UK

UK is a very unique country to visit. England, Scotland, Wales and the Offshore Islands all offer great vacation and holiday destinations for tourists. Flights from Canada and US to London on sale all the time. UK provides tourists great opportunities to explore this beautiful country. You can feel the power of Old British Empire's power from the architecture, castles and other attractions. London Airports may also connect you to other European destinations with cheap budget airlines. 

Must Do

1. Bring your credit cards with you to UK. Credit cards are so well accepted by all vendors, shops, hotels and city transit. As a cashless country, credit cards are so useful. I visited UK twice and did not get foreign currency exchange at all.

2. Try the famous British Fish and Chips. I recommend Micky's Fish & Chips located at 29 Norfolk Pl in London (low price, large portion and good food). 

3. When you visit London, go for a day tour to Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, Bath, Oxford, v, Canterbury, Dover or Greenwich. 80% tourists visited UK and stayed in London only. 

4. London's buses accept credit card only, no cash. Make sure your card's contactless feature working well. I found that not all of my credit cards can tap on the machine, so bring at least two credit cards with you. Also, the train from Victoria Station to Gatwick airport can use contactless credit card as well.

5. Visit Museums in UK and the admissions are free.

6. Take advantage the low price of long distance bus in UK. Unlike other European countries, train travels are more expensive than bus. 

7. Unlike Scandinavian countries or Switzerland,  Foods from UK grocery stores are inexpensive. Try budget supermarket, such as Tesco, Lidl or Aldi for bakery, fruits, vegetables and deli meat. 

8. Bring umbrella with you for your trip. London rains a lot. 

9. If you would like to visit a Gatwick airport lounge, have a quick peak inside first before you pick one. There are more than five lounges close to each other.

10. Hotels in UK are expensive, so I recommend tourists try Airbnb Apartment. Airbnb has much lower price than hotels in Switzerland. Book Airbnb from the link below will save you $62 CAD/$43 USD/€41 instantly for your first stay anywhere around the world:

https://www.airbnb.ca/c/weic3807?currency=CAD

Avoid

Search Results

Web resulAvoid

1. Avoid buying oyster card for city transit in London. Instead, use your credit card contactless feature. There is daily cap or weekly cap for using credit cards. 

2. Avoiding getting too much Pound Sterling exchange for your trip. Everywhere in UK is taking credit cards.

3. Avoid taking Heathrow Express and Gatwick express. Instead, taking the regular subway and train for much low price. 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trip Highlights (2017, 2019)

Calgary to London by British Airways (good service and very old aircraft); Reykjavik to London by Icelandair 

Westminster Cathedral was designed by Francis John Bentley and consecrated in 1910

In the early morning, I joined a day tour to visit Stonehenge (UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986)

Stonehenge (UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986)

Neolithic Houses at Stonehenge 

Bath Abbey is a Parish Church of the Church of England and former Benedictine monastery in Bath, English

Bath Abbey

The Roman Baths are a well-preserved thermae in the city of Bath, England. A temple was constructed on the site between 80-70CE in the first few decades of Roman Britain

 The Roman Baths in Bath, England

 Buckingham Palace in London

London Eye

Leeds Castle in Kent, England. It has existed on the site since 1119, the first being a simple stone stronghold constructed by Robert de Crevecoeur which served as a military post in the time of Norman intrusions into England. In the 13th century it came into the hands of King Edward I for whom it became a facourite residence, in the 16th century, Henry VIII used it as a dwelling for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. 

Leeds Castle

Leeds Castle

Leeds Castle

Leeds Castle

Leeds Castle

Dover in England

Canterbury in England

Canterbury Cathedral (UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988) in England. It one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England. It was built in 1070.

Greenwich, England

 London Bridge

 London's Night 

London's Night 

British Museum has huge collections of Chinese antiques. Unfortunately the museum only displays 10% of total collections. The remaining is stored in the storage room in the basement, not open to the public. 

British Museum

British Museum: 

British Museum

British Museum

British Museum

British Museum