Hello Dear Reader,
I’m writing tonight after a direct request from yourself. You said you wanted to visit the UK and wanted to know how to have a holiday here as cheaply as possible. I’ve spent an age researching and there’s my first piece of advice.
1. Research - Check out where in the UK and what you want to see. It’s a really diverse place. No two towns, areas, streets are alike. Some city centres have become a horrible copy cat edition of all the others with imported non-tax paying coffee shops, chain stores and overly priced just about everything. However, get off the beaten tracks, go and visit the real UK and you will find a friendly, welcoming affordable country where you can comfortably relax for a week or two and find some wonderful history, culture and entertainment.
2. London? Ok, my first advice would be not to bother. But, if you are from overseas I can see that you might like to. Here’s what to research, LONDON FOR FREE - now click on each of the numbers and it will take you to sites telling you about events and attractions that will not cost you anything. 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5 and you will want the cheapest places to stay in London - Here are links to cheap accomodation - 1, which is for London hostels and 2 which is for rooms to rent in universities when the students are not there which is June, July, August and part of September. Normally, I would suggest that you didn’t visit the UK in British School summer holidays as that is peak season and all accommodation and travel is charged at a premium. However, London is different and you will get the university accommodation cheaper.
3. Travel. If you are coming to the UK from Europe, then just come on a ferry and bring your own car. Trains are expensive and buses, although affordable are a chuffin’ nightmare. You will also be at the mercy of timetables and will be restricted. If you are flying in and coming with a family or group then just hire a car. Obviously, the bigger the car the more it will cost. Also, most of our cars are manual and you might have to pay more for an automatic. You can hire a car straight from the air port but be prepared for terrible traffic around the air ports. Bring your sat nav with you or hire one with the car. With a group of you sharing the car will work out cheaper than the train or bus. Here is a link to car hire from Heathrow, but do your research and book online and pay online before you get here. To find the best comparison deals use this website www.travelsupermarket.com to research the cheapest car hire for the airport you would be flying into.
4. Public Transport - buses and trains. - If the thought of driving in another country is off putting then you can get around by public transport. The place to go to research the cheapest travel options or to find the best deals for travel is www.moneysavingexpert.com. You can go direct to bus companies and book bus tickets in advance but the cheapest fares are always major city to major city. You will need to investigate getting around in advance, some areas of the UK are not served by any trains or buses at all and you would only be able to get there by car or walking. Here are the ways of finding ticket prices for transport
Each area of the UK has their own privately owned bus companies. Here in Cornwall, the little green buses that take you any where for a couple of quid are called Western Greyhound. If you were going to Wales, the Midlands, Yorkshire or Northern Ireland, then just research buses in that area. Once you get to the main area then you can get the little local buses after that. Think of it as a way to meet the natives!
Accomodation - If you’ve come from mainland Europe and you’ve brought your car then you have the option of bringing camping equipment and finding some really beautiful places to camp. You can research places to pitch your tent or motorhome at www.pitchup.com Glamping is all the rage now in the UK, you can hire something solid ( a posh shed!) but in our weather it would be a welcome alternative to camping. You can research glamping It’s more expensive than camping and a youth hostel but you might find somewhere really quirky. here http://www.glamping-uk.co.uk/
My best advice for accommodation, especially if you are travelling as a family or in a group is to stay at Youth Hostels. These are places to stay at any age. They are incredible value for money and if you can book early enough then you can have a room for two in places such as London or Bath for £80 a night and as low as £39 for a family room in other areas of the UK. Here in Cornwall, hotel prices are incredibly high, some B&B prices are also very high but the simple but very clean and friendly accommodation in Youth Hostels are really affordable. Here is the link to the Youth Hostel Association and you can research where you want to stay but book well in advance, in some cases a year in advance in areas such as major cities or tourist areas such as Cornwall. Here’s the link - YHA
Food - This is relative to where ever you’ve come from. You might think our prices are high or cheap. You can eat affordably even if you are on the road and travelling. If you’ve hired a car and you’re staying in youth hostels, there are usually facilities for you to cook your own food. You will find supermarkets every where and find something easy to cook and eat. Look our for Lidl, Aldi and Tesco which are our cheapest food stores. In some towns, you will still find the out door markets and they are cheaper than you would think. You can buy a lot of cooked meat, cheese and bread and will be able to find something cheap and affordable to eat. In cheaper areas of the country you will find pubs with the term ‘Carvery’ and some of them are ‘all you can eat’. Have a good ‘feed’ at these places once in a while and make do with self catering the rest of the time. In some areas of the country, fish and chips is affordable - here in Cornwall it’s around £7.50 but it’s more or less in other places.
Lots of Chinese, Indian and Italian restaurants have ‘all you can eat’ buffet lunches. Some for as little as £5 per head. One fast food place called Pizza Hut has an all you can eat lunch for £6.99. You can eat in pubs and restaurants if you choose but you will pay more in the evening that lunch time. So, make do with a sandwich, fruit and cake from the supermarket in the evenings and eat ‘out’ at lunch time. Lots of ‘chain’ restaurants and pubs do ‘two meals for £10’ at lunch time. If you see the old folk in there at lunch time, they know a good deal when they see one! Also, lots of churches here have cafes attached to them, it’s a community service and raises funds for the church. Plymouth has a cafe called The Discovery cafe which is run by the central Methodist church and the food is great and really cheap. It’s used a lot by students, who again know a bargain when they see one.
Visiting different areas of the UK. On a map, this tiny island might look as if you can skip about from one place to another, please remember than there are 65 million people here with cars, using the buses, the trains and getting around. Expect to take your time. So many visitors do the UK in five days and see London, Bath, Stratford Upon Avon and Edinburgh. Do that if you choose to and you will see the tourist shops selling tacky rubbish from China and you will pay through the nose for food, accommodation and travel. Get out and about and see the real UK and you will pay less, eat better and be made really welcome by friendly people.
Things to do and places to visit - the very best thing on offer in the UK is culture and history. We’ve got that by the tonne. To research this and find out what you can see and where you can go take a look at
Each area of the country has its own tourism information. Just ‘google’ the county you want to visit with the word ‘visit’ in front. so, visit Warwickshire, visit Kent and so on.
Over to you Dear Reader, here’s where I want everyone to join in. If you are from the UK, suggest somewhere local to you that anyone from over seas really should see. If you have a ‘I would like to visit the UK’ question then please ask away and anyone can answer.
I could have spent hours talking about affordable ways to visit the UK but I’m sure, you Dear Reader, have plenty of information to share.
Until tomorrow,
Love Froogs xxx
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If you would like a hotel room/family room you could try Travelodge/Premier Inn/Park Hotels and sign up for their newsletters which let you know in advance of their 'Room Sale'. You could try eating at the supermarket Sainsburys often do 2 for £10 main meals or Ikea (good for a cooked breakfast if one nearby your hotel). Visit Suffolk or East Anglia we have windmills, traditional seaside towns, wildlife trails, culture, Cambridge, Norwich, Colchester, fishing, sea life, miles of sandy beaches, narrow boats and cruisers for hire, messing about on the rivers and fish and chips.
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We use youth hostels a lot and they are fantastic value. I particularly like them as they usually have a shared kitchen so you can cook your own food which really keeps costs down. (I'd rather spend money on activities than on eating out!)
A good tip if you are staying in one for a few nights is to buy an annual family membership as this qualifies you for a £3 pound per person per night discount which will often outweigh cost of membership.
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Froogs is absolutely right about London! If you're in Shropshire (a little visited gem), then don't miss Ludlow; a very well preserved mediaeval market town with lots of half timbered buildings. It was once the capital of Wales - hence the castle. the markets are still good too and there are a huge variety of places to eat. My favourite is the Castle Cafe - built right into the castle walls. The countryside round-about is fabulous too, go west to the Long Mynd and Stiperstones if you're feeling energetic and have walking boots, it's a great area for walking.
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I'm from North Devon, and regularly return to catch up with family and just be where I feel I belong. On my last trip I searched online for B&B's and found a wonderful place that didn't charge me a single supplement and cost only £27.50 per night to stay in a very prettily decorated double room, with TV, wifi, tea and coffee making facilities and the use of a shared bathroom. The breakfast was fantastic and did me for both breakfast and lunch, and I bought food from the local supermarket to eat in their breakfast room for my evening meal. (I could have eaten at any number of reasonably priced restaurants but chose not to this time). There are inexpensive and nice places to stay, you just have to do your research.
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We are currently travelling in the UK and Ireland for 6 weeks from Australia. It is our first time in this part of the world. It is not a super-frugal holiday but one that we have dreamt of for many, many years. We chose to come for 6 weeks to get the best value for the price of the long-haul airfares.
We are mostly staying in self-catering places through Air BnB.
Staying in a reasonably central location in the cities (London/Edinburgh/Glasgow/Dublin) is a bit more expensive but you will save time and money on transport costs as most of the things you will want to see are close to the centre and you do not want to be commuting from the outer suburbs.
My single biggest piece of advice would be RESEARCH. You can find out so much on the internet and learn heaps about the places you are going to so that you will gain the maximum benefit from the experience of being there.
Buy admission tickets online as they are often cheaper than at the gate. Make sure you ask about seniors discount if applicable. This has often saved £1 - £2 on the price of a standard adult admission.
Be very careful in London. Many will recommend the London Pass but you need to check to see if it really offers value for money on the things you want to see rather than what is offered on the pass. Research and understand the London transport options. Know the difference between the Tube and the overground stations and the different day and 7 day passes and what they cover. Check out 2 for 1 deals. These can be worth it depending on your interests. Also consider a 2 Together rail pass if you are doing any amount of train travel.
We always carry a set of plastic plates, cups, some cutlery and a sharp knife as well as our drinks bottles. This can save you heaps as we buy ingredients rather than prepared lunches.
Plan your day of sightseeing and walk as much as possible.
If staying in a B & B, have the full breakfast and skip lunch - have a piece of fruit.
Hope this helps.
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My daughter and I were in the UK last year for a month and had a hire care for 3 weeks - very cheap as the earlier you book the cheaper it is. We did over 1500 miles and had a ball travelling between London and Aberdeen for a family wedding and stopping near York, Edinburgh and Inverness on our trip. Our train trip back to London from Aberdeen was cheaper than the bus trip as once again we booked very early. A much more comfortable trip by train than bus.
London accommodation was the most expensive however shop around for extra inclusions like breakfast and our hotel did a packed lunch as well. There was so many fruit stalls and markets that eating was relatively inexpensive if you shopped around. We did an inclusive tour to Bath which we worked out was cheaper than if we had gone ourselves as it included admissions and some food plus you didn't have to waste time trying to find a park - one of the biggest problems in most of UK!!
If you have children then I really recommend the Harry Potter Studio tour in London. Once again book early and you get a bus there plus admission. I went for my daughters sake but have to admit that when you see what went on behind the scenes you will be amazed.
Our UK holiday was great - we felt safe, people on the whole are very friendly and willing to help. We will be back next year!!
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Most people won't have the opportunity I did-I got to live there for 2 1/2 years when I was a young mother thanks to the US AIR FORCE which my husband was a member of at the time. I found one of most helpful things to “understand” the average English person, and English customs, was to read the women's magazines! It helped with everything I needed at the time-having babies (my second was born there), shopping, where to spend our little “free time.” We enjoyed the English habit of walking in the parks on a Sunday, and found that orange ice lollies are SO MUCH better than anything we can get here! I totally loved it there and if only I were more fond of flying, I would have been back again and again! It was an unforgettable experience, and I still feel “connected” to I. We lived in one of the less beautiful areas, the mostly industrial city of Bedford. We still “visit” via Google Earth from time to time.
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If you like castles come to Kent. We have Rochester, Hever and Leeds castles - all lovely and fairly close together.
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Yorkshire has some of he most beautiful countryside, as you could see from the recent Grand Depart coverage of the Tour de France, and York is a beautiful city to walk around I used to live near Bath and these two cities are my favourites just to wander. Parking es expensive in he UK though so need to factor that in. I love the living museums around the country too, places like Beamish in the North EAst, Blists Hill in Shropshire and the Black Country museum for a look back in time ands a good day out, and the Lake District for its splendid lakes and hills
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Everyone seems to forget Wales when they 'do' the UK. Wales is an integral part of the UK and miss it and you really do miss out. I'm from the south and can highly recommend the Vale of Glamorgan (heritage coast), The Gower, Pembrokeshire and, not forgetting the wonderful city of Cardiff. So much history in Wales - if you love castles you'll be spoilt - Caerphilly, Castell Coch, Carrag Cennen to name just a few. Our beaches are beyond beautiful - esp The Gower and Pembrokeshire. If you're a Dylan Thomas fan you have to visit Swansea (where he was born) and wonderful Laugharne (where he wrote 'Under Milk Wood').
I disagree about London - the more I go the more I love it - so diverse, so many parks, such cheap restaurants (if you look), but expensive attractions.
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Scottish youth hostels are a great deal especially if you get on their mailing lists. a few times a year they offer 30% or so off deals (I always prebook if I can). Historic Scotland passes or membership if you are staying for a bit are worth it. You would only need to visit Edinburgh and Stirling castle to make it worthwhile or the Orkneys. If you or a partner is a student the deals are better because with joint membership you get student price. Wales also has the same sort of deals. Glasgow has amazing free museums, across Scotland there are a lot of free historic sites and excellent walks. Use online booking and don't try to do too much.
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We were invited to a family reunion, we wouldn't normally go to these, but on this occasion we felt we should go. After spending most of the day trawling the internet and going round in ever decreasing circles, I googled the telephone directory for the area I wanted to be and looked for B&B's and googled each one in turn. The first one we looked at we rang the number the price was half of anything else we looked at. We were welcomed in a private home which we were able treat as our own.
Julie
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Meant to say I live in West Somerset, there is preserved steam railway, We also have pretty villages and a big county town, and Exmoor!
Julie
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Scotland is definitely worth visiting but I wouldn't really recommend camping - too much of a lottery with weather and midges. But don't let that put you off visiting. We can go through 4 seasons in as many hours up here and our scenery is spectacular! Orkney, as someone said above, is a wonderful place to visit. Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile is a must. We have lots of fantastic castles and other historic places (Historic Scotland and National Trust Scotland). If you can visit outside the school holidays (accommodation prices rocket during this time!) and have a car, it might be worth going self catering based somewhere central and doing day trips. You can then shop in one of our cheaper supermarkets such as Aldi or Lidl and make up your own packed lunches and cook for yourselves in the evening. Froogs mentioned glamping; we have lots of Wigwams (check out wigwamholidays.com) and camping pods (try Pitchup.com) scattered around the UK but many are only open from April to October. They are like wooden, solid tents with raised beds which turn into sofas, storage, heaters, lights and power. Some have fridges, microwaves etc. Much more comfortable than a tent, warm and watertight. Some even allow you to hire sleeping bags, pillows and towels.
Yesterday someone told me about Easy-break deals which offer quality hotel rooms at reasonable prices. Haven't tried it as we usually camp or go self -catering but I had a look and the hotels seem pretty good. If you're touring, then Travelodges, Premier Inn etc can be good value especially during the week and outside the tourist season. (Check their prices online). Hostelling is also an option if you are touring and have a car. Some even take dogs.
Like someone said above, don't try to do or see too much. I often meet people visiting the UK who seem to spend most of their holiday on the road, just ticking off the tourist attractions. It makes me sad that they never really explore anywhere to appreciate the smaller towns, villages and countryside or get to know anything about our culture or people.
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Don't disregard the option of house swapping or house sitting. The UK is a nation of pet lovers and you would be amazed at the lovely homes you can stay in in exchange for looking after a beloved pet. I haven't done this myself but my sis-in-law has just moved to Mexico City and is thinking of doing this when she comes back to visit in the summer. My only experience of 'glamping' this year was a disappointment. Overpriced and not good facilities. But that was only one place.
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I was going to say Hever and Leeds castle too, they are super!!!
A great free museum in London is the Sir John Soane museum in Holborn, could do it in the same day as British museum.
Northumberland is wonderful too!! Visit Alnwick gardens, Barter bookshop and more. X
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Come to beautiful unspoilt Dorset, fantastic coastline from Shell Bay to Lyme Regis, beautiful chalk hills and secret valleys and no motorways. Lots of B and B and caravans to be rented, outstanding food (Dorset Knobs, Dorset Blue Vinney, Badger Beer) and the natives are friendly.
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oh dear I lost my comment! Here it goes again but shortened! Premier Inns are great prices- look for the saver tickets on their web site. Local library's good for free info and computer use. I packed a little camping stove and purchased gas in UK which was perfect for making tea etc.
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If you want to join a YHA, the Scottish one is cheaper membership fees than the English one. You can then use hostels all over. We also cycle most places and over this bank holiday we covered 190 miles . I am 63 so it is doable and keeps travel costs down .
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We were there years ago and enjoyed London and York but we really loved Keswick in the Lake District and Edinburgh. We were on a budget and didn't want to try driving on the “wrong” side of the road so we ate take out and at ethnic or neighborhood restaurants, staying in B&Bs so breakfast was included, walked or used public transportation. We did by a rail pass before we arrived as it was cheaper to buy it in advance in the USA. I'd love to go back and see so much more and go to Ireland and England as well.
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Thank you for all the great tips!!!
We are hoping to visit England and Scotland in 4 years when we have our mortgage paid off…a celebration trip!
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If you're interested in prehistoric UK there is of course Stonehenge in Wiltshire. It's an amazing place but I believe they operate on a timed ticket scheme. I live about 20 mins for Avebury which for prehistoric UK is in some respects far better than Stonehenge as you can get up close and personal to the stones, the village is quaint, West Kennett Avenue is a lovely place to walk and picnic and if you have a decent pair of shoes you can walk to Silbury Hill and a West Kennett Long Barrow. Apart from parking I've at Avebury village all the other attractions op are FREE and the countryside is just stunning. The Georgian town of Bath is also in the vicinity but I recommend you use the park and ride facilities as parking and driving in Bath is horrendous (and pricey experience). I also live close to the village of Lacock which is unspoilt and was featured in the BBC Pride and Prejudice adaptation and various parts of the village and abbey featured in Harry Potter films.
I have been all over the UK in my time and I love our history, it's available around every corner. No matter where you go there will be something good to see 🙂
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I visited London last year along with a trip to Legoland. Stayed in a premier inn in Slough which while not very glamorous lol was reasonably priced and we got a fast train into centre of London in fifteen minutes.
If planning to visit Scotland as well it would be worth checking out flights between England and Glasgow or Edinburgh . If you book early enough you can get some good prices and cheaper than petrol costs.
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