My UK trip: Tips about exploring London + Places to See
Hey there! So I visited London for the first time in 2023 with my partner, My escapade in London was nothing short of fabulous—a month-long of beautiful memories! But it wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine. The real challenge was keeping our wallet from staging a rebellion.
Now, in this article, I’ll be sharing some interesting encounters we had in London as well as tips to help you navigate the transport system to save some money, interesting places and things to do in London. Let’s get this storytelling party started! 🇬🇧
I have also wanted to visit London, but I’ve been quite reluctant because I always heard that it is crazy expensive, but I didn’t know how expensive it was till we started the travel plan. Turns out, getting the Visa was the easiest part.
If you’d like to know how to get a UK Visa you can check out this article on how to apply for a visitor’s visa
Let’s start with the flight saga, oh boy! British Airways seemed to think we had a money-making machine somewhere because why else would they charge $5k per person for an economy seat? Yeah, right, as if Otedola is my father 🥴.
After some serious detective work, we found a better deal with a Turkish airline from Benin Republic to London. That called for some impromptu Benin planning too.
Next, let’s talk accommodations—I started the exhausting quest on Airbnb and Booking.com. Almost all the budget-friendly spots we found were booked, fortunately, luck was on our side, we found a fantastic deal for a new Airbnb in London, and the host was generous by offering a 30% discount to the first three people to book the apartment. It was just within our budget.
Getting to the UK
The ride from Heathrow airport to the apartment felt like a marathon, First off, we needed a sim card—found one that suited our needs but it was 40 pounds. ahem what?!
Next, we needed to get Oyster cards and while we didn’t know how to navigate the public transport at the time we still got two and it cost 47 pounds each (cue internal panic).
Next, we kinda got lost outside the airport because we weren’t familiar with the area so Uber to the rescue and the Uber cost was 17 pounds.
We finally located the apartment and thankfully, the apartment was a gem, it was located in a beautiful environment close to the airport.
The host had informed me earlier that it was cheaper to cook than to eat out, I really did not understand how expensive it was to eat out until we went to a restaurant and spent 50 pounds on two pizzas and a bottle of water 🥲 . After that, we pretty much just cooked.
There was this one time, we were on the hunt for a Nigerian restaurant, and someone had recommended a spot. I was excited to see what they offered so we took a 40 minutes walk to the restaurant. After settling in and enduring what felt like a 20-minute wait, we were informed that we’d need to scan the menu (PS: I hate having to scan for the menu in restaurants; I mean, not everything needs to be online). Scanning through the menu almost gave me a shock—I mean, those prices! We checked out Google reviews about the place because if we’d be spending that much it’d have to be a really good meal. We ended up leaving without trying anything. Once outside, we concluded that since we were traveling, we should probably have been more open to trying out foreign cuisines instead.
Places we visited in the UK
Obviously, There are a lot of things to do in London both free and paid. We visited places that weren’t very touristy hence less crowded, and here are some so cool spots I saw in London that I think you could add to your list.
The Twist Museum
This was the actual reason I was excited to visit London. I had been on my bucket list since they launched in 2022, I saw some TikTok videos and reviews about the place, went through their website, and was pretty much hooked. Great experience by the way. It is a museum of science and illusion. The experience lasted for about an hour for us but it can be shorter or longer depending on how long you look
You can purchase tickets on the Twist Museum website. The ticket price starts from 23 pounds per person and it varies based on the time and period you book. You could also purchase a ticket at the location.
Standford bridge (Chelsea)
If you’re a football lover chances are you’re visiting London to watch a match. My partner is a Chelsea and so we watched a live match together, I was there for pictures but the experience was surreal. Football fans curse a lot. Chelsea lost, fans left the field pissed, but it was a fun experience for me, especially chanting “Come on Chelsea” 😂
Emirate stadium (Arsenal)
We went for a tour of the Emirate stadium, It was surreal. I didn’t get to meet Saka which was disrespectful but I forgive him 😅. It was an audio-guided tour, we were each given a device to listen with. It felt cool.
After the stadium tour, we went to the Arsenal museum to learn more about the founder and some players, but I was pretty much done with the day after the stadium tour. I’m also not one for history lessons about football
Big Ben
The Big Ben is the iconic clock of London right next to the parliament, without a doubt, the Big Ben is famous, one of the most popular landmarks in London. You could do a guided tour to learn more about the iconic clock if you’re into that kind of stuff or you could just read it on Wikipedia like the rest of us.
Seven dials market
The Seven Dials Market is an indoor market where you can get diverse street food. You can hang out with friends and sit and enjoy the food, We met up with a colleague and we had a really nice drink and BIG BOY PIZZA
You can check them out on their website
Bars and Nightlife
BarItalia
If you’re close to Uxbridge, you should check out Baritalia, It was recommended by our host. There is a DJ and a dance floor every weekend and it gets busy. They have nice cocktails and happy hour.
Jurema bar
Magical experience and has a beautiful interior check them out on their website.
Shochu Lounge
A Japanese-themed lounge with beautiful decor
Mr Fogg’s Hat Tavern & Gin
Serves amazing cocktails, the menu is based on different centuries and each location has its own story. The experience was a beautiful one
Some not-so-touristy places we visited.
When we visited London, the most popular tourist spots were crowded or fully booked, so we opted to explore less crowded areas. Here are some of the places we explored.
Bathurst Mews and Hyde Park (West London)
Grafitti tunnel
Brompton cemetery – a historic cemetery with catacombs
Brixton Market
River Thames
Other places we hope to visit next time we visit London
Free roof terraces and viewpoints (check opening times, occasionally venues can be closed due to private hires)
- The Lookout
- Post-building roof garden
- Level 10 at the state modern
- The garden at 120
- Primrose Hill
Pubs
- Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese: From 1667. The pub’s unique interior sprawls out over at least four levels. Be sure to head down the narrow stairs to the lower vaults, which are thought to predate the 17th-century upper storeys.
- Cities of Yorke
- The Grenadier
- Ye Olde Mitre
- The Crosse Keys
- Jamaica Winehouse
Street markets
- Whitechapel Market
- Ridley Road Market
- Shepherd’s Bush Market
- Queen’s Market Upton Park
- Southhall Broadway
- London Docklands
Tips about using the public transport in London
Before you get to London here are some travel tips I think you should know about using the public transport from Heathrow, Gatwick, and Stansted airports
PS I got this tip from a Londoner so you should listen to what I have to share 😉
Public transport tickets within London: You can tap in and out at the ticket gates using a contactless payment card including Apple, Google, etc Pay. If you have a contactless payment card already it is very likely that it’ll work. Just try!
Alternatively, you can also use a regular Oyster card, The card cost 7 pounds and you’d also need to top it up.
You can get a regular Oyster card from the ticket machines at all stations in London, Including all Heathrow terminal stations (T2, T3, T4 & T5) and at Gatwick airport station, look for a ticket machine that has a large yellow circle on the front of it and select Oyster Card from the ticket options. There’s no need to get an Oyster Card at Stansted Airport because you can not use it for your travel anyway.
If you have any questions, there are members of staff around who will help you.
Avoid paper tickets within London: Don’t buy a physical paper ticket for traveling within London because it is way more expensive! It might only make sense if you’re in London for 1 day only and do not have any contactless payment options instead.
Ticket fares: There’s a daily price cap from 8.10 pounds to 11.70 pounds depending on the zone, Although you always need to touch in and out, the system will at some point stop charging you. If you don’t reach the daily price cap, you’ll only pay for your single journeys.
Feel free to use any bus, tram, or train (no matter what operator) that you come across in London – it’s all included in the price cap. There’s no need to use cabs or Ubers – just hop on the trains and buses like everybody else does. Public transport is frequent, safe, clean, and easy!
There is also a weekly price cap from 40.70 pounds to 58.50 However, if you’re using your contactless payment card, the weekly price cap only applies within a set Monday to Sunday period.
Discounts for children: Children aged 11-15 only pay half of the adult rate. When you arrive, get them a regular oyster card and then simply ask a member of the station staff to add a Young Visitor discount to it (the discount is valid for up to 14 days). The child must be present when adding a Young Visitor discount.
Journey planner: Download the Citymapper app to plan your trips, it’s provides information about the routes, and buses available, and everyone I met in London uses it. it helps you find the shortest route combining walking, bus, tubes, and train.
So there you have it, I’ve given you the gist and tips. If you read to this point thank you for reading, and if you have any questions or any tips I missed about London please ask away in the comment section I’d be happy to respond. Safe travels and see you in the next one.
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