So you’ve moved to London and you are probably already feeling all kinds of different emotions. No doubt everyone is telling you so many different things about London that you’re a little overwhelmed. Well, don’t worry LCF Freshers! Block out the noise and read our essential top tips for living in London.
The Night tube
Get…
The night bus and night tube – Uber is great but you will miss out on a lot of fun and new friends if you don’t try out the night transport.
Take….
The number 38 across London, from Clapton Pond to Victoria! It is one of the few bus routes that covers so much of London, from the east, to the north, into central London and right down to the south and west.
Boy walks with little bus
Speaking of transport, know your London train etiquette:
Always stand on the right
And… move down inside the carriage….seriously.
Walk!
Buses and tubes are great but the best way to learn about London is by walking around it. You will be shocked at how close some stations are to each other. Get lost – you never know what you might stumble upon.
But…
…Don’t walk and text – you probably shouldn’t do that anywhere, let alone London – it’s too busy and you will annoy the many people you’re bound to walk into.
And of course:
Cycle! People will tell you London is expensive and it can be with transport costs but bike routes are getting better so you can save by taking your two-wheels.
Most of the major museums are FREE…
… so there’s no excuse not to visit them in your first few weeks here.
Find your nearest green spot – there’s so many
Even in the most built up parts of town, there’s going to be somewhere green and leafy for you to escape to.
Regents park
Go to Soho….
…and eat at as many restaurants as possible because Soho always needs our love and has some of the best places to eat in London.
If you fancy cheap and delicious food:
- Try Lahmacun. If you live in east London and you’re on a budget, most of the Turkish Restaurants will offer a good sized lahmacun (think pizza meets wrap) with salad and sauce for somewhere in the range of £1.50 – £2.50 – delicious, better for you than McDonalds and so cheap!
- The Indian YMCA in Fitzrovia does a delicious and cheap curry
Borough market
Markets!
London has so many and you can get a real bargain. Try Brick Lane’s Sunday up market and also Portobello, Borough, Broadway and Exmouth markets. Also, check out the lesser known Camden Passage which is off of one of London’s main streets, Upper Street.
Go to Savers and Paks…
For all your household and cosmetic needs. Especially Paks for cosmetics – you can find skincare and haircare that Liberty sells, but at a quarter of the price <3
Avoid:
Leicester Square, Covent Garden and associated areas on weekends. You’ll be angry within 5 minutes of being there.
Having a lie down after shopping at Covent Garden. Collaborative piece by: Wei Yao Lin, BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Menswear and Cheng Qian, BA (Hons) Fashion Textiles: Knit. Photographer: Jiajie Lin
Technology…
…is your best friend when navigating London. Download CityMapper for transport, Dojo for a curated guide to London, To Good To Go for heavily discounted restaurant food, Unidays for students discounts and Dice for music events with no booking fees.
Sometimes it feels like…
…London created Bring Your Own Booze cafes and restaurants so make the most out of that while waiting for your loan to come in and when it starts to run out…
If you get bored of all that London has to offer, (won’t happen)…
Go To Paris – the Eurostar gets you there in just over two hours, and they have special offers on at certain times of the year. It can sometimes take more time to get from the southeast to the northeast of London, than it does to get from St. Pancras to Gare du Nord…
St. Pancras
Finally,
Find your local GP and register yourself ASAP. You don’t want to get ill, turn up at your local GP and be asked for 3 things to register with that you don’t have on you. Nightmare!
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