London is great, but it can beat you down a bit. I was living there for a while last winter and into the spring, and you rarely get a respite from the cold, wet, and grey. I was constantly traveling as well, and in London nothing is ever close. For some reason everything is between a half hour and an hour away on the tube; nothing was ever closer and nothing was ever further. The public transportation system in London is nothing if not comprehensive and expansive, and you can get just about anywhere by bus or tube, which is good, because it’s just too big to walk. Nevertheless, I was finding myself doing a lot of walking while bundled up against the cold and the wet. Walking to bus stops, walking to tubes, walking to clubs and restaurants. London is a busy city, one where everyone is always on the move and it’s easy to get swept up in that “go-go-go” attitude even if you don’t really have any particular place to be. Soon you find yourself running while transferring tubes, and walking on the left side while going up and down escalators, flying by those slow pokes who stand and let the escalators do the work for them. It’s easy to get impatient when you’re packed like sardines into the tube (although making sure you aren’t a part of the morning or evening commute can help that.) And if you’re sightseeing, you’re going to be doing a lot of walking.
If you’re vacationing in London there are of course many things to see and do. London is one of the world’s true international cities, and everywhere you go you hear multiple languages being spoken, as well as traditional and fusion-style cuisine from all over the world. Of course London is the showcase for all things British as well, so prepare to hike around to Big Ben, the houses of Parliament, Shakespeare’s Globe, the British Museum, the Tower of London, and many other sites. You can go hiking and explore nature in Hampstead Heath. You can hit the pavement in Soho and see all sorts of weird subcultures. All of this can be taxing, however. It’s easy to feel like your vacation is work if you’re trying to cram in all of the London sights. That’s when I was there I did something I’ve never done before: go to a Spa. And if your vacationing in London, I recommend you go too.
You don’t have to go to a swanky resort to get a real first class Spa treatment. Just take a day and go to one of the countless spas around London for a London Spa Day
. Go ahead and treat yourself to some cheap spa deals.
Get a full body message to work out all of those kinks. Get a manicure and pedicure. Get a seaweed wrap. Get relaxed and relieve all of the tension. Because if soon you’re going to have to make your way out to Heathrow, and trust me, you want to be relaxed for that, because it won’t last long.