Day 5: London Ho! 

Here’s the fourth post sharing our adventures in the British Isles and Ireland from September 29 to October 17, 2025, for genealogy, business, and sightseeing. Hope you enjoy it!

We rose early and were on the road by 7:30 to return our rental car at Heathrow. We had so much trouble getting out of the airport a few days earlier but no trouble at all getting back to the Enterprise facility. After turning in the rental car, we ordered an Uber to take us to London, which arrived in one minute!

Jim looked so happy to be rid of the rental car. He did a great job of driving and was starting to get used to it, but he said he didn’t care to do it again any time soon. The narrow roads in rural England are scary, especially when you’re faced with racing locals heading toward you! I really want to go back to the land of my ancestors someday, so I will have to bribe Jim to be my driver and research buddy (for a longer period next time!).

We were headed to London to join our first-ever Trafalgar tour, “British Isles and Ireland,” with 43 other people. From October 3 to October 11, we visited five countries (England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, and Wales) and stayed in eight hotels! 

By 11:00 a.m., we walked through the revolving doors into our hotel, the Park Plaza Riverbank. Our room wasn’t ready yet (understandable), so we walked to an ATM at a nearby grocery store and then to a little pub down the street called The Rose. Beer and nachos hit the spot everywhere, yes? Beer before noon? Why not? Vacation!

Although our room wasn’t supposed to be ready until 3:00 p.m., the Trafalgar representative, who sits in the lobby and greets all the group-tour members as they arrive, suggested we check before then, so when we returned from the pub, we did and a room was ready. The desk clerk, Taras (from Ukraine), was so nice and gave us two drink coupons. 

The bellmen are exceptional at Park Plaza Riverbank. They greet you at the door, take your luggage, and help you get to the check-in desk (which you really could do on your own). Of course, they’ll accept a tip, and we cheerfully gave one to Donald, who brought our bags to our room and gave us a tour of the room. I remember long ago when I traveled for work, and they always did that, but standards have fallen in recent years. Not at this hotel.

Once in our room, we rested for a half hour or so before heading out for a walk. My only complaint was that it was an interior room, and our view was of other guest rooms. 

The weather was a bit drizzly and grey, but we are used to that living in northwest Pennsylvania. We decided not to walk across the bridge to Big Ben, etc., because we would be staying near there for the last two days of our trip.

We headed the opposite direction of the photo above and considered walking to the Battersea Power Station, but it would be a 40-minute walk, and we weren’t thrilled about that in the drizzle. I’m fascinated by the project that renovated an old coal-fired power plant, in disuse for decades, into a vibrant shopping, dining, and leisure center. In my hometown, they just knocked the power plant down and kept the awkward smokestack. In Battersea, they put an elevator in one of the old smokestacks for a 350-foot-high birds eye view of London.

We were enjoying the river walk so much that before we knew it, Battersea was pretty close, so we kept going and tucked inside. There are more than 150 shops, in addition to restaurants, a cinema, and a theatre for live productions. I wish we could have spent more time there, but we were getting hot, and plus, we still had a 40-minute walk back to the hotel. Next time!

As we emerged from Battersea, we were met by wind and rain, but we didn’t mind the walk at all. The weather was caused by the first named storm of the European windstorm season, Amy. It would affect Scotland and Ireland with strong winds, but we were confident that by the time we got to those places, the storm would be gone.

On the way back to the hotel, we noticed on Google Maps that we were passing MI6, the United Kingdom’s foreign intelligence agency. The real MI6? Sure enough! No wonder it was all buttoned up!

Back at the hotel, as Trafalgar travelers, we were given a specially priced menu at the hotel restaurant, Chino Latino. The menu included a drink each, and with the one Taras gave us the coupon for, we slept well that night. This was a must, because early the next morning, we’d meet our tour director and our companion travelers.