London has a reputation for being a pretty expensive destination, but that doesn’t mean you can’t save money on your trip!
Check out our ways to save money on your London trip and get ready to enjoy the city for less.
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1. Create your own sightseeing bus tour
London’s red double-decker buses are famous all over the world, and you can turn them into your very own affordable sightseeing bus tour experience!
Of course if you like a proper tour, with a guide explaining all the sights, then by all means book an official one.
But those come with a price tag, whereas for just £1.75 – the price of a single journey – you can ride a regular London bus past some of the best sights in the city! You probably won’t want to stay on for the whole journey, just pick and choose what you want to see.
Our top routes for do-it-yourself bus tours include…
Number 9
This bus starts at Aldwych and goes along the Strand, past Somerset House and Covent Garden. Then onwards through Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus, past Green Park and through Knightsbridge and Kensington, where you’ll find the museums, Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Palace and the Design Museum. Finally finishing up in Hammersmith.
Number 26
This route starts in Victoria but pick it up in Westminster, where there’s Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben. Then the bus goes along Whitehall up to Trafalgar Square, along the Strand to Aldwych and the Royal Courts of Justice. Then you wind through the City – past the Old Bailey and St Paul’s cathedral, past Bank and on to Liverpool Street, where you can jump off to visit Spitalfields, or stay on a few more stops to hit up the bars and restaurants of Shoreditch. If you stay on board, you’ll continue on through through Hackney where the bus terminates at Hackney Wick, just past the northern edge of Victoria Park.
Number 88
This is a great north-south route. If you’re staying south of the river Thames, hop on at Vauxhall and enjoy passing Tate Britain before hitting the sights of Westminster.
This bus then also goes up to Trafalgar Square but then heads on up through the West End, along Haymarket to Piccadilly Circus then on to Oxford Circus. Stay on board and you’ll keep going past the huge houses by Regents Park, and on to trendy Camden. Beyond that it winds its way to Kentish Town, where you’ll find some great pubs, before terminating at Parliament Hill Fields.
And of course, the ULTIMATE experience on any London bus is to bag the front seats on the top deck – so you can feel like you’re driving the bus yourself!
Find out more about how to travel on London’s buses.
2. Visit a Free Museum, like the V&A
One of the best things about visiting London as a tourist is that so many museums and galleries are free.
In other capital cities, you can rack up a huge bill by visiting just 3 or 4 spots and paying their entry fees, but here in London you can see world-class art and artefacts for nowt, nada, zilch! Which is pretty wallet-friendly.
The V&A, the Natural History Museum and the Science Museum
Over in South Kensington, sometimes called the museum quarter, you’ve got three museums to check out.
There’s the Victoria and Albert Museum, which is all about decorative objects like paintings, textiles, sculptures and fashion. There’s a really nice courtyard garden here which is lush in summer – great for people watching!
Then there’s the Natural History Museum, with loads of incredible specimens from the natural world, and the Science Museum, which brings science and space to life.
If you’re an art or history buff, here are some other spots to put on your list.
National Gallery and National Portrait Gallery
The National Gallery on the north side of Trafalgar Square is where you can see classic paintings by famous artists like Vincent Van Gogh and Claude Monet. The National Portrait Gallery next door is also worth a look, where you can see historic paintings and royal portraits as well as newer collections like photography.
The British Museum
The British Museum has a huge collection of artefacts from all over the world, like ancient carvings, Egyptian antiques, Aztec treasures and Anglo-Saxon relics.
3. Eat Michelin-starred meals for less with a lunch menu
If you’d love to try the world-class restaurants London has to offer, but you shudder at some of the prices, then check out their lunchtime menus.
Lots of top restaurants offer cheaper set menus at lunch, so it’s a great way to enjoy a delicious meal for less. Plus it’s not as busy as in the evenings, so you can take a bit more time to enjoy the experience.
Of course these meals still aren’t cheap, let’s be clear! But, if you like your food and you plan to splash out on a world-class meal during your stay anyway, then you can make your money go further with a daytime deal.
Murano
Galvin La Chapelle
Get two courses for £49 or three for £55 at lunchtime Monday to Saturday at Galvin La Chapelle, a famous Michelin-starred French-European restaurant.
Chisuru
Excellent West African restaurant Chisuru in Fitrovia has a Michelin star. Get a three course lunch for £45.
The Ritz
You can get a three-course set lunch during the week at the two Michelin-starred restaurant at The Ritz for £89. If you were planning to splurge anyway, this price isn’t too bad for such a big treat.
4. Consider a city pass
As with most city breaks, if you’re planning to pack in a bunch of attractions, it’s worth seeing what city passes are on offer and whether snapping one of these up could save you money.
Now there are a LOT of different London passes on sale, which is pretty confusing. But don’t discount them because you’re overwhelmed – they could save you money.
Below is a selection of passes we think you’re most likely to want to consider for your trip, and an overview of how they measure up:
Passes for a specific number of days
- Best for - cramming in as many sights as possible
There are a bunch of different passes that are valid for a certain number of days. In those days you can visit as many attractions as you like from the ones they offer.
Some of them offer things like free tours, bus tours, boat rides and escape rooms in additional to the more typical attractions.
If you’re on a budget, choose a 1- or 2-day pass and pack all your visits into those days.
London Pass
London Pass Plus
London All-Inclusive Pass
London Sightseeing Day Pass
From £79 for a 1-day pass
Passes for a specific number of attractions
- Best for - ticking off specific attractions
These passes are valid for a specific number of attractions. The pass is valid for 60 days from the day you first use it.
From £69 for a 1-attraction pass
Pass for kid-friendly attractions
- Best for - young kids
The Merlin Attractions Pass includes 5 London attractions owned by the Merlin group: Madame Tussauds, the London Eye, SEA LIFE aquarium, Shrek’s Adventure! London and the London Dungeon.
From £79
Now if you’re overwhelmed by all the different passes, don’t worry. Just set aside some time before your trip to think about which attractions you most want to see, and check the cost of individual tickets.
Then you can search for the best-value pass that includes them. Depending on what your priorities are and which attractions you want to visit, a city pass may or may not suit you.
Remember sites like Get Your Guide have competitively-priced tickets for some attractions and experiences too.
Paying a flying visit?
Below are some other passes that coveer just 2 or 3 attractions for a combined cheaper price.
So if you’re only in town for a day or two, or they cover the attractions you were going to see anyway, then they could be a cost-effective option for you.
Passes for a handful of attractions
- Best for - a quick trip
Royal Museums Greenwich Day Pass
Entry to Cutty Sark, Royal Observatory and audio guides.
From £38
London Family Pass
Entry to London Zoo and London Transport Museum, and Thames river cruise.
From £44
London Royal Pass
Guided tour including Changing of the Guard, entry to Westminster Abbey and the Royal Mews.
From £55
5. Stay outside the city centre
A key way you can save money on your London trip is to stay in a zone of the city that is generally more affordable. This means there tends to be more choice when it comes to lower hotel room rates and apartment rents.
You can find cheaper pockets all over London, but a lot of them are over towards the East, where you’ve also got decent transport links to travel easily into the centre.
Try areas like Aldgate and Tower Hill towards the centre – further out look at areas like the Isle of Dogs, Stratford and Leyton.
The Corner London City
The Corner London City is a cheap and trendy option just 5 minutes from Aldgate East and Algate tubes, where the ensuite is a pod behind your bed’s headboard – pretty nifty eh?
Citizen M Tower of London
The CitizenM brand is known for providing smart, well-priced digs in good locations across London, including the Tower of London.
Bermonds Locke Tower Bridge
Bermonds Locke is a slick aparthotel for a stay with all mod cons in Tower Bridge.
Moxy Excel
This Moxy is a bargain, and great if you’re seeing something at the O2 or Abba Voyage. There’s also one in Stratford.
Good Hotel
This is a unique floating hotel where they donate all their profits to helping other people. Note there are no TVs here – so it’s best as a crash pad!
6. See amazing views for free at Sky Garden
Getting a glimpse of London’s skyline is definitely a must, but you don’t need to fork out for the London Eye to get it. There are lots of places where you can see the city’s rooftops and skyscrapers without spending anything at all.
Just head to one of the capital’s free viewing spaces. One of the most popular spots in the City is Sky Garden (you’ll need to prebook) at the top of the Walkie Talkie, where you can see incredible panoramic views.
More free views of London
Also check out Horizon 22 at the Gherkin (worth prebooking too) and The Garden at 120, which you don’t have to book.
For more central views, go to the roof of the Post Building at 29-31 New Oxford St. To get a great vista across the whole city, head to Primrose Hill in North London or Greenwich Park in Greenwich for a walk or a picnic.
Drink or dine on a rooftop
Another option is to head to a hotel, bar or restaurant with a rooftop and consider the price of a drink or two as your ‘ticket’ to the view. This way you get to sit in comfort and enjoy the views for as long as you like, with a delicious drink or snack in your hand.
If you’re feeling fancy, try Radio Rooftop on top of the ME hotel, Boundary in Shoreditch or posh bar Madisons, which has a great view of St Paul’s. For a more casual, laidback vibe, head up to Roof East in Stratford, Frank’s in Peckham or Netil360 in Shoreditch.
If you’re on a budget, get yourself to the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden as they have a great roof terrace there which overlooks the markets. You can easily grab yourself a coffee from inside and chill out up here!
Remember, rooftop openings can be subject to season or weather, so check before you go.
7. Dine for cheap with incredible global cuisines
One of our favourite tips for eating cheaply in a city is to hunt out global cuisines.
Often you can eat delicious, filling meals based around staples like rice, bread and pasta that are packed full of great flavours and won’t break the bank.
Chinatown in any city is always a great spot for affordable dining, but in London especially there are so many cuisines from all over the world – it’s a great place to sample their affordable offerings.
From Turkish meals in Haringay and Vietnamese flavours in Dalston, to Pakistani curries in Tooting and Syrian wraps in Shepherds Bush, there’s a lot to sink your teeth into! Try these lot…
Turkish
Diyarbakir in Haringey gets rave reviews for its authentic dishes. This spot is on Green Lanes, which has loads of Turkish restaurants to choose from.
Pakistani
Try an authentic Pakistani curry at Lahore Karahi in Tooting. Whether your go to is a masala, jalfrezi, bhuna or vindaloo, they’ve got you! You can bring your own booze to this one, for a £2 per person corkage fee.
Vietnamese
The place to go for delicious Vietnamese food in London is Kingsland Road, which runs from Shoreditch right up to Dalston. Try Bun Bun Bun Hoxton – their beef brisket and flank pho is so good!
Syrian
Abu Zaad in Shepherds Bush serves up delicious Damascene dishes like hot and cold mezze, wraps and grilled meats. Make sure you get a fresh juice too.
ICCO
If you’re after a cheap pizza in the centre of town, head over to ICCO on Goodge Street. This place is no frills and no-nonsense, but it’s perfect when you’ve hit over 10,000 steps in a morning and a sandwich just won’t cut it.
Explore Even More of London With Our Ways To Save Money on Your London Trip
So there you have it, our hacks for being a London tourist for less than you’d think.
Whether you come for the culture, history or food, we guarantee you can have a great time without breaking the bank.
