Livin' That London Life | A Tourists Guide To London

“YES EMILY WE KNOW YOU WENT TO LONDON STOP GOING ON ABOUT IT!” I am sorry but I am going to do one last post on London, one because I haven’t taken any new photos yet, but two because I wanted to so — WHY NOT –?
I had only been to London twice before I went, but they were only for two or three days, so I hadn’t spent a great deal of time there. Millions of people live in London, but to those who don’t it can be really daunting because it is such a big city. For someone like me who lives in a tiny town far away from London, its a big deal going to the capital.
My week in London went a bit like this…. We got there on a Saturday and we stayed in an AirBnB house in East Barnet (which was lovely by the way) and we trekked it up to Wetherspoons for tea. On Sunday we did the museums – the V and A, The Natural History museum and the science museum. Monday we explored China Town and had lunch in a Chinese Buffet Restaurant and went to Oxford Street and Carnaby Street << HELLO OXFORD STREET LUSH GOODBYE MY MONEY >>. Tuesday was the day we went to Greenwich and went to the Cutty Sark, Maritime Museum and the Emirates Cable Car over the thames and went to my fave Prezzo’s for tea. On Wednesday we stayed away from the big smoke and went to Watford to visit the Warner Bros Studio ~~ aka Harry Potter ~~ and went to a lovely local pub for dinner where I had the most amazing burger with camembert in!! Thursday we visited the Tower of London, London’s oldest pub and the largest Topshop store. On our final day, Friday we went to the Sealife Centre, Borough Market, Covent Garden and then Carnaby Street before watching my fave rugby team Saracens play in the evening. WE DID A LOT.
I wanted to share some tips for anyone visiting London for a holiday, or if you will be studying there for uni soon etc… because it is a big city which doesn’t stop and therefore can be a little patronizing, but at the same time I loved it!

<< Tubes are a must >>

You can’t get around London easily without getting a tube. Well, yes you can get Uber’s or Buses but the Tube are cheap. Each day we got railcards which covered trains, tubes, and buses for something like £7. Considering when I am at home and get a bus into Plymouth it costs me £4 this is such a good deal. However, they can be very busy during rush hour so if you can avoid that then that will make your life easier, and they can get very hot so wear layers which you can take off etc.. I loved using the Tubes as I found it easy to navigate my way around them. If you miss a tube, there will be another one in a few minutes so don’t worry. P.s when going up and down the escalators stand on the right so you don’t annoy anyone in a rush!!

<< Carnaby Street, Oxford Street and Covent Garden are where all the shops are at >>

You can’t go to London and not spend some time mooching around the shops, as the shops them selves are pretty amazing compared to your local ones. These streets are the best places to go if you want to find some of your favourite brands. They are all only one tube stop away from each other so you can cover them in a few hours or day depending on how big a shopper you are!

<< Vouchers are handy >>

London does life up to the slight reputation that everything is that tad bit more expensive than the rest of the UK so if you have any vouchers at all to use then do so. We used Tesco vouchers for restaurants, to get into the Tower of London and other attractions. And we also used stickers from soap bottles we have to get into the Sealife Centre. As lame and touristy it might sound it is important because you will save yourself a whole lot of money!

<< Make sure you wear comfy shoes >>

We did ~~ A LOT ~~ of walking when we were in London. I think my phone said something like 16000 steps each day! 16000 STEPS!! That’s double what I do on a daily basis. So don’t go wearing heels or anything extravagant because your feet will KILL. I wore my Roches, or converse or trusty New Look shoes because they were comfiest for me. You don’t see anyone on the Tube wearing heels, they swap heels for shoes on the way home, so you won’t be alone. BE PRACTICAL.

<< AirBnB’s are good for long stays >>

As I mentioned we did stay in an AirBnb. Sometimes you hear about them being disappointing but we loved it. We stayed in a cosy two bed home which had everything we needed for something like £800 for the week. This is cheaper than any central London hotel, plus because there was four of us the space was handy. If you only go for a couple of days then the hotel would probably be better, as with Bnb’s you have to pay a security deposit, but if you are going with a family or friends then it will be cheaper as you can split the cost.
I hope you have found these tips helpful if you are going to London, or are planning too. On a side note, my amazing cousin Alexara has just started out her blog which is SUPER EXCITING so go check it out and give her lots of love and a follow!
Have you ever been to London? If so what did you enjoy the most? Or do you live there?

Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest | Facebook
Subscribe to my Youtube… video coming soon!
Follow my BlogLovin