| London swells with tourists April through mid-October, so as with many top travel destinations, the best deals on flights and hotels appear from November 1st through mid-December, and after Christmas through mid-March. Tip: Some travel agencies offer free stopovers in London for up to nine months at no additional charge, perfect for those planning to visit additional European destinations (check www.bestfares.com).
Heathrow is London's primary airport but Gatwick, Stansted, and Luton airports also service plenty of international and domestic flights, so you may want to check with these alternatives to avoid the headache and hullabaloo of Heathrow. Located 45 km (28 miles) south of London, Gatwick is the U.K.’s second busiest airport. It services international, domestic, and charter flights, providing more U.S.-based carrier options than Heathrow. Stansted, located 48 km (30 miles) northeast of London, is a base for many low-cost carriers, servicing mostly destinations in the U.K. and Mediterranean Europe. Luton, located 51 km (32 miles) northeast of London, also houses a number of low-cost European airlines. Tip: Check Ryan Air and Easy Jet for incredibly cheap deals to various European destinations from these airports; there is a good chance you’ll find a flight to Amsterdam, Paris, or Berlin for less than 25 pounds (50 USD), taxes included!
Every local and savvy tourist will tell you that before going anywhere in London, it’s best to pick of a copy of London A-Z, the most comprehensive map and guide book on the stands. You may intentionally “get lost” to explore the city’s off-the-beaten paths, but this guide will seem like a savior when you find yourself wandering through row after row of cloned Victorian flats.
Walking is always a money-saving tour guide in itself, but before you trek across the city, ask around for an idea of the distance to your destination; the tube map is deceptively encouraging for those who prefer to walk between its stops.
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An express train runs once or twice an hour between central London and its airports. The Heathrow Express takes an impressive 15 minutes to reach Paddington station and costs 13 pounds ($22) for a single, second-class ticket. You can also take the Tube (London’s underground rail) to and from Heathrow on the blue Piccadilly line, a 40-minute journey each way that costs only 5.4 pounds ($10). Traveling by bus from any airport will tack on an additional 30 minutes or so but is slightly less expensive than their express and regular trains. Taxis are actually one of the poorer transportation choices; they take longer than trains and can cost upwards of 55 pounds ($95). If the thought of hauling your luggage aboard trains and buses is too much to bear but you can’t foot the bill for a taxi, you might instead reserve a minicab. London’s unofficial taxi alternative (see below) will take you in and out of central London for 30-55 pounds, depending on the airport.
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| You can take trains and passenger/car ferries to England from a number of stations and ports in France, Holland, and Belgium. The Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, connects the U.K. with continental Europe; the Eurostar Express Train will take you between London’s Liverpool Station and Paris’ Gare du Nord or Brussel’s Central Station in three hours. Round-trip, second class tickets range from 94 to 223 pounds, ($165-$392), so book at least fourteen days in advance for cheaper tickets. If you plan to travel elsewhere in the U.K. by train, keep in mind that EuroRail passes won’t work; you’ll need to purchase tickets from the separate BritRail, which offers a number of flexible travel passes with youth, senior, family, group, and off-peak discounts. |
| London’s subway, called the Tube, is by far the easiest way to transfer between major tourist attractions; that being said, avoid it and its crowded, hot trains during rush hour or late in the afternoon on weekends. Tickets can be purchased at machines or personnel counters in any underground station; single rides within one zone are 1.3 pounds ($2.30) for adults and increase with each additional zone of travel (although most of central London is located within zone one). |
| Buses will take you everywhere the Tube goes for roughly the same price. They’re a bit slower point-to-point but a great way to visually explore the city, especially atop one of the red double-deckers on a sunny day. The Tube only runs from 5:30 a.m. to midnight, but night buses make up for its deficiency in 24-hour convenience. |
Taxis, the most expensive form of travel, are nonetheless plentiful and a sure-fire way to avoid getting lost (drivers train for three years for their taxi license!) Minicabs are London’s unofficial and less expensive taxis that cannot legally cruise for fares. For legitimate minicabs, you must call a listed company in advance or find a minicab sidewalk kiosk.
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The UK country code is 44, and London’s area code is 020. Local London numbers are eight digits and begin with a 7 or 8. For emergencies, dial 999. For local operator assistance, dial 100.
To make a local call from London, drop the area code (020) and simply dial the eight-digit number (begins in a 7 or 8).
To call out of London to another country, dial 00, listen for the tone then dial the destination’s country code, area code, and local number.
To call London from another country, dial the international access code (011 in the U.S. and Canada), the country code 44, the area code minus the first zero (20 rather than 020), and the eight-digit local number.
Public phone booths can be found all over London, served by either B.T. (British Telecom, famous for its bright red booths), or Mercury. Both providers accept coins (30 p minimum for a 15 minute national or local call), credit cards in most booths, and their respective pre-paid phone cards, which can be purchased in post offices and newsstands. You can also purchase a pay-as-you-go cell phone with a UK SIM card for around 60 pounds, perfect if you’ll be in the country for a while and plan to make international calls.
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London’s location bible is London A-Z; with a user-friendly index and page-by-page area maps, it will help you find any street in London. For the best weekly entertainment listings, pick up a Time Out magazine at any newsstand; it includes everything happening in art, film, music, theatre, nightlife, comedy, dance, the gay and lesbian community, and for kids. The Evening Standard, one of London’s major newspapers, is also a good entertainment resource, especially for the latest and most popular theatre listings.
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| There are internet cafés all over London, charging about 2-4 pounds ($3.5-7) per hour for access. Quite a few are concentrated in Fulham Broadway, near the West Kensington and Earl’s Court tube stops, and around Paddington Station. If you’re bringing your laptop with you, you’re in luck; the UK has over 3,000 Wi-Fi “hotspots,” many of which can be found in pubs, cafés, hotels, and airports. There are a few that allow you to connect for free with any purchase: try the Mucky Pup pub at 39 Queens Head Street, N1 (also a fantastic drinking spot with its courtyard beer garden and comfy sofas); Starbucks at 65 Fenchurch Street, EC2; or Benugo café at 23 Great Portland Street, W1, and 116 St. John Street, EC1. |
| An overseas postcard stamp costs 42 p ($.73), and an overseas letter stamp costs about 47 p ($.82). You can purchase stamps at any newsstand and drop your mail in the scarlet, free standing or mounted boxes found everywhere. Most post offices are open 9-5:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri., and 9-12:30 p.m. on Saturday. |
| Many hotels, hostels and B&B facilities offer in-house guest laundry services. Public Laundromats, or “laundronettes” as they are called in the UK, are scattered around the city and cost about 1.5 pounds ($2.60) per load. Look for the blue “Boots” sign for London’s major pharmacy, or chemist, chain. |
| Electricity supply is 240 volts AC, 50 HZ (in the U.S. its 110 volts), so unless your electronic device has a built-in conversion feature (most laptops and some travel hairdryers and razors do), you will need to purchase an AC transformer as well as an outlet converter (U.K. plugs have three prongs). |
| Tip your server 10 to 15% if a service charge is not clearly indicated on the bill. It isn’t customary to tip at pubs unless you’re camped out for the evening, in which case it is simply good manners to leave a few pounds. Tip taxi drivers 10% and 1 pound per bag for hotel porters. |
| Value-added tax (VAT) is the sales tax added to purchased goods. 17.5% isn’t exactly generous, but the good news is you can get a VAT refund at the airport customs office on your way home. Get the form for VAT refunds from retail merchants and look for a “tax free shopping” sign, as not all stores participate. |
At current exchange rates, 1 pound = 1.76 USD (approx.) and 1.47 euros, but check any major newspaper, www.xe.com, or www.x-rates.com for updates. 1 pound is broken down into units of 100 pence (p). Be wary of spending “pocket change” carelessly – you’ll end up with lots of it, including coins for 2 pounds, 1 pound, 50 p, 20 p, 10 p, 5 p, 2 p, and 1 p. You can’t exchange coins at the airport, so spend any remaining change before departing London.
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ATMs, located practically on every corner in London, are the best way to get quick cash, as they charge the going bank rate; make sure you have a pin number before you leave since you won’t be able to access credit card funds through an ATM. Avoid street exchange counters if you can, since they tend to charge additional fees. If you must do it the old-fashioned traveler’s check way, get them in British pounds.
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| Liters, Meters, and Celsius are all terms you should know before checking the weather or filling up a gas tank in London. The metric system isn’t as difficult as Americans like to say it is, so at least give it a shot before asking the poor concierge “can you tell me how far that is in yards?” Some approximate, but easy to remember conversions: multiply a Celsius temperature by 2 and add 30 to get the Fahrenheit temperature Celsius; multiply U.S. gallons by 4 to get liters; multiply miles by 1.6 for kilometers. |
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