Take the Kids London, 5th

This title lets you: camp out for the night at the Science Museum and visit the mummies at the British Museum; take a cruise up the River Thames and go teddy bear-hunting at Hamleys; sample Dim Sum in Chinatown and scoff crepes in Covent Garden; and, ride a horse in Hyde Park and go for a jaunt in a Llama cart at London Zoo. It also gives you a child's eye view of the capital.

"'Ever wondered what to do with the kids in London? This guide has the answers' - The Times"

Joseph Fullman is a professional travel writer who has lived in London all his life. He is the author of Cadogan's take the kids England, take the kids Short Breaks from London and co-author of take the kids Paris and Disneyland Resort Paris. He has also contributed articles to various newspapers, websites and WAP guides.

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Take the Kids England, 3rd (Take the Kids - Cadogan)

Kids and traveling become a joyous combination with Cadogan’s landmark, comprehensive and thoroughly entertaining guide to child-friendly England. With unique ideas, top tips and practical travel advice on choosing the best holiday, you’ll have the time of your life. Explore the native country of Winnie-the-Pooh, Peter Pan and Harry Potter and run riot round England’s seaside resorts, theme parks and castles, not to mention the fastest rollercoaster and biggest Ferris wheel in the world. The guide also features a detailed section on London, including spotting the stars at Madame Tussauds and boarding the buses at the London Transport Museum. Extensive, personally reviewed listings of places to stay and eat complete this fun, colorful and incredibly imaginative guide.

‘Everything you need to know’ – The Observer (UK)

‘We tout these guides a lot, we must confess, but we’re suckers for good, humorous writing’
– Book Passage (US)

‘Packed with ideas’ – Junior Magazine (UK)

At last! A grown-up guide to child-friendly England. Fizzing with ideas, this unique, thoroughly researched book tells you all you need to know to make every family outing a thumping success – whether you’re visiting from abroad, planning a special holiday, or just looking for ways of amusing yourself and the kids at the weekend. Joe Fullman and his team of local researchers offer inside advice and tips on all the essential sights, plus a ton of ideas and surprises – from fishing with gnomes at Bradworthy and touring the sewers of Exeter to floating down the River Thames on a ‘frog tour’.

Joseph Fullman is a professional travel writer who has lived in London all his life. He is the author of Cadogan’s take the kids London, take the kids Short Breaks from London and co-author of take the kids Paris and Disneyland Resort Paris. He has also contributed articles to various newspapers, websites and WAP guides.

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5 of 8 people found the following review helpful.
A book for perfect kids (are your kids perfect?)
By F. G. Gates
This is a book for those parents blessed with perfect kids - you know: the ones that sit still, listen, behave, and obey impeccably all the time. The kids which all we folks with 'real' kids envy, or rather, secretly suspect to be drugged by their parents.

I am from the UK originally and I know from 1st hand kid experience that about 50% of these activities would be wholly unsuitable for any kid. Many or most of the others would require a freakishly compliant kid for the parents to escape without busting a blood vessel. As a local it was almost laughable how different my memories were from the author's promises, or how my expectations of an event/activity/place varied from the author's. Needless to say we didn't bother using valuable baggage weight when we went back to the UK.

Expect very few success stories for 'real' kids on 'real' days.

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Take the Kids: England, 2nd (Take the Kids - Cadogan)

The second edition of Cadogan's comprehensive child-friendly guide has everything travelers need to make any family vacation, day trip, or outing a thumping success and keep both kids and adults thoroughly entertained and tantrum-free.

"Everything you need to know."
--The Observer (United Kingdom)

"We tout these guides a lot, we must confess, but we're suckers for good, humorous writing."
--Book Passage

"Packed with ideas."
--Junior Magazine (United Kingdom)

England is a great place for the kids – it's simply choc-a-block with fantastic things to see and do. Whether you're visiting from abroad, planning a special holiday or just looking for fun things to do on the weekends, this guide takes the pain out of researching and planning your options. From Land's End to Hadrian's Wall, Joe Fullman and his team of researchers give practical advice and tips on how to explore England from top to bottom, plus plenty of unusual ideas and suggestions to make your stay unforgettable – from fishing with gnomes at Bradworthy and touring the sewers of Exeter to floating down the river Thames on a 'duck tour'!
Inside you will find: the best of 'mini' London – both the obvious and the unexpected; top towns, special trips, regional highlights and calendars; sports and activities for all ages; quizzes, challenges and stories; practical tips throughout; advice on choosing your ideal holiday; hundreds of child-friendly attractions, restaurants and hotels; detailed travel information, itineraries and color maps.

Joseph Fullman is a professional travel writer who has lived in London all his life. He is the author of Cadogan's Take the Kids London, Take the Kids Short Breaks from London and coauthor of Take the Kids Paris & Disneyland® Resort Paris. He contributes articles to various newspapers, websites, and WAP guides.

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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful.
Lots and lots of useful information.
By Marcy G.
This is a great must-have for those who are planning to take their kids on a trip to England. Whether this is your first time or a repeat visit, this book is invaluable.

This excellent Cadogan Guidebook has chock full of up-to-date information on family-friendly sites. This includes attraction descriptions, costs, hours of operation and tips on how to get there. There are also tips on whether sites have special amenities for babies/toddlers. Each section (chapter) is divided according to geographic location - London, the southwest, south, Thames Valley, etc. The authors also rate their favorite or highly recommended spots. As a frequent visitor to the UK, I marvel at how much ground they cover. Everything from gardens, historic buildings, palaces, castles, zoos, parks, amusement centers, beaches, kid-friendly restaurants and shopping areas are covered in great detail.

My only complaint with this book is that it is almost completely text - no pictures and few maps. However, the book itself is almost 2 inches thick which really does show how much ground this book covers.

This book is an excellent resource for what to see and do on your upcoming trip. If you're into visuals, then I recommend that you get this book and the Eyewitness Great Britain guide. If you're planning to spend most of your time in London and only a couple of days in the countryside, then pick up the London version of this book instead. However, if you're planning to spend a lot of time trekking around London and the English countryside, this and the Eyewitness Guide combined should put you on your way to planning and enjoying a fun-filled family trip to England.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Not Perfect, But Worth A Read
By Pam - because someone has to be GOOD
This is the edition that my local library has, and it's the book I'm going to review. However, I have purchased the newer, 3rd Edition which shall be more up-to-date, one hopes.

I found this book useful. The author definitely has children in mind, although his exact advice isn't available for every age-range on every topic. He advises parent's of little ones to be careful in old trains as the windows can go all the way down. And he warns people that charter planes are a terrible choice for families, but advice on which site is best for which age group is frequently absent.

Still, the author does give an idea of what hands-on activities are available, and that's very, very helpful.

The book is written with a good dose of humor, which makes it a pleasure to read, and he tackles areas of Britain in a logical fashion, giving examples of what a day tour might involve. He talks about Passes (to save money) and restaurants, and the usual sorts of things that travel guides include.

Surprisingly, there was nothing about dress, nor much about hotels. BUT I'm glad I read this book --it gave me lots of idea for organizing my own expedition-- as is indicated by the fact that I purchased the newer edition. (I'm hoping he has another coming out this year or next.)

Worth a read.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Best Guide Book for Parents!
By K. A. Dix
We have two toddlers, ages 3 & 4. We take this book whenever we set out on a trip around England. It's so helpful to find child-friendly restaurants (not all pubs will allow children because of alcohol license restrictions), free parks, and fun activities for the kids. Let's face it, even though I could spend a day touring a museum or castle, that's not exactly the kids' favorite activity. We've found petting zoos, nature parks, playgrounds and great restaurants with this book. It's easy to reference and not a bad size for throwing in a tote bag. It's made our days out much more child friendly!

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Take the Kids Travelling

This book provides comprehensive travel information for parents and carers of children from babies to teens. It provides practical information on agencies to call for help, medical advice, safety tips, entertaining bored kids and lots more.'

With these three titles, the publisher introduces a new series that focuses on traveling abroad with children. Truszkowski, an experienced travel writer and the mother of a preschooler, began taking her child on overseas travel when he was merely six weeks old and has traveled worldwide with him ever since. She lends her expertise to two guides in the series: the more general Take the Kids Travelling, which gives a good overview and includes practical advice on what parents should know before taking their children abroad, and the more traditional guide to Paris, which provides more specific information on the city as well as Disneyland Paris. Unlike Truzkowski, whose perspective is that of a parent, Fullman, author of other guides on London, uses his experience as the child of enthusiastic travelers as his basis for choosing sites for his London guide. All three of these guides are a fountain of useful information on child-friendly hotels, attractions, and restaurants, and while some of this information is already available in many standard travel guides, much of itis aimed specifically at pleasing kids. Take the Kids Travelling is written from an Englishperson's point of view and will thus be less useful for Americans. The two city guides, however, should find readership in public libraries.ASandra Knowles, Henderson Cty. P.L., NC
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The first guide of its kind, with comprehensive travel advice for all parents and carers of babies and children, from toddlers to teens. Lots of great holiday ideas; agents, contacts, and places to stay, from luxury cruises to low-budget camping. Safety tips for the urban jungle and the wilderness. What to do if your child is lost, and how whistles, bracelets and tin foil could save a child's life. Expert medical advice on motion sickness and jetlag, emergency procedures, finding a good doctor far from home, and natural remedies for bites, burns and grazes. Clear and sensitive advice on preparing your child, finding a good babysitter, and how to tell if your destination is as child-friendly as it claims to be. Stress-busting toys and games for bored kids, from Motorway Snap to the latest in children's laptops and musical beads. (6 x 8 1/4, 222 pages, color photos, lists)

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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful.
Beyond Disney
By Lisa Zurles
This is one of the few family travel books that extend beyond vacations to Disney World and national parks. Truszkowski offers experienced and insightful advice for those of us who want to provide meaningful international experiences for our kids. Whether you are heading off on the grand tour of Europe, a weekend in Montreal or a two month stay in Malaysia, this book has relevant information on planning your trip, health and safety issues, saving money and even choosing the right toys to bring. I found her ideas on preparing kids for their trip and helping them deal with the experience to be particularly helpful. While the advice is kept rather general, even seasoned travelers should find Take The Kids Traveling a useful resource.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful.
Help at hand
By Ro Young
This little handbook's been a saving grace. As a single parent with an extrovert, seriously hectic 4-year old it showed me there's more to booking a holiday than 'Help, who'll help me with the kid?' I've gained a lot of confidence after a recent trip to the States and I'll be packing the book for an extended tour of Greece next. I can honestly say the medical advice, tips, tour company suggestions and boredom breakers are a fab back-up and esteem booster.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful.
Big Thumbs Up
By Ro Young
I've just experienced a tour through Europe and took this handy guide with me both as a back-up (the medical section's superb)and to help find the right places to visit that welcomed kids. It's given me so much support (boredom bashers, safety tips, transport ideas, hotels) that I simply won't leave home without it. I like Helen's empathetic approach. She's obviously been through it all herself.

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