WHY WOULD YOU EVER WANT TO VACATION IN LONDON IN FEBRUARY?

If you live in the northern snow belt, you probably dream of a sunny, warm place to spend a week in February. Admittedly, London is not going to feel much warmer than Chicago, but it has many appealing activities that are easier to enjoy when there are not crowds of tourists competing with you for access.

So, outside of the always top notch museums, what else should you do? If you like delicious food, created to look like jewels and served in a luxurious setting, you will want to stop by the Palm Court at the Langham Hotel for tea.

Created in 2012 for the Queen’s Jubilee Celebration, the Bijoux Afternoon Tea includes champagne and pastries almost too pretty to eat. There are three afternoon tea seatings at 1:00 pm, 3:15 pm and 5:30 pm and one “high tea” from 7:00 pm until 8:30 pm that serves a more dinner oriented menu, including a demi-tasse soup of the day and an egg dish, along with the finger sandwiches, cold canapés and pastries.

Although you might be able to arrange a table for two at the last minute on a week-day, the week-ends and holidays are quite busy and require advance reservations.

Another special activity is exploring the multitude of theater choices available within walking distance in the West End. Surprisingly, the theaters are full, both for the matinees and evening performances. If there is a particular play you especially want to see, be sure to order your tickets in advance.

Then, after you are in London, you can go down to the half price theater ticket booth on Leicester Square and take advantage of whatever daily discounted tickets are on sale. Definitely a good opportunity!

If you are a great Harry Potter fan and would like to see where the dining hall scenes were filmed at Christ Church College in Oxford, you can go on an escorted day tour and visit Oxford, Shakespeare’s house at Stratford-on-Avon, and the Duke of Warwick’s former castle in Warwick. What an interesting day!

These are just a few of the unique and entertaining options you can choose from. And, although the streets of London are busy, you will find many more actual Londoners surrounding you than when you visit during the summer at the height of the tourist season.

Since the main attraction of London is not its weather, you might discover that February is an excellent time to come to the city.

What is your ideal vacation temperature — do you only like to travel to warm places to relax during the winter?