So I've not written a post for a while as I have been really busy with exams and moving out of Manchester, but now that I have finished my second year of uni, I've found a bit of time to talk about what I've been up to!
Recently I visited London with my boyfriend, Harry. I had been wanting to go for a while, and with both of us having time off we decided to book our tickets and go.
Before I begin, if you are reading this and considering going to London to do all of the 'touristy' things without a budget, like we did, then be prepared to spend a soul-crushingly large amount of money (unless you are already used to southern prices)..
Harry and I stayed in The Wesley hotel, a two minute walk from Euston train station, it was a good hotel for what we wanted, having recently had a £3 million re-vamp the room was clean, comfortable and modern, with a large bathroom, although the room itself was a bit small; however we knew we wouldn't be spending much time in the hotel anyway. It was perfect for a long weekend.
Friday | Euston, Piccadilly Circus and Soho.
We arrived early on a sunny Friday afternoon, dumped our bags in the hotel and then left to venture our surroundings.
Cider Tap
Just 5 minutes walk away from the hotel, off of Euston road, was the 'Cider Tap' and the 'Beer Tap', basically two arches that doubled as bars, one serving beer and the other cider. We went into the cider bar for a quick drink, it was really quirky and relatively well priced, with a lot of different ciders on offer. I would definitely suggest going if you are nearby.
Piccadilly Circus | Piccadilly Theatre
We walked from Euston to Piccadilly Circus, which took about 25 minutes and booked tickets for The Jersey Boys at Piccadilly Theater; we picked one of the cheaper options, but the lady who served us was nice enough to reserve our seats for one of the more expensive areas (which saved us a good £60). I would definitely recommend going to a theatre in Piccadilly Circus, there's always loads of shows on and it makes for such a memorable experience; keep in mind though, the price of the food and drink inside a theatre is REALLY expensive. If you are on a budget, I would suggest buying some snacks in a corner shop before hand.
Food and Drink in Soho and Piccadilly Circus
We ate at Carbon in Soho, located on Brewer Street. The food was amazing and cheap, and reminded me of my holiday in Lisbon, Portugal (lots of sauce and meat, yum)! You can also take your food to go, so if you are going to the theater I'm sure you could buy food from Carbon first.
We then went to The Argylle, a pub located just a minute walk down the road from Carbon, it was really cheap (for London) and a very popular pub. There are a lot of pubs located around this area, making it an ideal area for a night out or pub crawl.
Saturday | Leicester Square, Buckingham Palace, Westminster, Southbank and Borough Market.
Leicester Square
Saturday we walked to Leicester Square, which is home to loads of quirky little cafes and restaurants. We visited The Garrick Arms, which had recently been re-decorated and looked really inviting. The breakfast menu had something to suit everyone and the waiters/barmen were really friendly and chatty. The portions set us up for a day of walking and the food was reasonably priced.
Buckingham Palace
We arrived at Buckingham Palace just in time to stumble across the changing of the guards, which was pretty cool and something that you should really take the time to see while you're there. There are beautiful parks to walk through surrounding the palace: St. James' Park and Green Park, which are very well maintained and manicured and beautiful on a sunny day. And if you're an architecture fan then you have to see the Palace!
Westminster
Here you can find Westminster Abbey, a beautiful, gothic church and again, if you appreciate architecture then you should definitely visit there. We also went to see Big Ben and the Houses of Commons/Palace of Westminster.
Lambeth
We crossed over Westminster bridge (where a couple were having wedding photos taken!) and turned right at the end onto the embankment, where we walked for about 15 minutes until we came to a bar on a boat (known as Tamesis Dock); Harry really wanted to go into the boat bar, and it was really cool, like a tardis, so much bigger than what I initially thought it would be, although a little expensive but I think that's just because of the novelty of the place and well worth it really.
Southbank/Southwark
After this we walked past the London Eye to Southbank/Southwark, where street food pop-up festivals were being held. Eventually we arrived at Borough Market (with a little help from Google Maps) and it was amazing! Food everywhere, bustling with people (although if you hate being packed like sardines, then maybe wait for a quieter time/day than Saturday.) I had fresh crab and harry ate oysters; we also went to The George Inn which was recommended to us by our waiter at The Garrick Arms, as it was one of the oldest pubs in London (I think), from the 17th century.
Covent Garden
There's a lot to be done in Covent Garden: Shopping, dining and drinking, and is home to some very quirky and popular shops/bars/restaurants with something for everyone, in an easy-to-navigate space. We were too late to go shopping, so we headed to Punch and Judy - a really popular although quite expensive bar. After here we ended up visiting a jazz bar, which cost £6 entry with a student card and £12 without. It had a 1920s feel, people were dressed up and seated at private tables, the experience was really unique and enjoyable, if you like music then I would recommend going.
Sunday | Trafalgar Square, Oxford Road and Covent Garden.
Trafalgar Square
We ate in a nautical themed pub/restaurant called The Admiralty, which was super yummy! Generally well known for it's (VERY delicious) pies, happily reminding me of the North and it's traditional pie and mash. A must if you are in Trafalgar Square as it is quite reasonably priced and uniquely themed.
Oxford Street
If you love shopping (or even if you don't) you have to go to Oxford street, the shops here literally have the best stock and the biggest shops, with something for everyone. Oxford Circus tube station is located here, which makes it really easy to carry a tonne of bags back to wherever you're staying, so don't worry about how you're going to carry all these bags around and carry on shopping!
Covent Garden
We booked a table at Joe Allens; it wasn't what we expected at all, located on a back street in Covent Garden we walked downstairs to a window-less room, but we were pleasantly surprised. It was quite busy and the food was very tasty, although the room was so dark I kept falling asleep. Next to Joe Allen's was a cocktail bar called Be At One, we happened to stumble in when it was 2 for 1, which meant I got 2 cocktails for £7.00 (yay).
Monday | Camden Market and Going Home.
Monday, sadly, was our last day in London. We left our hotel at around 10am and headed to London Euston, hopping on the tube to Camden to make the most of the few hours we had left.
The market was one big maze, and ideally I wouldn't have gone with a suitcase as all the paths were cobbled although the market was empty on Monday, so there wasn't the additional hassle of trying to push through a crowd of people. Not a lot of the stalls were open but those that were mainly sold bags, clothes or art; a lot of crafty things, so if you're interested in that then I would recommend a visit!
Have you ever been to London? I'd love to know your favourite places to go in the City! Check out my Pinterest board below for more travel inspo!
Beth x
