Spring is a super time of year for a London break. The city is just warming up, the parks are full of spring flowers and the weather is mostly pretty good. Obviously you are not guaranteed sunshine but you are a lot less likely to get rained on than you are further north or west in the UK. This means you can really enjoy the sights of London without the city heat or the summer crowds.

St James Park in March

Days can be warm and sunny but the evenings can be quite chilly. So pack a light coat and maybe a pashmina for coming back from the theatre. You probably won’t need an umbrella.

Three top shows to see on your spring London break

I’m going to suggest three shows that could be good choices for your London break this spring

• Priscilla – A new show but not a new production. It’s been going for several weeks now, so it’s pretty slick. It’s getting good reviews, the music is great (think 70′s disco standards
• We Will Rock You – still great and still packing them in. But there are persistent rumours of the show closing. Definitely worth seeing or seeing again!
• Hairspray – if you can act quickly you’ll be able to see Michael Ball before he leaves the production in June. I’m sure Billy Conley will make a great Edna but Michael has made the role his own and has to be worth seeing.

London Breaks this Summer

London breaks in the summer can be great too. The city is generally a couple of degrees warmer than the rest of the UK and this is even more the case in summer.
The city buildings hold the heat so a hot day can mean it doesn’t cool down all that much in the evening either. This makes strolling round the West End after the show soaking up the atmosphere very pleasant.

Do the London thing and buy yourself some bottled water for use during the day. Use it to keep your cool, especially if you go on the tube. I also use Evian spray sometimes if it gets very sticky. Great for cooling off!

Dress in cool fabrics for the theatre as they can be quite hot, even if air-conditioned. Some of the theatres are ‘air-cooled’ rather than air conditioned. This means that the front stalls are coolest seats in Summer. Avoid the highest circle and the back rows as these are the biggest heat-traps. This won’t be an issue if you are buying your theatre break through a theatre breaks agency that guarantees you the best available seats.

Anyway it’s the perfect excuse to buy that little black linen dress you’ve been eying up! A cashmere shawl or cardigan is all you’ll need on top.

3 Top Shows to see on your summer London break

These 3 shows would be good choices for London breaks this summer:

London Breaks at other times of year

London breaks in autumn and winter have their own advantages but I’ll save them for another post later.

It’s lovely to make the most of your theatre break and the theatre break agencies often have lots of other things to do in London that you can book at the same time. This is a great way to make sure fit everything in and also save a bit of money. Many additional attractions are offered at reduced prices when you book them with your theatre break.

Popular things to do as part of an inclusive theatre break

You can see from this chart that the #1 most popular thing to do as part of a theatre break is to book the London Eye. This is offered as either a ‘fast track’ ticket (cuts your waiting time for your flight by 30 minutes) or the luxury ‘Champagne Flight’.

The Original Bus Tour is another favourite. An open top bus tour through the London streets with an interesting commentary is a great way to see the sights without getting foot sore.

Next up is the London Dungeon, perfect for scaring yourselves whilst soaking up a bit of history.

These are closely followed in popularity by the Tower of London and Madame Tussauds. If you like history and atmosphere these are all great choices!

If you’d rather do something a bit more out of the ordinary the Duck Tour is great fun. It is an exciting and novel way to see the sights of London.

Personally, hitting the lovely London shops followed by Afternoon Tea at Fortnum and Masons is my favourite thing to do but each to their own.