The Ups & Downs of London Town
Coming off of the heels of Ireland and Scotland, I finally made my way to the empire that the sun allegedly never sets on, well, used to never set on, Britain.
Instead of my usual style of writing about the landscape and what my expectations were versus reality, I’m just going to write about my highs and lows. I’m actually pretty divided on London and the surrounding cities I went to, so I think this format lends itself a little bit better to writing about that experience.
Highs
- Museums: Holy shite, did these blow me away! I went to the London National Gallery, Tate Britain, and the British Museum and they were everything I could have hoped for: free and jam-packed with legendary pieces. I mean, I saw works from Raphael, Michaelangelo, Renoir, and Caravaggio one day ,only to seethe Rosetta Stone and mummies the next day. Did I mention it was all free? Well, technically I paid for a Raphael exhibit( 26 pounds but it was worth it). Museums could have easily been 4-5 days out of my trip, but I got museum’d out after the third place. These attractions are well worth your time!
- Public Transportation: Locals might get a good laugh out of this, but the public transportation never failed me. It was always on time and simple to set up and go. It was far cheaper than a tax(8 pounds gets you anywhere), so that’s a plus even if it doesn’t say much. Just be aware that they apparently go on strike occasionally. The tube system(underground rail) shut down for a day and that caused issues for plenty of people. It never impacted me, though, so as far as I’m concerned it never happened.
- Food: They have everything. Indian, Ethiopian, Italian, Thai, Japanese, Polish – you name it, you can find it. While it might be cheap, it’s well worth the inflated London cost 8 out of 10 times, and having quality food down every street is a huge plus. AND, if you want to save some $, you can head to a nearby Tesco Express and get a 3 pound meal deal, which is a sandwich, bag of chips/candy, and drink. I definitely took advantage nearly daily and it was well worth it.
- Meeting With My Friend Chris: While this is specific to me, I still had a great time meeting up with a buddy of mine that I met in Australia on my first trip. We got some incredible sushi and enjoyed a synthwave concert in Bristol. So if you visit Britain, get yourself a friend named Chris.
- Hyde Park: It’s wonderful. Peaceful, big green fields of grass, art around every bend, and it has a few ponds filled with all sorts of birds. And it’s on the way to and from so many big sights in the city! I won’t tell you too much more – just go.
Lows
- Price: They say London is expensive and they’re not lying! Except for meal deals and wonderful museums, shit is expensive. For me, it was a stake in the heart of my budget. But if you plan for just London, it would be much more manageable. If you’re willing to rough it, you can live off of $40-50/ day, maybe $30-40, but it’ll be very bare bones and you won’t be partying and dining out consistently. I would say a good middle ground is $70-90. That’s much more doable while still having a bit of fun. For the more expensive trips with hotel stays and fancy dinners, you’d probably be looking at $150-350/ day. My day trip to Bath and Stonehenge was $100, but that was an 8-hour trip, so definitely expensive but not outrageous.
- Hostels: This sort of goes hand-in-hand with the last point, but it’s even more than just being expensive. London has some of the most disgusting crack den hostels I’ve seen out of anywhere in the world. They’re far dirtier/ disorganized than Peru and about three times the price. It was the only time I dealt with bed bugs and the only time I left a hostel early. I’m talking boarded-up windows, leaking toilets, people living there like a house, and rude staff. The only positive was their consistency in that they were consistently disappointing almost across the board. If you do need hostels in the London area, stay away from No. 8 Seven Sisters and be sure to book at least a few nights at the Urbany Hostel London, my favorite of the 5 places I stayed at.
- Excitement: I chalk this one up to my experience of the touristy stuff, but London can be a bit boring. Big Ben, the River Thames, and the London Eye are awesome to walk past, but that’s about it. There are definitely tours, but I’m not sure the prices would be worth it. I’ll admit, it’s exciting to walk around the big city at first, but it quickly fades and most of the fun you can pay for will cost you a pretty penny. At most, I would suggest a week in London with a day trip or two to break up the monotony.
Overall, although I was underwhelmed by London, there’s still quite a bit to love. Pubs are great, museums are a steal, and you’ll find just about any food known to man. I think I just stayed there too long. Plus, I didn’t go to a football game. That could have made the whole trip for me!
This entry was posted in Advice, Europe