London for Tightwads and Green Horns
 

London for tightwads and greenhorns

Flight: Zürich – Gatwick. SFr. 170- return with Aer Lingus

Transportation from Gatwick to London and back: £10.00/person (had a group rate with 4 people). We used FCC train. Trains run every 15 min. Get the tickets at the train station in Gatwick. We got off at London Bridge.

Accommodation: LSE Bankside House. This is a student’s dorm used for tourists during school holidays. £85 per room with breakfast. Very basic large and clean rooms with no TV, radio or hairdryer. You get towels (changed every second day) and your beds are made daily. The location is quiet and, depending on the hotel guests, the rooms can be relatively quiet too. Sometimes you'll here a toilet flush from somewhere outside your room. The corridor carpets are stained and there are lots of marks on the outdoor walls and doors of the corridors. Do not go here for luxury. The location is fantastic. Right behind Tate Modern on the South Bank. Breakfast is quite good with bacon, pancakes, eggs, toast, cereals, yoghurt, coffee, juice, tomatoes, sausages and fruit. Very close to the millennium bridge. You get one room key and have an "id" card to prove you are a guest. Security is relatively tight here.

London Original Bus Tour: Get your tickets at the train station. They are 19£. No need to show discounted coupons or buy train tickets. The hop on hop off bus was very good although buses were quite often stuck in traffic. We also did the river cruise which was very nice. Your tickets are good 24 hours.

Madame Tussaud’s: We used the 2for1 Daysout coupons printed from the website. I used my train tickets from Zürich-Gatwick as proof of purchase. It worked like a charm. I had to show my train tickets though. We got in line at 9.00 in the morning and found it moved quickly. The exhibition starts at 9.30.

Travelcard: Very easy to use. We bought one day’s worth because we used the Original Bus for one day and we did another day of just walking. Because we purchased our cards before 9.30 in the morning, we got the more expensive cards. However, we wanted to be at Madame Tussaud's on time!

Buckingham Palace Changing of the Guard: Very crowded, very boring and very long.

Dirty Dancing Musical: A delight. We got seats for 39£ at TKTS. There were cheaper seats but the viewing from the seats was obstructed. Make sure you ask about viewing before getting the cheapest seats at any of these venues.

Food in London: hit or miss. We usually ate pub food

Trafalgar Square: The Plinth is a delight but onlookers get bored with it quickly.

Leicester Square: A calm in the crowds and noise around Picadilly Circus.

Daysout 2for1: All you need are train tickets and not necessarily travelcards. They must be bought at a train station.

Hope this helps clear up any questions you might have!

Hi Schuler, was glad to hear a report on the LSE accommodation. I have that on my list for a future trip, I guess the main question is - would you stay there again? I guess that makes us tightwads too, would rather spend money on other things! We too loved Dirty Dancing, if only it WAS Patrick Swayze!

Does the Bankside House have ensuite bathroom?

schuler - any pictures or at least descriptions of CW?

Is not that Swiss House at Leicester Square tacky? And the puppet/clock show as well?

Maudie: I would. I would also ask for a quiet room when reserving.

yk: Yes, they do. Not all rooms have ensuite bathrooms at the Bankside House so be careful when booking.

Pal: CW describes himself quite well. The Swiss House no longer exists. There's just a nice post with the different cantons leading on to the walk to Leicester Square and nothing else.

Hi again, was there a particular reason you picked the Bankside House against the Bankside Apartments or was it purely for the cost? Did you also look into Northumberland House? Just curious as they are all in a great position for site seeing. I guess the apartments might be quieter but then they are way more expensive.

Hi Maudie: Our decision was definitely based on cost. I wanted to be on the Southbank because I love the evening walks and the views from there.

If you prefer to be near Trafalgar and Covent Garden, then Northumberland House would definitely be the better location.

Schuler, thanks for your comments. When we were in London we had free lodging out at Ealing, although we were very grateful to our host traveling in and out did take up so much of our day. This time around we would like to be in the centre so we can do those evening walks.

Many thanks.

schuler - any pictures or at least descriptions of CW?>>>

Cleverer than you is all you need to know.

needs.

"<i>Is not that Swiss House at Leicester Square tacky? And the puppet/clock show as well?</i>"

Um - haven't been there for a while, eh pal?

Schuler: I like your report - to the point and practical 'stuff'. But do I have a bit of a quibble - the title is "London for Tightwads and . . . " but you went to Madame Tussaud's. Tightwad and Madame Tussauds are contradictions in terms. It is one of the most expensive attractions in the city.

Hi Janisj: I agree with you. However, with the half price coupons, I found Madame Tussaud's to be affordable and worth the price. It was fun sitting next to George Clooney and gang but it was very, very crowded.

I (sheepishly) admit I've been to Mme Tussaud's a couple of times and had fun. But I'd never put it up on the list of "must do's"

"<i>it was very, very crowded</i>" It is one of those places to paraphrase Yogi Berra 'No one goes there, it's too crowded' :D

My guess is that you are very young without the means to do it without being a tightwad. However, it does seem that you spent a lot on admissions, bus tour and the like. So really, just a fairly cheap room.

Roger:

I disagree with your opinion.

- We took the cheapest way available (besides hitchhiking) to get from Gatwick to London Bridge.
- We used the cheapest rate (19£) for the HOHO bus tour.
- We used a travel card for one day only
- We used a half price coupon for Madame Tussaud's: (12.50£)
- We used TKTS tickets (although we did upgrade our seats for better viewing)
- We ate in pubs and at subway

You are right, though. I'm very young and attractive.

We did the things first-timers love to do without breaking the bank.

It is pretty difficult to avoid paying admission charges - as the OP said if you look around there are discounts to be had...but tighwad ior not if you want to see much in L
ondon you will need SOME cash.
Having just got back, I'd recommend an Oyster card to anyone staying more than 2 days.
I'm going to write a bit more on that myself later.