In this new episode of Rick Steves' Europe, our royal tour of London starts with red-coat pageantry at Buckingham Palace. Riding red buses, black cabs, and the Tube, we pop into the Houses of Parliament at Westminster and visit Churchill’s underground war rooms — a World War II time warp. After looking into the eyes of those who put the great in Britain at the Portrait Gallery, we cruise the River Thames to the mighty Tower of London. Watch this episode on your local public television station, s

Bring the kids! Our Family Europe: London to Florence tour delivers a colorful mix of must-see cities (London, Paris, Florence), and stroll-around charms (Burgundy, the Swiss Alps, Italy's Cinque Terre). Along the way, you and your kids will encounter some fascinating bits of art, history, and culture — along with a couple of castles, a boat, a train, a mountain gondola lift, plenty of hiking, and even a swimming pool or two. Let's go: www.ricksteves.com/tours/europe/family-europe-london-florenc

The Changing of the Guard ceremony is the spectacle every London visitor must see at least once: stone-faced, bearskin-hatted guards changing posts with much fanfare, accompanied by a brass band. (This is also where you’ll see nearly every tourist in London gathered in one place at the same time.) The center of all this fanfare is the half-hour ceremony that takes place in the forecourt (between the palace and the fence) in front of Buckingham Palace. At 11:00 a batch of fresh guards meets the O