uk travel budget

The cheapest way to travel ENGLAND ON A BUDGET

By Author Katie

Posted on Last updated: May 6, 2024

Along with the rest of Europe, the UK is known for its expensive train fares and pricey domestic flights. As Brits, we wanted to share our top tips on the cheapest way to travel England on a budget. 

Growing up in England, we spent many hours working out the cheapest ways to get around the country.

With bustling cities like London, seaside locations like Brighton and Tenby , historic cities like Oxford and Cambridge and miles and miles of gorgeous countryside, the UK offers so much more than a red phone booth and black cab.

So here are our tips on how to travel to England on a budget.

How to Travel England on a Budget – Planning Tips

• Sign up for updates – Groupon, Hot UK Deals, Holiday Pirates and Secret Escapes are great websites to sign up for before any travel around the UK. We bagged ourselves £1 train tickets from London to Birmingham because of the Hot UK Deals updates. You may also wish to sign up for myvouchercodes.co.uk, vouchercode.co.uk and discountcodes.co.uk to get some great offers and browse the voucher codes on Stena Line Voucher Codes for deals too.
• Book in advance – Whether you are planning to catch a plane, bus or train; booking your ticket early almost always works out cheaper. A lot of companies will sell a certain about of tickets for the cheapest price before the price begins to rise.
• Be flexible – Whether it’s a bus, plane or train, be flexible on the stations/airports you fly in between. Trains to and from major cities around the UK can be much more expensive than a train from a lesser-known station nearby the major cities.
• JourneyPro – This app allows you to plan a journey anywhere in the country but is perfect for navigating the London Underground. It is free to download and a bit of a lifesaver when you are lost in the big city.

• Holiday Pirates – The team at HotUKDeals has launched the Holiday Pirates website in recent years, offering cheap, last-minute deals on holidays and hotels around the world but also across the UK. Not only do they offer some great trips and hotels but you can also get cheaper attraction tickets!
• Go in the Off Season – January through to March is cold and wet – the perfect time to save money on travel in the UK. Hotels, buses, trains and flights are a lot cheaper during these months than during the summer.

Travel around England on a budget

• Travel Smart – The train is usually the most efficient way of getting around the UK.

It is cheaper than flights, offers more stops at those less known towns and cities and is faster than a bus journey. Tickets can be booked in advance and various railcards can be purchased to give you further discounts on individual journeys.

If you are travelling for some time in the UK, you may wish to look into getting yourself a BritRail  card, that will also give you deals on attractions around the UK.

Use National Rail to find the best route for you then head to websites such as virgin trains and Megatrains to bag a cheap fare.

Often, the cheapest fares can be found on The Trainline’s Fare Finder.

• Get the bus – Buses are not my favourite form of transport but they are normally the cheapest way to travel around the UK.

Booking early with Megabus can bag you £1 for journeys although at unusual times. National Express bus routes offer better times and comfortable coaches at a higher price.

These buses are worth using for short, 3-4 hour journeys! You can even choose to upgrade your bus to the Megabus Gold for a more luxurious bus ride.

• Fly – Flying around the UK can be expensive but is useful if you are travelling long distances from one side of the country to another.

Smaller airports can offer cheaper flights around the UK, look out for; Stansted and Luton (when travelling from London), Bristol, Prestwick, East Midlands and Belfast. Stick with budget airlines and unusual flight times to get the best deal.

Kayak and Momondo are the best sites to browse but EasyJet offers some good prices but aren’t listed on these sites.

Why not fly over to Edinburgh from London? Emily Luxton shares how you can make the most from a weekend in Edinburgh. 

• BlaBlaCar – Lift share your way around the UK with BlaBlaCar. Search the journey you wish to take across the country, along with your chosen date and get cheap journeys.
• Drive – The best way to get around the UK is to drive. Compare rental car costs on GoCompare and choose a company that allows you to pick up and drop off your car at different locations.

Driving around the UK travel tips

Petrol is more expensive than in Asia and America but is about the same as in most places across Europe.

The UK is connected by so many motorways with service stations to make your journey a more pleasant one! Just bring change and check for toll charges; some tolls require a pre or post-payment online or a massive fine!

Plus, if you are driving, you can access the random but fun attractions and things to do along the way to each city and also take advantage of the cheaper, free parking chain hotels that are normally found on the outskirts of towns and cities.

• Bike it – When staying in London, rent a Boris bike and explore the great city at a cheap price.
• Get an Oyster Card – If you plan on staying in and around London for some time, it is worth getting yourself an Oyster card. The card itself costs £3 and you can top it up as you go. You use this card for the underground train and buses around London, with a £6.60 cap on it, meaning you will never spend more than £6.60 getting around this expansive and expensive city.
• Railcards – For those living, studying, or working in the UK, you can get yourself a Railcard . There are railcards offering discounts for students, families, couples, and seniors as well as those just travelling in the South East. A yearly fee gets you discounted prices on all train rides across the country.
• Walk – UK cities are accessible and easy to walk around. Opt for a walking tour to save money and see all your favorite sites.
• Flying to the UK – One option to save money, if you have plenty of time for your trip, is to fly via a different European city first. If you plan on travelling around Europe for an extended period of time, fly into a city like Amsterdam, Paris, or Ukraine (with the national airlines) to get cheaper prices to Europe. You can travel via train or bus to England afterwards.
• Omio – Check out the Omio website to compare the best ways to travel the country. If you want to head from one area of England to another, or even travel across the UK, head to Omio and search your journey. This website will tell you the best options for you to choose from, comparing trains, flights, buses and coaches as well as the best times and prices to travel. 
• Use the buses – Every city and town will offer some type of bus service and you can find these simply by googling the city or town and bus service. These buses get you around a place but often can take you from one town to another. Make sure you have change for your ticket though!
• Avoid express – There are a handful of airports in and around London, with many of them offering ‘express’ trains into the city centre. It will cost a lot more for this ticket and won’t save you much time either.

Example: 

Heathrow – £36 for an express return taking 15 minutes or £21 for a standard return taking 30 – 40 minutes.

Gatwick – £35 for an express return taking 30 minutes or £20 for a standard return taking 35 – 45 minutes. 

• Book trains in advance – Use websites like Train Line to book your train ticket in advance. On-the-day tickets can be twice as expensive and good discounts can be found online

Save money on accommodation in England

• Stay at Universities – This was a fairly new concept whilst I was at University but it seems to be getting more and more popular.

Websites like University Rooms help you find university rooms in cities and towns across the UK; the best deals are found in the summer months (June – September) and over Christmas and Easter when students aren’t at University.

• YHA – YHA offers cheap hostels across the country and is known to be clean and fairly modern. Many of their hostels offer family rooms as well, ideal for families or group travellers on a budget.
• Chain hotels – Travelodge and Premier Inn are your cheap but clean, spacious and comfortable hotels in the UK. Head to their websites in advance of your trip and you can snag a room for as little as £29 a night. These hotel chains are in all major cities and towns and can also be found at the service stops off major motorways.
• Pay in dollars – If you are American, you may be able to save some money by booking in dollars. Many high-end hotels like Egerton House Hotel and Milestone Hotel offer guaranteed dollar rates, so check your hotel’s website for this first before booking. 

• Air B’n’B – Just like the rest of the world, there are some great Air B’n’B options in the UK with some great prices to match. Plus, if you click here you can get £30 off your booking!
• Outskirts – When planning a trip to one of the small cities and towns, try looking at hotels just slightly on the outskirts. Local buses are convenient and inexpensive so booking hotels on the outskirts of towns may work out quite a bit cheaper.
• Caravans – Think of an RV – but smaller. In the UK, Caravans are popular for those wanting to park up on the coast or in national parks. Caravan Parks are cheap and often offer restaurants, cafes, bars, and even performances. There are lots of websites that allow you to search for the perfect Caravan for your trip.
• Camp in a garden – That sounds crazy, right? Camp in My Garden offers travelers a place to set up a tent or park a caravan in the homes of locals.
• Guest Houses – Cheaper than hotels but often with a lot more character, Guest Houses offer cheaper options yet still offer similar amenities.
• Do your research – There are some amazing, cheap hotels around the UK. Do some proper research, using TripAdvisor, booking.com and Air B’n’B to help you choose the perfect place to stay. But also use cozycozy to find cheap accommodation options and check out the deals on Agoda.

Save money on attractions in England

• English Heritage Pass – If you intend to visit some of the historical sites around the UK, you can save money on all the entrance fees and ticket costs by purchasing English Heritage Pass . There is a yearly fee but if you are here for some time, it may be worth the price.
• Historic Scotland Explorer Pass – Scotland is an incredible place with so many castles, abbeys, ancient sites and museums. So save money by purchasing an Explorer Pass!
• The National Trust Touring Pass – With so many National Trust properties across the UK, it is hard to make a decision on which places to visit. Pick up a pass to save money if you plan to visit a few.

• Pass cards – The London Pass and the Edinburgh Pass are attraction cards that allow you entry into multiple tourist attractions in the chosen city but also offer great discounts in restaurants and theatres. We personally love the Go City Pass for London, as you can edit the amount of days you want to spend in the city.
• Free Attractions – Like everywhere in the world, the UK offers some amazing FREE attractions. Museums in London are completely free to enter as are many castles, National Parks and Hike trails around the country. There are lots of free things to do in London to enjoy and explore.
• Book online – If you are visiting a popular attraction, it is worth looking at ticket prices online before you go. Prices online can be purchased at a reduced rate whilst also saving your ideal time slot
• Coupons – Coupons are popular in the UK. Travel by train and pick up the 2 for 1 booklet from stations outside of London or head over to VoucherBin to get discounted deals.
• Walking tours – Take advance of the free walking tours around the major cities; find a local free tour on Free tours by foot. 
• Visit the Cathedrals – Whilst in the UK, make sure you visit the stunning cathedrals in every city! Fun fact – cities in the UK can only be called a city if it has a cathedral. Anyway, these can date back all the way to the 15th century and offer stunning architecture for absolutely nothing!
• Shopping – If you want to enjoy a bit of shopping in the UK, there are plenty of options to choose from. If you are looking for luxury brands and designers, head to one of the many outlet malls around the country to save money on good-quality items. Alternatively, if you are in the UK and find you need to make a quick purchase – maybe you forgot a scarf or need more socks, head to Primark. This is a very cheap store for quick, easy clothing items – just don’t expect them to last for more than a few months.

How to save on Food and Drink in England

• Taste of UK card

These little gems get you discounts and deals across a selection of restaurants in the UK. You can get yourself a card from the website and the first 90 days cost just £1 – perfect for those touring the country.

• Walk away from the tourist attractions

This is the same in many places around the world, but to find the best and cheapest restaurants, pubs, hotels and hostels you’ll need to look further away from the central tourist attraction.

Travelodge and Premier Inn can be found in and around most towns and cities across the UK with decent private rooms at affordable prices.

Wetherspoon pubs offer cheap alcohol and food whilst chain restaurants are unfortunately often cheaper than independently run restaurants in the smaller cities around the UK.

OK, I can promise you that during your stay in the UK, there is a 90% it will rain! When it rains, it pours and puts you off getting all dressed up for a fancy dinner.

JustEat and HungryHouse are websites that allow you to search the menus of nearby restaurants that will deliver to your address.  You can compare prices and read reviews on the website before ordering anything.

• TablePouncer

Get the TablePouncer app. Available in major cities, this app is ideal for last-minute dining. It offers you great discounts and deals at top local restaurants and reserves your chosen restaurant in seconds – helping you save money and time.

• Plan your food

One of the most exciting things to do when you travel is to wander the streets and walk into any restaurant, bar or cafe that takes your fancy.

Food in England is ridiculously expensive compared to most other countries in Asia, the Americas and even Europe. Plan ahead and use TripAdvisor, blogs and google maps to locate and choose one or two great restaurants in your chosen area in your price range.

Have a look for the nearest supermarket (Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda are all budget-friendly places) to stock up on snacks and breakfast/lunch food. Food at service stations is also expensive so make yourself sandwiches or budget for these extra prices.

The food court in Marks & Spencers offers high-quality food but at higher prices than most supermarkets.

Pubs offer daily specials and most towns and cities have magical Wetherspoon’s (a chain of British Pubs) that offer reasonably priced meals.

Like many places in Europe, there are some amazing restaurants in the UK, especially when you head into Central London. If you want a treat, head to these restaurants at lunch for a cheap lunch menu!

• Voucher Cloud

Another great app to use when searching for the best deals and prices. Voucher Cloud uses your location to share restaurant and attraction offers as well as supermarket deals.

• Eat Ethnic food

Scattered around the UK are some excellent ethnic restaurants, from Chinese to Indian, Middle Eastern to Pasta – there are foods from all over the world. These are often tasty, interesting and a lot cheaper than fine dining options.

• Dine at a pub

For a decent, hearty meal, head to the pub! Alcohol can be pricey in the UK but there are some great meal options for a pie and pint! Plus, you get to eat the delights of British food.

My personal favourite has to be Wetherspoons! A chain of pubs around the UK that offer cheap meals – A burger, chips and beer for £5.49!

• Fish’n’Chips

One of the UK’s most popular meals is, of course, Fish and Chips!

Whilst you are in the UK, you need to stop and try this infamous meal whilst saving money – a bag of chips and a cod really don’t break the bank.

When visiting any of the University cities and towns, head to the bars. Many offer great promotions and happy hours, especially on the weekends.

Creative Tip: Afternoon teas are a must whilst in the UK and they aren’t just limited to London. You can find some great Afternoon Tea outside of London for cheaper prices and even ones that cater to Vegetarians and Vegans.

• Enjoy the chains – I know many people may disagree but when you are travelling on a budget, it is worth making use of chain restaurants. Nandos is a popular choice in the UK whilst Pizza Express has some great two-course deals. Also, don’t forget to head to Wetherspoons for a pint and a greasy plate of British food – it sounds awful but doesn’t knock it before you try it!
• Meal deals – Head to any supermarket and you will find some type of meal deal.  These often include some type of salad, sandwich or pasta with a snack and drink for less than £4. This makes for a cheap, quick lunch or even a chilled-out dinner with a few extra snacks. 
• Use the markets – To travel to England on a budget, make sure you visit the markets. Most cities will have some type of market (it may only be on for the weekend) and here you will find great food but fair prices. Don’t expect to find super cheap food here but expect good value.
• Pub food –  can’t stress this enough, if you want a good, sit-down meal, head to the local pubs. Not the pub opposite Big Ben or the one in Covent Garden, head down the quieter streets and find local pubs. Food is good value and often very British!

Travel London on a budget

• Staying in London – Stay near the underground but don’t worry about the city centre. London has a comprehensive underground system that can be used to get everywhere. Use the Underground map to help you get around and don’t forget to down the map on your phone to help you when you are out and about. 
• Thames Clipper – The Thames Clipper is a public ferry service that costs around £8 for a full journey; a much cheaper experience on the Thames compared to the tours available.
• Cycle – Whilst in London, you can choose to cycle using the Santander Cycle Scheme. You will notice bikes dotted around the city and for £2 for 24 hours, you can cycle between the sights.
• Get an Oyster card – Whilst in London, get yourself an Oyster card. This means you can travel around the underground without having to buy an individual ticket each time but also, these journeys are capped so you don’t spend more than a set maximum. If you have a contactless card, you could use this on the underground and on buses too.
• Skip the Shard and head to the Sky Garden – Skip the Shard, it is overpriced. Instead, opt for the Sky Garden, offering stunning views completing for free.
• Theatre tickets – There are lots of great websites that help you get discounted theatre tickets. Head to the theatre of your chosen show at 9.45/10 am to see if they have any last-minute tickets for that day or use websites like Last Minute or London Theatre Tickets.

Read here for more London Travel tips and Free things to do in London.

Don’t forget to visit some of my favourite places in the UK: Liverpool , Bristol, Brighton and Chichester are some of my top picks!

So these are the main ways we use to save money whilst living and travelling around the UK. Do you have any other suggestions? Share your ideas in the comments below!

Travel in England FAQ

How much should I budget for a trip to England?

A week in England will cost around $1500 – $2000, for a solo traveller, depending on where you are staying. London hotels are more expensive than in other cities but you can visit the UK on a budget and spend as little as $100 a day. 

What is the cheapest month to travel to London?

The cheapest months to travel to London and England are September to the start of October and January to March. You can find cheaper flights to the UK during these months and there are fewer tourists, so you will find a budget hotel easily and attractions will be quieter. 

What is the best way to travel around the UK?

The train is the easiest way to travel the UK but catching buses with Megabus or National Express is often the cheapest way to travel the UK. 

Is the train cheaper than the bus in England?

Often the bus is cheaper, especially when moving between smaller cities. However, the underground is much quicker than buses around London’s city centre and train travel around the UK is more reliable than buses. 

Is food expensive in England?

Food prices vary in England but an average sit-down meal is more expensive in England than in Eastern Europe cities but similar to prices in the US and Western Europe. You can find cheap food in supermarkets and chain restaurants and decent-priced meals in pubs. 

How much money do I need for 2 weeks in London?

If you are a budget traveller and intend on cooking for yourself in a hostel and visiting the free attractions, you can visit London for under $50 a day. However, if you want to eat out more and visit some paid attractions, you will need around $100 a day whilst those looking to go shopping, watch a theatre show or football game, expect to budget around $150 a day. 

How do I get cheap London tickets?

Cheap London train tickets can be found when purchasing tickets in advance, online. Use Nationalrail.com to compare prices. Also, avoid travelling between 6.30 – 9.30 and 15.30 – 18.40; this is peak travel time and prices are higher. Also, sometimes 2 singles can be a better value than a return. 

For cheap flights to London, compare prices on Skyscanner and check flight prices to London Stansted, Gatwick and Luton; these smaller airports can sometimes be cheaper than Heathrow.

Is it worth renting a car in England?

If you are staying in a city, no, it is not worth renting a car. However, if you plan on travelling the country a lot, then it can work out cheaper to rent a car. However, compare prices on Avis and Europcar and make sure to book your car hire online as far in advance as possible; prices rise as you get near the pick-up date. 

How do I plan a road trip UK?

• List the places you want to visit
• Plot these destinations on google map to work out the most efficient routes
• Compare rental prices using Travel Supermarket.  
• Don’t pay for a GPS (car companies overcharge and you can use your phone GPS instead).
• Be flexible with your dates but book accommodation in advance. 
• Stick to the speed limits and laws
• Enjoy your travels

How many days are enough to visit the UK?

If you are only visiting London, you can spend 3-4 days seeing the most popular attractions. If you want to visit other cities and sites in the UK such as Bath, Stonehenge, Oxford and Liverpool, plan at least 10 days in the UK. 

How much is a meal in London?

Budget restaurants in London (ethnic or chain restaurants) will cost between £6 – £10 whilst mid-range restaurants will cost you around £15 – £25 for a main meal and drink. High-end restaurants in London can cost anything between £40 to $140+ per head. 

How much should I budget for food UK?

If you are staying somewhere with a kitchen, you could budget as little as £20 for food. However, if you will be eating out 2-3 times a day, you will need at least £35 a day, presuming you are picking up a light breakfast or lunch from the local supermarkets. 

Do I need cash for London?

You will need some cash, mainly for buses and cabs. However, credit and debit cards are widely accepted. 

What is the cheapest airport to fly into England?

• London Gatwick
• London Heathrow
• London City Airport

What is the cheapest day to fly to the UK?

Friday is consistently the cheapest day to visit the UK. 

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18 ways to explore England on a budget

Jul 15, 2023 • 11 min read

From free activities to budget meals, these top tips can help you save money when you visit England © Photo by Roo Lewis / Getty Images

From cliff-backed beaches and quaint villages to vibrant cities and historic sights, England has plenty to entice visitors. But it can also be a fairly expensive destination, particularly in terms of accommodations, tours and sightseeing . 

The good news? Many of England’s museums , natural sights and heritage attractions are free. Public transportation can be affordable when planned in advance, and plenty of wallet-friendly dining options exist: from pub lunches to the iconic takeaway fish and chips. 

Even London , famously one of Europe’s most expensive cities, can be explored on a budget if you’re careful. Outside of the major tourist destinations, the rest of England becomes much more affordable, so heading off the beaten path can be particularly rewarding. 

Get ready to explore the land of rolling countryside, ancient castles, and dazzling white cliffs with these top money-saving tips and a guide to daily costs.

Average daily costs in England

Hostel room: £15–30 (dorm bed) Hotel room for two: £100 Self-catering apartment (including Airbnb): £70  Camping pitch: £20–30 Single bus ticket: £2.80 (can reach over £6 in rural areas) Coffee: £3 Takeaway sandwich: £3 Dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant: £30–50  Pint at the bar: £4–6 Takeaway fish and chips: £10 Pub lunch: £12.50–25

Total average daily cost per person: £50–150

Bear in mind that travel costs – particularly accommodation – vary significantly across England depending on the destination. Prices in London and other popular cities are generally much higher than in smaller towns or rural areas.

Figure out which London airport is the cheapest to fly to

London has six major airports but transport costs into the city center – or further afield – can vary widely. To figure out which airport is cheapest to fly to in England, you should factor in the onward travel costs to your final destination. 

Heathrow, London’s main and busiest airport, is on the London Underground's Piccadilly Line and the new Elizabeth Line, so travel into central London can cost as little as £5.60. Buses from Heathrow Central Bus Station can provide affordable onward travel to the rest of England. 

The second largest airport, Gatwick, competes directly with Heathrow for a number of destinations, often resulting in lower flight prices. It’s not on the London Underground, but there is a train station and a bus station with connections into central London starting from £13.30 and £7 respectively. There are also good connections with other parts of England, particularly the south.  

London’s Luton, Southend, and Stansted airports are popular hubs for budget airlines such as EasyJet and Ryanair, though they have a longer journey time into central London. Finally, the centrally-located London City Airport is usually the most expensive to fly to, but allows for cheap and convenient onward travel within the city center. 

Remember to check other destination airports

Depending on your onward travel plans, flying into London might not be your best bet. Manchester Airport is the third biggest in the UK and has flight connections with over 200 destinations worldwide . As with Heathrow and Gatwick, the amount of flight options can drive competition between airlines and result in lower prices. 

Smaller airports throughout England may be better positioned for onward travel to other parts of the country. Bristol and Newquay airports are much closer to Southwest England than the London airports, for example, while Birmingham Airport might be a better option for the Midlands.  

Remember to factor in the price of onward travel, as this can have a huge impact on travel costs. If you want to visit the Lake District, trains from London Heathrow to Oxenholme train station take almost 10 hours and start from £114.20 . Trains from Manchester Airport to Oxenholme, by comparison, take 1h 39m and start from £6.50.  

If you’re trying to get the best flight deal possible, it’s a good idea to widen your search to include all English airports and to check the onward travel options before making your decision. 

Weigh up your transport options

Unfortunately, public transportation isn’t always the cheapest or most practical way of getting around England. Most cities and towns have good internal bus networks, but many rural areas and small towns have limited – or no – public transport services, and trains between cities can be pricey. 

Train tickets are notoriously expensive in England, but traveling off-peak and booking around 12 weeks in advance can dramatically reduce costs. Check and compare train times and ticket options on National Rail . If you plan on traveling by train regularly, purchasing a National Rail annual railcard may help reduce costs. 

The best way to travel around England for budget visitors is by coach, but journey times are often much longer than by train or car and the routes aren’t always convenient. Bus travel is cheapest when booked direct: the two main operators are National Express and Megabus . Both offer competitive prices. 

If you plan on visiting multiple destinations or traveling to parts of England with limited public transport services, driving may prove the most practical way to get around. According to  Kayak , car hire in the UK is £43 per day on average, although prices can be as low as £16 per day. 

Book transport in advance for the best deals

If you plan to travel around England via public transport, booking in advance is almost always the cheapest option. Advance train tickets can be around 50% cheaper, while Trainline claims its customers save an average of 61% when booking in advance.  

Train tickets can usually be booked around 12 weeks before the departure date, while bus tickets from National Express – the UK’s largest coach operator – go on sale up to one year in advance. 

Find free parking

Park & Ride services on the outskirts of towns and cities usually offer free parking when you pay for the bus into the center. This usually works out much cheaper than paying for city center parking, not to mention congestion fees, which are becoming increasingly common in busy cities. 

Street parking, where allowed, is often free in England, though sometimes only for a limited time, and rarely in city or town centers. Apps like AppyParking and Parkopedia can help you find free places to park.

Visit in spring or autumn for the best prices

June to August is the peak tourist season in the UK. Travel costs, especially accommodation, can rise dramatically during these months, as well as during school and public holidays. The shoulder seasons of April to May and September to October are often much quieter and cheaper times to visit. The weather is usually fairly mild, though changeable and with a greater chance of rain than in summer.  

November to March is the off-season in England and is generally the cheapest time to visit (except Christmas). It’s worth noting that many outdoor and summer-based tourist attractions close during winter, especially in seaside resorts. 

Avoid traveling during school and bank holidays

School and public holidays are the most popular travel times in England and tend to see significant price increases. To save money, avoid traveling during school holidays, which happen every six to seven weeks, if you can.

The exact dates vary across the country , but generally speaking, the longest holiday period is from the end of July and throughout August, with an additional two weeks around Christmas and Easter. There are also "half-term" holidays of one or two weeks, usually falling in February, May and October.

Additionally, there are eight Bank Holidays in England throughout the year. Extra holidays are sometimes added for national events such as Royal weddings and funerals.

Make the most of England’s free attractions

If you’re exploring England on a budget, there are plentiful free attractions to enjoy. All national parks have free entry, as do most other natural attractions such as woodlands, country parks, lakes and beaches. Likewise, there are miles of public footpaths, bridleways, and long-distance walking and biking paths to enjoy free of charge across the country. 

Many museums and art galleries offer free entry, and even the ones that don’t often have a monthly free-entry day. Churches and cathedrals are usually free to explore as well, although some ask for donations from visitors. 

Get 2-for-1 on attractions with National Rail

The National Rail Days Out scheme offers 2-for-1 tickets at over 300 attractions in England when you travel by train. There’s a huge variety of attractions across the country, including aquariums, zoos, football grounds, museums, gardens, and cinemas. Simply show your train ticket on entry to receive the discount.

Join English Heritage and/or the National Trust

Many of England's top heritage properties, beauty spots and historic sites are managed by either the National Trust or English Heritage charities. Stonehenge and Dover Castle are two of the most famous English Heritage sites, while the National Trust manages over 500 gardens, nature reserves, and historic houses such as Agatha Christie’s former home Greenway House in Devon .

Both charities offer annual memberships allowing free entry to all attractions as well as free car parking at a number of locations. Both charities also offer temporary memberships for short-term visitors from overseas. These can be well worth purchasing if you plan on visiting several attractions.

Look for discounts for students, seniors, groups and families 

Many attractions throughout England offer discounts to students, children (usually under 18s) and seniors (usually 60+). Some also offer cheaper packages for groups and families, so check the best options online when planning your trip. 

Check online for discounts

Coupons and special offers are popular in England. If you’re visiting an attraction or a restaurant, check its social media pages for any current deals that may be running. Likewise, local Facebook Groups and newspapers can be good sources for news of special offers and discounts in the area.  

You can also sign up for online deals websites to find discounts on days out, meals and more. Groupon and HotUKDeals are two popular websites for finding deals on UK travel.

Book rooms in budget hotels

Accommodation can be one of the biggest costs when traveling in England. The budget hotel chains Premier Inn , Travelodge and Holiday Inn Express offer decent hotel rooms (if a little bland) at affordable prices. Guesthouses and B&Bs are usually cheaper than hotels and often have a lot more character. 

Hotels on the outskirts of towns and cities can be cheaper than those in the city center, but check that there are convenient public transport options before booking, as taking taxis will quickly mitigate those savings. 

Remember that hostels aren’t just for backpackers

The Youth Hostels Association (YHA) has hostels across England, some of them in extraordinary buildings, including castles! These offer budget-friendly dormitory accommodation for backpackers, but there are many other options to suit all kinds of travelers. Groups can book an entire dorm – or even the whole property – and many hostels have private and family-sized rooms, camping pitches, cabins and even glamping.

Embrace the English caravan parks

Holiday parks with static caravan accommodation are popular throughout England, particularly around tourist hot spots on the coast or in the countryside. These can be a very affordable option, especially for groups or families, although prices rise significantly during the summer holidays. Many parks have facilities such as a pool, restaurants, shops and entertainment.

Pitchup  is a handy website to search and book holiday parks, caravans, campsites, and glamping sites across the UK. Keep in mind that some holiday parks can only be booked directly through the parks themselves. 

Enjoy a good meal out on a budget

England’s reputation for high prices and bad cuisine is somewhat undeserved. There’s good food to be found across the country, from minimal-mile menus at country pubs to excellent seafood along the ample coastline . Food trucks are increasingly popular, especially in cities and tourist towns, and can be a great way to get a takeaway meal for less than £10. Speaking of takeaways, the famed British staple of fish and chips usually costs around £10, best eaten on the beach at sunset for a no-frills budget dinner.

For indoor dining, pubs are generally cheaper than restaurants and many offer very good food alongside local ales, ciders and other drinks. Look for gastro-pubs, where the emphasis is more on dining than drinking. Expect to pay around £12–20 for a main and even less if there’s a deal on.

Consider signing up for a Tastecard

You could also sign up for a Tastecard which offers dining discounts such as 2-for-1 meals at eateries all over the UK — including chains like Pizza Hut, Prezzo and Giraffe. Membership is £34.99 a year so this is probably only worth it during a long-term stay in England or if you plan to use the discount card a lot during your visit.

Stay in self-catered places and shop in budget supermarkets

Dining out is obviously going to eat into your budget. Consider opting for self-catering accommodation where you've got the facilities to store and prepare your own meals.

The cheapest supermarkets are Aldi and Lidl , although most supermarket brands usually have good special offers on. Supermarkets are also great places to pick up cheap lunches (many have a “meal deal” combo of a sandwich, side and drink) or put together a picnic to take with you while you’re exploring England. 

Dine out on weekdays

At pubs and restaurants, weekdays are often the cheapest days to dine out. During the week, many establishments offer fixed-price set menus or deals such as 2-for-1 mains that won’t be found on weekends. 

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How much does it cost to travel to England?

Past travelers have spent, on average for one day:

All of these average travel prices have been collected from other travelers to help you plan your own travel budget.

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How much does a one week, two week, or one month trip to England cost?

A one week trip to England usually costs around $0.00 (£0.00) for one person and $0.00 (£0.00) for two people. This includes accommodation, food, local transportation, and sightseeing.

A two week trip to England on average costs around $0.00 (£0.00) for one person and $0.00 (£0.00) for two people. This cost includes accommodation, food, local transportation, and sightseeing.

Please note, prices can vary based on your travel style, speed, and other variables. If you're traveling as a family of three or four people, the price per person often goes down because kid's tickets are cheaper and hotel rooms can be shared. If you travel slower over a longer period of time then your daily budget will also go down. Two people traveling together for one month in England will often have a lower daily budget per person than one person traveling alone for one week.

A one month trip to England on average costs around $0.00 (£0.00) for one person and $0.00 (£0.00) for two people. The more places you visit, the higher the daily price will become due to increased transportation costs.

Independent Travel

Traveling Independently to England has many benefits including affordabilty, freedom, flexibility, and the opportunity to control your own experiences.

All of the travel costs below are based on the experiences of other independent travelers.

England is a very affordable place to visit. Located in the United Kingdom, which is a moderately priced country, visitors will appreciate the lower prices of this destination. It is in the top 10% of cities in the country for its affordability . Budget travelers enjoy spending long periods of time exploring England in depth.

Within Europe, which is known to be an expensive region, England is a very affordable destination compared to other places. It is in the top 10% of cities in Europe for its affordability. Very few cities in the region are as affordable as England.

For more details, and to find out if it's within your travel budget, see Is England Expensive?

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England Travel Guide

Last Updated: April 18, 2024

England is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. While most travelers tend to stick to London (which is understandable as it’s a great city!), the rest of the region has a lot to offer and sees a fraction of the crowds.

In fact, backpacking around England was one of the highlights of all my travels in Europe .

England’s smaller cities, like Bath and Oxford , are both fascinating and culturally rich. (And, since they aren’t as crowded as London, they’re a bit cheaper too.)

Liverpool , the birthplace of The Beatles, boasts a rich musical history while the countryside has fascinating estates and natural beauty. There’s the mountainous north, the rolling hills of Lancaster and Cornwall, Stonehenge , Hadrian’s Wall, and Tudor cities like Chester.

In short, there is a ton to see and do in England. This England travel guide can help you plan your trip, save money, and make the most out of your time here!

Table of Contents

• Things to See and Do
• Typical Costs
• Suggested Budget
• Money-Saving Tips
• Where to Stay
• How to Get Around
• How to Stay Safe
• Best Places to Book Your Trip
• Related Blogs on England

Click Here for City Guides

Top 5 things to see and do in england.

1. Tour London

You can’t go to England without visiting London — it’s one of the most popular cities in the world. It’s home to charming pubs, world-class museums, tons of history, some of the best theater performances in the world, a diverse population, incredible food, and a wild nightlife. It might be a city that often breaks the bank, but fortunately, London has a plethora of free markets, museums are often free, and it has a ton of relaxing parks that you can enjoy on a budget. There are lots of free walking tours here too!

2. Drive the coast

England’s coastal towns make for a relaxing holiday (especially if you have a vehicle). The most popular destination is Brighton , well-known for its summer parties and festivals. But don’t overlook places like Weymouth, Salcombe, Dover, Hastings, St Ives, or Newquay — and that’s just a handful of them in the south of the country. You could literally spend months just discovering each new place. The towns offer everything from old-world traditional charm (think cobbled streets and Tudor houses) to bright lights and fun fairs (Brighton’s pier is similar to LA’s Santa Monica).

3. See Cornwall

Cornwall is like mini-New England — you can see why English settlers felt at home in the New World. Just like the USA’s New England , Cornwall has rolling hills, beautiful lakes, small towns, rural farms, wonderful hiking trails, tiny fishing villages, great food, and even a winery. The area has been populated since the Neolithic and Bronze Age. Eventually, the Britons (who were Celtic in origin) claimed the region, with the first written account of the region dating back to the 4th century BCE. It’s also been an important maritime region for centuries. The laid-back pace of life here is one of the reasons why it’s one of my favorite places in England. Don’t miss it!

4. Spend a day in Bath

Bath is named after the famous (and marvelously well preserved) ancient Roman baths located in the heart of the city that date back to 70 CE and were in use through to the 5th century. The audio guide by Bill Bryson is a must and adds a lot of context and details. The baths are the main attraction in town, though the abbey, Georgian and Victorian houses, and river are also nice to see. Literature buffs can also explore Jane Austen’s heritage as she lived in Bath for most of her life.

5. Explore the Lake District

Located in Cumbria, in Northern England, and about an hour from the border with Scotland, the Lake District is home to one of England’s best national parks. The lakes in the region are a result of the last ice age and receding glaciers cut the U-shaped valleys that are now filled with water. It’s perfect for hiking mountain passes and sailing around pristine lakes. It’s very popular (and crowded) during the summer. It is to northern England what Cornwall is to the south: a natural, rural paradise that embodies the best of England and, outside of Cornwall, it’s my favorite region in England.

Other Things to See and Do in England

1. see buckingham palace.

Buckingham Palace, home to the Queen of England, is a fascinating sight that’s only open to the public during the summer. If you can’t (or don’t want to) visit the palace, you can catch the changing of the guards at 11am four times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays). If you want to check out the palace, admission is 30 GBP when purchased online (33 GBP on the day), while exclusive guided tours are 90 GBP. Check the Royal Collection Trust website for details on other events happening throughout the year.

2. Visit the Tower of London

Built in 1070, the Tower of London has expanded many times over the years. It was built as a double-leaf bascule bridge in the middle (both sides lift up) to maintain river access to the Pool of London docks while easing congestion on each side of the river. You can visit inside the tower and walk along the glass walkways. Weapons, armor, and coins were made here until 1810 and today you can view the famous crown jewels, walk the battlements, wander recreated medieval palace rooms, see the iconic Yeoman Warders (known as the Beefeaters as they were allowed to eat as much beef as they wanted from King Henry VII’s table), and spot the legendary black ravens that live in the tower. Skip-the-line tickets are 29.90 GBP. Be aware that lines are long so it’s best to plan ahead.

3. Relax in Brighton

Brighton is a great little seaside resort town on the southern coast of England that’s perfect for a weekend getaway. Considered the hippest city in the UK, Brighton is known for being quirky, bohemian, artsy, and very LGBTQ-friendly. It’s a popular summer destination for locals who come here to relax on the beach, enjoy the fleeting summer sun, and wander the pier where there are amusement rides, carnival-style stalls, and street food.

4. Listen to music in Liverpool

Liverpool has spectacular museums, but as the World Capital City of Pop, the real reason to go is for the music, or more specifically, for The Beatles. The Beatles Story museum has all kinds of memorabilia and information about the famous band, who were from Liverpool. Besides the music, Liverpool has a rich history and culture as well as fun pubs, so don’t sell it short.

5. Check out Chatsworth House

Located in Derbyshire, this massive and lavish mansion was built in 1549 for the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. While there are many beautiful houses and castles throughout the UK, this is one of the most astonishing. It’s so striking in fact, that countless films and TV series have been filmed here (including Peaky Blinders, Jane Eyre , and of course Pride and Prejudice ). The home has played a role in popular culture since it was mentioned in Jane Austen’s book, Pride and Prejudice in 1813. On your visit, you can wander the 25 stately rooms, stroll the 105-acre gardens, and make new furry friends in the operating farmyard. Admission to the house and garden costs 26 GBP (just the garden is 15 GBP).

6. Tour Oxford University

Founded in the 11th century in Oxford , this university is one of the oldest in the world. You can visit the many beautiful colleges within Oxford for just a few dollars, or you can take a 90-120 minute guided tour of the entire university with Bodleian Libraries (20 GBP). You can even see the colleges in which they filmed parts of Harry Potter ! For art history buffs, stop in at the free Ashmolean Museum on campus for impressive Eastern and Ancient Egyptian art collections.

7. Attend the festivals

England is known for its festivals, especially during the summer. For music, be sure to check out the famous (and muddy!) Glastonbury festival or the Liverpool International Music Festival. Also, the UK has three huge annual Pride events in London, Brighton, and Manchester. This is just the tip of the festival iceberg though as every city and town has a lot on offer.

8. See Stonehenge

Stonehenge , located just 15 minutes from Salisbury, is one of the oldest man-made structures in the world (dating to 2,500 BCE!). You can’t go up to the stones anymore, but it’s quite a fascinating site, especially since we still have very little idea how they dragged the stones there. The audio tour is worth getting so you can get some historical context on the site. Admission starts at 22 GBP.

9. Visit Old Trafford

I highly recommend a visit to Manchester United’s home stadium. With over 74,000 seats, it is the largest club football stadium in the UK and the 11th largest in all of Europe. The tour is awesome and takes you below the stadium seating into the player’s lounge, and even into the pitch-side dugout. Dig deeper into some football (aka soccer) history at the onsite museum. Admission is 35 GBP.

10. Admire Ely Cathedral

Also known as the ‘Ship of the Fens,’ this cathedral is visible everywhere in the small city of Ely in Cambridgeshire (and from miles around too). Originally built in the 12th century, it’s renowned for its Romanesque architecture, complete with a stunning entrance and an octagonal lantern tower. The Lady Chapel is the largest in all of England. The cathedral is also home to the National Stained Glass Museum, whose collection spans 800 years and includes stained glass from across the UK and Europe. Visiting the cathedral only costs 9 GBP (online, or 10 GBP on the day), entry to the museum is 5 GBP. Booking in advance is recommended if you want to join one of the tours which cost between 1.50-12 GBP.

11. Relax in Greenwich Park

Considered to be one of London’s largest parks, it is also one of the most beautiful — and a perfect escape from the city’s bustle. There are several historic sights here as well as a rose garden, meandering pathways, a tea house, the Royal Observatory, the National Maritime Museum, a café, and even a deer park. It is the oldest enclosed royal park in London and a relaxing place to spend a few hours with a book.

12. Hike Hadrian’s Wall

Declared a World Heritage Site in 1987, Hadrian’s wall has been standing since the 2nd century. It was built by the Romans to keep the Celts out of Roman England (though that didn’t work so well). While you can make a brief visit to see the fortifications and ancient walls in many spots of the country, if you’re up for it, you can also hike the entire 83-mile (135-kilometer) length of the wall itself (most people do it in 6-8 days).

13. Go to Salisbury

Not far from Stonehenge is the beautiful town of Salisbury . Just 1.5 hours from London by train, it has a breathtaking 750-year-old cathedral that is home to the Magna Carta and tombs dating back to 1099. Salisbury is one of the few places that wasn’t bombed during the World War II Blitz so it is beautifully preserved. Cathedral Close and Market Square are both worth visiting in Salisbury as well as Old Sarum (what is thought to be the original site of Salisbury) and Salisbury Museum.

14. Stay in Chester

I love an under-visited destination and, for me, Chester is one of those places. Chester’s center looks like something out of an old novel by Charles Dickens. The homes in Chester are typically Victorian in design and the old taverns, hotels, and little shops all have retained their charm and original look. There’s plenty to do in Chester, including walking along the city walls and seeing the rows of medieval houses that showcase the historic architecture. Chester Cathedral is over 1,000 years old and well worth a visit (it has been added to and restored but has kept its medieval feel). For something a little more contemporary, go on a river cruise.

15. Visit the colleges at Cambridge University

Like Oxford, Cambridge University is made up of different colleges. Founded in 1209, the University is an architectural delight and wandering around the many buildings in the city. Most notable include the stunning buildings at Kings and Queens Colleges as well as the iconic quads at St. Johns and Trinity. There are lots of walking tours to choose from if you want to learn more about Cambridge’s history and some are even led by the students themselves. Expect tours to last around 90 minutes and cost 20 GBP.

16. Enjoy afternoon tea

Tea is a scene unto itself in England. With a history dating back through the centuries, this tradition can be enjoyed at every level of your budget. Starting with just the drink, you can find quaint tea shops literally all over the country. There you can try different types of tea and a selection of cakes to go with it should you need a sweet treat. In Devon and Cornwall, you can have cream tea which is tea with scones, cream, and jam (although these are now often served in other places too). Afternoon tea, or high tea, is a more lengthy affair and comes first with finger sandwiches and tiny savory pastries, then with scones (with cream and jam) and little cakes. Some places offer a glass of champagne to go with it. Most traditional tea houses offer afternoon tea but if you’re after more of a sense of occasion and your budget can stretch to it), the big hotels also offer it every day.

17. Visit Bristol

Many people only pass through Bristol on their way to Bath but it’s really worth a visit of its own. With a population of 500,000, Bristol is a hip college town with amazing eateries, great food, wonderful things to see, lots of green space, and plenty of things to do. Aside from taking a walking tour (my must-do in any city!), some of my favorite things to do include a tour of Bristol’s Romanesque Cathedral that was built in 1148, wandering King’s Street, and admiring Clifton Suspension Bridge. Bristol has a great museum and art gallery that is worth a visit and I also really enjoyed St Nicholas’ Market. Other things worth doing include the S.S. Great Britain, the Avon Railway, and Blaise Castle.

  For more information on specific cities in England, check out these guides:

• Bath Travel Guide
• Brighton Travel Guide
• Bristol Travel Guide
• Cambridge Travel Guide
• Liverpool Travel Guide
• London Travel Guide
• Manchester Travel Guide
• Oxford Travel Guide

England Travel Costs

Accommodation – Hostels cost 10-30 GBP a night for a dorm room. Amenities usually include free internet, breakfast, a common room, TV, and kitchen facilities. Private rooms in hostels start at around 50 GBP and go up from there. Campgrounds can be found all around the country, and most have basic facilities (such as bathrooms, electricity, and Wi-Fi). Expect to pay 10-20 GBP per night for a place to pitch your tent.

Budget hotels offer similar amenities and start around 60-80 GBP per night for a twin room but can be more like 120 GBP in peak season. Apartment rentals (like Airbnb) cost anywhere from 35-90 GBP per night for a private room depending on the city, while entire apartments/homes start around 90 GBP per night but average 110-120.

Food – While British cuisine has evolved in leaps and bounds in recent years, it’s still very much a meat and potatoes country. Fish and chips remain a popular staple for both lunch and dinner while roasted and stewed meats, sausages, meat pies, and the quintessential Yorkshire pudding are all common options as well. Curry (and other Indian dishes, such as tikka masala), are super popular too.

A kebab costs around 5-6 GBP, burritos and sandwiches cost 6-10 GBP and traditional fish and chips cost about 10 GBP. Indian and Asian food can be purchased for 8-10 GBP. Pizza is usually 8-10 GBP. Fast food (think McDonald’s) is around 6-7 GBP for a combo meal.

A meal at a casual pub or restaurant costs 12-16 GBP and you can expect to pay at least 30-35 GBP for a three-course menu with a drink in a mid-range restaurant. A meal in a higher-range establishment costs upwards of 70 GBP.

Beer is around 6 GBP while a latte/cappuccino is 3-3.50 GBP. Bottled water is about 1.20 GBP.

A week’s worth of groceries costs around 40-60 GBP. This gets you basic staples like rice, pasta, veggies, and some meat. The best places to buy cheap groceries are Lidl, Aldi, Sainsbury’s, and Tesco.

Backpacking England Suggested Budgets

On a backpacking budget, you need at least 55 GBP per day. On this budget, you can stay in hostel dorms, cook all your meals, limit your drinking, use public transit to get around, take the bus between cities, and take advantage of all the free sites in the country (free museums, parks, beaches, etc.). It’s a tight budget so if you want some more wiggle room, I’d add another 10-15 GBP per day, especially if you plan on drinking while you’re there.

On a mid-range budget of around 135 GBP per day, you can stay in a private hostel room or private Airbnb, cook some meals and eat out at cheap pubs or fast food stalls, do some intercity travel by train (if you book early), have a couple of drinks, take the occasional taxi, and visit some paid attractions like Westminster Abbey or the Tower of London.

On a “luxury” budget of 255 GBP per day or more, you can stay in a hotel, eat out wherever you want, drink more, take taxis and the train to get around, and do more tours and activities. This is just the ground floor for luxury though. The sky is the limit!

You can use the chart below to get some idea of how much you need to budget daily, depending on your travel style. Keep in mind these are daily averages – some days you spend more, some days you spend less (you might spend less every day). We just want to give you a general idea of how to make your budget. Prices are in GBP.

England Travel Guide: Money-Saving Tips

England isn’t a cheap place to visit. You’re going to spend a lot of money here, especially if you stick to cities (and London will be about 30% more expensive than the rest of the country). However, there are plenty of ways to save if you know where to look. Here are my top ways to save money in England:

• Take advantage of the free museums – Public museums offer free admission in every city throughout England and the United Kingdom. It’s a great way to learn about influential artists, immerse yourself in the country’s history, and spend a rainy day without paying a cent.
• Book early – Book all transportation well in advance. You can find fares for around 2 GBP with a little planning. Megabus not only runs buses but also provides trains throughout England and is the best option for cheap travel throughout the country.
• Get a Taste of UK card – The Taste of the UK card offers up to 50% off and 2-for-1 deals at selected restaurants. You don’t need to be a United Kingdom resident to get the card and the first month’s membership fee is waived, which is perfect for most travelers.
• Eat pub food – Eating out in England can get quite expensive, but for good, cheap, and filling meals, visit the local pubs. Most serve food, and you can get a good meal for 10-15 GBP or less. Plus, the pubs are a great way to meet people!
• Take a free walking tour – Most major cities in England offer free walking tours. They usually last a few hours and are a great way to see the city. Some tours even have a specific focus, such as history, food, or architecture. Just make sure to tip your guide!
• Eat the lunch specials – Another way to lower your food expenses is to stick to eating out during lunch only. I typically do my eating out during lunch and then cook my dinner to lower my food costs.
• Visit the cathedrals – Many of England’s cathedrals are free to enter. It’s a wonderful opportunity to see some of England’s 15th to 19th-century architecture. just make sure to dress and act appropriately.
• Get a London tourist pass – If you’re planning to do lots of sightseeing in London, the London Pass provides access to over 80 attractions via its 1-10 day passes. Other passes available include the London City Pass from Turbopass (which includes an option to add transport costs), and the London Sightseeing Pass. Compare prices and activities to see which pass is the best choice for you and your budget.
• Bring a water bottle – The tap water here is safe to drink so bring a reusable water bottle to save money and reduce your plastic use. LifeStraw is my go-to brand as their bottles have built-in filters to ensure your water is always clean and safe.

Where to Stay in England

England has tons of awesome and budget-friendly hostels. Here are my favorite places to stay in England:

• Astor Hyde Park (London)
• St. Christopher’s (London)
• YHA Manchester (Manchester)
• The Full Moon Backpackers (Bristol)
• Seadragon Backpackers (Brighton)
• Embassie Liverpool Backpackers (Liverpool)

How to Get Around England

Public transportation – England has excellent transportation in nearly every town and city, including buses, trains, and trams. Getting a travel pass is often far cheaper than buying single tickets as well. For example, in London, a one-way fare on the tube in Zone 1 costs 6.30 GBP, but getting a Visitor Oyster Card reduces that to 2.50 GBP per ride.

Train – In the United Kingdom, the National Rail service is always expensive. It’s one thing the locals love to complain about. A journey from London to Liverpool can cost as little as 25 GBP or as much as 150 GBP! Who knows? Prices flucuate a lot! The earlier you book the better.

You can use the National Rail website or Trainline to research schedules and prices.

A Eurail Pass, which allows travelers to explore Europe by providing a set number of stops in a specific time period, might also be a good option. For more information, here’s a detailed breakdown of how Eurail passes work .

Bus – The cheapest way to travel around the country is via Megabus, where fares start at 1 GBP. You need to book at least a month in advance, but even if you miss that deal, fares are rarely more than 10-15 GBP. Flixbus also has cheap fares starting at just 3 GBP.

National Express is the other main bus company in England, and they offer great discount passes to full-time students and people under 26 years old. The passes cost 12.50 GBP and give 30% or more off adult fares.

To find bus routes and prices, use BusBud .

Flying – Domestic flights around England are cheap when booked in advance. A flight from London to Manchester or Liverpool costs around 49 GBP and takes about an hour. However, once you factor in getting to and from the airport, it ends up almost always being faster to take the train unless you’re traveling far (such as from London to Scotland).

Car Rentals – Car rentals can be an affordable option in England, costing as little as 20-30 GBP per day for a multi-day rental. Don’t forget you have to drive on the left, and most cars are standard rather than automatic. Additionally, drivers need to be at least 21 to rent a vehicle here.

For the best car rental prices, use Discover Cars .

When to Go to England

Thanks to its temperate climate, visiting England year-round is enjoyable as there are very few weather extremes. Summer is peak tourism season, and temperatures are the warmest during this time — but rarely are they ever above 30°C (86°F). Although tourist sites and attractions are teeming with people, there’s also a great atmosphere in the air. People make the most of the warm weather, and there are tons of events and festivals happening all over the country.

Spring (late April-May) and autumn (September-October) are also fantastic times to visit, as temperatures are still warm and the crowds are a bit thinner. Plus, with the seasons changing, you either see gorgeous spring flowers in bloom or the leaves turning color in autumn. Just be prepared for a little rain.

Winter lasts from December to February and tourism crowds thin out dramatically. You can still do plenty of sightseeing, although further north (or in mountainous areas) some attractions may be closed for the season. Temperatures dip below 5°C (41°F) so dress warmly. Snow is not uncommon.

Keep in mind that England is famous for its gloomy, dreary weather. It can rain a lot, so make sure you pack some weather clothes and some waterproof gear no matter when you visit.

How to Stay Safe in England

England is very safe and the risk of violent crime here is very low. Scams and pickpocketing can occur around high-traffic areas, however, especially in London around tourist attractions like the Tower of London. Pickpockets tend to work in teams, so stay alert and be aware of your surroundings. Keep your valuables secure and out of reach just to be safe.

Solo travelers, including solo female travelers, should generally feel safe here, however, the standard precautions apply (never leave your drink unattended at the bar, never walk home alone intoxicated, etc.).

While break-ins are rare, if you rent a car, don’t leave any valuables in it overnight just to be safe.

Scams here are rare, however, you can read about common travel scams to avoid here .

If you experience an emergency, dial 999 for assistance.

The most important piece of advice I can offer is to purchase good travel insurance. Travel insurance protects you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. You can use the widget below to find the policy right for you:

England Travel Guide: The Best Booking Resources

These are my favorite companies to use when I travel. They consistently have the best deals, offer world-class customer service and great value, and overall, are better than their competitors. They are the companies I use the most and are always the starting point in my search for travel deals.

• Skyscanner – Skyscanner is my favorite flight search engine. They search small websites and budget airlines that larger search sites tend to miss. They are hands down the number one place to start.
• Hostelworld – This is the best hostel accommodation site out there with the largest inventory, best search interface, and widest availability.
• Booking.com – The best all around booking site that constantly provides the cheapest and lowest rates. They have the widest selection of budget accommodation. In all my tests, they’ve always had the cheapest rates out of all the booking websites.
• HostelPass – This new card gives you up to 20% off hostels throughout Europe. It’s a great way to save money. They’re constantly adding new hostels too. I’ve always wanted something like this and glad it finallt exists.
• Get Your Guide – Get Your Guide is a huge online marketplace for tours and excursions. They have tons of tour options available in cities all around the world, including everything from cooking classes, walking tours, street art lessons, and more!
• The Man in Seat 61 – This website is the ultimate guide to train travel anywhere in the world. They have the most comprehensive information on routes, times, prices, and train conditions. If you are planning a long train journey or some epic train trip, consult this site.
• Rome2Rio – This website allows you to see how to get from point A to point B the best and cheapest way possible. It will give you all the bus, train, plane, or boat routes that can get you there as well as how much they cost.
• FlixBus – Flixbus has routes between 20 European countries with prices starting as low 5 EUR! Their buses include WiFi, electrical outlets, a free checked bag.
• SafetyWing – Safety Wing offers convenient and affordable plans tailored to digital nomads and long-term travelers. They have cheap monthly plans, great customer service, and an easy-to-use claims process that makes it perfect for those on the road.
• LifeStraw – My go-to company for reusable water bottles with built-in filters so you can ensure your drinking water is always clean and safe.
• Unbound Merino – They make lightweight, durable, easy-to-clean travel clothing.
• Top Travel Credit Cards – Points are the best way to cut down travel expenses. Here’s my favorite point earning credit cards so you can get free travel!
• Take Walks – This walking tour company provides inside access to attractions and places you can’t get elsewhere. Their guides rock and they have some of the best and most insightful tours in all of England.
• Fat Tire Tours – For bike tours, use this company! They have fun, interactive tours led by expert local guides. You’ll get to see all the main sights without breaking the bank!
• BlaBlaCar – BlaBlaCar is a ridesharing website that lets you share rides with vetted local drivers by pitching in for gas. You simply request a seat, they approve, and off you go! It’s a cheaper and more interesting way to travel than by bus or train!

England Travel Guide: Related Articles

Want more info? Check out all the articles I’ve written on backpacking/traveling England and continue planning your trip:

The 14 Best Things to Do in Bristol

Where to Stay in London: The Best Neighborhoods for Your Visit

The 8 Best Hostels in London

How to Spend a Week in London

The 9 Best Walking Tour Companies in London

70+ Free Things to Do in London

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Finding the Universe

Travel tales, photography and a dash of humor

How Much Does it Cost to Travel in the UK?

Last updated: April 19, 2024 . Written by Laurence Norah - 28 Comments

One of the most common questions we’re asked from people who read our UK guides, and in particular our detailed one week and two week UK itinerary posts is: how much does it cost to travel in the UK?

Of course, the answer is – it depends! There are a lot of factors to consider, from your travel style (budget to luxury) through to who you are travelling with (solo, family, group), and the kind of travel you want to do (self-drive, group tour, etc).

Then of course there are the attractions you are interested in visiting, the time of year you visit – there are just so many variables to take into account. Which makes answering the question quite tricky!

But we’re going to tackle it anyway. In this post I’m going to go through all the major costs you need to consider when planning a trip to the UK, and provide budget ranges for each of them.

This should give you some good ideas of what a trip like this might cost. We’ll also provide some money saving tips for each area.

Let’s get started.

In summary, you are looking at between £75 and £200 per day per person for travel in the UK. These costs will of course vary depending on your travel style, sights visited, type of transport used and dining choices.

In this post we’re going to go into detail on the four main cost areas you need to consider when travelling in the UK. These are:

• Accommodation
• Sightseeing

We’re going to look at each of these individually to give you some cost ideas. At the end of the post we’ll then put these together to give ideas of a total trip cost for the UK for a few different travel styles.

1. Transport Costs for Travel in the UK

There are a number of ways to travel in the UK. To start with, there is an excellent public transport network in the UK which includes long distance bus services (also called coaches in the UK), a good passenger rail network and multiple low cost airlines.

Our preferred way of travel in the UK (and abroad), is to self-drive where possible. We find it gives us the greatest flexibility, letting us stop when we want to, and not have to be strict about following a timetable. Of course, depending on the type of trip you want to do, this might not be the best option – if you’re only visiting cities for example, we recommend using public transport to get between them.

Price of Car Rental in the UK

• Budget : £100 – £150 per week for a small car that will fit two people and luggage
• Mid-range: £200 – £300 per week for a mid-range car that will fit four people and luggage
• High-end:  £400 – 600 per week for a small SUV or car capable of carrying more than five people

Money Saving Tips for Car Hire in the UK

Book by the week.  Most car hire companies offer better rates if you book for a week rather than a few days. Of course, there’s no point booking for a week if you only need the car for a day or two, but you might find that seven days is cheaper than six for example. We have also found that when we book a car for two or three weeks, many hire car companies have given us a free upgrade to say thanks for our custom.

Pick up your hire car on leaving the city.  In the UK, there is really no need to have a hire car in a city. UK cities are for the most part easy to get around either on foot, or have excellent public transport networks. Your hire car will likely spend its time costing money in an expensive parking lot. So just book your rental for when you leave the city.

Don’t pick it up at the airport. If you can avoid picking up your hire car at the airport, you will usually save money. Most car hire companies charge higher rates for cars picked up at the airport – it’s a combination of a trapped market and a convenience factor. Compare prices between the airport and the city, and if you can get to the city easily from the airport, and the price is better, do that.

Avoid one-way trips where possible.  Most car hire companies will charge you extra if you want to drop the car off in a different place to where you picked it up. We have actually done this many times – the key is to find a car rental company that charges minimal one-way fees. In our experience, Enterprise is pretty good for this.

Don’t forget the fuel costs. Fuel in the UK is relatively expensive compared to somewhere like the USA. Thankfully, the majority of cars are quite fuel efficient and distances aren’t that great. However, fuel prices vary wildly. Generally, the cheapest fuel can be found at supermarkets, such as Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury’s. The most expensive fuel is usually along the motorways, at the service stations.

Avoid additional fees:  The way that hire companies bump up their revenues is by charging you for a lot of addons when you come to pick up your car. These can include everything from a GPS unit through to extra insurance cover. Many of these are not truly necessary, and some travellers might find that their credit card already offers things like Collision Damage Waiver insurance. So definitely check in advance what addons you need, so you don’t fall prey to high pressure sales tactics at the rental desk.

Use a comparison service:  For car hire, we usually use a comparison search site that lets us compare prices across multiple providers at the same time. We recommend searching for your car rental on Discover Cars here . They compare a range of providers so you can find the best deal for your trip. Just make sure when comparing prices that additional fees like one-way drop offs are covered.

Consider your age:  Car hire companies around the world give better rates to what they consider to be more experienced drivers. Younger drivers, particularly those 21 and under, can pay hefty surcharges for car rental. Usually, drivers over 30 get the best rates. If you are travelling in a group of different ages, consider renting the car in the name of the older driver. Just be aware that you might need to pay more to add additional drivers, so be sure that the named driver is happy to do all the driving if necessary.

Price of Public Transport in the UK

Public transport in the UK is difficult to put a price on as there are huge variables depending on where you are going, how far in advance you book, and how you travel (bus, train, plane) – as well as if you choose to travel in standard class or a more premium class.

As an example though, a one way single ticket from London to Edinburgh by train (~4hr 30 min) would cost you around £150. If you book the same trip in advance, you could go on the same journey for as little as £25 one-way.

A similar journey by coach would take between 10 and 15 hours, and cost between £16 and £80.

You could also fly, which would take around an hour of actual flight time (although you would need to factor in the time of getting to and from the airport and check-in). Flights with a budget airline from London to Edinburgh for example start from as little as £13 (with no luggage!), and go up to around £200.

Money Saving Tips for Public Transport in the UK

Book in advance.  For planes, buses and coaches, the best prices are available if you book well in advance, and if you can be a little bit flexible with your timings. Avoid travelling at peak times (usually 0630 – 0930 & 1530 – 1830).

Use the right booking site.  For train tickets, we recommend The Trainline, which we have found to be the most user friendly option. Opt to pick up your tickets from the station to avoid postal charges, or use their e-ticket option. They also let you book tickets for destinations all across Europe, and so are a handy one stop shop for all your ticket needs.

For long distance buses, there are a number of operators to choose from. The two we would recommend are  National Express  and  Megabus , both of which offer a wide range of routes across the country.

For flights, we suggest a good comparison engine that includes the budget airlines – we recommend Kiwi.com .

Go carry on only.  If you choose to fly, packing carry-on only can save you a good amount in baggage fees. Just be aware that UK airlines have different baggage size standards to other airlines around the world, so always check with the airline first.

2. Accommodation Costs for a UK Trip

Accommodation is one of the major costs for any travel, and a UK trip is no different. Of course, the question  “how much does accommodation cost in the UK?” is not straightforward, and there are multiple factors to consider – everything from time of year through to the level of comfort and service you need will affect the price.

There are lots of options for accommodation in the UK, so whatever your budget, we are confident you will be able to find something to suit your travel needs.

Our costs are based on two people sharing a private room, but there are other options of course, including dormitory accommodation in hostels, if you are looking to save even more.

Price of Accommodation in the UK

• Budget:  £40 – £100 for a budget room for two people, usually this would be an en-suite room. Dorm rooms are also available, think around £25 per bed.
• Mid-range: £100 – £150 would get you a nice room for two in most parts of the country
• High-end: £250+ would normally be the starting point for a room in a luxury property, although deals can be had, see below for more information

Money Saving Tips for Accommodation in the UK

Travel off-peak.  If you can travel in the quieter times of year, such as January and February, particularly in less visited parts of the UK, you can score some remarkable deals. For example, we stayed in this luxury hotel near Inverness for £70 per night including breakfast in February. The same room in June is over £300!

Check the hotel website for deals.  Whilst we love booking engines for their convenience, sometimes we find that a particular property has a special deal running that’s only available if you check their website. These might be things like three nights for the price of two, or free breakfast if you book direct.

Book online.  We use booking.com extensively for our travel accommodation. After making five bookings, we qualified for their extra “Genius” discount, which often scores us an extra 10% off. We also like that they list everything from hostels to apartments to hotels of all categories, making it an excellent one-stop shop for our accommodation needs.

Use Alternative Accommodation Providers . There has been an explosion in options in the accommodation market over the last decade or so. If you’re on a tight budget, definitely consider websites like  Couchsurfing.  There are lot of options out there to help you find great value accommodation, so take advantage of them. Take a look at our guide to AirBnB Alternatives and holiday accommodation websites for the UK for more inspiration.

3. Food Costs for a UK Trip

The UK used to have a pretty poor reputation when it came to food, but thankfully over the last ten – twenty years this has improved a great deal, and you can now get really fantastic meals as you travel. That said, dining in the UK is not particularly cheap, although there are some ways to reduce the costs.

One thing to note, for US readers in particular, tax is always included in menu prices in the UK, so what you see is what you pay. Service is not included, but tips are appreciated.

Price of Dining in the UK

• Budget:  £5 – £10 per person per meal at a fast food restaurant or takeaway style meal
• Mid-range:  £10 – £30 per person per meal at a mid-range restaurant or nice pub style meal
• High-end:  £35+ per person per meal at a nice restaurant

Money Saving Tips for Dining in the UK

Drink less.  Drinking with a meal can really push your budget up. Even soft drinks can be quite expensive in the UK, so if you can stick with tap water with your meal, you can save a fair bit of money.

Find deals.  Whilst not as common as say France, you can still find good deals in the UK for dining out. Many restaurants will offer early-bird dining specials for example, for dining at times earlier than usual, such as 5pm – 6.30pm. Others may have special menu deals, where you can get a two or three course meal at a discount at lunchtime.

Fast food.  Don’t forget the fast food chains if you’re looking for cheap and easy food on the go. As well as reducing your time spent eating if you’re having a full day of exploring, these can be very cheap. To really save money, skip the extras, and find the really cheap menu items. For example, you can normally buy a single hamburger at McDonald’s for under £1. Two of those and a medium fries will keep you going for a while.

Small cafes.  If fast food doesn’t do it for you, consider stopping off at a small cafe. Often attractions have these, as do department stores and other high-street locations. Normally they have a small selection of well priced menu items, such as a soup and a sandwich, or a baked potato with a filling. Usually these meals will come in at under £5 per person.

Supermarket meals. If you’re ok with a cold meal, a reliable cheap option is to get a meal from a supermarket such as Marks and Spencer. These places usually have an extensive range of sandwiches and other snacks, often very well priced. You’ll be able to get a sandwich, snack and a drink for under £5 in most cases. Plus you can then find somewhere pretty to eat it and dine al fresco! Other options for cheap eating include chains like Eat and Pret a Manger, which also offer soups and hot items.

Cook for yourself.  To really save money on your food in the UK, you should opt to cook for yourself if you can. Obviously this will need a bit of forward planning, as you’ll need to book accommodation that includes cooking facilities, such as a self-catering holiday cottage, or a hostel with a kitchen. Cooking for yourself can really save you money though.

Eat the included breakfast. If you’re staying at a hotel or bed and breakfast that includes a breakfast (or other meal), make sure you take advantage of it, as that saves you the cost of a meal.

4. Sight-seeing Costs for a UK Trip

Sight-seeing costs in the UK will really vary depending on what you are interested in seeing. There are lots of free attractions, including many museums and outdoor sights, that won’t cost you anything at all.

There are also other trips and activities, such as day trips to specific sights you might want to see (for example Stonehenge from London ) that you will want to book a tour for. If you are thinking about taking a tour, we can recommend Rabbie’s , who offer small group tours in the UK & Ireland. We also recommend Viator who offer a huge range of tours in the UK .

Costs for sight-seeing in the UK

Costs will vary tremendously depending on what you are interested in. Museums and other attractions like stately homes range from free to around £25 per person at the upper end of the scale, although £6 – £12 per person is a more common cost.

Note that many of the major museums in the UK are free, like the Natural History Museum in London, or the National Museum of Scotland, for example.

If you decide to take a tour, the price of these will vary depending on a number of factors. Private tours will cost more than group tours for example, and multi-day tours will be more expensive than day trips.

As a guide, a day trip from London, such as a visit to Stonehenge  will cost you between £50 and £110 , depending on duration and inclusions. This price is fairly reflective of day trip prices from cities around the UK – see our guides to day trips from Edinburgh , day trips from Glasgow and day trips from Inverness for more inspiration.

Multi-day group tours will cost more, usually in the region of £75 – £150 for each day of the trip. When comparing tours like this, always check what is included and what isn’t – for example, some tours will include accommodation and attraction entry, and others won’t.

Private multi-day group tours are the most expensive option of all, and you should look to budget in the region of £500 – £1000 per day for this sort of tour, which will usually include the cost of your driver and vehicle, with accommodation costs added on top.

Money Saving Tips for Sight-seeing in the UK

Get a City-based Attractions Pass.  If you’re planning on visiting a lot of attractions in the same city, you will probably find that an attractions pass will save you money. For London, we recommend the  London Pass  (see our review here ). For Edinburgh, there’s a good pass that covers Edinburgh’s royal attractions .

Get a society membership. For certain types of attraction in the UK, such as historical homes and castles, you can save money with a membership to the organisation that manages the properties.

In the UK, there are a number of these, but the key organisations are the National Trust and English Heritage .

For English Heritage, visitors to the UK can purchase either a full year long English Heritage membership or a special English Heritage Overseas Visitors Pass .

The latter pass is specially designed for overseas visitors who might want to visit a few attractions on a visit, but who might not get the full value from a yearlong membership.

For the National Trust, the story is similar. You can either join the National Trust, or get a visitor pass here .

Visit on free Days.  Sometimes museums and attractions in the UK will have free days where you can visit for free. Check the attraction’s website or social media accounts for details of when these might be.

Use qualifying concessions. Many attractions offer discounts to different demographics – for example based on your age or eligible military service. It’s always worth checking if you qualify for a discounted price. If so, make sure you carry proof of your eligibility, for example, if it’s an age-based discount, carry official government issued ID like a driving license or passport so you can prove your age.

In Summary: How Much Will a UK Trip Cost you?

Assuming two people are travelling together in the UK, using a hire car to get around and staying in private hotel rooms with en-suite facilities, our suggested costs per person per day would be as follows:

• Budget : £50 – £100
• Mid-range:  £100 – £250
• High-end: £300+

So, for a trip like our suggested two week UK itinerary , you would likely be looking at the following total approximate costs for two people for a two week UK trip.

• Car hire: £300 – £600 + fuel (~£100 – £200)
• Accommodation: £700 – £2000+
• Food: £300 – £1000
• Sight-seeing / tours:  £200+
• Total:  from around £750 per person

Of course, you can spend a little less or a lot more, depending on your travel style, but these ballpark figures should give you an idea of costs.

Also, don’t forget to include any visa costs, travel insurance, additional sightseeing, nice meals out, souvenirs, and of course, the cost of getting to and from the UK.

Further Reading for Planning your UK Trip

Hopefully in this post we’ve answered the question of how much does it cost to travel in the UK. To further help with planning your UK trip beyond the budgeting side, we have a lot more content that we think you will find useful.

• For itinerary ideas covering the whole UK, check out our 1 week and 2 week UK itineraries . These are self-drive itineraries, so do check out our guide to driving in the UK for tips.
• If you’d rather not drive yourself, we have a UK itinerary by public transport
• If you’re heading to Scotland, we have a 7 Day camping itinerary for the North Coast 500 , as well as a detailed North Coast 500 Planning Guide and a guide to our favourite B&B’s on the North Coast 500
• A two day Edinburgh itinerary  &  21 Highlights in Edinburgh
• A Two Day Glasgow and Loch Lomond itinerary
• A guide to  10 of the best Stately Homes in England
• For London, we have some detailed itineraries to help you plan your visit. These include a  1 Day London Itinerary , a  Two Day London itinerary , a 3 day London Itinerary and a  Six Day London itinerary
• The top Harry Potter sites in London
• The  Best Photography Locations in London
• Tips on Buying and Using the London Pass
• Our favourite  Things to Do in Kensington
• A guide to things to do in Portsmouth
• The  Highlights of Oxford
• Things to do in Cambridge
• Visiting  Blenheim Palace and the Cotswolds
• 20 Things To Do in Dublin
• A  Guide to Touring the Scottish Borders
• If you want a physical (or digital!) book to accompany your travels, then Amazon do a good line in  UK Travel Guides , and there is naturally a  Lonely Planet  and a  Rough Guide  to the UK available.

And that’s it for our guide to how much it costs to travel in the UK! We hope you found it useful – as always you’re welcome to share your questions and feedback in the comments below.

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Toni Hendrix says

7th October 2022 at 12:59 am

Hello, A friend and I are in our 70’s and would like to do a month+ trip perhaps in April-May 2023 so that we can see a bit more, thinking Wales, Scotland, England, Ireland. Sort of a retirement blowout! Have we lost our minds…definitely! We’re debating about various ways to travel, where to stay,etc. One of us has had Covid but no shot and the other has all shots and still got Covid. Do we both need to be vaxed? We both have Donne ancestral research and would like to see castles in our lineage: Compton in Devonshire, Bamburg, Strickland & Devonshire. She has taught school overseas and I have been. flight attendant and done some travel. Hopefully, we can figure out a rational way to do this. Is there any hope? Thank you!

Laurence Norah says

7th October 2022 at 2:23 pm

Sounds like a fun adventure! So currently you don’t need to be vaccinated to travel to the UK. You can see the latest rules here , which you will want to check before you travel. You will also want to check the rules for the country you are traveling from so you can get back home. I’d also add that things can change very quickly, so vaccination requirements for example might be reintroduced if a new strain appears. So if possible being vaccinated might make that easier, because getting a vaccination whilst abroad is likely to be challenging. Whatever you choose though, good insurance is a good idea to cover any eventualities.

I definitely think you can do the trip you mention. Given that your trip is to a few different locations you might find renting and driving a car is going to be the easier option for getting around.

Have a great time!

Ann E. McCollister says

5th February 2022 at 6:36 am

I’m 70 years old, not well off, always wanted to go to UK (England, Ireland, Scotland). Saved $2000 (!), want to make a trip with my 3 sisters before I die. I appreciate all the advice and suggestions you’ve made and will share with my sister’s and investigate further. Cheerio and much thanks, I want to do what YOU do! You needn’t reply but encouragement would help. Afraid my dream won’t be fulfilled. Annie

6th February 2022 at 12:45 pm

It’s lovely to hear from you. I am sure that with your budget the three of you will be able to make the trip happen. There are lots of good value accommodation. I’d recommend looking for good value B&B’s where breakfast is normally included. If you are happy to drive, renting a car between the four of you will be quite inexpensive. Alternatively, we can also recommend the Rabbie’s Tour company – they do really good value tours all around the UK and are a great alternative to driving yourself.

I am very sure you will be able to realise your dream. The main cost is likely to be your flight, but luckily there are lots of routes. I’d suggest signing up for something like Google Flights and their alerts for prices.

I’m also happy to offer more specific input and help if you need it, it’s no trouble at all. If you have any questions, fire away!

21st May 2020 at 4:50 pm

Dear Laurence,

Have you ever balanced the costs (in time and money) of car rental,parking and accomodation in UK?

Car rental is relatively unexpensive compared to public transport and hotels whilst unconvenienlty located accomodation sites tend to be more affordable.

Many times, having a car allowed me to stay on those far away locations and swiftly reach my daily tourist destination by car.

On the other hand, parking availability and costs sometimes bars me from reserving otherwise most convenient accomodation sites.

21st May 2020 at 4:55 pm

I haven’t done the maths precisely. The challenge is that public transport costs can vary hugely, depending on how far in advance you book it. The same ticket booked 8 weeks in advance might cost £20, wheras the same day price might be £200. So if you are able to plan in advance and be flexible with dates and times, it can be more affordable.

We prefer to travel by car if we can though, as it’s just a lot easier for the more remote locations. Public transport in the UK is great for cities and towns, but outside of this you start to rely on slower and less regular local bus routes, which will really slow a trip down. For our UK itineraries, my suggestion is usually to start in London, and to only pick up the hire car after you have done the sightseeing in the city. Outside London, parking is generally a lot easier to find and less expensive.

10th February 2020 at 7:19 am

This is great information! Many thanks. I am planning 19 nights in GB in August with my daughter. We want to drive with a train perhaps from London to Edinburgh. One travel agent here in Australia told me he couldn’t find a hire car company that would add my daughter as a second driver due to her age. She will be 21 with an open licence for more than a year. Surely this is not so!!! Are you able to reassure us that we will both be able to drive?

10th February 2020 at 1:28 pm

Thanks very much! So the legal age for renting a car in the UK is 21, however unfortunately many car hire companies set a minimum age of 25 or 23. This is down to each company having their own policy and approach to risk. However, some companies will rent to drivers at 21, such as Sixt – so it is possible. However, they charge hefty fees for the privilege, of up to £39 per day! I wasn’t able to find any other rental companies, but it’s possible if you contact local smaller car rental agencies that you might be able to find a better deal.

Best of luck, and have a great trip!

Sue Knauf says

13th January 2020 at 4:18 pm

So pleased to have come across your informative website. We (my husband & I) are looking planning a trip to the UK. We prefer rural rather than cities & hope to spend most of our time exploring Scotland (including some of the outer islands) & Ireland. We tend to ‘wing’ our travels rather than be highly organized. Our quandry is whether to hire a car & find accommodation each night or hire a small campervan. I have heard campervans can be a pain on the narrow roads in rural area’s. We are looking to travel probably in July. Would your answer be different if we came in May?

13th January 2020 at 4:27 pm

Lovely to have you here as a reader 🙂

So a smaller campervan will generally be fine as long as you are used to driving a manual vehicle and don’t mind reversing and driving on the left. I believe based on where your e-mail address suggests you are from that neither of these will be an issue for you.

I would say that based on your preference to wing it, that a campervan is going to make more sense. Whilst it will be more expensive than a normal car, you can get smaller vehicles ( Spaceships just launched in the UK with a range of options for example) which should be reasonably priced and easier to manoeuvre. However, the main reason for suggesting this is that winging it in the Scottish Highlands in both May and July can be a risky approach. Accommodation can book out weeks and sometimes months in advance, and not booking ahead definitely runs the very real risk of having to drive for hours to find somewhere to stay (accommodation is spread out and the roads are slow). Combine this with the fact that there are large areas with no cell phone coverage, and this would end up just being a stressful trip.

So for that reason alone, having your own bed is going to be a lot less stressful.

May and July are both popular times. May is usually busier for normal accommodation, whilst July tends to have more families and campers. May is our favourite month to travel in Scotland though, as you can usually avoid the dreaded midge 😉

We have a range of content on Scotland to help with your planning, I’d say our NC500 camping itinerary would be a great starting point.

Let me know if you have any more questions!

Renuka Rajput says

7th January 2020 at 12:51 pm

Hello I am really glad to find your website. We are planning to travel UK in March as planing to few liverpool matches at that time. Will it be good time to travel or will it be too cold to explore tourist destination.

Thanks in Advance.

7th January 2020 at 3:10 pm

Hello Renuka,

I will try to help 🙂 It is hard to answer because everyone has a different definition of cold. If you are coming from a tropical country, then March in the UK might seem cold, however if you are travelling from somewhere like Canada, it will feel warm!

Generally, March should be fine though. Temperatures will likely be between 12C and 16C, which in my opinion is good for sightseeing. March is also a good month as it won’t be too busy with tourists. You will want to bring some warm layers and also either an umbrella or raincoat, as rain is likely. That said, rain is a possibility all year in the UK.

I hope this helps 😀

11th April 2019 at 6:05 am

Hi, really great sharing with much details for travelling in UK. Wonder if you have any suggestions for travel to Manchester and thereabouts?

11th April 2019 at 11:25 am

I haven’t visited Manchester for a while, despite living there for a period many years ago. So I don’t currently have any up to date recommendations, however, we hope to visit Manchester soon and fix that!

Rosemary Anderson says

23rd March 2019 at 6:50 pm

I love your site and have found great ideas for my family’s upcoming trip.

One question: We are doing a home exchange with a family who has offered to let us use their car–which is great. But we have looked (quite a bit!) online, and it seems to be very difficult to get insurance on anything other than a rental car. Do you have any suggestions?

Thanks, Rosemary

23rd March 2019 at 7:10 pm

Hi Rosemary!

Thanks very much 🙂 So this is an interesting question. Normally in the UK the car insurance policy is associated with a specific driver (normally the owner and then any other drivers) rather than some countries where you insure the car and then anyone can drive it.

My initial response is that I’m not sure exactly how you would go about doing this. Based on my experiences driving friends cars in the UK, they have had to ring their insurance to add me as a named driver. However, I don’t know exactly how this works with non-UK licenses, nor do I know how it might affect their insurance should something happen.

I did a search, and whilst this service does exist, it doesn’t seem to cover US license holders, only holders from specific countries like those in the EU, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand.

The only company I found that does seem to include US drivers was this one: https://www.hertsinsurance.com/walkabout/

I have never used them and I can’t comment on what they cover or if they are any good, but it might be worth a try!

Good luck 🙂

13th January 2019 at 2:36 am

Wow, just found your itinerary and I’m going to follow it, with a couple minor tweaks to the schedule when I go June 1st with my husband and son. Thanks for all the great advice and mapping it out. Mona

13th January 2019 at 9:48 am

Our pleasure Mona – have a great trip, and let us know how it goes!

Paul Gadsdon says

23rd December 2018 at 4:24 pm

You will find UK car hire half the price of the US. You can get a small car for £80 a week

Also dont forget all UK national museums (about 300 or so), are free

23rd December 2018 at 4:32 pm

Thanks for your input! I’ve updated the budget hire car price. I think £100 – £150 is reasonable, I’ve taken a look on various sites and for various dates, and it’s a definite struggle to get a week of car hire with unlimited mileage for much less than that.

I’ll make a point about the free museums too 🙂

Thanks again!

Cheang PY says

26th November 2018 at 2:00 pm

Awfully glad to have found your website. Very informative. 6 of us retirees (age 57-80) are planning to self-drive UK for 2 weeks, visiting Cornwall and Wales. Would like advice on accommodation (homestay/airbnb?), etc. Thank you.

27th November 2018 at 11:21 am

Our pleasure. With a group, an AirBnB or similar would be a great idea, as you can usually get more for your money. Our only advice is to only book places with good reviews. The best option is simply to search a site like AirBnb (we also have a list of Airbnb alternatives here, ) for the dates and number of people for the destinations you want to visit, and work from there.

Have a great trip!

19th January 2019 at 4:14 pm

Thank you for your suggestions. We are also looking at mpv for hire for six. Is it cheaper to get the vehicle at the airport? Thank you.

19th January 2019 at 4:24 pm

My pleasure. If you mean in comparison to booking in advance, I would say in general it will be more expensive booking car hire at the airport.

If you mean will it be cheaper picking up from the airport or from another location, usually it is cheaper to pick up a car from an location different to the airport, as airport car hire is nearly always more expensive than city locations, due to the convenience.

Samara says

29th July 2018 at 9:55 am

Great read! I appreciate the in depth breakdown. Just got to London and am going to be following your 2 week itinerary religiously!

29th July 2018 at 12:28 pm

Thanks very much! Have a great trip – do let us know if you have any questions 🙂

Ryan Smith says

3rd May 2018 at 3:03 pm

Thanks a ton for all the useful information about cost of traveling in UK, it saves me so much time Googling for the guide like this. Thank you 🙂

3rd May 2018 at 7:11 pm

My pleasure – have a wonderful trip!

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UK: Travel Budget Calculator

Plan your UK trip with ease! Use our Travel Budget Calculator to manage costs across cities like London & Manchester. Ideal for all travelers.

How much does it cost to Travel the UK!?

The United Kingdom is one of the most iconic countries in the World. From its Royal Family and History building to country town and footballing second cities such as Manchester & Liverpool, the UK has alot to offer!

Is the UK Expensive to travel?

According to  Numbeo , the  UK is the 12th most expensive country  to live in out of 122 surveyed. (2016). The UK average is 0.81 the cost of living in New York.

Local purchasing power (cost of living / average wage),  in the UK is the 22nd most expensive out of 122.

The  UK  cost of living is relatively high, but this also reflects the relatively high wages in the  UK.

The UK cost of living is also quite high due to higher transport and energy costs. Tax rates are higher then US/European rates for goods like alcohol, petrol and cigarettes.

Regional differences (North/South) Divide?

There is a North/South Divide in the UK. With the cost of living in  London  15% higher then that in Manchester. For example rents in London are an average of 52% higher than Manchester!

So if you want to explore the UK on a Budget, consider spending less time in London and more time in other cities such as Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and Historic places such as York or Bath.

Fun Fact:   Norway  is the fourth most expensive at 0.99 and India the cheapest at 0.24

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To help you budget your next adventure to Russia

Dive into our interactive Travel Budget Calculator below

User Guide:  Simply select your “Travel Style”,  ” Number of Persons” and Number of Days Traveling.

Top Tip:  “Group” travel budget gives the  total budget for 4 people!  To find out how much that is each simply divide by 4.

Family Budgets:

Families would be best using the Group selector, or those with small children should select “Couple” if the children are young enough to share a room.

We have compiled the data in the table above from our vast travel experience & other reliable sources.  source

What currency is used in the UK?

The United Kingdom uses the Great British Pound (GBP). Symbol. £.

1 USD = £0.76

UK Travel Costs (Budget):

I. budget backpacker travel costs:, ii. mid range travel costs:, iii. luxury vacation travel costs:, where to stay in  london .

For a complete list of our recommend hotels in London   follow the link  HERE

Insider Tip:

• Invest in a quality Travel Camera!

Capturing the Memories of your adventure is essential!

You will be able to show your friends, family and even grand kids all the wonderful photos captured.

For more info see, our recommend  Travel Photography Gear

Make sure you are equip with some great Photography Gear!

A high quality Tent & backpack can also be great investments to help you cut costs and have more of an adventure while traveling!

Important! Are you Insured??

Be aware that you will need separate travel insurance if you are traveling to the UK!

If you get ill or have an accident it will be a very costly experience!

All travellers to the UK should have a robust travel insurance to avoid paying out thousands of dollars.

I always recommend  World Nomads , I’ve used these for years,

they are the best and most reliable insurance, they also provides an unlimited medical budget!

Getting hit with a large hospital bill after getting sick or injured, could really add to your worries! Get some Travel Insurance

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR FREE QUOTE FROM WORLD NOMADS

For more info see:  Why you NEED Travel Insurance?

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31 UK Budget Travel Tips to Save You Money

Looking for UK budget travel tips to help make your money go further in this wonderful country? Here are some of my top travel hacks for the UK to save you pennies and pounds…

The UK is definitely not known as one of the cheapest destinations to travel round, and unfortunately, it’s getting more and more expensive. That doesn’t have to stop you exploring though!

You just need to get more savvy with your money.

Let me help you to travel the UK deeper and further by saving money on the basics, so you can do more. Here are my top travel tips for saving money on UK transport, getting deals on accommodation, and my tried and tested advice on how to save money on activities in the UK too.

How to Save Money on Travelling the UK

All my top UK budget travel tips laid bare…

Save money on transport in the UK

1. get 2-for-1 on attractions with national rail.

National Rail have lots of deals for cheap travel in the UK, but they also have a scheme where – if you travel by train – you can get 2-for-1 tickets on over 300 days out in England.

There are adventures all over the UK to enjoy, including Sea Life Centres, Cadbury World , football grounds, zoos, cathedrals, museums, gardens and cinemas. There’s genuinely something for everyone in the family.

All you need to do is save your ticket stub to show on entry, and you’ll get the 2-for-1 tickets. Check out the National Rail Days Out page for more info.

Travelling to London by train can make it a little friendlier on the wallet. Register with National Rail’s Days Out Guide and you’ll get 2-for-1 discount codes for top attractions in London such as the Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral. Just visit the attraction’s own website and use the relevant discount code when booking two tickets. Simple. Just remember that on the day you arrive at the attraction, you’ll need to present a valid train ticket.

Cheeky travel tip? Even if you haven’t travelled by train, buy a cheap single fare for a couple of quid to take advantage of the 2-for-1… it’s much cheaper than the regular admission fee for most top attractions!

2. Use free parking apps

Parking is always that surprise extra cost that everyone hates. Think ahead and save money on your days out by downloading some of the free parking apps, like AppyParking and Parkopedia.

These apps will tell you where to park around the UK for free.

3. Just walk instead

There’s a lot to be said for a simple walk — it’s good exercise, you get to explore more locally, and it’s free! There are so many fabulous walks in the UK that are completely free to do. Download an app like Pathfinders or get a good walking guide to England book, and just go for it.

• If you’re nervous about walking alone , read my guide.
• Heading to Norfolk? Read my guide to walking on the North Norfolk coast .

Look for cities and towns that are walkable –  Rye in East Sussex is a great shout!

4. Take the bus

Taking the public bus and just admiring the view as you go can be a great way to see some of the UK on the cheap – obviously this depends on which area you’re travelling through.

I did a lovely bus ride with my son along the coast of Southsea, on the Coast Hopper. He loved, and so did I as he travelled free and my ticket was just a few quid. It made for a great afternoon out for us – made all the better by getting an open top bus so we were in the fresh air!

How to save money on food & drink in the UK

5. find restaurant deals before you go.

Research the restaurants nearby your destination. Often chain restaurants like Pizza Express and Cafe Rouge have discount vouchers online, and all you have to do is Google ‘restaurant vouchers’.

Read the terms and conditions carefully to make sure you go at the right time, but you can end up saving quite a bit with money off and 2-for-1 offers. You could also try using apps like Groupon or LivingSocial as they often have regional deals too.

If chain restaurants aren’t your cup of tea then look out for happy hours in the destination you’re going to. Late lunches and early dinners can save you some serious cash.

Also, if you know where you’re going, check the website for a money off voucher to save money on days out.

6. Get Meerkat deals

If your insurance is up for renewal or you need to switch your mobile or broadband provider, it might be worth checking out Comparethemarket.com. If you buy one of their products, download the ‘Meerkat app’ and you’ll get discounts on restaurants and pizza delivery. You may, however, need to fight the urge to talk like a Russian mongoose wearing a smoking jacket.

If you use Compare the Market for your car insurance or something else, you can make the most of this great offer. Sometimes you don’t have to purchase an expensive policy either; some people have reported that a handy hack is to buy a day’s travel insurance using Compare the Market, and you’ll get access to Meerkat deals for a year. This includes the cinema and restaurants. An absolute bargain.

7. Sign up for a Tastecard

Saving money on food is one of the best ways to enjoy cheaper days out in England. After all, restaurants can be pricey and the cost of all those snacks and drinks adds up before you know it.

Sign up for the Tastecard and you get 2-for-1 meal offers at eateries all over the country — including chains such as Burger King, Carluccio’s and Prezzo. What’s more, you can get 25% off drinks at coffee shops such as Caffè Nero, 40% off cinema tickets and enjoy discount days at West End theatre shows. 

Membership costs £5.99 a month (which you can cancel at any time), or £34.99 if you sign up for the annual membership. There’s also a 60-day free trial, which renews into a £39.99 per year membership. Not bad if you’re a big foodie who wants to keep eating out minus the big bills.

8. Take your own food

The prices of food can sometimes rack up most of the bill during your day out, so planning ahead for this could help. Phone ahead to whatever venue you are visiting to ask if you can bring juice and some snacks in. This is one of the best ways to save money on days out as the food adds up – especially with a whole family to feed.

Some places may be a bit funny about you bringing your own food if they already have food on sale, but if you ask ahead of time and you know you have permission beforehand then you can go all out with a picnic featuring some yummy things. No more paying upwards of £10 for a sandwich on your day out!

9. Always take a water bottle, or 2

Speaking of not buying expensive food on your day out, the price of a bottle of water on a sunny day out is one I definitely resent as I could’ve filled up an empty bottle from the tap. Kinder to the planet and to your wallet!

You could invest in a water bottle that squashes down small when you don’t need it to avoid carrying a massive bottle around. Or if you don’t mind a larger bottle, Chilly’s bottles keep the water nice and cool, so pick whatever is the handiest for you.

If you drink a lot of water, the price of these bottles will pay itself back pretty quickly when you’re out and about. There’s also a lot less stigma about asking restaurants and cafes to fill the bottles up on the go.

ALL THE BEST FREE THINGS TO DO IN THE UK

Save money on attractions in the UK

10. join the national trust.

If your idea of a great day out in England is open spaces and beautiful views you might be able to save money, or at least encourage yourself to go out more, by joining the National Trust.

A family membership is currently £146.40 a year (correct at time of latest update: 17th April 2023) for two adults and up to 10 children. So jeez, if you have that many sprogs it’s definitely worth the investment.

National Trust properties make for a great day out for all ages, especially since a membership means you can often get free parking, and it’s unlimited, so it can actually add up to a very good value day out in the UK throughout the year.

With the National Trust membership you can visit luxury houses, beaches, nature reserves and beauty spots, and enjoy lots of days out around the UK.

11. Or join English Heritage

Another way to save money on travel in England; you could also join English Heritage . It’s the same idea as National Trust, except it’s the English Heritage sites that are free. There are hundreds throughout England, including Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, Stonehenge and Hadrian’s Wall.

Take a look at the English Heritage and National Trust websites to see what’s included in each, and decide which is the best option for you.

12. Register for a Blue Light Card

If you work in the emergency services, the NHS, social care, or the Armed Forces, you’re eligible for a Blue Light Card , which provides discounts on holidays, cars, shopping, phones, insurance, and of course, days out.

It costs £4.99 to register for a two-year membership and every now and then cardholders get free tickets for sporting events, theatre shows, concerts and festivals.

13. Use supermarket points for travel

Both Tesco Clubcard and Nectar let you use points for days out in the UK – including theme parks and top attractions. Every little helps, as they say, so keep totting up your points and see how far you are from saving for a big day out.

When it comes to Nectar, don’t forget it’s not just Sainsbury’s shops that will get you points. Collect your Nectar points every time you shop at Argos, ASOS and more (check participating retailers here ). You can use them to get discounts on car hire, hotels and experiences on Expedia, money off coffees at Caffe Nero, and to cut the cost of your petrol on Esso forecourts. 

If you have a Clubcard, shopping at Tesco can help you save money on days out in England, too. Clock up the points to enjoy discounts at theme parks such as Alton Towers and LEGOLAND Windsor, look at one of the best views in London with cut-price entry to the View From The Shard, or get money off membership to English Heritage or the RHS.

14. Research attractions annual passes

If there’s a particular attraction in your area that you know you’re going to visit a lot, it can save you money to look at an annual membership.

This is great when you’re looking for things to entertain the kids with, as usually they’ll be happy to go to the same attractions over and over if they love it. You can definitely save money on days out by going on the same one repeatedly.

If you’ve found somewhere you like – go, go, go!

15. Go with friends

Check out the group entry prices on most big attractions to save money on travel in England. Even saving a few quid here and there is better than nothing, and hey… the more the merrier!

Just as an example, at Whipsnade and London Zoo you can save 20% on tickets for 10-plus groups. And at Alton Towers  you’ll save 30% if you book together online.

16. Ask if your ticket lasts longer

Asking if you can re-use your ticket is never a bad idea, although it’s often not something anyone would think to ask.

As an example, if you visit Windsor Castle , it’s possible to upgrade your ticket for free to a year’s pass. This means for the price of one visit you can go as much as you like over the year.

That’s amazing value!

Other attractions in England that do this include The Deep Aquarium in Hull and the Historic Dockyard Chatham in Kent .

17. Subscribe to Kids Pass

Entertaining little ones on a budget is no easy task, but with Kids Pass you can save money on a number of family-friendly attractions. A monthly subscription costs just £4.99 (you can cancel anytime) and for that, you receive deals on theme parks, zoos and safari parks, as well as days out at outdoor attractions such as Go Ape.

There’s also cinema trips, restaurants and even family holidays. Seems like a no-brainer to save money on days out!

18. See the sights for less with the London Pass

Heading to the Big Smoke for a day of sightseeing? If you plan on visiting multiple attractions, one of the most cost-effective ways to pay for admission is the London Pass . It covers entry to all the big draws, including London Zoo , the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, and the Globe Theatre . 

Plus, it includes unlimited use of the Thames Clipper, so you get to see the capital from the river. Definitely one of the best ways to save money on travelling in London .

19. Enjoy 2-for-1 theme park tickets with Kelloggs

Buying a box of breakfast cereal could earn you a 2-for-1 voucher for Alton Towers , Thorpe Park, Legoland, or Chessington World of Adventures . This is a fantastic way to save money on days out.

First, check your Corn Flakes or Coco Pops have the ‘Free Adult Ticket’ promo. Next, book online via Merlin’s website — you’ll need your voucher’s 10-digit code to claim your free ticket (and make sure you book before the vouchers expire!). 

Then all that’s left to do is scream your way around some of the country’s most hair-raising rollercoasters. 

20. Seek thrills with Merlin’s Annual Pass

Speaking of Merlin, if one ride on Nemesis or The Vampire simply isn’t enough of an adrenaline hit, you can buy a pass that allows up to 364 days’ access to the UK’s biggest theme parks. 

Merlin , the company that runs all the UK’s best theme parks – Alton Towers , Chessington World of Adventures , LEGOLAND and Thorpe Park – offers an annual pass with prices starting at £69 for off peak access. If you plan on visiting any of their resorts three or more times a year it could save you money. 

It’s a good idea to renew when it’s time for the Black Friday deals – this is when you’ll get the best price for the Merlin Pass.

21. Bag a great deal with Wowcher

Wowcher has limited-time, cut-price deals on tonnes of attractions, experiences, hotel rooms, restaurants and spa days.

Sign up for their email service to be sent regular offers in your local (or chosen) area. You’ll receive loads of weird and wonderful offers, but amongst them will be some great ideas to save money on travelling the UK.

22. Snag a bargain on Groupon

Like Wowcher, Groupon is another place to get discount deals for cheaper travel in the UK. It’s fair to say that not everything will meet your tastes, but every now and then there’s an offer that’s too good to turn down! 

From spa days to group meals to escape rooms and much more, there are plenty of options.

23. Buy cut-price experiences from Amazon

It’s possibly one of the lesser-known departments of Amazon’s gigantic online superstore, but the tech firm does, in fact, sell experiences – spa days, afternoon teas, indoor skydiving… that kind of thing. 

If one takes your fancy, add it to your wishlist. That way, you’ll get a notification any time there’s a deal on and its price has been reduced. 

I managed to get a great hotel voucher by doing this.

24. Snap up last-minute theatre tickets

Planning a trip to the West End? If you don’t mind leaving it until the very last minute to secure a seat, TodayTix has cut-price tickets for the hottest shows in town, including those that are released on the morning of a performance for an unbeatable price. 

Whether you want to see a musical, play or a show that’s off-West End, it’s a good idea to check here first as they often have deals. They also have their Rush and Lottery offers, so you never know when you might find great tickets to an amazing show you’ve always wanted to see, for a fraction of the price. A brilliant way to save money on UK travel if you’re a theatre lover.

25. Get money off Hampshire’s top attractions 

Anyone spending time around Hampshire and the New Forest should check out the latest offers on Hampshire’s top attractions .

One of the more eye-catching discounts is 10% off the Isle of Wight ferry, so you can enjoy a hop across the water for less.

You can also take advantage of their free child’s ticket offer on the Watercress Line heritage railway. Choo choo!

Look for regional discount passes like this one in your chosen area as many other counties will have something similar in place to treat their local people.

26. Explore the UK’s forests

It’s easy to forget how fun and magical the forest can seem to kids, so if you’re looking for a free place to entertain them, there are tonnes of activities you can do. You can let them go wild in the woods with their own imagination. You could also try den building, obstacle courses, rope swings, climbing, bug hunting or insect bingo ( free from here )… the possibilities are endless.

You could ask them to find ten items and make a list, then swap lists and go find each other’s items. Or why not learn the names of some of the birds, trees and fauna you spot in the woodland? RSPB has a good bird identifier on their website for this.

Most trees you can tell from their leaves, but there are some free apps that will help you identify plants, like Seek by iNaturalist . It’s basically Shazam but for plants and animals. It does need mobile data, but you can take a picture and load it in later when you have Wi-Fi. Fun and educational for curious little ones.

Save money on events in the UK

27. look out for free local events.

Sometimes it’s easy to look to your larger city or borough for the big events coming up, but often there are many great smaller-scale events on your doorstep. Check out your local area for flyers, or sign up to the Facebook community in your local area to find out what’s going on nearby and save money on days out.

From local restaurant openings to sales at local independent shops to mini festivals and events just around the corner, you might come across something really enjoyable within a few miles of your house.

28. Check what’s on Eventbrite

Eventbrite is great for finding lots of different types of events, and many of them are available for free or nearly free. You can even search by ‘free’.

From business networking events to seminars and talks, to kids fun days to fashion pop-ups, there’s a little bit of absolutely everything on Eventbrite so it’s well worth a look in case there’s anything coming up in the area you’re heading to.

29. Sign up to Pokemon Go!

Yes, the Pokemon Go phase was a short-lived viral era of all our lives, but it doesn’t have to be over. In fact, it’s still got a thriving community of players ready to join, so if you love Pokemon, gaming, or you just want an excuse to get out and walk more in your local area, download the app and give it a go.

If you’ve not heard of it, it’s basically a virtual reality app which uncovers Pokemon in your local area for you to catch. Great for if you’re trying to get kids excited about exploring more of the UK.

30. Look up ’30 Days Wild’ from The Wildlife Trust

Head to 30 Days Wild from The Wildlife Trust. It’s an annual challenge where everyone that’s signed up does one wild thing a day throughout the month of June.

You’ll need to make sure you’re signed up so you don’t miss the start, and they’ll send you instructions so you know what to do. It’s usually centered around outdoor summer activities but some of the ideas can be jigged around for most seasons.

Fun, free, and it gets you outdoors and stretching your legs.

31. Do 50 things before your child turns 11¾

This is such a fun one. The National Trust have a list of 50 things to do before you’re 11¾ . Most of the activities mentioned are free for kids to tick off their mini bucket list, so you can spend a great day out helping them do some of them.

It gives you all something to focus on that will usually take up multiple days out. Check it out.

32. Sign up to cashback sites

I’ve got a great guide on the best cashback sites for travel. Take a look. I go into exactly how much you can save, and how – and, the best ones to sign up to. There are quite a few out there all offering the same!

How to save money on travel in the UK

See, lots of ways to save money on travelling the UK!

From cheap days out on the bus, to vouchers for meals, and remembering that the landscapes, forests and beaches in the UK are among the most interesting to explore. I hope these money saving tips for the UK help you to explore further. Let me know if you have any UK budget travel tips to add!

Related Posts:

• 8 Ways to Save Money on Last Minute Travel
• 10 Ways to Get a Cheaper Summer Holiday
• 7 Ways to Make the Most of Your Road Trip Budget
• Road Trip Around the USA: How Much Does the Dream Cost?
• How to Stick to a Family Travel Budget: 9 Important Tips
• 18 Amazing Travel Hacks to Make Travel Cheaper Right NOW

Hi, I'm Vicky! I wrote this. You can find me on all the social media @VickyFlipFlop. I love a bit of adventure, will try anything once, and have a strong passion for the local food and drink, whatever it may be. I'm here to help inspire you to travel to places a little out of your comfort zone, or at least to explore the usual destinations in a different way. Stay, have a look around, and if you have any questions – let me know below.

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Vicki, I’ve been following your blog for almost a year now and I’m amazed at how you travel so smoothly and easily with a baby, I’m just in awe, you are so cool)) But I have a question for you, as an experienced traveler, maybe you or your friends have encountered. My son is 14 years old and he and his friends are going to travel to the UK (without parents), will this document https://lawrina.org/templates/consent-form/child-travel/ be enough to cross the border without parents? Thank you for your attention, I wish you success and look forward to your new trips :))

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Uk budget travel tips – how to travel the uk cheaply in 2024.

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Travel the UK cheaply? Surely not! Actually you can. It is possible. In theory you could travel around the UK for as little as £30 per day if you are very savvy and willing to rough it a little. £50 – £100 and you can have a pretty epic adventure in the UK. Keep reading to learn more…

In this article we are going to share our BEST UK Budget Travel Tips for 2024. We know budget travel. We have literally travelled on a shoe string. And we also know the UK – our lovely home country. So although the UK is one of the more expensive countries to travel – we can help you save lots of money.

Planning a trip to the United Kingdom can be an exciting adventure, but it’s no secret that it can also be an expensive endeavor. As seasoned travelers from the UK, we understand the importance of saving money while exploring our beautiful country. In this article, we will share our top budget tips to help you plan a cheap trip around the UK without compromising on the experience.

Find out more about BUDGET travel. Read our guide on how to travel with just a backpack

How Expensive is the UK?

Before we share out BEST UK Budget Travel Tips we would like to give you a feel for prices in the UK. Like everywhere in the world prices in the UK have really gone up fast in the last few years. Inflation has made it harder than ever to travel on a low budget. BUT it is still possible to travel the UK cheaply. Plan well, book early and be willing to rough it a little – and the world will open up to you!

The United Kingdom is known for being one of the more expensive countries to travel in Europe. It’s essential to plan your budget carefully to ensure you can make the most of your trip without breaking the bank.

Accommodation

On average, you can expect to pay around £100 per night (around $120) for a reasonably priced room in the UK. Keep in mind that prices may vary depending on the location and the time of year you plan to visit. It’s advisable to book your accommodations well in advance to secure the best rates and availability. You can occasionally stay in YHA hostels for as little as £50 per night. Book early as the cheapest rooms disappear fast.

When it comes to eating out in restaurants or cafes, budgeting around £5 – £10 (or $6 – $12) per meal is a reasonable estimate. However, this can vary depending on the type of establishment and the location. If you’re looking to save money, consider opting for budget supermarkets and preparing your meals or look out for meal deals at local pubs. Supermarket cafes can also be a pretty good way to get some cheap hot food.

Transportation

Transportation costs can also add up quickly while traveling in the UK. Taxis, in particular, can be quite expensive, with short journeys costing a minimum of £7 (around $10). It’s advisable to use taxis sparingly or consider alternative modes of transportation such as local buses or walking.

Local buses, although convenient, are also relatively expensive compared to some other countries. Expect to pay around £2 to £3 ($3 – $4) for a local bus journey. To save on transportation costs, consider purchasing special daily or weekly bus tickets if you plan to use public transport extensively.

Activities in the UK can range from being free to quite expensive. You can explore many sites of natural beauty, including waterfalls, mountains, and forests, without any admission fees. These natural attractions offer a fantastic opportunity to experience the beauty of the UK at no cost.

However, if you wish to visit attractions like theme parks or other paid tourist sites, be prepared to spend at least £25 per person (around $30). It’s essential to factor these costs into your budget and prioritize the activities that align with your interests and budget limitations.

While the UK is known for being an expensive travel destination, careful planning and budgeting can help you manage your expenses effectively. By considering the average costs of accommodation, dining, transportation, and activities, you can make informed decisions and adjust your budget accordingly. With a bit of research and strategic planning, you can enjoy a memorable trip to the United Kingdom without breaking the bank.

UK Budget Travel Tips

1 shop in cheap supermarkets.

Eating in the UK can quickly add up, but there are ways to cut costs. One of the cheapest ways to eat is by shopping at budget supermarkets like Aldi or Lidl. These supermarkets offer a range of affordable options such as sandwiches, pasta, and salad boxes that you can enjoy on the go. Additionally, keep an eye out for meal deals at local pubs or consider dining at the pub chain Wetherspoons, known for its relatively low prices and daily meal deals.

2 Use Local Buses Instead of Taxis

While taxis can be expensive in the UK, local buses offer a more affordable means of transportation in most cities. The extensive local bus network allows you to get around conveniently and at a lower cost. Look for special daily or weekly bus tickets if you plan to travel extensively, as they can provide significant savings. Despite the initial expense, these tickets offer free travel within a specific region, making them cost-effective in the long run.

3 Use Megabus for Long-Distance Journeys

When it comes to long-distance travel within the UK, consider using Megabus . Megabus connects major cities across the country and offers very cheap tickets, especially if you book well in advance. While fares as low as £1 are not as common as before, you can still find affordable intercity bus journeys for around £10 to £20.

4  Pick cheaper types of food

Pick cheaper types of food. We already mentioned shopping in supermarkets. If you’re on a very tight budget aim for canned food, bread and simple foods. If you have a little more money to spend we recommend looking for things like sandwiches, salads and snack boxes. Watch out for meal deals. You can also buy chips from Fish and Chip shops for around £3 – £4 per portion. This is not the cheapest food around but it is tasty. A portion of fish and chips is likely to set you back around £7 – £10 depending on the size and location of the shop.

The cheapest types of food in the UK

• Chips 
• Canned goods (especially beans)
• Dried fruit

Oh yeah, you can also drink water directly from the taps in the UK. It’s totally clean and fine to drink and will save you some money.

5 Explore Youth Hostels and Campsites

If you’re looking for affordable accommodation in the UK, consider staying at youth hostels. These hostels, often members of the YHA (Youth Hostel Association), offer cheap rooms and dormitory options. They provide an excellent opportunity to meet fellow travelers while keeping costs low. Additionally, campsites can be relatively inexpensive, especially in the off-peak seasons. Be sure to book your accommodation well in advance, particularly during the summer, as popular places tend to fill up quickly.

6 Plan Free Activities

Take advantage of the many free activities available in the UK. Some museums, public exhibitions, and natural attractions like beaches, national parks, and mountains are generally free in the UK. In fact its amazing how much you can do for free. Incorporate these free attractions into your itinerary to experience the best of the UK.

7 Consider Hitchhiking

This may be one of our most controversial UK Budget Travel Tips. So if you don’t like the sound of this one feel free to skip by. While it may push you outside your comfort zone, hitchhiking is a viable option in the UK. Always prioritize safety by hitchhiking in pairs, communicating your destination with the driver before the journey, and only hitchhiking from safe locations with ample space for cars to pull over. We have hitch hiked all over the UK and our experience has been amazing. People who stop tend to be very friendly – it’s kind of like a natural filter that helps you meet the kindest people.

8 Use an International Bank Card

To avoid high bank charges when withdrawing money from ATMs, opt for a reliable international bank card. Banks like Wise are known for their favorable rates and minimal fees, making them ideal choices for travelers.

9 Head North for Affordable Travel

One of the most important UK Budget Travel Tips is to plan you activities and itinerary carefully. The UK is not a great place to “wing it” if you’re on a tight budget. So if you’re looking to save money, consider exploring the northern regions of the UK. The South tends to be more expensive, particularly in cities like London.

10 Find Reduced Food

To cut down on food expenses, keep an eye out for reduced food items in bakeries and supermarkets. Many places reduce prices on products close to their sell-by dates, typically later in the evening or towards the end of the day. By timing your visits right and exploring the reduced sections, you can find excellent deals and save money on groceries.

Example daily budget – UK travel 

Approximate cost per person for budget travel in the UK:

Food and drinks: £15 (around £5 per meal, generally buying food from supermarkets & bakeries with the occasional treat)

Transportation: £5 using local buses & walking to see nearby attractions

Accommodation: £50 small private apartments & rooms in homes

Daily total: £70 per day (which is £490 per week)

If you’re on a super budget you could stretch this by wild camping and eating very simple food. Be aware that many places have restrictions on wild camping in the UK. If you really rough it you could travel the UK for as little as £30 per day. Sometimes the lowest budget travellers have the biggest adventures!

Summary – Can you travel the UK on a budget?

Traveling on a budget in the United Kingdom is indeed possible with some strategic planning and savvy choices. By following these top budget tips, such as shopping in cheap supermarkets, using local buses, considering Megabus for long-distance journeys, opting for larger supermarkets, exploring youth hostels and campsites, embracing free activities, considering hitchhiking with caution, using international bank cards, exploring the north for affordability, and seeking out reduced food, you can enjoy your trip while keeping your expenses in check.

Remember, the UK offers a wealth of natural beauty, historical sites, and cultural experiences that don’t have to break the bank. With careful budgeting and smart choices, you can have an enjoyable and cost-effective adventure exploring this beautiful country. So, plan your itinerary, pack your bags, and get ready for an affordable and unforgettable journey across the United Kingdom!

Life loving, adventure chasing, Mum of 3 who loves travel. Over 10 years of travel writing experience. Emma now loves to give the best tips to help other travel loving parents plan adventures with their kids. Whether you need to find the best accommodation or just need to know how to pack your bag Emma is that travelling mum who love to help you.

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Budget travel , United Kingdom

Backpacking the uk on a budget – travel costs + itinerary.

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This post may contain affiliate links to things like tours, hotels, Amazon associates and products. These help me earn a small commission at no additional charge to you.

While the UK is undeniably a beautiful place to travel , it can be expensive. I created this guide to backpacking the UK to help you explore the best of Great Britain (England, Wales and Scotland) and Northern Ireland. So you don’t break the bank doing it, I’ll share a complete cost breakdown for budget travel in the UK. Since I grew up in the United Kingdom and return between trips, I have almost 30 years of experience living and spending money (or rather trying not to!) in the UK. There are so many fantastic places for budget travel in England, Scotland, Wales and NI such as London, Oxford, Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Bristol, Brighton, Cornwall, Devon ( England ), Cardiff, Pembrokeshire ( Wales ), Edinburgh, Glasgow, the Highlands ( Scotland ) and Belfast (Northern Ireland).

Keep reading for my itinerary for backpacking the UK!

UK BACKPACKING ESSENTIALS Lonely Planet guidebook – Great Britain , Scotland , Wales , Ireland Accommodation: Hostels & apartments – Booking.com / Hostels – Hostelworld.com Activities: GetYourGuide / Viator Getting around: Trainline / Busbud Flights: Skyscanner

Like budget travel ? Check out my budget guides to South Korea , India , Cuba and Taiwan !

Is it expensive to backpack in the UK?

Yes, the UK is expensive to travel. There are no two ways about it. The UK isn’t as expensive as Scandanavia or certain parts of the US but it’s up there as one of the world’s more expensive regions. Backpacking the UK on a budget is a totally different experience to travelling in Southeast Asia or South America. Luckily, I have plenty of budget tips for the UK to share. Of course, the ultimate tip is to escape the holiday hotspots in favour of hidden gems in the UK .

UK budget travel – what’s the cost?

Well, how long is a piece of string? However, here’s a rough estimate of how much to budget per day in the UK:

Backpacker’s UK budget (staying in hostels and cooking your own meals) – £60 per day. Mid-range UK budget travel (staying in budget Airbnbs and hotels and eating out half the time) – £100 per day. Luxury UK travel budget (staying in nice hotels and eating out for all your meals) – £200 per day.

Backpacking the UK – cost of a visa

Depending where you’re coming from, the conditions of visiting the UK will vary. Make sure you do your research and check out the current costs and requirements.

Backpacking the UK – mobile data

The best way to stay connected while travelling in the UK is to pick up a local SIM card. I use giffgaff and pay £10 for 9GB of data and unlimited calls and texts. Sign up for giffgaff and pre-order a SIM to be delivered to a UK or overseas address.

How to backpack the UK – modes of transport

If you’re wondering How much should I budget per day UK? , let’s get this out of the way: public transport makes it hard to travel on a budget in the UK! Recently, I flew into Manchester via Poland as it was a quarter of the price of the train. I don’t mean to encourage unnecessary air miles as I try to take public transport wherever possible. It’s just tricky when UK trains are more expensive than organs on the black market (I think?).

Trains in the UK

My best UK budget travel tip? Book trains in advance and be smart.

The railways in the UK are privatised which means there are lots of rival companies. Booking a ticket is a bit like playing the lottery as prices vary considerably. Here’s a screenshot of a train 4 minutes later being 5 times the price:

Average UK train prices START from:

Manchester – London: £35.

London – Brighton: £20.

Cardiff – London: £30.

Edinburgh – London: £60.

However, if you’re backpacking in the UK with limited time, you can’t deny the train is the quickest way to get around. Here are my best budget train tips:

Book your journey online to save money – it’s usually a lot more expensive to buy tickets at the station on the day. Select individual times rather than open returns. You’ll be restricted to the time you choose but at least you’ll save money. I use Trainline to shop for good deals and try and book your journeys a week in advance. If you’re visiting Wales, check the best train deals on the Transport for Wales website.

UK budget travel hack #1: go on Trainsplit . This website books you on the individual legs of your journey to save you cash. You end up carrying eight tickets but I’ve saved £15 per journey before by doing it.

UK budget travel hack #2: If you’re aged 16-25 and plan to make more than 2-3 journeys, it might be worth buying a Railcard . These cost £30 but save you a third on journeys so if you’re making a really long one, for example London to Edinburgh, you might make it back in one trip.

UK budget travel by coach

Coach travel can be ridiculously cheap. I’ve made it halfway across the country on a £1 ticket while backpacking in England!

Average coach prices in the UK:

Manchester – London: £20.

Brighton – London: £15.

Cardiff – London: £20.

Edinburgh – London: £50.

If you’re travelling England on a budget, use coach companies National Express and Megabus . Both have toilets, chargers and an online entertainment system. National Express are generally more reliable but the Megabus sales are best for picking up bargains. Compare prices using the Busbud website. Super hack for budget travel in the UK: Travel overnight and you won’t pay for accommodation. This is the lowest of the travel lows but I’ve done it plenty of times and it works!

Cost of local buses

If you’re backpacking the UK on a budget, you will want to catch local buses rather than taxis. You can take buses around cities as well as between towns and cities within the same county. These typically cost a few pounds per journey.

The main bus companies to look out for include Stagecoach which operates all around the country and Arriva which operates around the Midlands, North East, North West, South East of England and Wales. For these buses, you pay the driver in cash or with contactless bank card rather than booking online like the UK coaches and trains.

Cost of internal flights in the UK

Use Skyscanner to find these. You can find real bargains, like London to Scotland for £25 return. Just remember to factor in the price of getting to the airport. From Oxford, I have to catch a train to a London airport and then it becomes less of a bargain. Skyscanner tip – use the ‘search by month’ tool to find the cheapest dates. You can also use the ‘to anywhere’ feature if you’re flexible on where you’re going.

Budget tip – I recently found out how you can drop-off for free at Stanstead Airport !

Cost of taxis

Metered taxis in the UK cost around £3 per mile . Black cabs in London cost considerably more and should only be used as a last resort.

Taking Uber in the UK is a great way to save money but it’s only available in larger cities. Smaller cities and towns have to rely on more expensive private taxi companies. As a general rule, I’d avoid taxis if possible if you’re travelling the UK on a budget. Usually, local buses are the cheapest way to get about.

UK backpacking – where to stay

If you’re hoping to backpack the UK on a budget, finding affordable accommodation will be your biggest challenge. Accommodation prices in the United Kingdom vary depending on the city and type of accommodation you choose but they’re generally pretty high compared to many other countries. Staying in hostels is the cheapest option when backpacking the UK. Here are a few general costs:

Cost of hotels in the UK

Hotel rooms in the UK start at around £35 per night and head into the hundreds. If you’re travelling in a pair, this will reduce the cost of travel in the UK. Hotels occasionally offer single rooms but these are rarely half the price of a double or twin room. My best UK budget tip for solo travellers is to avoid hotels and opt for hostels or rooms in shared Airbnbs.

Budget hotels in major UK cities: London – The Z Hotel Victoria // Point A Hotel Paddington // Browse all London hotels . Oxford – The Buttery Guesthouse // browse all Oxford hotels . Brighton – The Royal Albion Seafront Hotel // browse all Brighton hotels Bristol – Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel // browse all Bristol hotels Manchester – easyHotel Manchester // browse all Manchester hotels Liverpool – The Z Hotel // browse all Liverpool hotels Edinburgh – CoDE Co-Living – The Loft // browse all Edinburgh hotels Glasgow – Glasgow Argyle Hotel // browse all Glasgow hotels Belfast – Jurys Inn Belfast / browse all Belfast hotels

Cost of Airbnbs in the UK

The UK is well set up on Airbnb with loads of private apartments and rooms available. Staying in a bedroom in an owner’s flat is usually cheaper than a budget hotel and only slightly more than a backpackers hostel. Renting a whole apartment is usually more expensive than a hotel room but can be reasonable if you’re backpacking the UK with a couple of other people. Private rooms in Airbnbs start at £20 per night. Entire properties (typically small flats) start at £40 per night. Remember to check the cleaning and service fees on Airbnb; these are in addition to the first price quoted when browsing the website.

Cost of hostels when backpacking the UK

Hostels in the UK start at £15 per night and are undoubtedly the cheapest places to stay, as well as a great way to meet people while travelling solo . A few good options for UK backpacking include:

London – Safestay , Wombat’s City Hostel Manchester – Selina NQ1 Manchester

Bristol – The Bristol Wing / Full Moon Backpackers

Liverpool – YHA Albert Dock , Selina Liverpool

Cambridge – YHA Cambridge

Brighton – Happy Brighton Edinburgh – Code Pod Hotel , Safestay Royal Mile Glasgow – Euro Hostel Glasgow . Even though UK accommodation is expensive, there’s usually a hack. For example, many travellers love getting outdoors at Centerparks but the prices are notoriously high. Plenty of lesser-known cheaper alternatives to Centerparks exist but you just have to do your research!

Don’t want to pay for accommodation? Check out Trusted Housesitters and set yourself up as a house sitter!

Backpacking the UK – tours & activities

Luckily for those backpacking in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, there are free museums, parks and neighbourhoods to discover. For guided tours and bucket list experiences, I would recommend GetYourGuide , a booking platform with affordable tours in almost all UK cities.

Top experiences for backpacking the UK:

Harry Potter studio tour (London)

Jack the Ripper tour (London)

Regents Canal, Camden and Little Venice boat tour (London)

Loch Ness & The Highlands with Hotel Pick-Up (Edinburgh)

Evening Underground Ghost Tour (Edinburgh)

The Titanic Experience with SS Nomadic Visit (Belfast)

Giant’s Causeway and Game of Thrones Day Tour (Belfast)

Best places in the UK for backpacking

To travel cheaply in the UK, pick affordable destinations to start with. There are plenty of fun and beautiful places I would recommend for UK backpacking. Planning a trip to England on a budget? Let’s start with my favourite English destinations…

Sure, it’s expensive but you can’t backpack the UK and miss London! It’s not just the main attractions like the Tower of London, London Dungeons and Buckingham Palace that put London on the map but the quirky neighbourhoods like Camden with its colourful street art and alternative East London with yet more street art in Shoreditch .

It’s possible to backpack in London because even the expensive areas like Greenwich have free things to do . Another pricey area worthy of a visit is Notting Hill where you can wander the streets and find colourful houses in London for free.

Best travel guide for London? Lonely Planet Pocket London gets my seal of approval.

Visiting Oxford as a day trip is a great excursion from London. There’s bags of history, a fantastic Covered Market for foodies and lots of impressive Oxford colleges to visit . There are plenty of free things to do in Oxford and some excellent food markets. It’s small and walkable so there’s no need to pay for transport whilst there. Read all my Oxford blogs here. Trains from London start at £5 each way (use Trainline to book) or you can get an anytime return on the Oxford Tube (bus) for £18 which is valid for 3 months. Check for other bus deals on Busbud .

If you’re backpacking England on a budget, I would suggest spending time in the north to save money. Manchester is one of my favourite UK cities. It’s fun, affordable and has plenty of hipster bars and cafes. A weekend in Manchester is the perfect amount of time to spend. The restaurant prices are way lower than London and you’ll find so many cheap eats in Manchester for under £10. Read more Manchester blogs:

• The best day trips from Manchester, England
• Where to find street art in Manchester
• 12 cool Manchester coffee shops not to miss
• The coolest restaurants in Manchester for 2022

The Lake District

The Lake District isn’t the cheapest place for backpacking England BUT if you’re travelling in a group, you can book a self-catering accommodation in the Lake District and cook your own meals. The various hikes, lakes and woodland walks are free. Nightlife is limited so have cosy nights in your cabin, spend quality time with your companions and take advantage of supermarket wine!

This fun and lively city on the coast is just an hour’s train ride from London. Brighton is a hippie and forward-thinking city with a beach, pier, tasty vegan food scene and plenty of LGBTQIA nightlife. Check out my complete guide to visiting Brighton as a day trip from London .

Bristol is another of my favourite UK cities with lots of quirky Bristol street art , vegan food, a lively open-air dining and drinking area beside the harbour and cool neighbourhoods like Bedminster. A weekend in Bristol is a great amount of time and you can also catch a 15-minute train to historic city Bath as a day trip .

With its Beatles history, cultural galleries and dockside dining around the waterfront, there’s a lot to love about this city in the north of England. The outside areas have a lively vibe in the summer but the many museums and cafes mean there are plenty of things to do in Liverpool during winter too. With cheaper prices up north, Liverpool is one of the better places for budget travel in England.

The capital of Scotland is a must for backpackers especially if you visit during August for the famous Fringe Festival (although prices shoot up for accommodation). With lots of history and several Harry Potter locations in Edinburgh , it’s one of the most iconic cities in Europe. Although it’s not cheap, there are several free things to do in Edinburgh .

I tagged Glasgow onto a trip to Edinburgh while backpacking in the UK and ended up falling in love with its quirky street art, up-and-coming areas and affordable eats. It’s without doubt, one of the cheapet cities for budget travel in the UK. When spending a weekend in Glasgow , you can explore free attractions including The Lighthouse (a modern gallery inside a period building), Pollok Country Park, The Hidden Alley, Kelvingrove Art Gallery and the Botanical Gardens. Excellent cheap eats in Glasgow include Gnom ,  Potluck ,  Cafe Strange Brew and Bread Meats Bread . Don’t miss the street art in Glasgow !

The capital of Northern Ireland is a vibrant city that makes a great base for exploring the surrounding region. Being the birthplace of the SS Titanic puts Belfast on the map but there are so many other reasons to visit , not just the fact the prices are relatively low compared to London and cities in the south of Great Britain. I’ll share my UK backpack itinerary further down.. .

What to eat and drink while backpacking the UK

Some of the traditional dishes to try in the UK include fish ‘n’ chips, pie and mash, a Sunday roast, full English fry ups (with sausages, bacon, black pudding, toast, baked beans and fried eggs), Yorkshire puddings, scotch eggs and sausage rolls. Make sure to have an afternoon tea with scones, cake, finger sandwiches and a pot of English breakfast tea. For breakfast, try English crumpets spread with marmite! Regarding the costs, I have good and bad news for you. Eating out in the UK is expensive but supermarkets are really affordable. So, let’s start with the average costs of eating out…

Main dish in a mid-range restaurant: £10-20. 3-course meal and alcoholic drink: £35 – £60 at a mid-range restaurant.

Budget UK restaurants

To eat out in the UK on a budget, there are a couple of decent chains which you’ll find in most cities. None of these places will set you back more than £10 per main dish. Pizza Express / Zizzi / ASK – these Italian restaurants are pretty similar. You’ll get a decent pizza for a tenner and there are always deals on if you check their websites. Leon – I love the concept of this place which is healthy fast food. It’s more of a cafe vibe but it’s open in the evenings too. I like the naked burgers with salad, and they do a solid breakfast deal of a coffee and food item for £4. Greggs – sausage rolls and pasties for pennies. I’m not saying your waistline will get smaller, but your food bill will. Plus, they have a ton of vegan options. Pieminister – to sample hearty English cuisine, try these hearty pies with various sides. Pies start at £5 or you can eat one with mash, mushy peas and gravy for £8. Nando’s – Brits are obsessed with having a ‘cheeky Nandos’ aka a Portuguese-style chicken meal with peri-peri sauces and various sides. Wagamamas – reasonably priced Asian food with a casual canteen vibe and excellent katsu curries.

UK budget travel – do you tip?

In the UK, we leave a 10% tip in restaurants but that’s about it. Occasionally, tips are already added to bills by the restaurant especially if you’re dining in a large group. Double-check the bill to see whether service is included – you don’t want to pay it twice. More commonly, a restaurant bill will include only the food and drink ordered. It’s at your discretion to add approximately 10%. Unlike some countries, we don’t tip bartenders. You might leave the change at the end of a cab journey and of course, you can give a tip to a tour guide if they’ve done a good job. But as a general rule, we don’t have a huge tipping culture.

Cost of supermarkets in the UK

One of the great things about backpacking the UK on a budget is the quality of the supermarkets. I didn’t realise until I travelled to other places how good they are. If you’re backpacking the UK and staying in self-catering accommodation, a week’s supermarket shop can cost as little as £30 per person and make affordable meals throughout your trip. For that reason, my best budget tip for the UK is to eat out as little as possible. UK supermarket costs: Pint of milk – £1, loaf of bread – £1, bag of own-brand pasta – 50p, jar of pasta sauce – £1. To give you a feel for the prices of main supermarkets, I’m going to provide a couple of examples of things their regular shoppers might say:

• M&S – ‘get the butler to pick up some canapés!’
• Waitrose – ‘throw out the rest of the smoked salmon – it’s a day out of date!’
• Sainsbury’s – ‘I buy the Taste the Difference range at weekends and the Basics during the week’
• Tesco – ‘£2 for a sandwich? Bargain!’
• Morrison’s – ‘help me, I’m poor’
• Iceland – ‘I don’t know what’s worse, the risk of salmonella or Peter Andre on their TV advert!’

Stick to the cheaper ones and you can spend less than £10 a day on food. Another UK budget tip is to buy supermarket own-brand items – these are always cheaper than global brands.

Food markets in the UK

If you’re expecting the food markets of Southeast Asia while backpacking in the UK, you’re in for a disappointment. However, there are food markets in some UK cities. I love the many food markets in Oxford , the city where I live. There are also lots of fantastic London food markets. A food market dish can cost as little as £5. While it’s still cheaper to make a packed lunch or cook at home, they’re a great option if you want something tasty without paying restaurant prices.

Budget eating tips for UK backpacking

1. Use hostel kitchens to cook your meals and make packed lunches for your days out. 2. Pack teabags and coffee sachets to save you buying £2.50 coffees every morning. 3. Grab a refillable water bottle . Not only are these environmentally friendly, but you won’t have to spend money on bottled water.

Backpacking the UK – drinks & nightlife

There’s a big pub culture in the UK but it isn’t cheap to go out. People often do rounds which means, depending how many people you’re with, you can drop £50+ on a night out!

Here are a few costs to prepare you for UK budget travel: Pint of beer in the UK: £4.5-7. Glass of wine in the UK: £6-9. Cocktail in the UK: £10-14. Club entry in the UK: This usually costs £5-10. For popular clubs in London, you can spend £20. I’m not sure if this is responsible advice but pre-drinking before going out to a bar or club is a big deal for young English people, and those backpacking in the United Kingdom! A bottle of wine that’s £5 in a supermarket will be £20 in a bar so you can see why people drink at home with friends first. A word about Wetherspoons – it’s not exactly classy but this chain of pubs is damn cheap. I’ve had a bottle of Prosecco for £10 and full meals for £5.

Backpacking London – free things to do!

Even though London is one of the world’s most expensive cities, you can’t deny there are endless free activities. If you’re backpacking in England, you’ll enjoy the plentiful of parks and the countless museums as well as free concerts and events on weekends, especially in the summer. Some of the best free things to do in London during your UK budget travel trip include… Museums – the British Museum, Museum of London, Natural History Museum, Science Museum, Queen’s House, Victoria & Albert, Imperial War Museum. Markets – Leadenhall Market, Broadway Market, Maltby Street Market, Borough Market, Camden Market, Colombia Road Flower Market, Greenwich Market, Portobello Road Market, Brixton Village, Pop Brixton, Old Spitalfields Market. Check out my guide to the best London food markets .

Finding Instagrammable locations in London (like these colourful houses) is free!

Galleries – Tate Britain, National Gallery, Somerset House, Saatchi Gallery, Whitechapel Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, God’s Own Junkyard, open-air East London street art , Carrie Reichardt’s House.

UK backpacking itinerary

Here’s a month’s itinerary for backpacking the UK: Days 1-4: London, baby! With 4 days in London, you can spend a day exploring the tourist highlights like Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, the Tower of London and the London Eye. Then, spend a day in East London finding street art and browsing cool markets. Another day, take yourself over to Camden and walk the towpath to Little Venice where you can take a boat ride and have brunch on a barge. You could also squeeze in Notting Hill during this day. Don’t miss Greenwich on day 4! Day 5: Take a day trip, I would suggest to Oxford or Margate . Both places are 1.5 hours away on public transport.

Day 6: Catch the train to Brighton and spend 1-2 nights visiting this beach town, shopping in boutiques and indulging in vegan food. Days 7-9: Head over to Bristol . Whilst spending a few days in this quirky city, you can also take a day trip to Bath .

Days 10-17: Wales! With a week in Wales, you can spend a day in Cardiff , visit tourist-friendly Pembrokeshire and head up north to more remote parts of Wales.

Related read: Stops for the ultimate Wales road trip

Read more of my Wales blogs:

• Guide to visiting Holy Island, Anglesey
• What to do in Anglesey, Wales
• The best things to do in Conwy, Wales
• The top attractions in Llandudno, Wales’ perfectly preserved Victorian seaside town
• Why to visit Portmeirion, the idyllic Italian village in Wales
• Fun facts about Wales

Days 18-20: Continue your UK backpacking itinerary from North Wales back into England and arrive in Liverpool. Tip – for getting around in Wales, hire a car with Rentalcars.com or take public transport. Book trains on the Transport for Wales website. Days 20-22: Spend a few nights hanging out in quirky Manchester and eating fantastic food. From here, you can take a detour into the Lake District if you have time. Days 22-27: Scotland! Here you can spend a couple of days exploring Edinburgh then head over to Glasgow. Finally, visit Inverness and take a day trip to Loch Ness . Days 28-30: Fly to Belfast and take day trips around Northern Ireland, starting with Giant’s Causeway.

Best time to backpack the UK

The UK has clear seasons: winter from December to February, spring from March to May, summer from June to August and autumn from September to November. In the summer, temperatures can reach 30 degrees and in winter they drop to around 0. In the summer, it gets dark at 9.30pm and in the winter it can get dark by 4pm. Spring and winter are between the two, characterised by their spring flowers and red autumnal leaves. Winter is miserable in the UK and summer is busy and expensive. I’d choose spring or autumn to dodge the crowds and stay reasonably warm! It rains all year around.

Events in the UK

If you can time your UK backpacking adventures around the following events, do! Glastonbury Festival – while this is my favourite UK festival , it’s not easy to get tickets. You have to fight it out with a billion other wannabe attendees the October before when tickets are released online and gone within minutes. Tickets are £260 but it’s worth increasing your UK travel budget to try and nab one. Glastonbury is one of the world’s best festivals with its many stages, inventive and quirky sets and underground raves in rabbit holes.

Notting Hill Carnival – this neighbourhood of London is fancy and upmarket throughout the year but becomes loud and vibrant during the bank holiday weekend in August when it becomes a vibrant celebration of Caribbean culture. Everyone is welcome! Edinburgh Fringe Festival – Unlike Glastonbury which is a camping festival, the Fringe is spread out across the city of Edinburgh comprising arts, music, culture and comedy acts. Attending the festival is free and you pay for individual shows. St Patrick’s Day – held on 17th March each year, this was once an auspicious day to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland. Now it’s a day dedicated to drinking! This a very lively night out across the whole UK. Expect to buy a lot of pints for people you meet at the bar. Bonfire Night – this is a strange day when you consider it commemorates an attempted terrorist attack on the Houses of Parliament in 1605. Nowadays, Guy Fawkes Night is celebrated on the 5th of December with bonfires and fireworks. Many people hold them in their gardens but, if you’re backpacking in the UK, you can easily join public events.

UK backpacking essentials

• Warm clothes for the winter: jeans, jumpers, jacket, scarf and waterproof shoes 
• Shorts, t-shirts, dresses etc for the summer – but always prepare for bad weather!
• Mini travel umbrella (packs up small)
• The latest copy of Lonely Planet Great Britain / Scotland / Wales / Ireland
• Technology : a GoPro if you’re making videos – I use the HERO8 Black
• Solo photography pick: Manfrotto tripod and Joby Gorillapod
• A power bank to keep your devices alive
• Sustainability: a stainless steel reusable water bottle to reduce the use of plastic bottles
• A reusable metal straw to save on plastic ones
• Travel luggage: Osprey Farpoint backpack ( men’s ) ( women’s )
• Packing cubes (handy for organising backpacks and suitcases).

UK budget travel quick links Guide books – LP always get my seal of approval. Use the latest copy of Lonely Planet England . Getting there & around by air – I use Skyscanner to find the best-value flights, using the ‘search by month’ tool to find the cheapest dates. You can also use the ‘to anywhere’ feature if you’re flexible on where you’re going. Car hire – use Rentalcars.com to compare car rentals and campers in the UK (and all around the world). Confused about visas? I use iVisa to check visa requirements and apply for visas online For UK trains , I use Trainline . The search feature allows you to compare prices, and they show live departure times on the website. For buses , I use busbud . It’s the only site that compares UK coaches and buses. Find London to Manchester journeys for £1!  I use Booking.com for accommodation. They have the best range of hotels and self-catering apartments, plus you can filter by review score and price to find the best-rated budget places. For hostels, I use Hostelworld.com . To save money on accommodation, I use Trusted Housesitters , a website that connects homeowners going away and travellers who can sit their homes & pets. Browse UK tours and activities on GetYourGuide . I also check Viator as they often have fun & unique offerings. Need travel insurance ? I use True Traveller (for UK & Europe residents) since it’s affordable but covers everything you’d need including various activities, valuables and pre-existing conditions. Unlike some companies, they insure you if you’re already travelling / don’t yet have your flight home booked. Get a quote . For travel insurance for other nationalities, I recommend Hey Mundo and for long-term digital nomad travellers, I suggest Safety Wing .w Check out my resources page for more travel discounts and tips!

Read my other UK guides:

• My London guides
• My Oxford guides
• How to spend a weekend in Oxford
• How to spend a weekend in Manchester
• How to spend a weekend in Norfolk
• 1 day Birmingham itinerary
• The perfect Margate day trip from London
• The perfect weekend in Dorset
• How to spend 2 days in the Lake District
• Things to do in Liverpool in winter
• How to spend a weekend in Bristol

Thanks for reading my UK backpackers guide!

If you liked it, please share it

See you next time for more adventures,

For more UK backpacking tips, follow me on Instagram , Facebook , Twitter and YouTube .

Ps. Liked this guide to backpacking in the UK? Pin this for later!

Rose is a solo traveller from the UK who has been on the road since 2015. She wants to show other women that solo travel isn't scary and doesn't have to be expensive! Rose has lived in Mexico, Canada and all over Asia, seeking out food, bubble tea and street art wherever she goes!

2 thoughts on “ Backpacking The UK On A Budget – Travel Costs + Itinerary ”

This is super helpful and awesome tips! I’m hoping to solo visit for ~2-3 weeks in early September and see all of GB. I was originally thinking a BritRail pass would be best but they are quite expensive (but still less than a rental car lol) and then I must figure out how to get from stops to destinations (castles, coasts, trails, hostels/BnBs, etc./adds costs) so it will be a bit of planning! I’ll be sure to review a lot of your articles here to help LOL. 5-stars 🙂

Hey Andrew! Glad it helped, yes planning is really required to see the UK affordably! Getting between the out-of-city attractions is always the tricky bit…

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How to Travel the UK on the Cheap

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The UK is one of the most expensive countries in Europe — and if you’re planning a trip, you might be daunted by the cost of transportation within the UK.

But it is very possible to travel the UK for cheap!

Since settling in Chester, I’ve found a host of ways to save money on transportation.  And all of them have one thing in common:

BOOK EARLY.

It doesn’t matter whether you’re traveling by train, bus, or air — booking early will nearly always save you money, and booking last minute will always be exponentially more expensive.

Now that that’s out of the way, here are some ways to save money on different kinds of UK transportation:

Cheap UK Train Travel

Train travel in the UK is incredibly romantic, and you can easily watch the scenery go by for hours — bright green hills, sheep, newly plowed fields, tiny villages…it’s my favorite way to travel the UK.

Most of the time, it’s also the easiest and fastest way to travel — though not the cheapest.

If you’re not a UK resident and planning on traveling lots of long distances in the UK by train, look into a Britrail Pass .  If you’re just booking occasional journeys, read on.

Check the Megatrain and Virgin Train sites first for absurdly cheap train routes.  These two sites tend to promote the same routes.

Next, no matter which destination you choose, check out The Trainline’s Fare Finder — it will show you the cheapest tickets for various dates and times.  Either way, booking on The Trainline is usually cheaper than other sites.

On all the aforementioned sites, you buy tickets online, then use the same credit card to retrieve your tickets at the station.

What to know:  Be flexible on stations.  I was looking for Chester-Edinburgh round-trip fares and couldn’t find anything for less than an astounding £150.  Then I found out that there are cheap fares on Megatrain from Warrington Bank Quay to Glasgow, a short trip from Edinburgh.  I had never heard of Warrington Bank Quay, but it’s only a few stops away from Chester!

I paid normal fares from Chester to Warrington and from Glasgow to Edinburgh — but from Warrington to Glasgow, the longest part of the journey, I found a super-cheap £9 fare.

Cheap UK Coach Travel

The thing about bus (or coach) travel is that you need to evaluate the positives and negatives.  Yes, bus travel can be much cheaper than the train, but it can also take a lot longer, and most find it less pleasant (though all the coaches I’ve seen have been immaculate).

I usually book a coach when traveling from Chester to London.  The fastest trip is five hours (while the train takes 2.5 hours and costs at least three times as much).   To me, five hours on a bus is definitely doable, while 11 hours to Scotland is not worth it.  I may have managed a 32-hour bus journey in Southeast Asia , but I have no intentions of repeating that here!

First, check out Megabus for the cheapest fares of the bunch, then check out National Express  for cheap fares but more convenient times.

What to know:  Again, book as early as possible, especially on Megabus — they even have £1 fares!  Also, keep in mind that you must wear a seatbelt at all times — it’s UK law.

Cheap UK Air Travel

I wouldn’t recommend air travel in the UK most of the time — the sheer act of flying requires so much more time and effort, that it’s not worth it.  But it can be useful for exceptionally large distances, like London to Aberdeen or Inverness.

My go-to flight search engine is Kayak  because it’s the best.  Be sure to check airline sites as well for unpublished fares.  Budget airline  Easyjet has several domestic routes in the UK.

What to know: Budget airlines usually fly at inconvenient times from out-of-the-way airports. Take this into account and make sure you have someone to drive you, or your Uber might be more expensive.

Creative UK Travel Options

None of these float your fancy?  There are a few other options.  Rideshare sites are growing more popular in the UK.  My friend Dylan swears by hitchhiking.  And you could also do Britain’s most intimidating walk: Land’s End to John O’Groats (also known as walking from Great Britain’s lower left corner to its upper right corner.)

One thing that I’d love to do: rent a narrow boat in Chester and travel by the canals in the northwest, going through canal locks and everything!

The one thing you should NOT skip to save money in the UK? Travel insurance ! I never travel with it and it will save you a lot of money if something happens on your trip. I use and recommend World Nomads.

Any more tips for cheap transportation in the UK?  Share in the comments!

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Backpacking in Europe , Backpacking in the United Kingdom , Budget Travel Guides , Travel Tips

The cheapest way to travel in england.

Great Britain isn’t the cheapest destination to visit, but it needn’t cost the earth.  If you’re planning to come backpacking in England or simply want to travel Britain on a budget there are a few tricks that can help your hard-earned cash go further.  Check out my tips for travelling in the UK on a budget, with these recommendations for the cheapest way to travel in England!

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My Top Tip for Backpacking in England

If you plan to spend a while exploring England (like more than two weeks), then you should consider a work exchange.  Work exchanges are a great way to save money while travelling as you get free accommodation in exchange for a few hours of work. 

Work exchange websites like Worldpackers have listings of available placements that you can check out, and they are offering all Tales of a Backpacker readers a $10 discount on yearly membership .  Sign up here or get more information about how work exchanges work here .   

ACTIVATE YOUR DISCOUNT CODE

Cheap Travel to England

Cheap Flights to England from Europe

Thankfully, there are plenty of cheap airlines that fly into the UK from Europe.  Easyjet , Ryanair , Vueling and others all have cheap flights to England and the rest of the UK, depending on your starting location – but as with any airline, their prices change drastically depending on demand. 

Peak times around summer holidays, Christmas and school holidays always cost more than off-peak dates, and can even cost more than traditional airlines. 

Book your flights in advance when you can, and be flexible on the dates you fly and the airport you fly to.  I always use a flight comparison site like Skyscanner to find the best deals and airports.  Skyscanner has a useful function to check dates around your preferred day, as well as nearby airports.

Remember to plan your travel from the airport to your destination before you book the flight – often the cheapest flights land at a time when there is no public transport available, so once you’ve factored in a taxi fare, that cheap flight doesn’t seem like such a bargain!

Cheap Flights to England from The USA

Travelling to the UK from the US, or other further afield destinations obviously isn’t as cheap.  Look out for flight deals and so-called ‘error fares’ in advance, and try to be flexible on the dates you fly.  You could also consider flying into another European city then taking a low-cost European flight or bus to reach the UK. 

US airports on the East Coast like Boston, Newark or New York tend to be cheaper to reach Europe, as they’re closer, so you could take a cheap internal flight to one of those airports before taking the international flight.  Try searching on a flight comparison site like Skyscanner to find cheap flights to the UK from America.

Cheap Buses to England

There are a few international bus services, for example  FlixBus , where you can find good deals if you are prepared for a long journey, and potential traffic jams.  The buses are comfortable, are equipped with toilets, and usually free wifi and plug sockets too, although this isn’t guaranteed on FlixBus.  You can also check routes and prices on Omio . 

European buses that also come to the UK may have European sockets, so remember to bring a converter if you need one.  Travelling overnight also helps to save money on a night in a hostel or hotel, so taking a bus is usually the cheapest way to travel to England!

READ MORE: Cheap Places to Visit in the UK on a Budget

Cheap Travel to England by Ferry

Ferries to England operate from surrounding countries like France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland and Spain.  Personally, it’s not my favourite way to travel due to seasickness , but booking an overnight ferry can also save you money on accommodation and become part of your trip, more than just a flight to a destination.  

Journeys tend to be long and can get rough in poor weather – but in good weather, think of it as a mini cruise.  I haven’t used them myself, but there are ferry journey comparison sites like Ferries.co.uk which list available routes.

Cheap Travel in England

Cheap bus travel in england.

Bus travel is the cheapest way to travel in England, in particular using Megabus which offers some routes for as low as £1.  They don’t cover all routes though, so it depends on your destination, but for value, they really are hard to beat! 

Book your tickets online, and be sure to be at the bus station in plenty of time for your journey to be first in line and get your pick of the seats.

Within towns & cities, most bus companies will offer a ‘Day Rider’ ticket which is usually cheaper than buying a return and means you can ride anywhere on that bus company during that day. 

Some cities like Sheffield, Manchester and Newcastle have tram and metro services which are usually easier to navigate than complex bus routes, and of course, London has the underground which can seem complicated at first but is easy once you figure it out!  Buses are the cheapest way to travel in London, although it does take longer than the underground.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: How to Fall in Love with London in 2 Days

Cheap Train Travel in the UK

Train prices can vary dramatically depending on the route and the time of day you want to travel.  British rail companies like you to be organised, so booking your train in advance can mean vast savings!  Even booking just the day before instead of buying at the station makes a big difference. 

There are several websites where you can book online, and then use a ‘Fast Ticket’ machine to collect your ticket from the station, using the credit or debit card you used to purchase the tickets. 

I like the website First Transpennine Express as you can buy tickets for any rail company, and they don’t charge a booking fee like most of the other sites.

Peak journey times are around rush hour in the morning and afternoon, so try to avoid travelling then if you can.

If you are looking online and still find your tickets to be too expensive, try breaking up your journey.  If your chosen route has a change in it, try searching for a train to the change station, and then a separate ticket to the final destination. 

Or mix it up and try looking at a map to see if you can figure out another route!  I saved £20 on a single journey just by doing that.

Car Sharing in the UK: Bla Bla Car

Kind of like Airbnb for cars, Bla Bla Car is an excellent example of the Sharing Economy actually helping real people save money on their petrol costs, and allowing you to travel around the UK on a budget.  Input your journey requirements and see who is going that way and can pick you up.  In my experience prices are a lot cheaper than travelling by train, and if you can get the right route a lot simpler too. 

Try and be flexible with dates to give you more chance of finding a suitable journey, and check the reviews of potential drivers to make sure you get a responsible and safe driver.  The payment is processed online, then after the journey provide your driver with your booking code to release the payment & allow you to both leave a review for each other.

Hitchhiking in England

Hitchhiking isn’t common in England, although it might be possible I have never done it here myself.  There are safety issues to consider if you are a solo female traveller and as it is quite unusual to see anyone hitchhiking I don’t know how much luck you would have finding a ride so I wouldn’t recommend it.  

Cheap Accommodation in the UK

Cheap Hotels and Hostels in the UK

Finding budget accommodation in the UK isn’t too hard.  Hostels can be found in most locations in the UK, check Hostelworld or  Booking  for your destination to find the best deals.

YHA is a national charity that has hostels all over the UK and helps to create opportunities for young people to experience more of the country, arranging school trips and summer camps.  You can stay at one of their many hostels, donate, or even volunteer at one of the hostels if you apply on their website .

If you are travelling in a couple, often simple bed & breakfasts can work out cheaper than two hostel beds, or only slightly more expensive – the extra privacy is often worth the extra cash.  They can usually be found on booking.com as well.

Travelodge is a chain of budget hotels that are spread throughout the country, their rates tend to be cheaper during the week and for off-peak times, but prices are worth comparing as they don’t advertise on comparison sites like booking.com.  Similarly, Premier Inn is a slightly more expensive, slightly higher quality than Travelodge which is worth a look too.

Accommodation in London is more expensive than anywhere else in the country, and usually, prices in the South of England are more expensive than in the rest of the country, so you will have to adjust your budget accordingly.

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Why You NEED to Visit the North of England

Couchsurfing in England

Couchsurfing is available in a lot of areas of the UK; where homeowners offer up their sofa for guests willing to exchange cultural knowledge and perhaps cooking a meal or two for a free place to crash for a while.  Check reviews carefully before you agree to stay, and exchange a few messages with your potential host to see if you get along.

Airbnb in England

Airbnb offers an alternative to hotel & hostel stays where you stay in someone’s home in their spare room, or sometimes have a whole flat to yourself. 

Prices vary wildly depending on location and size of the space you book.  It can work out cheaper especially if you are travelling in a group, or staying for a long period of time as you usually have access to a kitchen so you can cook ‘at home’ to save money on buying meals out. 

Again, check reviews carefully and be sure to confirm your arrival time and arrangements for picking up keys.  When searching on Airbnb, the prices are quoted per night, then they will calculate the full price including service charge and cleaning fees – sometimes what looks to be a cheaper option at first look can end up being more expensive than you expected once the total cost has been calculated.  Read my full Airbnb guide for more information .  

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Free Things to do in York

Cheap Things to do in England

There are plenty of free things to do in England, from exploring destinations on foot to hiking and biking around the countryside or visiting free attractions and museums.  If you are planning to spend a lot of time in England and visit some of the most famous historic sites such as Stonehenge and Hadrian’s Wall then it might be worth paying for a membership to the National Trust or English Heritage which both work out as excellent value if you make the most out of it.

Have you been travelling around the UK on a budget?  Do you have any tips and tricks to share?  I’d love to hear your stories!

Like this post? Pin it to read later:

Hi! I'm Claire Sturzaker, a 30-something foodie traveller who loves to enjoy the best of a destination without breaking the bank. I'm here to help you and all women backpackers to plan their best budget travel adventure. I am an avid supporter of female solo travel, and took my first solo trip 20 years ago! I love to write about travel, hostels, backpacking and van life.

20 thoughts on “ The Cheapest Way to Travel in England ”

I hope you have a great time in England – I haven’t been to Bognor Regis so I can’t comment on that but London and Liverpool are both wondrful cities to explore!

my flight to London will be on Wednesday.. will spend 10 days there.. also plan to go to Liverpool and bognor regis.. after 24 years.. don’t really know what to expect.. thanks for the tips 🙂

UK is a dream destination for us and we hope to get there sooner rather than later. London and the English countryside is something we look forward to. We know that UK is expensive, hence these tips are something that will come a long way in helping cut costs/

Awesome, I love all the suggestions and links you included here. Very useful!

Hi Cindi! Thanks for stopping by 🙂 Actually I haven’t been to the Cotswolds, but from what I gather that is more of a countryside area. York is a beautiful small city, with plenty of countryside close-by – perfect for a weekend trip from London. But if the countryside is what he likes & you only have a day perhaps the Cotswolds might be better?

Claire, thanks for all this info! We’re taking our 18 yr old grandson to London for his hi school graduation. if we can only do one day trip, should we do The Cotswalds or York? He’s very interested in seeing the countryside. Thanks! Cindi

Thanks Claudia! I prefer the train, definitely! When you find a good rate it’s a bargain but sometimes it is so expensive!

Great post, reminds me of our journey to the UK. We tried all different transport methods but for us the Train was the clear winner especially for the long distances between cities. We traveled from London to Manchester for less than £30!

Staying at hostels in the UK have saved my budget countless times. I don’t even look into hotels anymore because I can extend my stay or do more activities if I spend less on accommodations. Finding error fares is also a golden rule!

Great idea! I tend to save money on accommodation so I can eat nice food 😉 But I still like to treat myself to a private room every now and again

Thanks Marie! 🙂

Ah yes, students get discounts on so much stuff! I’m too old for that now unfortunately, but great tip for students out there! Thanks 🙂

I wish Brexit will go away and it was all a dream! Hmm, I suppose it depends on where you can get good flight deals to/from home as your first concern, and the time of year if you are travelling a long period – summer in the UK & Northern Europe is better, then head South to the Mediterranean in cooler months!

Same. I budget transportation and getting around so I can get comfy place to stay

I definitely want to visit UK. Hopefully next year it’s still a good time. Not sure how Brexit will change by next year. Is UK better to start off from or end up in if I’m planning a Europe trip. Keep in mind, coming from Asia.

Thanks for the great tips! I was living in the UK for a year before I started university, and our favorite way to travel was by taking the train. Our international student cards also got us some huge discounts off transport, tickets, and even clothes! So I recommend that too if anyone is traveling as a student 🙂

These are great tips for anyone travelling to the UK. I especially like the car sharing tip such a brilliant idea.

What great tips — I hope to explore the UK very soon. I personally try to budget my flights and general spending so that I can spend a bit more on a comfy room 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

Thanks Helena! There are always ways to save money travelling, they just take a bit of work sometimes 🙂

I love budget travel tips to destinations that are generally considered expensive. Great post thanks for sharing!

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Searching Money Mentor . . .

The best days to book flights, cheap eurostar tickets, plus ten more budget travel tips.

| Chief writer

Updated February 23, 2024

In this guide

If the UK’s harsh winter has you scurrying to make travel plans but you’re still grappling with rising costs, we’re here to help with ten tips for travelling on a budget.

Many UK households cut back on holidays last year as the  cost of living soared – research platform QuMind found that 56% of Brits planned to take fewer holidays in order to help save money.

But if you’re keen to hold on to your holiday plans, our 11 cheap travel tips can help you slash the cost of going away this summer, and still get the most out of your time abroad while travelling on a budget.

Plus, Eurostar is currently holding a sale on its tickets, and we’ve a trick to book a return to Paris or Amsterdam for a little as £70 .

In this article:

• Finding a good package deal
• Tips for booking flights
• Tips for booking accommodation
• How to get cheap Eurostar tickets
• The best way to hire a car
• Getting around on a budget
• How to pay abroad
• Eating out on a budget
• Sorting out an EHIC or GHIC card
• Travel insurance
• Know your rights

Read more: Passport renewal costs and waiting times

1. See if you can find a good package deal

Several websites offer package deals on holidays that include flights, transfers and accommodation – sometimes coming with baggage allowance and a free meal, too. 

Kayak and TravelSupermarket * are good places to start. It’s also worth looking at HolidayPirates and Hotukdeals.com , which feature heavily discounted and short-lived “flash” deals; you will usually need to move quickly to get them.

In any case, it’s always worth doing the maths and making sure that you can’t book the same or a similar holiday for less by buying the flights and accommodation separately.

Visit LuckyTrip

If you are trying to work out what kind of holiday is within your travel budget, and you are open to a wide variety of options, LuckyTrip is an interesting way to go. You set your budget per person and the site suggests a holiday for you and tells you the total price. This includes flights, accommodation and something to do – for example, kayaking or a visit to a castle.

While the site picks everything for you when you do a basic search, you can adjust the search parameters. These include dates of travel, the departure airport, how many people are going on the trip, and more.

You could just use LuckyTrip as a way of coming up with ideas for a holiday that fits within your budget, and then book the individual elements separately.

Enjoy a unique holiday through Times Travel

Through their extensive list of partners, Times Travel are offering their readers once-in-a-lifetime trips to some of the world’s most popular destinations. Make sure to visit their site to review some of these all-inclusive offers.

Visit Times Travel

2. What are the best days to book flights? Plus how to save money when booking flights

When booking a trip, the cost of holidays, including flights, are generally at their lowest on Wednesdays. However, flights that take off on a Tuesday tend to be cheapest. There are plenty of other ways to cut the cost of air travel significantly when travelling on a budget.

• Book flights in advance. If you are on a budget, often it isn’t the case that you should book at the last minute. According to cheap-flight amalgamator Jack’s Flight Club (see below), the sweet spot is three to nine months before take-off.
• Use your web browser’s incognito mode. When you look for things online, websites often track you and remember you. So when you are hunting for flights, airlines sometimes push up the cost when you return to their site. This is to get you to panic and book before it goes up even more. By using incognito mode, airline and comparison websites have no way of knowing you have visited them already – so you will see the true price.
• Use a flight-comparison site. This will show you flights from across multiple airlines, as well as travel agents – so you may see prices you wouldn’t get if you booked directly through an airline. Kayak , Momondo and Skyscanner * are all great options. 
• Sign up to Jack’s Flight Club* . This is a free email newsletter outlining some of the best flight deals available. These have included a return flight from London to New York for just over £200, and Manchester to Punta Cana, in the Dominican Republic, for £199. If you have not yet planned your trip, it could help you find a great deal that slashes the price of your holiday.
• Be flexible with your dates. Tuesday has historically been the cheapest day on which to board a plane, but flight-comparison sites normally have a calendar view that lets you see which days within your booking range have the lowest-cost flights. 
• Be savvy about take-off times. If you are considering a cheap evening outbound flight, make sure you factor in the extra night of accommodation you will need when you arrive at your destination. It may work out cheaper to get a slightly more expensive flight the next morning. That said, cheap early-morning take-offs can end up more expensive due to the lack of public transport options around that time. A cab to the airport is never cheap.
• Be flexible with seats. Many airlines charge you extra to choose your seats. If you don’t mind being separated from your travel companions for a few hours, you can save a fair bit by opting for randomly allocated seats. However, if you’re travelling with children under 12, they can often sit next to or near you on the flight for no extra cost. In order to benefit from this, check the airline’s policy on seating children and make sure you book your seats well in advance.
• See if you can snag an “error fare”. SecretFlying shows you a heap of cheap flights, including error fares. This is when an airline accidentally misprices a flight, meaning you can book it for less than it would usually cost. You can also find error fares by doing regular, wide-ranging searches on comparison sites such as Skyscanner. If you are lucky enough to catch one, you could save hundreds of pounds.  However, they require a high degree of flexibility in your choice of airport and departure date when booking – and importantly, airlines are legally allowed to refuse to honour an error fare if they can prove it’s a mistake, so you could book a trip that is later cancelled. If this does happen, you are entitled to a refund, but you may need to make contact with the airline and it could take some time to get your money back.  According to Jack’s Flight Club, 70% of error fares end up being honoured, so your odds are decent. Nonetheless, make sure not to book any non-refundable accommodation in case your ticket is cancelled.
• Plan your baggage carefully. Baggage allowances for the size and weight of the cases vary between airlines, so it’s key to check how many belongings you will be able to bring. If you think you will need more space, and there are a few of you going, it might be worth sharing a checked bag or two to save money on excess-baggage fees. Here are some of the main airlines’ free baggage allowances (per person, economy class where applicable): British Airways* : Two free carry-on bags, plus a free hold bag weighing up to 23kg EasyJet : One free small carry-on bag (up to 45 x 36 x 20 cm, weighing up to 15kg) Jet2 : One free small carry-on bag (up to 56 x 45 x 25cm, weighing up to 10kg) Ryanair : One free small carry-on bag (up to 40 x 25 x 20cm) Virgin Atlantic : One free carry-on bag, plus a free hold bag weighing up to 23kg Wizz Air : One free small carry-on bag (up to 40 x 30 x 20cm, weighing up to 10kg) Make sure you also consider whether you might be bringing back more than you are taking – for instance, if you are planning on doing some shopping. It’s usually cheaper to buy additional checked bags in advance, so planning ahead is a good way to save.

3. Think carefully about accommodation when travelling on a budget

If you are backpacking on a shoestring, it’s likely that a hostel will be the cheapest option.

Hostelworld lets you compare the different options, and its star rating system gives you an idea of what to expect. That said, it’s always good to look further afield for reviews as the star rating may not paint the whole picture. If a hostel has a large number of Google reviews, it might be worth trusting that score instead.

Additionally, you may find that it only costs a little bit more to book a cheap hotel room than it does for multiple beds in a busy dorm – which may be worth it for a better night’s sleep. Hostels also often charge for extras such as lockers and towels, so factor these into your decision.

Airbnb isn’t as cheap as it used to be

When browsing for accommodation, don’t just make a beeline for Airbnb. You may find that hotels are actually cheaper and more convenient in the area you are visiting.

Have a browse on accommodation comparison sites such as Booking.com * and Trivago to see what options are available within your budget. Next, compare them with the options on Airbnb in the same range.

Nonetheless, renting a whole home might make more sense if you are in a large group, rather than booking multiple hotel rooms.

Most hotel rooms also don’t come with a kitchen, so you are more likely to eat out, which can end up being one of the biggest expenses on holiday. Staying in a rented home means you have got the option to cook, which is a surefire way to save cash.

4. How to get cheap Eurostar tickets

The Eurostar is a high-speed train that’s more comfortable than a flight and gives you a large baggage allowance included in the price of your ticket. It also goes further than just Paris; you can get to Amsterdam, Brussels, Rotterdam, Lille, Cologne and more in a matter of hours.

However, a Eurostar ticket can often be more expensive than a plane ride. Fortunately, Eurostar runs frequent sales on its website. Between now and Monday 22 January, you can bag a one-way ticket to multiple destinations for as little as £39, meaning a return for just £78. Tickets are discounted for some journeys between January and March. Find tickets at the Eurostar website now *.

Plus, if you book your Eurostar ticket via the Uber app, you can receive 10% back in Uber credit. This means you can effectively book a return Eurostar journey for just £70.20.

5. Hiring a car? Look for free cancellation

A comparison site, such as Skyscanner or Kayak, is a great way of finding the cheapest car-hire options for your trip. It’s also cheaper to book on some days rather than others, so a degree of flexibility will help you save money.

As with flights, it’s generally best to book your car hire in advance (though the price may go down as well as up after you book). Never book on the same day you need a car if you can avoid it.

When you book a car hire, consider looking for a company that offers free cancellation. It’s very handy to have in case your plans change – and if the price of the hire falls slightly before your holiday starts, you can just cancel and rebook.

Many firms offer free cancellation as standard, up to a certain length of time before the trip (usually about 48 hours). If the cheapest option doesn’t have free cancellation, it’s often worth paying a little bit more for the peace of mind and flexibility.

6. Be creative about travelling around on a budget

When travelling from one part of a country to another, or even going across a border, consider all the options.

Trains are often one of the more expensive ways of travelling around, but with fuel costs rising, they may work out cheaper than hiring a car. Trainline * lets you find train services in a host of European countries, so you can gauge how much they will cost.

BlaBlaCar is a ride-sharing website popular in Europe that lets you find spare seats in others’ cars, and it can end up being significantly cheaper than alternative forms of travel.

If you are willing to spend more time travelling, a coach can be an ultra-cheap way of getting from A to B. FlixBus * offers affordable coach travel all over Europe.

7. Pay the right way

If you don’t already have a specialist travel credit or debit card, you could end up losing a heap on fees when you pay with your card abroad. Many traditional high street banks charge an exchange-rate fee of about 3%, and sometimes add on extra fees.

For example, if you use a Halifax debit card while abroad, you will pay a 2.99% foreign-currency transaction fee plus a £1.50 charge to withdraw cash, or 50p for a card purchase. These fees can add up. For example, over a two-week holiday:

Total spent: £1,200 (€1,400)  Six cash withdrawals averaging £100 each (€116) 30 card payments averaging £20 each (€23) Cash-withdrawal fees: £9 Exchange-rate fees: £36 Card-payment fees: £15 Total fees: £60

That is a huge amount of money you don’t have to spend, that will seriously eat into your travel budget. There are multiple travel credit cards available that don’t charge exchange-rate fees (though some levy interest on cash withdrawals).

You can also get a travel debit card that doesn’t charge you at all – though you may need to pay a small fee on withdrawals over a certain amount. 

If you are asked whether you want to pay in pounds sterling or the local currency, ALWAYS choose the latter

If you pay in sterling, wherever you are making the transaction will choose the exchange rate for you – and can tack on exorbitant amounts.

When you pay in the local currency, your payment card provider will do the currency exchange instead. This means you will get the rate set by your provider. If you have a specialist travel card, this will be as close as you can get to the true exchange rate.

We have the lowdown on the best travel credit and debit cards in our full guide .

Buying travel money? Timing it right can help you save

If you’re buying foreign currency in advance, it’s worth shopping around to find the best deal. Money.co.uk’s useful tool helps you find the best currency vendors both for delivery and collection.

When buying currency, you can also save by doing so at optimal times, when the pound is stronger or the currency you’re buying is weaker. This means that each pound is buying more currency.

While fluctuations are minimal the majority of the time, when you’re buying a large amount of money the savings become more noticeable.

Travelex’s travel rate tracker lets you monitor changes in the values of currencies, even providing you with updates via email.

8. Keep your wits about you when eating out on a budget

It’s a sweltering afternoon and you have been sightseeing all day. You’re hungry – and tempted to just sit down at the first place you see. Sometimes, this is the best option – especially when choice is scarce and it’s the only restaurant for miles. 

However, it’s often good to check the reviews on either Google or Tripadvisor first. These sites can quickly tell you whether the restaurant is expensive and the food is worth the money, as well as if it’s any good.

If you can’t find enough information, have a cursory glance at the menu before you sit down to make sure it’s within your travel budget – and that you want to eat the food there.

It’s also worth finding out what the tipping culture is in the country you’re visiting. In the US, for instance, it’s generally expected for customers to tip between 15% and 20%, so you should budget this into the cost of the meal.

9. Going to the EU? Make sure you’ve got an EHIC/GHIC card

A European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) gives you access to the same state-provided healthcare as a national of that country, for the same amount it would cost them.

It covers you in:

• All the countries in the EU
• Liechtenstein
• Switzerland

If you still have an EHIC card that is in date, you can use it until it expires. If you don’t have it or yours has expired, you can apply for a new Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC), which replaces the EHIC for most UK citizens. The government offers these cards for free (you can apply here ). Watch out for any opportunistic sites trying to charge you for one.

It should be pointed out that the EHIC and GHIC are not substitutes for travel insurance cover. Find out more about the EHIC and GHIC .

10. Get insured

Relative to the potential cost of medical care abroad, travel insurance is an inexpensive way to guarantee peace of mind when travelling on a budget. It can cover you for a wide range of accidents and mishaps, which can include:

• Cancellation of your trip
• Illness and accidents while you are away
• Lost or stolen baggage

Find out more about what travel insurance covers .

Travel insurance can be quite cheap, with provider Coverwise offering single-trip policies from £5.15 and annual multi-trip policies from £11. For full details on the best options for your trip, see the top travel insurance providers .

11. Know your rights

Hopefully your trip runs smoothly, and your flights take off when you expect them to. But if you are hit by an unexpected cancellation from an airline, it’s key that you know your rights so you can get any refunds or compensation to which you are entitled. If you have been affected by flight cancellations, get the full lowdown on your travel rights .

* All products, brands or properties mentioned in this article are selected by our writers and editors based on first-hand experience or customer feedback, and are of a standard that we believe our readers expect. This article contains links from which we can earn revenue. This revenue helps us to support the content of this website and to continue to invest in our award-winning journalism. For more, see  How we make our money  and  Editorial promise

Important information

Some of the products promoted are from our affiliate partners from whom we receive compensation. While we aim to feature some of the best products available, we cannot review every product on the market.

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When is the best time to visit the UK? (Seasonal & monthly guide)

By: Author Tracy Collins

Posted on Last updated: August 8, 2023

Are you planning a trip to the UK but unsure of the best time of year to visit? In this article discover what each season has to offer as well as a month by month guide to major events across the UK. Everything you need to know to help you make the right decision for your trip.

If you’re dreaming of having a spot of tea in England or envisioning a bagpipe serenade on the moors of Scotland, then it sounds like you’re on the verge of planning one heck of a British vacation. The question is, when is the best time to visit the UK?

There are many considerations to make when planning your trip , including the pros and cons of travelling “in season,” what types of activities you want to do and especially what kind of weather should you expect.

In this article, we will answer all commonly asked questions including

• what you can expect from the weather during each season
• the dates of school and public holidays – and the pros and cons of travelling during these peak times
• expected hours of daylight throughout the year and the impact this can have on your plans
• what (and when) major events occur throughout the year
• plus a guide to the best time to visit England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland

FAQ’s about the best time of year to visit the UK

Many questions about when is the best time to visit the UK invariably revolve around the weather. The only certainty about the UK weather is that is unpredictable.

• When is winter in the UK?

The winter months ranges from mid-November to early March.

• When is summer in the UK?

The summer months range from early June to the end of August.

• Can I see the Northern Lights in the UK?

For the best chance to see the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) head to to Northern Scotland.

• What is the rainiest month in the UK?

Although December to February are the months that tend to have the most rainfall in the UK (and often can fall as snow especially on higher ground) expect rain at any time of year.

• What is the hottest month of the year in the UK?

During the summer months expect generally warm to hot weather with July (on average) the month with the highest average temperatures.

• When is peak season in the UK?

Peak season in the UK is July and August. This also coincides with school holidays across the country.

• When is the shoulder season in the UK?

Shoulder season in the UK is May, June and September.

• When are the major public holidays in the UK?

In addition to Christmas, New Year and Easter holidays there are a number of public holidays (called ‘Bank” holidays) throughout the year including May Day Bank Holiday (first Monday in May), Spring Bank Holiday (last Monday in May – and yes there are two Bank Holiday weekends in May!), and the Summer Bank Holiday (last Monday in August)

• FAQ's about the best time of year to visit the UK

The weather

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Factors to consider when planning your trip

• Pros and cons of travelling during Peak Season, Shoulder Season or Low Season
• The impact of daylight hours

The UK is a small island divided into 4 separate nations — England , Wales , Northern Ireland and Scotland . Each has their own cultural identities and attractions to consider, not to mention their own weather idiosyncrasies.

Basically though, the entire UK has a temperate climate with warm summers that never get too hot and cold winters that never get too cold.

The UK weather is, however, famously unreliable and generally not the primary reason to visit the UK! Think about your many clothing options when packing— and don’t forget the umbrella (my UK packing guide for every season will help!)

The answer to the question, ‘When is the best time of year to visit the UK?’ really depends on what you’re looking for. The UK’s warmest weather is in the summer. Autumn and spring are charming but may be a little bit chilly for certain outdoor activities. Winter can be cold, blustery and damp, though it usually only snows around 24 days out of the year.

Spring in the UK begins in March and goes through to the end of May. The weather starts off cold and rainy but becomes more mild as the months progress. Finally, by the end of May and beginning of June, the UK starts to warm up. The average maximum temperatures are as follows:

• March, 12°C (54°F)
• April, 15°C (59°F)
• May, 18°C (64°F)
• June, 21°C (70°F)

Read – Complete Guide to visiting the UK in spring

The summer is generally very pleasant in the UK and tends to be dryer than in the autumn and winter months. The summer begins in June and ends in early September. The average maximum temperatures for the summer months are as follows:

• July, 23°C (73°F)
• August, 23°C (73°F)
• September, 20°C (68°F)

Read – Complete Guide to visiting the UK in summer

Autumn goes from September through to the end of November. Days change from crisp to blustery and then get downright cold. There tends to be a higher level of precipitation during these months as well. The average maximum temperatures for the autumn months are as follows:

• October, 16°C (61°F)
• November, 12°C (54°F)
• December, 9°C (48°F)

It can get rather bleak and cold in the UK during the winter months, which go from the start of December through to the end of February. The average maximum temperatures for the UK in winter months are as follows:

• January, 9°C (48°F)
• February, 9°C (48°F)

Read – Complete Guide to visiting the UK in winter

Peak season for travel in the UK are the summer months of July and August. These dates also coincide with the long 6 week summer school holidays (and hopefully sunny weather)

What are the pros of visiting the UK during peak season?

• The UK weather is generally at its best during these months.
• Hours of daylight are long which means more time to explore the sights.
• Some of the UK’s major events occur during July (Wimbledon) and August (Edinburgh Festival)
• Many historic sights have special events on especially for families e.g jousting at Warwick Castle.

What are the cons of traveling during peak season?

• It is the most expensive time of year to visit and prices for flights, accommodation and transportation can be sky-high.
• Main attractions across the country are busy – buy tickets ahead of time (skip the line tickets are worth the expense unless you enjoy wasting precious holiday time in a queue!)
• Restaurants and hotels are jam-packed.
• Roads are busy and traffic jams are common which can add to the stress if you are planning to hire a car for a road trip

Shoulder season in the UK is in May, early June, September and early October.

What are the pros of visiting the UK during shoulder season?

• Less expensive than peak season
• Better availability for accommodation
• Some of the UK’s most popular events occur during these months such as the Chelsea Flower Show (May), Trooping of the Colour (June)
• Less crowded (though the Bank holidays can be busy)
• There are 2 public (bank) holidays in May (first and last Mondays of May) and many popular historical sights organize events especially for families over these long weekends.
• Expect fewer crowds at popular attractions (though school groups may visit museums, art galleries, and castles during term time)
• Long daylight hours

November through to April is generally considered to be the low season for travel to the UK.

Note that some parts of the UK such as London and Edinburgh experience significant numbers of tourists during December and early January which can significantly impact costs.

Pros of visiting the UK during the low season

• Budget friendly
• Less crowded
• Enjoy special events over the festive period including Christmas markets, Christmas lights and decorations in major cities and New Year’s Eve celebrations.

Cons of visiting the UK during the low season

• Weather can be very cold (expect snow during the winter months)
• Daylight hours are reduced (it can get dark as early as 3.30 pm)
• Many popular attractions are closed over the winter months.

The amount of daylight you can expect fluctuates greatly across the year and can have a major impact on your plans.

The amount of daylight can also vary depending on your destination within the UK. The further north you travel the more daylight you can expect in summer and the less in winter.

Average hours of daylight in June (longest day)

London – 16 hours +

Scotland – 17 hours +

Average hours of daylight in December (shortest day)

London – 8 hours

Scotland – 7 hours

First of all, there’s no bad time to visit England , though travelling during every season has its advantages and disadvantages. You can, however, expect some seasonal variation in prices, crowd size and availability of activities.

The summer is the peak tourist season, which is from the end of May to early September. The daylight hours are at their maximum, up to 16 hours per day. The weather is usually delightful and kids are off school (July and August). The inevitable consequence is that everyone starts flocking to the tourist destinations and adding to the already long lines and crowds.

If you dream of gallivanting through the English countryside, add throngs of people sharing the roads and limited parking to your vision. Unfortunately, hotel rates and airfare are usually more expensive in the summer. Still, that charming weather can be a lure that outweighs all of those inconveniences.

If you travel in winter, it may be cold and bleak, and the daylight hours will have waned to just 8 to 10 hours per day. That’s the bad news. The good news is you won’t have to fight any crowds or struggle to get a dinner reservation. There will also be deals to be had on hotel rooms and flights. So if your itinerary contains a lot of indoor activities, maybe winter travel is right for you.

If you’re wondering when is a good time to visit London , it’s similar to travelling in the rest of the UK in terms of weather and seasonal availability. There are a few exceptions, however.

Christmas time in the capital city has been an incredibly popular destination for decades, what with the shopping, the decorations and abundant Christmassy charm.

If however you are a royal watcher, consider traveling in the summer when there are more opportunities to have a peek into the royal lifestyle . Many royal residences are open to the public during the summer because the royals themselves are away on vacation.

Taking all of this into consideration, if you want to know when the best time is to visit England, the answer is (if you can) spring or autumn. During these times the weather is favourable and the daylight hours vary from 11 to 15 hours per day, so there’ll be plenty of time for sightseeing.

Taking a road trip through the English countryside (the Cotswolds , Lake District , Peak District or Northumberland are just two suggestions) is gorgeous in the spring or autumn because either the flowers are blooming or the leaves are turning brilliant shades of orange and yellow. While there are crowds they are smaller and more manageable than in the peak summer season.

Just like it did for England, the timing of your Scotland trip depends upon what you activities have planned. The country’s winter may be more suited to hunkering down in an Edinburgh pub rather than hiking through the Highlands. The average temperature hovers around 0°C (32°F) and is likely to be even colder on the coast and in higher attitudes.

Like England, airfares and hotel rooms will generally be cheaper and you won’t have to fight the crowds in the cities or in the train stations. You will, however, need to be ready for the reduced daylight hours. In January, for example, the sun rises at 8:47 a.m. and sets at 3:53 p.m.

There is good news, though. Because of Scotland’s high latitude and particularly dark winter nights, there’s a chance that you will be treated to the aurora borealis or the northern lights — a dazzling and somewhat ethereal light show in the sky.

A summer trip to Scotland is defined by pros and cons.

The pros — you’ll have lovely weather, as it never gets too terribly hot in Scotland. Temperatures range from 15°C (59°F) to 17°C (63 °F). The daylight hours are also long. In August, for example, the sun rises at 4:22 a.m. and sets at 8:03 p.m.

There will be a lot to do, like hiking, camping, driving tours, beautiful train journeys , exploring the cities, islands and the countryside.There are festivals for every taste, such as the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival  in Inverness.

Now for some cons — July and August are peak months for travel, and the crowds will be significantly larger and the prices will be higher. If you don’t mind competing for a little space and paying more for the privilege, then a summer trip may just be the perfect one for you.

As with England, visiting Scotland in the late spring/early summer or early autumn is ideal. By June, Scotland gets an amazing 17 hours of daylight. That combined with the spring’s pleasant weather, an average of 7°C (45°F) to 13 °C (55°F), and you will be able to conquer every outdoor activity there is to offer.

If you would prefer to spend your time in Scotland’s cities, the good news is that the summer tourists haven’t arrived yet, so lines won’t be as long and the prices will be more reasonable. The same thing is true for an autumn visit. Starting in November through middle December, airfares tend to be cheaper.

Early autumn is an ideal time of year to drive North Coast 500 , a spectacular 516-mile trip from Inverness along Scotland’s North Highlands that might be one of the most scenic drives in the world.

No matter when you visit Wales , remember, the weather can be unpredictable and you should pack well and be prepared for a variety of temperatures.

The temperature in winter averages 6°C (43°F), but compared to Scotland, there is a good amount of daylight — sunrise is around 7:40 a.m. and sunset is around 6:28 p.m. In spite of the cooler weather, daffodils have been known to make their cheerful appearance late in the winter.

Another plus, if you travel on or near March 1st, you can join the locals in celebrating St. David’s Day. The patron saint of Wales is feted with parades, traditional Welsh dress and plenty of delicious food, not to mention scores of daffodils and leeks.

The summer is a lovely time to visit, as the weather is very agreeable, although the region can get quite a bit of rain. There is between 15-16 hours of daylight during the summer. Temperatures average 16 °C (61 °F), so hiking and camping would be fantastic during this time, as would any coastal family trips.

If you wish to see the Atlantic Puffins take over the island of Skomer, then early July is the time to go, especially if you want to see them parenting their new chicks.

Summer is the busiest time of year, so expect higher prices and be prepared to book well in advance for hotels (and popular Welsh castle hotel stays ), air travel, restaurants and activities.

The late spring and early autumn are great times to go to Wales. There are between 13 and 16 hours of daylight during both seasons. The temperature usually hovers around 13°C (55°F). In May and June, flowers will be blooming in a riot of colors, making the already breathtaking scenery fully come to life.

The Wales Coast Path, an 870-mile long footpath that winds its way along the coastline, makes for a perfect hike during this time. For something a little different, check out The Laugharne Weekend in West Wales — a local, literary and arts celebration of Dylan Thomas and other writers, musicians and comedians who’ve come from Wales.  

In the autumn, the mountains and valleys look to be on fire with all shades of gold and orange, and the nights begin to get crisp with a touch of chill. Places like Hay-on-Wye, a charming market town on the River Wye become even more magical in the autumn.

There will also be plenty of seasonal activities, such as at the medieval Powis Castle and Garden. Each year they create the Powis pumpkin trail, where kids can search for the carved pumpkins hidden throughout the garden.

If spending a night in a Welsh castle is on your bucket list why not book one of these amazing Welsh castle hotels ?

If you wish to visit Northern Ireland when the temperatures are at their warmest, then go during July and August. The average temperature in the summer is 17°C (63°F), but beware because summertime is also when the country’s rainfall is at its peak.

The summer in Northern Ireland has amazingly long daylight hours, 5:00 a.m. to 10:00pm, so you’ll be able to pack in a lot of activities. It is the peak season, which means you’ll be fighting the crowds as you see the sights.

Also, keep in mind, summer vacations for their school children start a few weeks earlier than they do in England, meaning the tourist sites may be more crowded starting at the end of June.

In winter, Northern Ireland is a little colder than England and has about 7-8 hours of daylight. That won’t matter too much if you seek out Belfast’s St. George’s Market, Northern Ireland’s last surviving Victorian market. In December, they offer twilight days for evening shopping. There will also be crafts from local artisans, delightful food and family entertainment.

Like with the other UK regions, you get the best of everything by visiting in the spring or autumn. By late spring, you’ll start to see lambs and calves in the pastures as the temperatures rise to between 10°C (50°C) to 16°C (60°F).

Visit Rathlin Island in the late spring and you’ll see all kinds of nesting birds and the area’s famous puffins. Also, for those festival fans, check out the two-day Bushmills Salmon and Whiskey festiva l held in early June.

In the autumn, as the leaves are changing colors, it’s a perfect time to visit the Glens of Antrim, or known locally simply as The Glens. It’s a region of County Antrim known for it’s astonishing natural beauty.

In October, the Glens Storytelling Festival is a five-day event for tourists and locals alike to experience the magic of this area’s story telling traditions. Expect family-friendly stories to have a touch of Halloween magic.

Which is the best month to visit the UK? Month by month pros and cons + guide to all the major events in the UK

❄️ Visiting the UK in winter

🌷 Visiting the UK in spring

☀️ Visiting the UK in the summer

🍂 Visiting the UK in autumn

🧣 Visiting Scotland in winter

January in the UK falls within the low tourist season, which creates some distinct advantages for travellers. Students return to school and the cold weather, gloomy skies and waning daylight translate into fewer people, cheaper hotel rooms and inexpensive airfare.

Also, the after-Christmas sales are in full swing, so bargain hunters will have a field day shopping. Theatre tickets and restaurant reservations will also be easier to get. A January trip is sounding better and better. Here are some fun things to do in January:

• New Year’s Day Parade in London —This is a fabulous, free and family-friendly parade in the city’s West End. It’s three and a half hours of music and revere that won’t soon be forgotten.

• Simplyhealth Great Edinburgh Winter Run— If you’re in Scotland and are a fitness buff, join 3000 other hardcore health nuts for this 5k of fun that also affords fantastic views of the city.

• Big Burns Supper in Dumfries Scotland— Part of the country’s Burns Night, this event occurs in the latter half of the month and offers all sorts of venues with everything from comedy to cabaret.

February in the UK falls securely within low season for travellers, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have an absolutely fantastic vacation if you choose to travel then. If you don’t mind cooler weather, the seaside towns should be virtually empty, for example.

Keep in mind that UK schools have a half-term break in February, which may cause unexpected crowds at tourist sites. Here are some fun things to do in February:

• V alentine’s Day in London —A visit to multiple artisan chocolate shops would definitely be in order, as would a romantic dinner for two in one of London’s many fine-dining restaurants.

• The Orchid Festival at London’s Kew Gardens —If you adore flowers and don’t want to travel all the way to Indonesia, then this show is not to be missed. There will be over 5000 species of orchids to admire.

• London’s Classic Car Show in Olympia Exhibition Centre —You’ll see some of the finest and most collectable vintage models in the world.

Flowers will be just beginning to bloom throughout the UK, a promise that spring is just around the corner.

March is a shoulder season for tourists, which means it’s not too busy and not too light. So you can throw on a coat and start taking advantage of some of the outdoor fun that the UK has to offer. Here are some fun things to do in March:

• Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race in London — When is the best time to travel to England? When there are 250,000 screaming rowing fans cheering on the edge of the Thames. This is one of the largest sporting events held in London and it’s free! (Sometimes this event happens in April, so check online to see.)

• Glasgow International Comedy Festival —Are you a comedy fan? In the latter half of March, travel to Scotland and see the funniest stars from all around the UK hit the stage in what is Europe’s largest comedy festival.

• St. Patrick’s Day in Northern Ireland —On March 17th, County Armagh and County Down host the annual Home of Saint Patrick Festival that consists of concerts, family-friendly activities and general fun.

Ah, April. The flowers are blooming and the days are getting longer. It’s a shoulder season, so it’s a pretty good time to enjoy the natural beauty that the UK has to offer without having to brave too many crowds.

Students in the UK have a school break around Easter, which usually falls in this month, so that may alter the tourist scene slightly. Regardless, there are also a lot of fun, local activities to choose from. Here are some examples:

• Isle of Wight Walking Festival —Fun for all ages and all fitness levels. Thousands of locals and tourists alike explore the island and take in its stark, scenic beauty.

• Shakespeare’s Birthday in Stratford-upon-Avon —Celebrate The Bard’s birthday by traveling to his birthplace for performances, music and all kinds of fun.

• Cardiff Flower Show —If you’re a gardener or a flower appreciator and are planning to be in Wales, you might want to visit the Royal Horticultural Society’s Cardiff Flower Show. There are countless exhibits and demonstrations to inspire and fascinate those with or without a green thumb.

The weather is getting ever warmer and the days are getting longer in the UK, yet May is still a shoulder season, which means its an excellent time to visit. Things can get busy over the Bank holiday weekends with many Brits enjoying a spring staycation .

It’s also getting dryer, so rain may not be as much of an issue as it is in other months. Still, bring a few layers to wrap up in, just in case. Here are some fun things to do in May:

• Chelsea Flower Show – Since 1913, except during the two world wars, the famous Chelsea Flower Show has been a glamorous affair celebrating British flowers and garden design. It takes place on the grounds of the Royal Hospital in Chelsea and makes for a fun and historical activity whilst in the UK.

• Gloucester Docks Tall Ship Festival — Come see tall ships in all of their splendor along with fun and games for the whole family. There will be live stages with local bands as well as a food market

• Gordon Castle Highland Games and Country Fair – Join over 10,000 locals and tourists at Scotland’s only highland games and country fair. It’s at the magnificent Gordon Castle located near Fochabers in Moray.

The middle of June marks the beginning of peak season for traveling in the UK, so make sure you’ve got those reservations, tickets and bookings well ahead of time.

You have an excellent chance of pleasant weather and agreeable temperatures, so live it up! Here are some fun things to do in June:

• Glastonbury Festival — This world-famous five-day festival takes place in Pilton, Somerset, in the south west of England. It features big-name contemporary musical acts as well as dance, cabaret and theater.

• Gregynog Music Festival — Attention classical music lovers! In the gorgeous Welsh countryside in the village of Tergynon, you’ll find the oldest classical music festival in Wales, which attracts some of the world’s finest musicians.

• The Royal Highland Show — Scotland’s largest agricultural show put on by the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland. Thousands of visitors come from all over the globe to see over 1000 exhibitors and scores of livestock. It’s in Ingliston, an area of West Edinburgh.

July is peak travel season with very long days and probably the best weather offered by the UK. Restaurants will be jam-packed and tourist sites will be overflowing with visitors.

Add in the students who have just been released from school on summer break and you will have a lot of people to contend with. No wonder there is a lot going on the UK during the summer! Here are some examples:

• Wimbledon — In a town called Wimbledon, there’s a little yearly tennis tournament. Actually, it’s probably the most major tournament in the tennis world.

Good to know – If you want to do it on the cheap, go outside the stadium to Henman Hill and buy a £30 ticket to watch the matches on a giant TV. If you want the real thing, then you’ll need to shell out quite a bit more, depending on which match you see.

• The Big Cheese at Caerphilly — History buffs, would you like to be sent back to medieval days at Caerphilly Castle ? See reenactments and battles, along with entertainment, food, period dance and a whole lot of fun.

The weather is warm, so that distracts you from the peak season crowds traveling throughout the UK. All schools are enjoying summer break, so expect to be shoulder to shoulder with locals and tourists alike at all the tourist sites.

Here are some fun things to do in August:

• Wilderness Festival —Located in Oxfordshire’s Cornbury Park, this festival offers easy-going music, theatrical productions, amazing food and really cool art, all in a gorgeous lakeside setting.

• Edinburgh Fringe Festival — If you like crowds, music and having serious fun, then try out the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the world’s largest arts festival. It goes on for days and hosts so much talent, it takes hundreds of venues just to fit everything in. Check their website to see the list of performers.

• The National Eisteddfod — A festival celebrating all things Welsh . It’s in the first 8 days of August and there is food, music, arts and design.

The beginning of September is part of the summer peak season but with the end of summer and beginning of autumn, the rest of the month is a shoulder season.

Most students head back to school early in September, so vacationers return home and tourist sites will be less crowded. Here are some fun things to do in September:

• The Jane Austen Festival — Do you dream of spending a quiet evening with Mr. Darcy or Elizabeth Bennet? Travel to Bath and spend 10 days choosing from over 80 Jane Austen-related events. There’s even a Regency Costumed Masked Ball!

• Culture Night Belfast – For the past several years, in the second half of September, people hit the Belfast streets from City Hall to the Cathedral Quarter to enjoy a free celebration of art, language and history of Northern Ireland. There is something to do for all ages.

There’s a crisp autumn chill in the air and Halloween ghosts and goblins are just around the corner. The beginning of October is a shoulder season, and by the end, it slows down into low season. Still, there are lots of interesting things to tackle in the UK during October.

• Harwich International Shanty Festival – For those who can’t resist the call of that salty ocean air, sail on over to Harwich and sing an old song of the sea. There’ll be concerts and barge trips and crafts for the saltiest old sailors to the youngest of landlubbers.

• The Callander Jazz and Blues Festival — Who doesn’t enjoy jazz in a charming rural setting? In 2006, this festival was born and has grown larger every year. It’s a long weekend of all types of music in a variety of venues. You’ll see live blues, jazz, boogie and soul from a huge variety of artists.

This is the low season for travel in the UK. The weather is brisk and it’s best to remember to bring a bunch of comfy layers and a jacket in your suitcase. Here are some fun things to do in November:

• Guy Fawkes Night —This celebration marks the night back in 1605 when Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament. He did not succeed, and the anniversary has traditionally been remembered with a bonfire. Given that could easily get out of hand, most celebrations have switched to fireworks.

• Diwali on Trafalgar Square – Diwali is the festival of lights celebrated by Hindu, Jain and Sikh people all over the world. This one is the biggest in the UK and features amazing dancers in stunningly beautiful and colorful dress. Expect to see market stalls with amazing food, as well as crafts and fun activities for the whole family.

Yes, it’s pretty chilly in the UK during December, and the days have grown a wee bit short. There’s still a lot to love about this winter month. Keep in mind, that students in the UK usually have the final weeks in December off, so that could affect the crowd levels.

The weeks closest to Christmas are considered a peak tourist season, so there are many Christmas activities to choose from including festive markets all over the UK.

• Belfast Giants Ice Hockey — For something really different, grab the whole family, live like a local and check out an ice hockey game. Their website has all the information about tickets and times.

• Elfingrove at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum —This magnificent museum in Glasgow transforms itself and offers night-time tours along with local food and singing.

This is really a difficult question to answer and really deserves a post all of its own.

Many people insist that it’s Christmas. Trafalgar Square has a giant lit up Christmas tree dripping in ornaments and Christmas cheer. Carol singing and festive events occur all throughout London.

There are several London Christmas Markets that will surely take care of everyone on that Christmas list. There are also a number of festive events held annually around Christmas at many of the castles near London.

But in summer the hours of daylight are longer and exploring London’s attractions on a warm sunny day is also a wonderful experience.

To be honest for me deciding when to visit London is best answered with the words “it is always a good idea!”

Read more – Visiting London in winter | 21 Festive things to do and see in London in December | 29 Things to do in London in Spring | Guide to visiting London in Fall

So the only true answer to the question, “When is the best time to go to England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?” really does depend on your own interests and available time to go.

Once you have settled on the time of year to visit the UK you are now ready to start planning your trip itinerary.

My UK Trip Planner will help you to plan the perfect UK vacation in 10 easy to follow steps – I recommend starting there!

For UK inspiration my top 21 landmarks in England , 19 places to visit in Scotland , top 10 things to see in Wales , top 10 things to do in Northern Ireland and London bucket list articles are great places to start.

I recommend prioritising what you want to see and do. You can also take some virtual tours of London and UK landmarks and sights to help you plan.

Other useful resources to help you plan your trip:

• How much does a holiday in the UK cost? Read my UK travel budget guide to help calculate your budget!
• Choose from my selection of the best guidebooks for UK travel
• Click here for my recommendations of the best booking sites for travel to the UK
• Prefer an organised tour? Check out our recommendations of the best UK tours available for 2021 and beyond!
• How to get around the UK (Complete Guide to Transportation in the UK)

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Israel-Gaza latest: Israeli president Isaac Herzog thanks Joe Biden after far-right minister's 'irresponsible' comments

Joe Biden has said he will not supply weapons if Israel launches a full-scale offensive in Rafah, a day after it emerged the US had paused a shipment of bombs to Israel. Listen to our Daily podcast on why a ceasefire hasn't happened while you scroll.

Thursday 9 May 2024 15:22, UK

• Israel-Hamas war
• Biden: US will not supply weapons if Israel invades Rafah
• Alistair Bunkall analysis: Biden's reputation is on the line if Netanyahu defies him
• Homes reduced to rubble in Rafah after Israeli shelling
• Israeli president thanks Biden after far-right minister's 'irresponsible' comments  
• Listen to the Daily above and tap here to follow wherever you get your podcasts
• Live reporting by Bhvishya Patel

Joe Biden is "stuck between a rock and a hard place" when it comes to his Israel policy, former White House director of global engagement Brett Bruen has said. 

Speaking to Sky News, Mr Bruen said the US leader was heading into a "crucial series of political months" as he entered another presidential race and the war "has just been a massive headache".

"The position that Biden is taking in some ways is political posturing, he is trying to dissuade Netanyahu from doing a full on invasion," he said.

"Yet at the same time Netanyahu is not showing any signs of letting up."

Mr Bruen said Mr Netanyahu had "somewhat painted himself into a corner".

He added: "Domestically he is increasingly unpopular as a result of the 7 October attacks and the way he has put the US- Israel relationship in danger.

"Yesterday's comments by Biden will be costly for Netanyahu and his political standing in the country and yet he still has to contend with the fact that there are those on the Israeli right who are saying 'you have got to move forward'.

"There are no good options for Netanyahu either."

The Israeli president has publicly thanked Joe Biden after one of the country's outspoken ministers said "Hamas loves Biden".

Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, made the comment after the US president said he would halt offensive weapons sales to Israel if it invades Rafah (see post at 9.02am).

In response, Isaac Herzog, the president, said it was important that even when there are disagreements and moments of disappointment between friends and allies, "there is a way to clarify the disputes".

"It is beholden upon all of us to avoid baseless, irresponsible and insulting statements and tweets that harm the national security and the interests of the state of Israel," he said.

Mr Herzog also said he wanted to take the opportunity to thank Israel's "greatest ally, the US".

"I would like to say thank you to President Biden, who is a great friend of the state of Israel, and who proved as such from the first day of the war," he said.

We have been reporting today on Joe Biden's warning that the US would stop supplying weapons if Israeli forces conduct a full-scale offensive in Rafah. 

It marked his strongest language to date on the issue.

But can Israel achieve its aims without US weapons?

Our military analyst Sean Bell says "it's very likely they can". 

"Although the US has said it is pausing the supply of weapons, it's not going to stop supplying defensive weapons," he says.

Bell says Israel will have "significant stockpiles" and will use those if the decision is made to go into Rafah. 

"Rafah is a relatively small area as well so it looks unlikely to have any significant military effect."

Bell says Mr Biden's comments are more likely a "political statement".

"The International Court of Justice said Israel needs to do more to protect the civilian population and any nation that provides weapons to a country which then uses them in violation of international law also becomes vulnerable," he says.

"I think this is a really clear statement from President Biden.

"He doesn't want to get tarnished with that brush as all.

"I don't think there will be a military impact but I do think this is a reflection of the frustration Biden is feeling with the actions of Netanyahu."

Joe Biden's weapons threat "practically buries a hostage deal at this point", a source close to the Israeli leader has told Sky News.

The US president warned overnight that the US would halt the supply of some weapons to Israel if it launches a full-scale invasion of Rafah.

IDF international spokesperson Nadav Shoshani has issued a statement in response to reports aid is not getting into Gaza.

In a statement on X, Mr Shoshani said Israel closed the Kerem Shalom border crossing after four IDF soldiers were killed.

The crossing was reopened and Hamas "fired rockets at the crossing several times again".

"Hamas has a pattern of risking civilians for their terrorist agenda," he said.

Yesterday, Israel insisted the border crossing, which allows aid into Gaza, had reopened but the UN said deliveries have still not been allowed through. 

By Alistair Bunkall , Middle East correspondent, in Jerusalem

We knew he was thinking it, but now it has been said out loud.

Although we can assume the US would have told Israel in private of its decision to withhold weapons in the event of a "major" Rafah invasion, to hear Joe Biden lay it out so publicly has shaken Israelis.

Some see it as treacherous, an outrageous move by the country's closest ally; others believe it is the predictable consequence of Benjamin Netanyahu's failure to heed American advice and warnings over many months.

Mr Netanyahu, who is yet to comment, is now faced with a dilemma: defy Mr Biden and invade Rafah anyway, or back down and look weak in the face of Israel's enemies: Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran.

"Bibi will say one thing and do the complete opposite," one seasoned Israeli political journalist told me earlier.

"Biden's mistake was saying it out loud, he doesn't understand the Middle East," another messaged. 

"Do it, fine, but don't brag about it."

US diplomats I've spoken to in Jerusalem this morning, though, say the administration has repeatedly tried to work with Israel, over seven months, and with little to show for it.

They've gently cajoled Israel to let more aid into Gaza, to design a "day-after" plan, to limit civilian casualties and to deliver a humanitarian plan for Rafah - some of these things have happened very slowly, others not at all.

The US is clearly fed up and out of patience.

The immediate concern is how Mr Biden's announcement will affect negotiations for a ceasefire that are ongoing in Cairo. 

The CIA director has just flown back to the Egyptian capital after a short visit to Tel Aviv and work is under way to close the gaps. 

Logically, Hamas will now be unlikely to offer any further compromises if they think the threat of an invasion of Rafah has gone away.

So does Mr Netanyahu try to convince the right-wing hawks in his government that his hands have been tied and that he has no other choice but to accept the deal that is on the table while he buys time for future action?

Or does he dial down the temperature, keep the negotiations bubbling but order the IDF to continue with "limited" actions on the edges of Rafah, all the while creeping further towards the centre without alarming the White House? Achieving some military objectives without stepping over the line.

There is a third option: go into Rafah hard, and soon. Use the considerable arsenal and firepower that the IDF has, make some ground in a limited timeframe, then get out and soak up the wrath of Washington.

That option might deliver a short-term victory but would outrage the US administration and could put at risk options for future Israeli operations, for example in Lebanon.

There have been many pivotal moments during this seven-month war, and this is another. 

The "UK wants the fighting in Gaza to end but calling for an immediate ceasefire makes it no more likely", Lord Cameron says in his speech in London.

"It is more practical to focus as we have in the UN and elsewhere on securing that immediate humanitarian pause -that is stopping the fighting right now," he says.

"This will see the hostages releases and more aid delivered.

"Then, we can turn this into the sustainable ceasefire without a return to fighting at all."

He also describes Britain's system and scale of arms exports to Israel as completely different to those in the US, saying the sales it licenses are relatively small and policed by strict procedures.

"There's a very fundamental difference between the US situation and the UK situation," Cameron says.

"We do not have a UK government supply of weapons to Israel, we have a number of licences, and I think our defence exports to Israel are responsible for significantly less than 1% of their total."

Lord Cameron is delivering a speech on UK security in London.

The foreign secretary says innocent citizens in Gaza are enduring a crisis "that will only worsen" if aid cannot reach them safely.

"This is a world more dangerous, more volatile and more confrontational than most of us have ever known and we need to face up to that fact and act accordingly," he says.

He points the situation in the Red Sea where "ship after ship have been attacked".

"While many countries have criticised the Houthi attacks, it is only the US and Britain that have been willing and able to step up and strike back," he says.

Lord Cameron says NATO countries should agree to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence and the country must "rise to the challenge that we face" and "make security a top priority".

Around 80,000 people have fled Rafah since Monday, according to the United Nations agency for Palestinians.

The data comes as pressure increases on Israel to refrain from a fully fledged ground operation in Rafah.

Israel says it is conducting what it describes as a "precise counterterrorism operation in specific areas of eastern Rafah".

People have searching through the rubble after an Israeli strike on homes in Rafah. 

Earlier this morning, Agence France-Presse reported heavy shelling in the southern region and Palestinian news agency  Wafa  reported eight people had been killed after an aircraft bombed a house.

Israel says the southern Gaza city is the last Hamas stronghold in the enclave and has threatened a full-scale invasion despite warnings from allies.

More than one million Palestinian civilians have sought shelter in the region, many previously displaced from other parts of Gaza after Israel's orders to evacuate from there.

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The best (and worst) budget airlines in the UK

T hey’re the airlines we love to hate, whisking passengers to Europe and beyond for miniscule fares with incredible regularity – in theory, at least. But the reality of “budget” airlines , as all-too many of us know, can be fraught with hidden fees, confusing baggage allowances and copious delays.

However, not all budget airlines are created equal. In a bid to find the best low-cost carrier, we’ve compared Wizz Air, Jet2, easyJet and Ryanair on all of the key credentials. There is a clear winner – and loser – but do you agree? Have your say in the poll and comments below. 

Explore the categories

Best for routes and connections, best prices for summer 2024, best for seat comfort, best for punctuality, best for hand baggage allowance, best for fines and fees, best for priority boarding, best rated on trustpilot , best rated by the telegraph readers, the verdict.

By passenger numbers, Ryanair is Europe’s largest airline group: it carried 182 million people in 2023. This summer, it will have a fleet of 600 aircraft – by far the biggest of our survey, serving more than 250 airports across 40 countries.

Ryanair is also the best-connected of the bunch. It flies from 22 UK airports, including lesser-served ones such as Newquay and Teesside, so we’re rating it top for UK range. Its routes include rarer low-cost destinations too, such as Jordan, Montenegro and Morocco . 

Currently operating from 18 UK airports, easyJet serves 155 airports across 36 countries. It is Europe’s second largest airline by passenger numbers (pipped by Ryanair), with a large fleet of 336 planes.

In March, easyJet opened a new three-aircraft base in Birmingham – joining the likes of Liverpool, Newcastle and Edinburgh . For connectivity, it comes second place to Ryanair.

In third place is Wizz Air, which serves 95 routes to and from the UK, to more than 30 countries – including cities in North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia. 

There are 207 aircraft in the Wizz Air fleet, and it has hubs at London Luton and Gatwick. It flies from a further six UK airports: Glasgow, Birmingham, Newcastle, Aberdeen, Leeds and Liverpool, so has a fair regional coverage.

For routes and connectivity, Jet2 ranks fourth. It flies to over 65 European destinations from 11 UK airports, with a new base at Liverpool opening in March. Other hubs include Birmingham, Bristol, East Midlands, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds and Stansted.

It operates 119 aircraft, and is the UK’s third largest scheduled airline; notable destinations include Norway , Morocco, Cyprus and Iceland . 

The winner: Ryanair

The loser: Wizz Air has a higher number of destinations than Jet2 – but the latter scoops Wizz on its choice of UK airports. It’s a tie.

Let’s say you want to fly from London to Malaga this summer, 13 to 21 July – hand luggage only , on the lowest-cost tariffs. Which airline has the cheapest return fares? 

The price per adult offered by Ryanair currently starts from £127.90 (departing Stansted, though you’ll need to leave Malaga at 5.55am); with easyJet it is £133.98 (from Gatwick, arriving in Malaga just after midnight). 

Wizz Air’s fares start from £219.98 (leaving Gatwick at 5.55am); Jet2’s start from £231 (departing Stansted at 9am). 

Prices were sourced directly from the airlines on April 18, 2024, and are inclusive of booking fees.

The winner: Ryanair, for a superb £127.90 per adult fare, return.

The loser: Jet2. However, this was the airline with the most “decent” flight timings for its cheapest tickets: departs Stansted at 9am, and departs Malaga at 8.25pm.

When it comes to seat width (which the industry generally measures in inches), our four airlines are pretty much equal. On Wizz’s Airbus A320 and easyJet’s Airbus A321neo, the seats are 18in wide. Opt for Jet2’s Boeing 737-300 or Ryanair’s Boeing 737-800, and you’ll miss out on an inch: their seat width is 17in.

But when it comes to seat pitch, there’s a clear winner. This is the distance between any point on one seat and the same point on the seat in front – so is a good measure of not only leg room, but “headspace” and perception of roominess in the cabin. According to Seat Guru, and verified by the airlines, Wizz’s seat pitch is 28in, easyJet’s 29in, Ryanair’s 30in, and Jet2’s 31in. 

The winner: Jet2

The loser: Wizz Air

If you boarded a flight anywhere last summer, chances are it was delayed or cancelled . Airport strikes, wildfires, air traffic meltdowns: which airline fared best against the odds?

The aviation analysts at OAG provided Telegraph Travel with data across more than half a million flights from June 1 to September 3, covering airlines departing from 48 UK airports. 

Ryanair operated 91,897 flights, of which 31.8 per cent arrived or departed on time. For easyJet, 44.7 per cent of its 111,551 flights were on schedule, while 57.7 per cent of Jet2’s 38,986 services ran as planned. 

The data from OAG suggested that Wizz Air managed to depart or arrive on time on just 7.8 per cent of its services. The airline contested the figure, insisting that “almost half” of departures and “almost 40 per cent” of arrivals were on time. It added: “The majority of delays were due to issues outside of Wizz Air’s control, such as the recent air traffic control fault, meaning these statistics are not an accurate representation of our overall performance.”

The loser: According to OAG, Wizz Air experienced the most disruption – though this figure was disputed by the airline – therefore it’s a tie between Wizz Air and Ryanair.

We compared the size and weight limits for free hand baggage, on a standard ticket. 

Jet2: 56 x 45 x 25cm (total volume 63,000cm3); maximum 10kg.

easyJet: 45 x 36 x 20cm (total volume 32,400cm3), “which needs to fit in our baggage gauge and under the seat in front of you”. Maximum 15kg.

Wizz Air: 40 x 30 x 20cm (total volume 24,000cm3), and “must be placed at the feet of the passenger under the seat in front of them”. Maximum 10kg.

Ryanair: 40 x 20 x 25cm (total volume 20,000cm3); no weight limit is listed.

The winner: easyJet’s 15kg limit is the most generous weight – but for size, Jet2 is the best. Its volume allowance is more than three times the size offered by Ryanair.

The loser: Ryanair

Best for checked-in luggage

When you pay to bring a suitcase, the fee structure varies wildly. For ease of comparison, the following covers luggage weighing 20kg or more, booked at the same time as your flight. 

With Ryanair, a 20kg bag costs £18.99 to £59.99, according to your route and travel dates – the lowest weight allowance of our four airlines. Excess baggage ranges from £9 to £11 per kilo, the cheapest fee in this comparison.

Jet2’s baggage add-on covers bags up to 22kg: costs vary, and it doesn’t quote a ballpark fee online if you don’t have a booking. According to mybaggage.com, the average cost is £21 each way. Excess weight is £12 per kilo.

Wizz charges between £8.25 and £87.11 for a 20kg bag, in peak season, with an excess fee of £12 per kilo. On easyJet, 23kg of hold luggage costs from £9.49 per item; excess weight is £12 per kilo.

The winner:  The varying prices make it hard to compare fees, but easyJet’s baggage allowance is the most generous, at 23kg.

The loser: It’s a tie: Ryanair and Wizz Air offer 20kg each. The latter’s upper threshold is the most costly, though Jet2 isn’t transparent about its fees unless you have a booking with them.

To change a name on a booking, Ryanair charges £115 per flight. To change your flights costs £45, plus any additional fare. To check in at the airport rather than on the app, Ryanair charges £30 or £55 if flying from Spain. Boarding pass reissue is £20.

Name changes with Jet2 cost £35; flight changes are £35, plus any additional fare. No charge for airport check-in or boarding pass print-out.

With easyJet, name changes cost £55; flight changes are £25 if more than 60 days before travel, or £49 if within 60 days, plus any additional fare. There is no charge for airport check-in or boarding pass print-out. 

Name changes with Wizz cost £55; flight changes cost £36.50 to £46, plus any additional fare. If you want to check in at the airport, you can pre-book online for £11.50 per flight; airport check-in without pre-booking costs £35.50.

Be warned: in many instances, the above fees are higher if arranged via a customer services agent, rather than online. 

Jet2 is the only airline not to offer speedy boarding as an optional add-on. But if you want to board first (or at least be in the queue to board first), Ryanair’s priority access costs from £6 to £36, and includes two cabin bags.

Wizz’s package costs up to €58.80 (£50.62) when booked in advance, and includes priority boarding and check-in, plus a carry-on wheelie. To get “Speedy Boarding” on easyJet, you’ll need an easyJet Plus card (£215 annually), pay for a Standard Plus or Flexi fare, or add a large cabin bag to your booking – priced “from £5.99”.

The winner: There really isn’t much between easyJet and Ryanair

The loser: Jet2, for not offering the option

On customer review website Trustpilot, Jet2 is by far the best-rated of the airlines – scoring an overall 4.5 (“Excellent”) out of a possible five. It has five-star reviews from 72 per cent of reviewers; four stars from 14 per cent; and one star from 7 per cent. 

“Pleasant and attentive cabin crew,” reads one verified Jet2 customer review. “Friendly and informative captain. Took off an hour late but we made up 25 minutes. Excellent.”

It’s a different story for the rest of the pack. Ryanair and easyJet both score 1.4 stars overall, and Wizz Air 1.3 stars (out of five). A total of 89 per cent of Wizz customers awarded it just one star.

“Robbery,” states a reviewer of one of the airlines. “I don’t understand why people still buy ticket[s] from that airline… [it] should not be allowed to operate in our society.”

The loser: Wizz

In last year’s Telegraph Travel Awards, Jet2 was voted “best short-haul airline” – scooping the top spot for the second consecutive time. Almost 30,000 readers voted in the awards, widely praising Jet2 for its clear contact with passengers, and giving refunds without fuss . 

Further down the table, easyJet took 10th place, Ryanair 22nd and Wizz Air came 23rd – the very last place. Wizz faced criticism from Telegraph readers for its slow refunds, last-minute cancellations and poor customer service .

Bravo to Jet2, which is rated consistently high for customer satisfaction, baggage allowance and comfort – while offering the lowest fees and fines among its peers. Our study suggests it doesn’t come cheap, though: in our fare comparison, it was the most expensive by £103.10.

At the other end of the spectrum, the wooden spoon goes to Wizz. It tallies three individual “loser” titles and three shared ones, and no “wins” to its name – thanks to hefty delays, terrible reviews, reportedly poor service and measly bag allowance.

A Wizz Air spokesperson said: “We do not consider these findings to be representative and the results are most certainly not what we are hearing from our customer surveys.

“Our most recent customer data shows Wizz Air’s brand consideration to be higher than our main UK competitor. We also perform better in customer service, refunds, ease of booking and information provided to customers.

“We are proud to have offered more than 90 million customers affordable airfares, getting them from A to B for the lowest price possible.

“Regarding costs, ticket prices and optional extras are clearly outlined on our website and app. We are an ultra-low-cost carrier and to keep our fares low, we offer optional add-ons at an additional charge, such as checked luggage or preferential seating. Unbundling products means that customers only pay for what they need and we can offer the most affordable and exciting travel opportunities.

“In terms of performance, 2023 was one of our strongest summers to date. We completed more than 99.36 per cent of our flights and saw a 67.4 per cent reduction in the number of cancellations. In the last fiscal year, our on-time performance was better than all but one of our major competitors.”

This story was first published in December 2023 and has been revised and updated.

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