McLake's Guide to London (2 Viewers)

[McLake]

Hi,

I have been lucky enough to visit London many times in my life, most recently in Jan '05. After spending a lot of time there I feel very competant in talking about all aspects of planning a holiday there (accept accommodation). So I am using this thread as an open book, ask any questions and I will post the answer, gradually building a complete FAQ.

Some possible topics:
- Transport
- Attractions & Activities
- Sightseeing
- When to go & What to bring

-------------------------------
- Attractions & Activities -
-------------------------------
- History & Science Museums (Free)
- Tower of London
- Tower Bridge (free to walk across, tour costs money but is worth it)
- London Eye
- The Thames (Free)
- Hyde Park (Free)
- Oxford & Regent St (Free to look, cost money to buy things)
- Greenwhich (Free to walk around town and enter observetory)
- The Docklands
- Bucking Place (Free)
- Big Ben & Houses of Parlement (Free)
- Trafalgar Square (Free)
- Picadilly Circus (Free)
- Camden (+ Little Vencie) (Free)
- British Museum (Free)
- Tate Modern (Free)
- St Pauls Catherdral
- Westminster Abbey
- London Dungeon
- London Zoo (Pricey, but has some animals that you just can't see in Taronga)

-------------------------------
--------- Transport ---------
-------------------------------

The city is divided into 6 main transport "Zones". Most of the attractions/the main part of London is in "Zone 1".

Tube\Light Rail\National Rail:
- Pricey, but efficent and frequent. Covers large area of London.
- Zone 1 "carnets" (pack of ten) are a good deal if you intended to make lots of Zone 1 trips, as they give you a discount.
- Travel passes (day, 3 day or weekly) are good if you make multiple trips per day, or want to catch the Bus as well.
- Oyster smart card will also save you on single tickets, but it costs a £3 deposit.

Bus:
- Cheap way to travel, goes everywhere and come quite often (< every 10 mins in city)

Ferry:
- Senic, but not very good as a form of transport otherwise.

Taxi:
- Expensive

Car:
- Hard to park + Congestion Charge makes city driving prohibitive

 

[jumb]

Any hot girls?

 

[redruM]

competant*

 

[McLake]

competant*

Clearly not competant, as I can't spell

 

[redruM]

Clearly not competant, as I can't spell

perhaps fixing the copy n paste job for the disneyland thread too

 

[dave_119]

Hi,

I have been lucky enough to visit London many times in my life, most recently in JAan '05. After spending a lot of time there I feel very competant in talking about all aspects of planning a holiday there (accept accommodation). So I am using this thread as an open book, ask any questions and I will post the answer, gradually building a complete FAQ.

Some possible topics:
- Transport
- Attractions & Activities
- Sightseeing
- When to go & What to bring

hahahahahaha...... what can u tell me about duxford?

 

[braindrainedAsh]

I want to study in London next year.... probably at the University of Westminister (Harrow campus.... school of media)..... have you been to Harrow? Is it noice?

I might have more questions later lol.

 

[McLake]

I haven't been to Harrow (or Duxford)

 

[Emily.]

whats london like? is it as dreary and wet and horrible as they say it is?? i want to get trasferred there once i finish my traineeship (well finish uni & CA) on a secondment for a while...so whats it like?

 

[dave_119]

when i was in london, it was cold, snowing, but i liked it.....

McLake u aint that good then... well duxford is in the country.. famous for its aviation muesum

 

[elisabeth]

whats london like? is it as dreary and wet and horrible as they say it is?? i want to get trasferred there once i finish my traineeship (well finish uni & CA) on a secondment for a while...so whats it like?

I lived in London for 5 years (98-early 2004) so I guess I've got some authority about what it's like as a place not just to visit, but to live in.

You know, London actually apparently gets less rain than Sydney but it never feels like it because it just drizzles. If you love hot weather and sunshine, it's probably not the best place for you. Myself, I like rain and the cosy feeling it evokes. So yes, there are a crapload of days when it will just rain, rain rain... then there'll be a break from the rain but it'll be overcast. London seems 'dreary' to a lot of people because of not just the weather, but the buildings and everything are grey too. Anywho, there are a couple of other main types of days they get:

Clear, crisp, blue skyed but fucking cold days in winter. Very nice. Dress up warmly, watch out for black ice and enjoy watching kids amuse themselves over seeing their breath in the air.

Mildly warm (for people used to the climate here, anyway) days where the sun is shining and -everyone- goes out to the green areas in their least wintery clothing. It's got a great cheerful atmosphere, because it doesn't happen all year round so everyone appreciates it. This happens for I reckon 3/4 of summer.

The best kind - snow days! I think it was back in 2002 that they got proper winter snow that stuck for a few days. Granted, it was only a few centimeters, but this hadn't happened for 12 years. My friends and dad tell me it snowed again this winter. It's nice to look out on, but it makes public transport and going out a bit of a hassle because the city isn't designed for snow and people aren't used to it.

Way more than you wanted to know, aye?

 

[Courtenay]

A few times i was there last year it absolutely poured, and they shut down half the tube system because all the stations were flooded...Harrow is evidently quite nice, a couple of my friends are at uni there so it can't be that bad.

I wasnt licing in london, i was in the south west, and its not like sydney where you get 3/4 days of pouring rain, it will just rain gently for like a month, the only storm we had with thunger and lightening was a snow storm which was very cool

Once its hits like 20 degrees the girls from school were all sunbaking...at about 25 degrees beware as some cannot cope with the heat and strip off to their underwear and lie in parks...

 

[braindrainedAsh]

It is freezing cold in London in Jan/Feb? What would be the average temp?

 

[McLake]

whats london like? is it as dreary and wet and horrible as they say it is?? i want to get trasferred there once i finish my traineeship (well finish uni & CA) on a secondment for a while...so whats it like?

It really isn't.

McLake u aint that good then... well duxford is in the country.. famous for its aviation muesum

I claimed to know about London, not England or the UK in general.

It is freezing cold in London in Jan/Feb? What would be the average temp?

It can be cold (down to 1C or less) or can be quite mild (this year when i was there most days were about 10C).

 

[dave_119]

i was in UK in feb and it was freezing in london 2 degrees each day

 

[White Rabbit]

I wanna go to Belfast!

 

[my sharona]

Hi,

I have been lucky enough to visit London many times in my life, most recently in Jan '05. After spending a lot of time there I feel very competant in talking about all aspects of planning a holiday there (accept accommodation). So I am using this thread as an open book, ask any questions and I will post the answer, gradually building a complete FAQ.

Some possible topics:
- Transport
- Attractions & Activities
- Sightseeing
- When to go & What to bring

What's rent like? Where's a good place to live? (not shared)
Is it true that it's not hard to get a job in a pub or a bar?

 

[Courtenay]

What's rent like? Where's a good place to live? (not shared)
Is it true that it's not hard to get a job in a pub or a bar?

how much money do you have?
I made friends living in youth hostels in shared rooms for about 90 pounds ($225) a week.
There are a lot of jobs going in london but you will get sick of working in a pub quickly because the pay is lousy and hours suck.
Best bet is to try to find a live-in pub job, but then they are mostly old local pubs in the country.

 

[RagingHomosxual]

mclake ur a moderator.......and u seem like a decent bloke

first time 4 everyhting

 

[christ_ine]

I was in London for a few days last December. Meh, it's ok. I had more fun in Oxford.