We're arriving early...

1) Can you at least dump the luggage at the hotel first?
2) How long are you in London for?

You might as well (once you've somehow got rid of the luggage) use the hop on/off bus ride services (see the FAQ) for a quick spin round central London round the main sights. It's easy to do, you don't have to do too much (ideal after a long flight and inevitable jet lag), and anything that does grab your excitement you can stop and have a closer look at.

To get into central London from your hotel, refer to instructions from the hotel. The cheapest option to getting around (after walking) is to get oyster cards. Refer to http://www.tfl.gov.uk for more info.

Thanks fwoggie..cute photo you have there!😄 We're in London for 7 days and right now, we're thinking of a detailed itinerary on a 7 day visit. I'm not sure how much time we need to spend and how many we can go to in a day. I'm talking about the major tourist attractions and some day trips too. Also Harry potter tour needs to be on the itinerary. Somebody said that getting Oyster cards are better than the HOHO bus...well anyhow...Can you help us build an itinerary? Thanks!😊

The Oyster cards are indeed better for getting around to somewhere specific than using the HOHO, but if you wanted a general quick easy intro to London without having to think much after a long flight + give the kids a first feel for the place + get an edutainment running commentary for them, it ticks the box.

Harry Potter - take the train from Wembley Central to Watford Junction, then take the bus to the studios. See http://www.wbstudiotour.co.uk/en/your-visit/getting-here and http://www.tfl.gov.uk for getting to Watford Junction.

What are you interests? Did you choose Wembley due to sports connections? It was used for Olympic 2012 Games Maker training in the same building, then called Empire Pool, where swimming took place in 1948 Olympics.

Thinking back to what I enjoyed on trips to London when I was a child (lived in Worcestershire, London born Mum brought my sister and I for a day trips most school holidays), I recommend a boat trip from Victoria Embankment to Greenwich to see Cutty Sark, Gypsy Moth IV, Royal Observatory (Greenwich Meridian), National Maritime Museum; South Kensington for Natural History Museum, Science Museum, Victoria and Albert (really didn't like art!), Royal Albert Hall, Imperial College (little did I know I'd do my MSc there in my 30s), running round Kensington Gardens etc. That makes 2 days, easily.

For a UK citizen, seeing our Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral, all sits of important national events, was vital. Also good for visitors. But please don't think that London is all there is to England or the UK. Try at least a day trip somewhere else eg Cambridge (colleges, but for something a bit different, take a bus to Gog Magog Hill, SW of Addenbrookes Hospital, to Wandlebury Country Park to see Iron Age ring ditch, 15th century granary, 18th century horse racing stables, Highland cattle, Norfolk Horn sheep, beechwoods etc) or Brighton (Pavillion, beach, pier etc).

Thanks copepod for the input. The hotel we're staying at wembley has great reviews and offered a good deal so we booked it not knowing it's far from central London. It is non refundable so we can't make any changes to the reservation . My interests would be to visit the major tourist attractions with the time we have ( 7 days ).

I think you need to make sure about being able to dump the luggage first, can be surprisingly hard and expensive to find a suitable baggage locker in London, once you have got rid of your luggage, there are plenty of London bus routes that go past the big sights and give you a good view from the top deck of a doubledecker bus, have a look at the Central London bus map on the tfl website and pick a few, they will be cheap on an Oyster card, much much cheaper that using the hop-on hop-off tourist buses. For example a number 11 bus goes past Westminster Abbey, Parliament, Trafalgar Square etc.

I'd say forget the tourist buses, use a weekly/daily travelcard and feet. Much cheaper and will go at your pace.

there are dozens if not hundreds of major attractions. Most of the big sites take a whole day to see properly and you have to eat and sleep.

suggest getting a guidebook and seeing what looks of interest.

Which is better? Oyster card or travel card? Again our family is composed of 4 people with 2 kids ages 9 ( girl ), 15yo ( boy ). Our hotel they said is in zone 4, Premier inn wembley, beside wembley stadium. We'll be in London for 7 days. Actually it's 8 but I'm not counting the 8th since we're going to Paris on the 8th day. Also how much money should we put into the Oyster card or travel card ? We might be getting a car rent for a couple days for the day trips . Thanks!

An oyster card is better, because it'll charge you as you use it until you hit the daily price cap (which is equivalent to an offpeak or on peak travel card anyway). You can pick them up easily enough from Heathrow airport tube station upon arrival or if you intend to get a taxi or mini cab to Wembley on arrival pick one up at Wembley Park (the stop nearest your hotel) when you first venture onto the underground.

Your youngest doesn't need an oyster card at all if you're going to accompany her for the entire trip (which I assume you will) - see http://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/students-and-children/5-10-zip-oyster-photocard?intcmp=11058. She gets to wander around for free.

Your teenager isn't that cheap; refer to http://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/students-and-children/11-15-zip-oyster-photocard - about halfway down the page. There's a £10 admin fee and you need to apply in advance. You need to figure out whether it's worth bothering. In your case it probably is, because you'll travel from zone 4 into zone 1 most days you're here, and then possibly bounce about 2 or 3 times during the day as you see stuff. The fares are here: http://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/fares?intcmp=14736 - you'll note that your teenager would pay considerably less than you.

I'd start by dumping £30 on your cards and £15 on his, and see how you go. Note that you can get rid of your oyster card at the end at any tube station to get a full refund of the deposit and any money you didn't spend. http://tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments/replacements-and-refunds/oyster-refunds-and-replacements?intcmp=13891

(Tip by the way - don't take the tube from Covent Garden to Leicester Square like everyone else does - walk it, it's 200 metres, far quicker than the tube would be).

You may find the map of the system useful - http://tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/standard-tube-map.gif - although a copy of this can be picked up at any underground station.

Given you're on the North of the city with easy access to the A40, Stratford Upon Avon and Oxford are both very easy to get to with a hire car although Hanger Lane isn't great the first time you experience it. You'll find people cruise at high speeds on the M40 - anything up to 95mph. Don't; the limit is 70 although most do 80.