I have decided to go to England for possibly a full month, but I've never been and don't know were to start to plan. I've just graduated college and this is a graduation gift to myself. My main concern is where to stay affordably. I'm not picky as long as it's clean and accessible and private. Any suggestions? Should I rent a flat as you guys talk about? I'm apprehensive about hostels because of roomies. But what are the opinions on that? Please help guys. You know everything there IS to know about England/London area.

PS Is there really a "best" time of year to go? Some say no, other yes.

You'll need to start by deciding on a budget.

Do you like big cities or want more rural. ???? London can be overwhelming but so incredible! Budget is important too!

Well, I just have to visit some of the castles, but mainly London. And how far is Weybridge from London?

Marse===Sept.is a terrific time to visit London--sometimes it can be days before you see rain....<BR><BR>Get a budget and call a travel agent-<BR>They can set you up with a hotel that includes full English Breakfast daily ( which will help immensely with budgeting)--<BR><BR>Go for a moderate prices hotel in a decent safe area--Knightsbridge is good,so is Kensington, and Marblearch area.....make sure you are near a tube stop--<BR><BR>You can try TravelBound or EuropeExpress--they have websites but may make you book thru an agent-they are both super reliable and affordable...<BR><BR>Don't bother with a flat unless there are more people going with you--too expensive if you are going solo...

I hope I get some more responses. Will you guys read my earlier post? <BR>"1st Time Visitor To England Needs Advice"...TY I really just need advice on where to stay reasonably in London or right outside within easy access.

Thank you Andy. I truly appreciate the helpful info.

Marse: Weybridge is just outside of London on the M25 motorway not far from Heathrow. If you are asking if Weybridge is a good place to stay - I say not. You would eat up any savings with the extra transport costs getting into London every day.<BR><BR>I always rent a flat in London - but if you are on a tight budget a B&B would be better. As Andy says - a flat will be more expensive unless you have a flatmate. But if you do find someone to join you then a flat would be best. A decent B&B in a good area of London (Victoria, Bloomsbury, S. Kens) can be had for around &pound;45 per night including a FULL cooked breakfast. The cheapest flat will run &pound;60-&pound;70 per night. And some B&Bs will reduce their rates for a long booking.<BR><BR>London IS expensive - but worth every penny. But if you have a full month think about splitting it in two. Two weeks in London and two weeks in Oxford or Cambridge or York or Edinburgh. You would not need a car in any of these places and could tour around by local buses/trains.<BR><BR>The advantage is that you could find much cheaper accomodations in any of them than in London. This would stretch your budget. Of those, Edinburgh would be the most expensive but still around &pound;10 less than in London.

Marse - the best guide to Europe for recent grads is Let's Go (sorry Fodors!) Fodors tends to be targeted to a older and wealthier age group. Let's Go (or Lonely Planet or Rough Guide) tells you the best hostels or cheap hotels and also how to get from point A to point B in an inexpensive way. Hostelling can be a good thing and fun, as if you are young and travelling alone, you can meet people and find travelling companions. Not all hostels crowd 10 people into a room, sometimes it's a room for two, and sometimes private small room with shared breakfasts. It all depends on the hostel. Just make sure you have a lock on your bag (as you would anywhere). Cheap hotels and B&Bs can be another way to go, but they will tend to be a bit more expensive. Depending on the time of year you go, try the University of London as they rent out the dorm rooms when classes are out for the summer and these have pretty good locations. Think budget, time, and priorities. I loved backpacking and hostelling around when I was your age. Now I'm older and like a few more creature comforts, but I still tend to mix cheaper pensiones/hotels with nicer ones on my trips, as I find it is easier to meet the people of the country at smaller less-expensive places.

As Suzy says - hosteling in the UK is great. BUT it is an iffy proposition in London. There are a few really good ones, but many more are REALLY bad. And London Hostels tend to be as expensive as basic B&Bs where you are guaranteed a private room. <BR><BR>The main problem is the social services agencies use them to house homeless and drugs offenders. So your room mate could be a nice Aussie girl, or someone who was living under a bridge last week.<BR><BR>The good hostels are pretty much full all year long.<BR><BR>Staying in student accomodations is a good alternative if your trip fits in the term breaks -- generally Late March - late April and early July to mid/late Sept. LSE, University of Westminster and University of London all rent student housing.

There are so many options open to you!!There are some nice small B&B's that might be good for you, and also some of the chain hotels have good discounts. Also there are some great websites that can get you good discounts at some of the more well known hotels.<BR><BR>First of all, you have to sit down and work on how much you can afford. When you have a set number (I want to spend between $75 and $100 a night), then people on this board can start giving you some hotel names and recommendations and discount websites.<BR><BR>I've been to England several times at different times of the year, and the only time I think is not a good time to go is August. But if you ask my favorite time of year to go, I would say near Christmas because London has so much going on at that time.

My family and I had good luck using this website. I'm jealous and I hope you have a great time!!http://www.smoothhound.co.uk/index.html<BR><BR>

Marse, When I was in school one summer (approx. 5-6 weeks) I stayed at Cambria House. It's very well located, safe, budget-priced AND they took credit cards. The info is as follows:<BR><BR>The Cambria House (Budget – Single w/out Bathroom 27 pounds in 1996)<BR>37 Hunter Street, Russell Square<BR>London, England WC1N 1BJ<BR>0171-837-1654 phone<BR>0171-837-1229 fax<BR>Had been a Frommer’s & Sandra Gustafson’s Cheap Sleeps recommendation originally. This is an extremely clean good value cheap place to stay. Plenty of showers and toilets on each floor and although there wasn’t a television in my room, there is a television lounge. Note: no elevators, but was certainly doable. Although they have a curfew, for a 5 pound deposit they will give you a key. Breakfast was included in this great deal. The location is great since it was close to the Russell Square Tube stop, in the back of a mini-mall where there was a grocery store and an art-house movie theatre.<BR><BR>Hope this helps!

P.S. Forgot to mention that I've had other friends (both male and female) who have stayed here - they were quite happy with it since it met all of their criteria: location, cost, safety.

TTT