I wanted to be sure that we still celebrated Easter together and that the day felt special within the context of our trip. After a lot of research into the Easter activities available, I pulled together a wonderful itinerary for the day that found the perfect balance between Easter and tourist activities in London. Even though our family is Catholic, I thought it would be an experience the kids would always remember to celebrate Easter services at Westminster Abbey. I wasn’t sure if the early morning services would be particularly crowded, so I planned our day around the 3 pm Evensong services. Here are a few things you should know before you go: You can check the services available at Westminster Abbey here. St. Paul’s Cathedral is another excellent option for Easter services, but a word of warning for my fellow Catholic families — it is not actually a Catholic church. Since my girls are older, I wasn’t too worried about their Easter baskets and thought we’d just find some goodies when we arrived. While I dealt with a luggage mishap from the airline, my husband and older daughter went shopping at the local grocery store to see what they could find. They stopped in at Sainsbury’s but M&S Food has phenomenal options, too. A friend recommended we hunt down some Cadbury chocolate Easter eggs. They are significantly larger than the US candies. They are hollow like our chocolate bunnies and come with different flavors. Another friend suggested we sample some Percy Pig candies, a very popular treat with London children. My daughter also picked out som Jaffa Cakes — a chocolate and orange cake confection she was eager to try. I grabbed a package of Whippy Dippy chocolate from Marks & Spencer and it was my favorite of the treats. They also grabbed a package of hot cross buns, more on that in the notes below. I was thrilled to hear they’d be something we could easily find and try while in London. The local grocery stores offer them in several flavors but we stuck with the classic fruited rolls with iced crosses on top. I highly suggest you toast them and spread them with a bit of English butter, they aren’t very good eaten plain. However, on Easter morning while the rest of us slept in a bit, my husband got up in search of coffee and stumbled upon the Ole & Steen coffee shop. This Danish bakery offered a stunning braided Easter bread filled with a cinnamon and fruity filling and was topped with chocolate Cadbury mini eggs. He brought it home and we made it part of our breakfast for several mornings. The treat towers during our tea included wedges of carrot cake and strawberry rhubarb filled cupcakes. You can read more about our afternoon tea in London here. This was a perfect sized tour for us to start our trip. After we strolled through the museum rooms inside, we headed straight out the back to Hyde Park for a long stroll through the gardens. Hyde Park is filled with large ponds with gorgeous swans. Wildflowers and daffodils lined the walkways. We found our way to the Prince Albert Memorial and tried to walk to the Princess Diana memorial fountain but ran out of time before we head to our next reservations. You’ll definitely want to give yourself plenty of time for walking if you want to see more of the park, at least 2 hours would be ideal. I wasn’t sure whether we should try a traditional Sunday roast, go for fish and chips, or try something a little more elegant for the holiday. In the end, I booked us two separate reservations: Is it actually the best? Hard to say since we only tried it at this one place but it was absolutely delicious and I would definitely recommend it! I ordered the house special which included a beer battered haddock with chips, tartar sauce, mushy peas, and a curry dipping sauce. I took one peek at the inside of the restaurant and immediately appreciated the recommendation. The decor was simply stunning and was the perfect vibe for Easter. The food was absolutely delicious and we all enjoyed our meal. The Ivy has locations dotted all around London, we visited The Ivy Victoria Brasserie specifically. However, if you are traveling with younger children, the good news is that there are actually several events in London that would fit the bill. I almost booked us tickets to visit the Hampton Court Palace for their Lindt gold bunny hunt. It is worth looking into as an alternative egg hunt option. Easter did not seem to be as big of a deal in England as it does here in the US so it should not affect your trip much if you do not celebrate Easter. Just plan ahead because the Monday after Easter Sunday is a bank holiday and several businesses will open on a delay. Plan to start your next morning with outdoor activities or take it easy by sleeping in just a bit. Restaurants and coffee shops will still be open so there’s no need to worry.
