Theater breaks in London just before Christmas can become a bit of a family tradition. It is easy to find a good family show to see in London. There is always a wide choice available.They tend to sell out quickly for November and December so a pre Christmas theater break in London with the kids needs to be booked well in advance. The simplest way to do it is to book a show and hotel package from one of the reputable specialist web sites. They often have tickets for the most popular shows even the theaters have sold out.
A theater break in London and a shopping trip?
It is great fun to combine a bit of discreet Christmas shopping with a night in a child friendly hotel and an evening at the theatre. What could be better for getting you all in a festive mood? You could probably see the lights as well. Last year’s were fantastic with lots of blue everywhere. Very pretty!
Taking the kids to Hamleys is a bit mad in November or December but you just have to grit your teeth and enjoy it! On the other hand, you’ve got the major department stores for one of you to browse whilst the other one does Santa duty.
Train or www.haytheatre.com car?
For us it has to be the train every time! I hate London traffic and the long drive on the motorway is no fun for any of us. The train is quick, painless and has an on board loo! What more can I say?
The best thing is if you can get a table, then it’s out with the coloring books and comics whilst the grown-ups take turns to have a snooze. Some of the trains even hand out goody bags for the kids. It’s always worth asking at the buffet as they don’t advertise them. Some of the packages let you include your rail fare and offer considerable discounts on the normal prices.
When to Book?
Really, for anything popular you need to be thinking about booking as soon as you can. Once you’ve decided on the show you want you need to get cracking, otherwise you’ll be struggling for dates. It’s surprising how quickly your time gets booked up too so it helps to get things penciled in as soon as you can. If you want to be sure of getting your pick of shows book straight away. The myth of the last minute deal is, I’m afraid, a myth. It is the people who book early who get the bargains.
Is it mad to take young kids to the theatre?
My answer to this has to be an empathetic No! Kids can enjoy a theater performance just as much as adults do. The secret is to catch them young! Even three year olds can be taught that it is just not acceptable to shout out or worse yet scream during a play. Be realistic though. A young child is not meant to sit still for hours at a time. Be prepared to do regular wanders to the loo or take them for a bit of a walk during a lull in proceedings. You might be surprised though, once entranced even a 3 year old can sit quietly for long periods. Take a favorite cuddly and don’t be too shocked if little ones end up asleep on your knee.
Older children thrive on good theatrical performances and enjoy them every bit as much and sometimes more than adults. Watch out for little girls, and occasionally boys, getting star struck though! This can be the start of a very expensive hobby!
All that’s left to do is book
So all that remains to be done is to book. There are some great sites where you can book the whole package, train tickets, hotel, dinner and tickets for the show. That’s really the best way to sort out theater breaks in London.
Linda Hartley is one of the authors.