to share

Source: Nenyaki @ flickr

If you have slightly older kids who are fans of the Harry Potter books, then one novel way to explore London is to take the Harry Potter Walk. This walk is guided by a man called Alan who wears a green carnation.

The walk is one of a series given by London Walks. The full title of the walk is the Myths and Legends behind Harry Potter - Wizards, Werewolves & Vampires:

Let’s put the cat amongst the pixies: Harry Potter isn’t just kids’ stuff. There are very real tales - and ...

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If you have made the exciting decision to take the kids to London but you are looking for a bit of extra information, you will find the following tips useful:

Getting Around
1. Tube
Very few of the London Underground Tube stops have lifts. - there are mostly long escalators. If possible, avoid taking buggies on the underground. Papooses can be handy.
2. Buses
London Bus Drivers are notoriously unhelpful and sometimes they will not allow buggies on crowded buses and they have been known to drive off without waiting for you to fold it!
3. Taxis
For Safety reasons it is always advisable to take a ...

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Source: Dimitry B @ flickr

You don’t have to spend money on sightseeing buses. Instead you can choose to take the regular number 15 bus from Tower Hill. The bus will take you all the way from The Tower of London through the City, past St Pauls, past Trafalgar Square and on to Regent St (where Hamleys Toy Shop is) and Oxford St. It’s a double decker and so make sure to get a seat upstairs

If you are coming to London with the kids then you are probably looking for somewhere to stay that is family friendly. You might be looking for somewhere with adjoining rooms or high chairs, or somewhere cheap as chips etc Obviously there are loads of places to choose from, but I thought I would share with you some of the hotels that appear on Little Legends:

The Carlton Tower - Perfect for shopaholics as this luxury hotel is situated within walking distance of both Harrods and Harvey Nichols!

Novotel London Waterloo - This hotel is very close to the London Eye ...

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The Big Draw is taking place from 1st to 31st October this year. For those of you who don’t know, it is the national campaign for drawing.

It is inspired by the visionary Victorian artist and writer, John Ruskin. His mission was not to teach people how to draw, but how to see.

To accompany the Big Draw, the National Portrait Gallery is setting up a special event for kids and teens from 1pm to 4pm. Best of all it is FREE! Family visitors and young people will have the opportunity to work with professional artists on an exciting drawing project ...

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This restaurant is set in the basement of the shop and is located very centrally, just off Piccadilly. The whole place is decorated as if it is a rainforest and there are model electronic animals dotted around the place that move at various intervals.

Be warned that there is a soundtrack that is on a loop, not only with various animal noises but also with a deafening thunderstorm. If your child is sensitive to noise then this is not the place to come!

The children’s food is fairly standard; burgers, chicken and fish nuggets and chips plus a few ...

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