How to see London without spending a fortune

London is an expensive city and it's very easy to spend a few hundred pounds per day on accommodation, meals, and a trip to the theatre. This also means that those travelling on a budget may not bother visiting London at all, because of the fear that it might eat up too high a proportion of those precious funds. That's a shame, because it's possible to 'do' London very cheaply, with so many of its world class attractions available for free.

Accommodation is almost inevitably going to take up a large part of your budget, so getting this right could make a big difference in the amount of spending money you have during the day and evenings. Personally, I'd rather be out all day than hanging around a hotel, so I just need a place to leave my stuff, shower, and sleep at the end of the evening. It doesn't have to be super-comfortable, so I tend to stay mainly in hostels that are cheap & central, just like I would when backpacking anywhere else in the world.  The Generator Hostel http://www.generatorhostels.com/en/london/ is a large hostel situated near The British Museum and it attracts a young, international crowd. Last time I stayed there, I thought it needed sprucing up a little, but it has both dorms & private rooms, and has a cheap & popular bar which is an excellent place to meet people. Another one located very close to Piccadilly is the aptly named Piccadilly Backpackers http://www.piccadillyhotel.net/ . You can't beat the location. Astor Hostels has 4 different centrally located hostels to choose from, so they are also worth a try http://www.astorhostels.co.uk/. Of course, you can always try and get a bed for free in someone's home at Couchsurfers http://www.couchsurfing.org/!

There will be a lot of people out there who just turn up their nose at the idea of staying in a hostel - too many young people, little privacy, little comfort to speak of, etc. Unfortunately, a 'cheap' hotel in London doesn't exist, unless it's a flea-pit tucked behind a railway station. Your best bet is to try one of the many hotel booking sites such as http://www.lastminute.com/ (excellent prices can be had with their secret hotels deals - you don't know the name of the hotel untul you book, though!), http://www.laterooms.com, and http://www.ebookers.com. If you can handle the orange decor and tiny double beds, http://www.easyhotel.com/ is a cheap and cheerful option with half dozen hotels in London. Other budget hotels include http://www.ibishotel.com & http://www.travelodge.co.uk. One word of warning is to make absolutely sure you know where the hotel is located. London is a big place, and you could end up staying a long way out from the centre. Staying near any London airport is a big mistake unless it's the night before an early flight.

Ok, now that you've found a place to stay, you're going to want to get around. Don't even think about renting a car unless you want to spend most of your time lost or stuck in a traffic jam. Public transport is the way to go, and if you're spending a few days or more in London, it'll be a lot cheaper if you get an Oystercard - http://visitorshop.tfl.gov.uk/oystercard/product/oyster-card.html. There are special versions for tourists, and they will actually deliver it to your home country before you travel if you order it in time. Another option is a travelcard, which is available for 1 day or 1 week's worth of travel. http://visitorshop.tfl.gov.uk/travelcards/1-day/product/day-anytime-travelcard.html. Both these cards will let you use the tube & the bus system. As far as I'm aware, bus drivers can't take cash for a ticket, and single tube tickets bought without an oystercard are a massive rip-off.

The advantage of the Tube, or Underground is that it's easy to use, and pretty quick. There shouldn't be any traffic jams underground. It also gets you directly where you need to go, without you having to worry that you might miss your stop. On the flipside, some stations may require you to do a lot of walking underground to get to the correct platform, they can be very crowded at times, and you obviously miss out on a lot of sights.

Bus travel is cheaper than the tube and can be a great way to get to see the city. They also reach many parts of London that the tube doesn't extend to. Unfortunately, they also can get stuck in traffic jams, so can be slow at times. There's also a riverbus service http://www.tfl.gov.uk/modalpages/2648.aspx but dress warmly!

My favourite way of getting around the city is also the cheapest - by bike. London has a great system of cycle hire, affectionately called "Boris Bikes" as they were brought in by the mayor of London, Boris Johnson. That's him on his own bike when I bumped into him one day. The way they work is that there is a system of docking stations in central London, each holding a good number of bikes. You use your credit or debit card to pay a £1 a day usage fee (if you steal a bike, it gets charged to your card!) and then you get a printed pin number that lets you free a bike from the docking station, and then you can pedal off for up to half an hour for free. Keep the bike for longer, and you start getting charged, depending on how long you have it for, so the secret is to just swap bikes at another docking station before the 30 minutes are up. Here's where you can find more detailed information http://www.tfl.gov.uk/roadusers/cycling/14808.aspx What I like about them is that you can just ride them, leave them in a docking station, and then you don't have to worry about your bike getting stolen while you go out for a meal, or see a show.

Travelling Around Britain - An Overview

Travelling around Britain can potentially be an expensive business, but there are ways to get around without taking up too much of your budget and there are a couple of downright cheap ways to travel within Britain.

The key to getting your travel cheaply in most cases is to book ahead wherever possible. Often, it's possible to pick up bargain tickets when they first go on sale, and they get progressively more expensive as the bus, plane or train fills up. Even if you decide to travel the next day, tickets may well be cheaper bought that day than if you roll up to the ticket office on the day of travel. 

Probably the cheapest way to travel is by Megabus - http://uk.megabus.com/ This bus/coach service provides extremely low cost travel to many parts of Britain, and has also extended its routes to include European destinations such as Amsterdam, Paris, and Brussels. It may not be the most comfortable or quickest way of getting around, but the fact that it is mainly used by students shows it's great for those with a limited budget. Many routes have overnight journeys, so there's a saving on accommodation there. To benefit from the best prices, book as early as possible. Prices start at £1 a journey and then go up as the cheap ones are sold. Leave it late and you could be paying a lot more, though this will still be significantly less than using rail.

Following close on Megabus' heels, National Express are a long-running company with a much more extensive web of routes. They are also serve most airports, so you may find that the very first transport you use in Britain is National Express. http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx They tend to be more expensive than Megabus (though not always, so it's worth checking. It's also worth comparing journey times & whether you need to change buses en-route) but go to many more destinations. They also put on extra services for major events such as Glastonbury festival. If you are in the country for a while, family, senior, and young persons coachcards should get you a third off the regular price.

A new entry into the British coach scene is one that's familiar to those in North America - Greyhound. http://www.greyhounduk.com/ I've not been on them yet myself, but their buses look new & comfortable and the deals are good. Their service is currently quite limited, though.

The easiest way to travel around Britain is by rail. http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ Despite the moans of the British public, the railway system is relatively clean, quick, and manages to reach most towns. It's been going since the 19th century, so there's been plenty of time to lay down tracks! On the downside, it can be expensive, the fares can be confusing, and trains can be crowded, particularly in the routes into London. Travel during rush hour and you're guaranteed a headache! The further you get from London, the more pleasant the experience, and some routes such as the Settle to Carlisle line are worth it for the journey alone. 

Once again, try and book ahead as early as possible, and try to get return journeys as these are almost always significantly cheaper than buying two single journeys. Railcards are useful to those in the country for a while and who fulfil the age requirements. The real expert in travelling around Britain by train is The Man in Seat 61 - http://www.seat61.com/ .

There's also the option of air travel within Britain, particularly for the longer journeys such as London to Inverness or Aberdeen. Flights can be surprisingly cheap if you use budget airlines such as Easyjet http://www.easyjet.com  or Ryanair http://www.ryanair.com .

Welcome to Woody's Britain!

Welcome to "Woody's Britain"! My aim is to provide information and advice about visiting Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, UK etc.) from someone who lives here and travels around the country whenever I get the chance. I also travel abroad, and have lived in the US & Germany, so understand the sort of questions people want to ask when travelling to somewhere new.

Britain is a place that really needs exploration to get the most out of a visit. While most visitors spend much if not all of their time in London, this really gives a taste of what the country is like. It's a great city, with enough to keep you occupied for the duration of your stay in Britain, but it's a world city that will give you a very distorted idea of what the rest of the country is like. I'll provide some guides to London, but hopefully I'll make you want to spend just a short time there and spend the majority of your time seeing places that most tourists miss out on.

I'll also give you plenty of tips on what guides are worth getting hold of, what to take with you, how to travel in Britain on a budget, and how to eat well while you are here.

I hope you find the advice useful in planning your trip to Britain!