# London ,England: Three days, very little money. What's a tourist to do? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 15, 2006, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795 "2006-04-15T17:32:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/21 "2006-04-16T15:36:09Z")
A few lists of free attractions are available at [London Lost & Found](http://www.londonlostandfound.com/free/free.htm). ---
**Author:** ![Ximenean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/aca169/32.png) [@Ximenean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ximenean)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/22 "2006-04-16T16:31:24Z")
> [@Girl From Mars](#): > > London is going to be expensive for the incidentals especially - food and drink etc. My advice on this is that you can get it a little cheaper if you opt to take it away - like a coffee and a muffin etc. Yes, I think you can save a lot of money by avoiding restaurants and snack shops at tourist attractions, airports etc., which are always a total rip-off. Do what the local office workers do and buy a sandwich or salad at a supermarket like Tesco or Sainsbury’s (probably not Marks & Spencer, which is pricy). There are also sandwich chains like Greggs and Benjy’s where you can get a reasonable sandwich and coffee for under £2.50, or Pret A Manger who aren’t as cheap but have a more interesting selection. Mind you, there are plenty of good budget restaurants in London, you just have to know where they are. Buy or borrow a restaurant guide. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/23 "2006-04-16T16:59:26Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > (And I presume the Platform 9 3/4 attraction is still there at Kings Cross station? [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:KingsCrossStationTrolley.JPG](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:KingsCrossStationTrolley.JPG) ) I dunno. My husband took my 7 year old there in March, and he said all he saw were hookers(?). I don’t know if that is just my husband (they went after dark) or ? The trolly wasn’t there when my daughter and I visited in 2002. I hope it’s there–it looks cool. ---
**Author:** ![eleanorigby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@eleanorigby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eleanorigby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/24 "2006-04-16T17:04:21Z")
Forgot-sorry. The Tube ticket is also good on the bus–something I found out this last trip. There is Hyde Park and St James–lovely this time of year. Kew is also good. Heck-just walk around London–there are tons of obscure churchs (NOT Westminster or St Pauls), go walk in the City, down Whitehall to see the sights. I also second grabbing a sandwich at a deli or take away. And don’t forget the V and A–sort of like the Smithsonian. It’s also a reccommended donation type thing. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/25 "2006-04-16T17:16:16Z")
If you want a free taste of the west-Indies, take the Tube to Brixton and visit the covered markets close to the Tube station. Live snails, fish that look like they belong in an aquarium being sold as food, lots of afro-hair-dressers, cheap and very good foodstalls, fabrics with the wildest block-prints. If it rains, take the double-decker red buses (on the Tube-ticket, as \*\*eleanorigby \*\*said) and sit above, in the front. You’ll have a wodnerful view of the streets and ample opportunity to strike up conversations with Londoners. ---
**Author:** ![Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e79b87/32.png) [@Boulter\_s\_Canary](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boulter_s_Canary)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795/26 "2006-04-16T17:36:57Z")
> [@matt\_mcl](#): > > Right next to the National Gallery, at Charing Cross Rd. and William IV St., is a restaurant called International that offers very classy lunch dishes for 3 pounds. I mention this only because I told the Londopers that and they were flabbergasted. I’m not surprised. That’s _brilliant!_ I work near there - thanks for the tip! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/london-england-three-days-very-little-money-whats-a-tourist-to-do/352795.md?page=1)