After I moved to New York, I realized how affordable it can be to fly from the East Coast across the pond. I had the summer off from school so I flew to London. I stayed in a hostel that first night and then toured around the city. I hated London. I had no money and, even though my lodging was cheap, the food was really expensive. The rest of the week I stayed at a friend of a friend of a friend’s flat in Northern London. At least there I had free breakfast! There is an abundance of things to see in the area. In large cities, I always recommend starting with one of the hop on/off buses. It helps you get a lay of the land and is especially useful when you are tired after an overnight flight. Another “at least once” must while in London is visiting the West End and seeing a show. You can get started here.
It is easy to visit other cities from London. For example, I took the overnight bus to Edinburgh. It is a time waster, but if you have the time, it saves A LOT of money. In addition, I met other people who were in similar financial circumstances (literally traveling with no money) who had fantastic tips. I stayed at a hostel in Edinburgh that was essentially two gymnasiums, one for men and one for women, filled with bunkbeds. It was cheap, but I should have booked something smaller. A large room with a lot of people is not quiet if you need a good night of sleep. If you have no other choice, don’t forget earplugs! Luckily sightseeing in Edinburgh was easy because it was fairly small and really focused around the castle.
After seeing Edinburgh, it is easy to take a bus and then boat to Northern Ireland. While there was a ceasefire in 1999, there wasn’t complete peace, so I knew I still had to be careful. But that also made it exciting! I made a friend on the boat ride who encouraged me to stay at the hostel she was planning to stay and what a great decision that was! When you travel alone, you make friends easily and never really feel completely alone. Belfast was amazing. There were murals on the sides of homes and the curbs were painted, indicating Catholic areas versus Protestant. I’ve been told this no longer exists. It was really moving at the time.
After seeing Belfast, it is an easy bus trip to Dublin, Ireland. On this trip, I met a gentleman who took me to a pub to teach me how to properly drink a Guinness. I guess it is a priority to the Irish that you do it right! The reason I went to Ireland, is my Swedish sister took a temporary job there, so I had a free place to stay. If you are young and in Dublin, be careful how much you drink. The Irish that I saw can literally drink you under the table.
The train ride from Dublin to London is fairly easy. I was lucky to stop in Wales and visit Caernarfon Castle where I splurged in a B&B for about $60. The castle is where King Charles was crowned Prince of Wales so many years ago.
Believe it or not, this two week trip cost under $1000, including my flight. If you want to travel affordably, my best advice is make friends, share rooms, stay with friends, be kind and most importantly be trustworthy and flexible.
