A budget-friendly guide through London

Let me guess. You love travelling but you´re not exactly the richest person in the world… You would love to go somewhere but have no idea how to keep things affordable. You´re exactly where you´re supposed to be because I am about to help you loads.

As you probably know (because I can get pretty annoying when it comes to this topic) I am working on my PhD and my supervisor arranged an internship in London for me.  I had to spend quite a ginormous amount of money on it and you know… when in London, do as the Londoners do… or Romans… whatever. I didn´t only want to spend time locked off in the archives under the library, I wanted to see and experience everything that London offers and get to the core of what makes London THE city to fall in love with.  And just so you know... if you don´t pay attention, it can get quite expensive.

But don´t ya worry lads and lassies, I´ve got you covered. Here are a couple of steps to keep in mind if you´re trying to arrange a trip to the city that will indeed make you fall in love, keep you awake at night and make you want to come back ASAP.

·         Start planning your trip very early on. The more you postpone it, the more expensive it´s going to get. Start looking for your airplane tickets four or five months before the day of your departure. The airlines offer great deals if you order your tickets ahead of time. Who doesn´t want to fly for 15 or 20 Euro?

·         Avoid hotels with famous names. Although it may sound fancy and the idea of staying in a beautiful hotel room overlooking the banks of the Thames river may seem like a good idea, when you proceed to checkout you will change your mind (well, unless you have enough budget to cover it). However, there are more affordable options. One of them is, for example, the Airbnb renting. And that´s what I opted for because a room for 20 pounds a night was a deal I couldn´t refuse. And just by the way, if you are anything like me and you love to roam the streets from dusk to dawn, you will only use the room as a place to sleep at. And an expensive hotel room would be, in this case, completely useless.

·         Watch travel guides on YouTube.  They will give you a good idea about what you can manage in one day. As soon as you find everything you want to see, you can plan your days ahead and make sure you manage to see everything you want. There are numerous great online guides to get inspired by but my top 1 is the Joolz Guides channel on YouTube. He´s a Londoner and a very funny guide and he has created online guides for the most famous must-see sights in London, but also more specific ones for you (and me) geeky fellas out there. Highly recommend!  

·         Street food is the key. Of course, enjoying a hearty feast sitting in a fancy restaurant is a must once in a while, however, it can get pretty pricey. But, don´t be scared, you won´t be hungry for long. Street food markets are THE way! Burgers, pizzas and steaks are fabulous, don´t get me wrong, but you can eat them anywhere around the globe. I am more of a try-the-local-food kind of girl, so my first thought was to search for old markets and let me tell you, I found them pretty quickly. Probably the best one is the Borough Market. Apart from selling local veggies and fruit, the market offers a wide variety of street food and cute little stands with traditional food. Now of course, there are many other markets worth visiting, e.g. the Covent Garden market or the Portobello market in Notting Hill.

·         Look for free entrance. Did you know that there are numerous museums in London that you can visit for free? Some people say that it´s a compensation for the rain that so frequently occurs in London, I am not sure. However, if you travel on budget, it´s a great opportunity to see a lot of London´s history, art and culture. The most famous entrance-free places are the British Museum, The National Gallery at Trafalgar Square, the Tate Modern, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in Kensington, which is (just btw) located in a museum district!!! Yes, that´s right my dear culture freaks, the whole part of the city is filled with museum and with the Hyde Park very close by, you just have to visit and experience it all.

This is how I planned my trip to London and let me tell you, I had the time of my life. To be honest, it wasn’t my first budget-friendly trip I´ve ever planned so I kinda knew what to do. I am posting this cheeky little blogpost in hopes that one day it will help someone while planning their trip of a lifetime. You are welcome.

Until next time,

Čauko, Lenka 😊

PS: you can browse through my photos here.