London England Temple

My 63rd Temple, the London England Temple

My husband, daughter Lizzie, and I went to visit our son Micah & his family in Europe over Thanksgiving in 2024. For part of our trip, we rode through the under-water tunnel (the Chunnel) to get to England and tour around the country. On the day we arrived, we had reserved the last possible appointment for baptisms at the London England Temple because we knew we'd be very busy once we arrived in London.

It took much longer than we expected to reach the temple -- more than an hour, with very slow traffic, and even a car accident that slowed traffic down even more. We knew that we weren't going to make it by our 7 o'clock appointment, so I called the baptistery to explain that we were still coming but would be a few minutes late. I'm glad I called, because we were the only ones scheduled for baptisms in that last session, and the workers probably would have left if they didn't know to still expect us. We arrived late and they welcomed us with open arms. They were so very kind and patient with us.

After our baptism session, we walked around the temple grounds. We ran into a temple grounds worker who showed us the very best spot to take photos of the temple at night -- with the reflection of the temple in the lake. The temple is beautiful, as are the grounds. I only saw it at night, but I was very impressed with the beauty of the temple and the peaceful atmosphere on the grounds. I think my favorite thing about the temple is the view from that perfect picture spot -- the reflection of the lit-up temple in the lake.

While in London we went to visit many places in addition to the temple -- Tower Bridge, Westminster and Big Ben, the Eye, Buckingham Palace, and even Harry Potter studios. We stayed at a really fun Airbnb that was close to Harry Potter Studios and had a Harry Potter theme. This was about an hour and a half away from the temple, though. One thing that I learned when visiting England is that it takes ten times as long to get the same distance as it does in the states. Everything took so much longer to get to than we expected!

The London England Temple is located at West Park Road, Newchapel, Surrey, England, RH7 6HW United Kingdom. It was dedicated in 1958 and rededicated in 1992. If you are in England, definitely take the time to visit the temple!

view of the temple from the parking lot

Me standing in front of the temple in November 2024

My daughter admiring the temple

My husband, daughter, and I on the steps of the temple

Newport Beach California

The Newport Beach California Temple, my 69th Temple

My daughter and I went on a trip to California for a reunion with her cousins in June of 2025. We wanted to visit the nearby temples in addition to the list of plans that we had as part of the reunion. We attended the Los Angeles, Redlands, and Newport Beach Temples. It was my first time at the Newport Beach Temple, which was dedicated in 2005. It is located at 2300 Bonita Canyon Drive in Newport Beach, California. There is no clothing rental available, so be sure to bring your own temple clothing. There is also no temple housing.

My favorite part about this temple is the beautiful grounds. They are absolutely meticulous and spectacular. I can only imagine the amount of time that is dedicated to keeping the grounds so beautiful! There is such a wide variety of flowers and gardens with many different colors. I also really love the beautiful three-part painting in the temple waiting room that is of a landscape that I would guess is somewhere in the area.

The workers in the temple were very kind to us and made us feel very welcome. During our time in the area, we also went to Huntington Beach and to Disneyland and California Adventure. We stayed at an Airbnb that was only 20 minutes away from the Newport Beach Temple. Disneyland is about 45 minutes away from the temple. The temple is only ten minutes away from the John Wayne airport, which is the airport that we flew into. It is in a very convenient location.