AD | gifted for review
What do you think of when you think of London? Black Taxi Cabs? Red Phone Boxes? Scones & Afternoon Tea? How about a Paddington Bear Afternoon Tea on a Red Double Decker Bus touring around London? Can you get anymore British?!
Molly and myself (Charlotte, @Simply.Together) were kindly invited by the loveliest Brigit’s Bakery to try out their Paddington Bear Afternoon Tea Bus Tour in London. Honestly, we had the best time! Sitting up high on the top deck of the double deck bus, with gorgeously Paddington themed tiers of delicious treats awaited us. At each table, there was a special built-in screen that provided an animated guided tour of London with Paddington and Mrs Bird. We learned all about some of London’s most famous landmarks: Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, Nelson’s Column, Downing Street, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Borough Market, Green Park and Piccadilly Circus.
At afternoon tea time we opted for the Vegetarian option (Brigit’s have Traditional, Vegan, Vegetarian, Halal, and Gluten-free options) which included the most yummiest savoury treats such as Mini Margarita Pizzas, Cheddar & Mustardy Mayo Finger Sandwiches, Mozzarella Pretzel with Cherry Tomato & Pesto, Cream Cheese & Cucumber Finger Sandwiches and a Marmalade Finger Sandwich. If you’re anything like us and have a sweet tooth, the sweet options were *chefs kisses*! They included Shortbread, the creamiest Vanilla Rice Pudding, decadent Chocolate Cupcakes, zesty Lemon Meringue Tart and Chocolate Macarons. And if that wasn’t enough, we were also given a freshly baked plain scone with clotted cream. You could choose either jam or marmalade for your scone. Yummmmmm!
I can see you wondering, how does a china tea set work when you’re on the move on a bus touring London? They had thought of that: we were each given a Paddington themed reusable cup. We were able to fill these up over and over with an array of drinks such as hot tea, coffee and hot chocolate or cool orange and apple juice. They also offered a sparkling wine and champagne list at extra cost if you felt like splashing out for something a little more fancy.
THE IMPORTANT PADDINGTON BEAR AFTERNOON TEA BITS
- There are no bathrooms onboard so make sure you stop off to go beforehand (there is a pub close by that you can use).
- Price: Adults from £45 & kids from £35 each.
- Time: Approximately 1hr and 45 minutes, but this is subject to traffic, so can take a little longer. Keep this in mind if planning a whole day of activities (you don’t want to end up running late at the other end).
- Age: Children aged 5+. If you have younger ones, why not check out the Peppa Pig tour where the minimum age is 2.
- Pick up address: No. 8 Northumberland Av, London, WC2N 5BY
- When? The Paddington Afternoon Tea Bus Tour runs weekly Wednesday to Sunday.
If you’re worried about not finishing your afternoon tea in time, they do offer you a little box to pop leftovers in. You also get to keep your Paddington reusable cup which we thought was a lovely little touch! If you haven’t gathered from this review and the photos, we had the MOST amazing time. The staff were incredible (HUGEST shout out to Tommy and Louana) and very accommodating. You can check out our Reel from the day here.
For a day out, this isn’t the cheapest of activities in London, but we highly recommend this. If you’re looking for Christmas or Birthday ideas, it would make the perfect gift – experiences and time together are better than materialistic things. The memories that Molly and I made? Irreplaceable. If Paddington isn’t your cup of tea (punny!), Brigit’s Bakery have an variety of afternoon tea bus tours to choose from. We’re particularly looking forward to the Grinch themed tour at Christmas time!
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