Cheap Weekend in London

We wanted to have a memorable time when we were in London, but we wanted to do it without spending a fortune. We decided we'd save money by booking a cheap hotel room online and traveling using public transportation. By far the most important thing we could've done to prepare for our trip was to research "cheap eats" in London. With recommmendations found online and accompaning guidebooks in hand we were able to seek out some great places without having to splurge!

Quick Tips:

SAVE MONEY and HAVE FUN

Get the tube/bus travelcards to save on transportation costs. Grab some snacks from one of the many grocery stores to save on meal costs. Check out the secondhand bookstores on Charing Cross Road for some real bargains. Stroll the markets of Petticoat and Brick Lane for some garage sale prices on a wide range of merchandise. Buy your theatre tickets at the Leicester Square TKTS booth. Pop into one of the many free museums including the British Museum, National Gallery, Victoria and Albert Museum, or The Natural History Muesum.

Best Way To Get Around:

The tube (subway) is the fastest, cheapest, and easiest way to get around London. The trains are identified by name, final destination, and color. To help you, there are the maps, strategically placed staff, phones to call in a question, and overhead signs which indicate which train is coming next and in how many minutes.

Buy a travelcard using the touch screen vending machines (if you have pounds) which are faster than the booth lines. Buy the weekend travelcard (6.10 £) or the day travelcard (4.10 £) for a busy day of sightseeing. A single destination journey will cost you .70 £, so the cards are usually more economical. If you're traveling before 9am on a weekday you'll have to pay the peak price.

You can also easily transfer to and from busses and trains on one pass. Keep the pass handy because you'll need it to enter AND exit the turnstiles. Do a good deed in the evening by surprising another tourist, or maybe even a true Londoner, by handing your pass to someone waiting in line to buy theirs - you'll make their day. Visit the Interactive Tube Map to help you plan your visit.

The Westbury Hotel was small and friendly. It was in the lovely, quiet neighborhood of South Kensington, within walking distance of Earl's Court, Harrods, and many museums, including the Victoria and Albert, Science, and Natural History Museums. The hotel was also near the Gloucester Road tube station. Our walk from the tube station to the hotel took us by many restaurants and a couple large grocery stores.

Our double room was very no frills, with a small bed, closet, desk, and a separate small bathroom. There was a TV and a coffee maker. The linens were clean with fresh towels each day, and we had no trouble with hot showers. For breakfast they served only cereal, toast, and coffee.

Overall, it was warm, quiet, and quite honestly the cheapest hotel room we could find through the internet. We were able to comparison shop and book online using hotels-plus.com.

When we arrrived at Gaby''s, we hesitated at first since none of the food in the window was recognizable. We then lingered at the door staring at the picture menu trying to decide whether to go in. I AM SO GLAD WE WENT IN.

Gaby's came highly recommended, and at first glance this diner did not seem all that extraordinary from the outside--but we were not the least bit disappointed. It offers takeaway and sit-down service for its wide range of home-cooked veggie and Middle Eastern specialties. The picture menu makes it easy to order.

For about $30, we had two falafel and hummus starters, pita bread, a stuffed pepper with assorted vegetables, a lamb kebab with fries, a Coke, and baklava. The chili sauce is super hot--just the way I like it--and we put it on everything. We were quite literally mopping up every last bite on our starter plate with the pita bread and nibbling even on the garnishes because it was all so good. We liked the baklava so much that we went back the next night to get one for each of us to takeaway to our hotel.

The decor was lacking--fake plants with lingering Christmas decorations. You don't go to Gaby's for the atmosphere, rather, its value, choices, location, and late hours (open until midnight Monday through Saturday and 9pm Sunday)-- are hard to beat. It's right near the Leicester Square tube station, so feel free to grab a takeaway falafel for a true London bargain.

Mr. Wu's offers an amazing Chinese all-you-can-eat 10-course buffet at the super bargain price of £4.95. There is no ambience or glamour, but the food is plentiful and tasty. We especially enjoyed the curried chicken, beef in a black-bean sauce, and egg rolls, and since it is London, there were fries as well. We actually happened upon a second Mr. Wu's right in the heart of Chinatown, and both seemed to offer the same menu for the same price. The food is displayed in the window, so you can walk by and decide for yourself, but you won't find a better Chinese-food bargain in London.

Belgo Centraal is located in cozy Convent Garden. After entering the restaurant and crossing over the open kitchen, we were led to the dimly lit downstairs area where the waiters, dressed as Belgian monks, happily take your order.

Belgo offers one of the largest selections of Belgian beers in the UK, and we decided, based on the waiter's suggestions, to have Maes and DeKonick. With the beers, we were given complimentary rye bread with mayonnaise. I enjoyed a light lunch of goat cheese croquettes with salad and a side of heavenly mashed potatoes. Leo ate a steak and fries with a garnish salad. We shared a delicious Brussels-style waffle with cream and ice cream for dessert. We enjoyed all of this for less than £30! Many of our neighboring tables dove into the kilo buckets of mussels with fries and mayonnaise.

We arrived around noon and noted that by 12:30pm, the place was brimming with Londoners and tourists alike. Since Belgo is not a secret given its bargain prices for first-rate food, I suggest you get there early if you'd like to avoid the rush. They offer lunch specials and a "beat the clock" evening menu of three main course choices with a drink where the amount you pay depends on when you place your order -- order at 6:00pm and you pay £6.

If you really enjoy the place and are in town for a more than a few days, you can make use of their Loyalty Card where four Belgo meal stamps gets you a complimentary fifth lunch.

Spitafelds Market Hall on Commercial Street is a wonderful place to stroll on a Sunday afternoon. Vendors offer freshly baked goods and organic foods to take away or munch on as you peruse the eclectic offerings throughout the market. In the center of the market and along its borders, a variety of cafés are available for a quick snack or a leisurely lunch on the picnic tables in the hall.

We were very satisfied with our choices from the Tandoori Hut -- the vegetable samosa was the largest I've ever seen. We shared our food and were easily filled up by the samosa, chicken korma, and a nan thatb that cost us less than £5.

Since we coudn't find a play or musical for Sunday evening, we decided to go see a movie. After dishing out £10 each (about $15), we realized we probably should have just popped into a pub for a few drinks after dinner. Though we enjoyed the movie and the theater was close to the Leicester station, we regretted having paid so much, since we later realized there were a few discount movie houses located in and around the Charing Cross area. If you think you might be stuck in London on a Sunday evening with nothing else to do, then, and only then, head to Warner Village Cinema to see a recent release.