London is a world cultural capital with strengths in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, research and development, tourism and transport all contributing to its prominence. This huge megapolis consists of the historical centre, the working-class districts and modern housing developments such as London Eye and The Millennium Dome. Every year million of tourists from all over the world come to this city to visit the worldknown sightseeings and to enjoy the local colour.
A trip to one of the most unusual and dynamic cities of the world would meet all your expectations. However, when you take all things into consideration, it should be obvious that London is not an affordable place to travel in. The tourists who are unaccustomed to the high prices for living in London face the problem of money scarcity.
In this article, I will give you the tips how to travel this metropolis on a budget.
Transport
The Great Britain is the island country. That is why the best way how to get to the capital is by plane. While selecting the flight tickets, you have to pay attention to the number of factors:
- decide on the lowcost airlines;
- order the tickets beforehand;
- buy the tickets on the direct flight to London;
After arriving, you would face the problem of the transfer from airport to the city. There are some available ways how to get downtown:
– Gatwick Express
It is the glorified bus from the Gatwick airport. It is the quickest way to gain destination. However, the price on it is overestimated. It costs £20. I advice you to save this money for the entertainments.
– City shuttle EasyBus
EasyBus is cheaper than Gatwick Express. Moreover, it has more diversity route. It takes one hour of time to get to the downtown with EasyBus. The ticket’s price is just £2.
– Bus National Express
It is a comfortable bus which transit from the Heathrow airport to the Victoria Coach Station in the downtown. It costs £7 and there is an opportunity to order the tickets via the Internet.
– Suburban train
There are several types of the suburban trains. You may choose the First Capital Connect or Southern. Their prices starting from £8.
The apartments
The districts of London are significantly different from each other. One of them are luxurious and ancient, while others are dangerous and dirty. That is why you should carefully select the place of living.
One more reason why you should have a serious approach for the selection of the apartments is the high prices on the public service vehicle and hotels. An optimal decision will be to find a hostel in Greater London. There are great amount of hostels in London. They are divided into the official, which are the members of the Hosteling International Association and the private one.
The official hostels are mostly expensive. You will need to buy the membership card to stay there. The price for living in the private hostels is more accessible. However, the standards of service are not regulated there. An average cost per night in the good private hostels is £15-20. Most of them locate in the downtown. These two factors are very appealing for the young and active tourists.
Voluntary Programs
There is one more practical way how to travel London on a budget. Become a member of the volunteers unity. Open the website of the volunteer projects – European Voluntary Service and choose on of the host voluntary organizations. Take a look at the operating conditions and responsibilities. Then write a CV and motive letter and send it on the email of chosen organization.
Be attentive while composing a motive letter, because usually this paper is a key point for your employment. If you are hesitating about the quality of your written work, order it on the reputable website such as edubirdie canada. Then you should wait till your candidacy would be considered. After it you will receive an offer of employment and chance to visit London without spending much money.
Food
Visiting the restaurants in London is the costly affair. The prices in the fast food restaurants start from £12 for burger. So the best variant for the tourists on a budget is to buy food on the local markets. Here you may find the delicious soups and salads. The price of your dinner would be approximately £5-6.
There is also popular among the Brits such thing as «meal deal». You pay just £3 and take any dish at option in the supermarket plus drink and snack. The beer lovers should be ready for the prices on this English national drink. The cost of one pint is £3-5. To save money, choose the pubs, which are far away from the downtown.
