Travel Tips | London

London is without a doubt one of my favorite cities. It is a city full of fashion, landmarks, royalty, and of course those desirable English accents. If you plan on crossing the pond anytime soon, here are a couple tips!

[Location of the UK]

-Currency: The Pound

-Language: English

-Food: London isn't really known for their food, but of course some dishes are a hit. In my opinion the Full English Breakfast is God's gift to us. It consists of eggs, bacon (similar to that of Canadian bacon), toast, baked beans, and a tomato. Of course I devoured it so quickly, I couldn't even manage to take a picture. [note: the eggs in the UK taste saltier than those in the US. So if you are one that adds salt to your eggs, I would taste them first!]

- You can't go to London and not eat pub grub. The classic pub grub dish is fish&chips. The catch of the day, battered and fried, with a side of french fries is what you can't expect.

- On another note, don't be afraid to walk into a Tesco or Sainsbury's (grocery stores) and grab a sandwich to go. London isn't cheap, so this is a great affordable alternative.

-Drink: TEA- it's a classic and a must try while in London. It is also a million times better than the fake Starbucks crap. My first time in London, I did an afternoon tea tasting with pastries and mini sandwiches at The Wolseley. It is a little bit on the pricier side, but you're also paying for the atmosphere, so I thought it was worth it.

Another drink to try while in London is a Pimm's cup. It is a gin based drink with mint, apples/other fruit, and lemonade. It quenches your thirst, especially in the summer!

-Clothing: I have been to London twice: once in June and once in March. Even in the summer, it can get a little bit chilly and windy some days. I would wear a light jacket or at least tie one around your waist. In March, it rained a lot when I was there. So I would recommend carrying a small umbrella around with you. It can also get very windy there year round, so plan accordingly.

-Stay: I would 100% recommend "The Windermere Hotel". It is in more of a residential area [see below] with the Victoria Coach Station and a tube stop right around the corner. Since it is slightly out of the city center, it tends to be cheaper, although it is London so don't expect anything to be cheap cheap. It is still only a 15-20 minute walk to Big Ben and Westminster Abbey and all of the other touristy areas, but like I said earlier the tube is right there as well if you don't want to walk.

- To Do: Besides all the "must-see" things that guide books always mention-- like Big Ben, the Tower of London, etc. here are a couple additions...

-In my opinion you should skip the "London Eye" and go to "The View from The Shard" instead. The Shard is Western Europe's tallest building, so it gives the best of the city from above in my opinion.

-I really like the hop-on-hop-off bus. Even though it is very basic, it takes you everywhere you need to go, and it gives you a brief history of what you're seeing.

-I recommend taking a day trip or two out of London. I went to see The Warner Bros. Making of Harry Potter and I'm not even a huge Harry Potter fan (Gasp. Yes, I know). I still thoroughly enjoyed it though. Plus that butterbeer is to die for!

-Another day trip out of London I recommend is to see Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, and Bath. I did my tour through Evans Evans and I loved it. The guide was great and the views were spectacular.

-Additional Tips: The tube is completely safe, very easy, and in my opinion, the best way to travel in London (besides walking). If you are there for a couple of days, you might want to considering getting the all day travel pass, where you pay one fee, get a card, and use it as many times as you want in that one day. Just be aware, the tube is not open at all hours, so check what time it stops running. Especially if you go to a show at the theater. Once I got out of my show, the tube had already closed, so I ended up walking back to my hotel. I felt completely safe doing so too. The streets seemed to really clear out later in the evening

-If you go to Buckingham Palace to see the changing of the guards, make sure you check which day. They do not change the guards every day. Also be aware of pickpocketers here! You are jammed in there with a crowd of people to see the changing of the guards and someone could easily pickpocket you.