I've actually had inquiries about the Greece trip from the pictures I had posted on here and advice for travellers there. This has been really cool and I'm excited that having a blog means I may have readers who want to know my opinions.
Due to this, I'd like to start a travel section to this blog. It may be like the word posts that never really came to anything or the drew ultimate history that fizzled with the first post due to lack of participation, but on the other hand, it may not. It's been a while since I started this blog and it still hasn't quite found its niche yet other than a sounding board for my ranting. I'd like it to become a little more than that, so here is a new possible direction that I'd like to explore.
It has come to my attention that the exchange rate from US dollars to UK pounds is horrible. At 2:1, it makes an already expensive city even moreso. At Chris' suggestion, here is a travel guide for the cost conscious London traveller. Having been a college student in London, I learned a thing or two about seeing the city on limited funds. I hope you find some of these pointers helpful. The following ideas are in no particular order.
Transportation:
If you're staying for a week, get a week-long tube pass. It's expensive but also worth it if you want to see the city properly. If you're staying for a shorter amount of time, try to group your activities by region so that you minimize use of public transportation
Take a minute to go on line and find useful bus routes. They aren't that hard and cost half what the tube does.
Look on travel websites to book a cheap hotel near the center of the city. They're expensive there but deals can be found online beforehand. And if you're near most of what you want to see, you'll save a lot of money on transportation as well as time in transit.
If you don't want to spring for the Heathrow Express, consider taking the Picadilly line. For considerably less, although a bit more time, you can ride the Underground right into the heart of the city. The airport is far away, so the train and the subway are probably your best bets.
If you need to get somewhere down the Thames and it's too far to walk, consider taking the ferry. It's twice the cost of a tube ride, but the views are great and it's more than worth it.
Site-Seeing:
Some of the best things in London are actually free. If you get a chance, hit the British Library. They have a great collection of rare works like the only surviving Beowulf manuscript, Caterbury Tales, Shakespeare's First Folio, Beatles lyrics scribbled on napkins, works handwritten by Mozart, Alice in Wonderland, antique maps, and all sorts of other stuff. There's something for everyone, it's free, and there's hardly ever a crowd. You can peruse the works to your heart's content. It's one of the city's hidden gems.
The British Museum is free and worth a stop. It has the Rosetta stone and a great collection of sculptures taken from the Parthenon. It also has pieces of that Mausoleum in Turkey that was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Very, very cool stuff here.
The Museum of London is a great place to start any trip to London, with artifacts dating from pre-historic all the way up to modern and everywhere in between. With such a rich history, it's an interesting place with great Roman London pieces. It's also free. Other free museums that are worth a look if you have more time are the Imperial War Museum, Victoria and Albert, National Portrait Gallery, Natural History, and Science. The Tate Modern and Tate Britain are both great, free museums that I would recommend if you're into Modern Art or uniquely British art.
St. Paul's Cathedral is a must see, but expensive. If you just want to go in and have a peak, go in at 4:30, after it's closed to tourists. There are no annoying tour groups and no cover charge. If you're there at 5pm, you can also stay for the free evensong concert which has a choral group performing each evening. This is every day except Sunday, when it's closed except for services.
The changing of the guards at Buckingham palace is fun to see and also costs nothing to attend. It's a great parade of royal guards in tall, funny hats and British pomp at its finest.
Theater:
You can usually get into some good shows for very little. Just don't buy the programs since they're usually expensive. Even if you go see something small off the West-End, see something. Theater is a big part of London. If opera's more your thing, go to the National Opera House at 10am and you can get 3 pound seats for that evening's performance. You won't find a much better deal than that. A lot of theaters also have rush tickets available for 50% or more off the regular price of admission. Look into what you want to see before you go, because if you just pick what's being advertised in Leicester Square, you probably won't be getting a very good deal.
Food:
The good news is that a lot of the food England is known for is cheap, filling, and good. Well, opinions differ on the good part, but it's all part of the experience. If you want to go to a nice restaurant, try to go to lunch there because dinner prices go up quite a bit, especially in center city. Otherwise, look for a non-touristy pub and you can find a pint and a meal, be it fish and chips, bangers and mash, or something else on the menu, for under 5 pounds. Depending on where you are, it could be a bit more.
Believe it or not, the British have great Indian food. Indian take-out is a good option and is usually pretty reasonable. Their national dish is actually considered Chicken Tikka Masala.
It's usually more expensive to eat in than take out. So if you're lucky enough to be there when it's not raining, you may want to find food and bring it to a park. They're scattered all over the city, have lots of benches, and are well tended to.
Shopping:
Well, if you can get it elsewhere, do. You won't find many deals here, unless you visit in January when stores have their annual sales. Harrod's is definitely worth hitting then. And even if you aren't buying anything, it's worth going to this block big store in the heart of London's shopping district. If you feel the shopping bug, you may want to check out Portobello Market or some of the other markets around the city that still have some deals. Not many, but some. Otherwise, I'd save bringing home souveniers for another destination. Oh, but if you do go to Portobello Market, be sure to stop by the Falafel King on Portobello road. It's amazing.
If I think of more things, I'll add them, but for now, those are my tips on seeing London for less. I hope they help if you're planning a trip there.
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