London Theater Trip

Who in their right mind would leave for London in the middle of February with six days of rain forecasted? I did! I departed on February 11, 2026, from Logan International Airport via JetBlue (jetblue.com) using frequent flyer miles.  

A friend joined me and we stayed at the Hotel Hoxton, Holborn (thehoxton.com/london/holborn), a five-minute walk to the British Museum and 15 minutes by foot from the Theater District. I paid a total of $3,281, inclusive of VAT, for six nights. The room was small, the lobby was full of British millennials using the free Wi-Fi, and we didn’t encounter any other Americans in the hotel. The Hoxton served a minimal breakfast for a fee, and there was handily a large breakfast restaurant just across the street.  

We saw three matinees: Bryan Cranston in “All My Sons” by Arthur Miller at the Wyndham Theatre ($460 for two); “Shadowlands” at the Aldwyn Theatre with Hugh Bonneville of “Downton Abbey” fame; and “High Noon” with Billy Crudup at the Harold Pinter Theatre ($325 for two). Both the theaters and the seats were small -- truly knee knockers. Playbills were hard to come by, and there was a charge for them. As theater buffs, we also made sure to visit Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre ($66).  

A boat ride on the Thames ($27 for two) was interesting, and a highlight of our visit to the British Museum (britishmuseum.org), which is free, was its outstanding collection of Egyptian treasures.  

In the past, London received a bum rap for its food. Not so now. We ate Indian food at Colonel Saab (colonelsaab.co.uk) twice because we enjoyed it so much, for respectively $133 and $163 for two including tip. It was steps from our hotel and had a remarkable ceiling with rows of beautiful chandeliers. Another dinner worth noting was at an elegant French restaurant called L’oscar (loscarlondon.com), which cost $403 for four people, including tip. 

I’ve been to London several times before but my impression this time was that I would live here in a heartbeat. 

Audrey Darby, Plymouth, MA