• Bedsit: It is usually a room with enough space for a bed and some basic furniture. It may have a small food preparation area. A bathroom on the property is usually shared. These are tiny and only suitable for one person.
• Room: a single room to let in a flat or house, usually with landlord on the premises.
• Studio: An upmarket bedsit with a small kitchen and a bathroom included. It usually has a sofa bed or fold-up mattress being stowed away to create a sitting room. Usually to be found in sought after areas.
• Flat: Known as apartments or units in other countries. These can be one to three bedroom flats with a bathroom, kitchen and a lounge. Rarely will there be a dining room.
• Conversion: A flat or studio in a building that has been converted to include accommodation facilities. Often to be found above street level with the ground level part of the dwelling being a shop of some kind.
• Apartment: This is an upmarket flat in a desirable location with at least two bedrooms.
• Terrace house: What some might call townhouses in the city centre. The British version is also called a two-up-and-two-down because the configuration of two rooms downstairs and two rooms upstairs. You’re separated from neighbours either side of the dwelling by a wall of only a few inches thick. In the outer suburbs there may be a small garden.
• Semi-detached: This is a building with two houses adjoining each other. The configuration is usually the same as a terraced house but normally with three bedrooms upstairs. The garden at the back is usually long and narrow. There may be a garage attached. These are found away from city centres.
• Detached: This is a double storied house with some land around it. Its major benefit is privacy and will usually come with a garage. Once again these are found away from the city centre.
• Bungalow: What most people around the world call a house. Its a single story house with at least two bedrooms and often have garages attached. These have a stigma in the UK and are seen as retired people’s homes. They are usually to be found on the outskirts of cities and in the countryside.
• Cottage: This is a small building found inside the grounds of a larger property. They usually have only one or two bedrooms. The size of all their rooms is smaller than in a bungalow.
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The types of accommodation in the UK
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Travelling through Britain – Coach
A coach is what most people would travel on when doing an escorted sight seeing tour of Europe. It is a sophisticated and luxurious bus. Coaches serve a few broad markets that encompass leisure travel, commuters and charters. Coach travel in the UK is cheaper, safer and nicer than its counterparts in many other countries of the world. They are the modern successor to the stagecoaches that linked the country before the advent of train travel.
Coaches are cheaper than travelling by train. Because they are more flexible (not requiring expensive stations) they also reach places other forms of public transport cannot. Depending on the route, coaches are quicker than trains too. As a consequence, many people commute to work using scheduled coach services that run between residential areas and places of work. School children also travel by coach in many parts of the country. Companies and other organisations charter coaches for their outings or events.
For leisure travel there are scheduled services run by various companies that reach almost every town in the UK. The most comprehensive UK coach company is National Express. Eurolines is based at Victoria Coach Station and travels to mainland Europe. Both these large companies have many smaller competitors equivalent in price and service. They just don’t go to as many destinations as the bigger players.
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Travelling through London – Taxis
Another famous image of London is its black taxis called cabs. Their cheaper counterparts are called minicabs and look like ordinary cars. Black cabs are licensed by the police, whilst minicabs are not licensed or regulated by any body. Most populated areas in the UK will have at least minicab services whilst larger towns and cities also have black cabs.
Black cabs are also known as Hackney Carriages. They are allowed by law to stop, where it is safe to do so, to pick up fare paying passengers on the streets of London. Every journey’s fare is metered and drivers are not allowed to charge more than what appears on the meter. Tips are discretionary. Meters determine fare by counting time and mileage. The meters are regularly tested for their accuracy. 99.9% of black cab drivers, called cabbies, are honest, fair people and great conversationalists to boot.
London’s cabbies have to undergo a demanding, unpaid apprenticeship known as the Knowledge. It involves 3 years of getting to know, off by heart, every London street name, its location, traffic directions and likely traffic flow at different times of the day and week. Most importantly they must be able to know the shortest and quickest routes (allowing for traffic) in London. Once you’ve been to London will you know what an achievement this is. Only a third of candidates pass the final test. There are only ever just over 2 000 licensed black cabs in London.
Minicabs are regular cars driven by a driver needing only a valid driver’s licence. No special knowledge of his trade, London or even English is required. They are not allowed to stop for people on the street, but collect their customers after the person has phoned their office to request their service. Minicabs are cheaper than black cabs, but they have no meters in them. You need to agree the fare before beginning your journey. The drivers are mostly decent, hard-working people who are a cross section of the various nationalities to be found in London today.
Beware minicab touts in Soho, the West End’s theatre areas and other busy areas, who will tell you that they have a cab waiting just around the corner. This is an attempt to circumvent the law and these unscrupulous people are to be avoided. Mini cab company numbers can be found in the Yellow Pages. They often advertise with small business cards stuck onto public payphones. Calling a typical mini cab from a reputable company will result in as good a service and cost less than using a black cab. Also, just because a company has the largest advertisement in a phone book, it doesn’t mean that it offers the best service.
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Travelling through Britain – Mainline Trains
The British railway network is one of the most extensive in Europe with over 17,500 kilometres of lines, about 2,500 passenger stations and around 15,000 scheduled trains a day. There is no national carrier since British Rail was privatised in 1997. There are 20 railway companies operating services on a regional basis.
London is served from the surrounding counties and the rest of the country by a host of train companies. Scattered around the perimeters of Zone 1 are a series of mainline stations with famous names. North London’s hubs are King’s Cross/St Pancras and Euston. Most train journeys to the north of London start here. Paddington and Marylebone serve the west. To the Southwest are Victoria and Waterloo. The latter station also acts as the terminus for the Eurostar service to mainland Europe. Charing Cross and Cannon Street serve the southern edge of Zone 1. Mainline travel to the east of London starts at either Liverpool Street or the smaller Fenchurch Street station.
All these stations are connected to the Tube, as well as having buses and taxis available on the streets surrounding them. There is a complicated fare structure which has prices calculated by factoring in the time of day, day of the week, your status (age, number of travellers, etc.) and travel duration. The ticket salesmen behind the counters at stations will usually recommend the best fare.
Tickets are checked on board once the train is under way.
The Eurostar service from Waterloo is a fast passenger train, which travels from London to central Paris, Brussels or EuroDisney. (More stations are being added all the time). It crosses under the English Channel through a tunnel called the “Chunnel”. The train travels at speeds of up to 185km/h (on the French side) taking about three hours to arrive in central Paris. Its also possible to travel by car in “Le Shuttle”, the car train service that travels through the Chunnel from Folkestone in Kent to Calais in France.
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Travelling through London – buses
A London bus is a famous image the world over. Whilst enjoying the view of London’s attractions, these buses will take you all over the capital. Most of the London buses are still red, but a few are painted in different colours. This is because bus routes are operated by a host of bus operating companies, some wanting to differentiate themselves by having a different colour.
With more than 17 000 bus stops, you’re never more than a 5 minute walk from one. Fares on the bus network are divided into 2 fare zones. Central London tickets are £2 (bought from machines before boarding) and outer London tickets are £1.20. Outside Zone 1 pay the bus driver (or conductor) or you show your Travelcard. You must have the correct ticket for your journey or you will pay a £10 penalty fare if caught. When you want to get off the bus, you just ring the bell once well in advance to let the driver know. If someone else has already rung the bell you don’t need to. An indicator panel on each floor of the bus will indicate that the bell has been rung.
Some bus stops are compulsory stops where buses have to stop, regardless of whether anyone wants to alight there. This is to smooth out gaps in traffic between buses. Most stops are request stops requiring you to ring the bell. Many buses have video cameras and two-way radios on board for everyone’s personal safety. Smoking is not allowed on any bus.
There are 2 types of buses in appearance. The old, classic Routemaster buses have their only doorway at the rear of the bus. A conductor on board deals with the customers. The driver is separated from everyone else. The new buses have their entry at the front of the bus where only the driver deals with customer’s fares. Another door toward the centre of the bus is the exit. A number displayed on the front of the bus, usually with a few names of places it passes by, indicates the bus route.
When the Tube closes after midnight an extensive system of night buses comes in to operation. These buses have a “N” at the front of the route number displayed. The route is similar to one followed by day, but usually not exactly. Most of the Night Buses pass through Trafalgar Square to serve the theatres, cinemas and entertainment areas. These buses treat all stops as a request stop. Fares are slightly higher than on normal day buses.
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Travelling throught London – the tube
London is famous partly because of its underground train service called “The Tube”. Liverpool, Newcastle and Glasgow also have their own underground systems, but London’s is still bigger than all their lines combined. The Tube (called London Underground in more formal terms) is the largest of its kind in the world. It is also the oldest underground train system in the world, having started in the early 1860s. There are currently over 300 stations in use, whilst there are a further 40 unused stations on the network’s 255 miles (408 km) of tracks.
The Tube is in places one of the most modern underground systems in the world. The latest extension to the Jubilee Line, with its futuristic stations, is worthy of an outing on its own. The Tube is convenient, running for 20 hours every day, shutting in totality just after midnight. A Tube station within walking distance serves most of London. Each Underground line (service or route) has a different name and colour. This makes it easier to plan your route on a Tube map. When arriving at a station, look up for the colour-coded signs that will direct you to the line and direction you want.
The Tube system is divided into 6 concentric fare zones. Imagine an onion cut in half with its layers visible from above. The core of the onion is Zone 1. The city centre of London is Zone 1. The furthest zone away from the city centre is Zone 6. The price of your ticket depends on how many zones you travel through. It also costs more if you travel through Zone 1. You can buy a ticket for a single or return journey, valid for travel only on the date shown on the ticket. You can buy your ticket from a ticket machine or ticket office at any station, at selected retailers or newsagents near stations or online for a weekly, monthly and annual travelcard.
Travelcards offer the best value.
The ticket machines can save you time and at certain times of the day, at certain stations, are the only way to buy a ticket. The newer machines are touch-screen operated with a typical transaction taking just 2 presses on the screen. These machines are also multi-lingual in display and all instructions are on-screen. They even accept debit and credit cards. Cash is still the most common way of paying. The older machines require you to press a few buttons too, but only accept cash. Both types of machine give change, but try to give the correct money if you can.
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Telephones in Britain
The standard and quality of telecommunications in Britain is very high. The market is also very competitive, with a variety of options available that cater for any telephonic need. In essence your choice boils down to trading off quality of service over price and finding an acceptable level.
British Telecom (or “BT” as most people call it) dominates the market. Whether it be in the workplace, at home or on the street, BT is omnipresent – but at a price. For residential users the cheapest BT rates are in the evening and on weekends. Charges are based on duration of the call and the distance involved. BT is the most expensive for calls made during office hours on weekdays. BT is also the most expensive carrier for international calls.
BT’s famous red phone boxes charge a minimum of 20p to initiate a call that will last you at least two minutes for a local call. Extra time will naturally require your paying more as the call continues. These phone boxes accept a variety of payment methods, but none of them accept all the possible methods.
You can pay with:
• coins (but not notes, so keep 20p pieces handy)
• BT’s pre-paid calling cards (available in various values at newsagents and retailers)
• BT’s Chargecard (a debit card linked to your residential BT account once you have a line) • Credit cards (Visa, MasterCard and their affiliated debit cards of Delta and Switch)
On high streets in areas popular with backpackers or other people in transit, you will find shops with booths inside offering cheap international calls. Their prices are on average less than half BT’s call rate to the same destination. The quality of the connection varies wildly. The delays and echoes on the line can mean that a useful conversation takes more than twice as long and the rate per minute of actual communication thus doubles. Not so cheap if this happens.
Most residential areas have a small newsagent that often doubles as a grocery retailer. These “corner shops” (as the locals call them, even though they may not be on a corner) usually sell a host of international calling cards issued by independent telecoms companies. These cards have a certain face value to them, usually £10. That card then allows you to call anywhere over “their lines” at their rate for the destination dialled. It usually works on the basis that you can pop into a public phone box, dial an 0800 number (or something similar), enter the card’s PIN/ID/code (or whatever the card calls it) and then dial the country and number you want. You can then speak until your credits are used up or the call is ended by you. Any unused credits should be automatically saved and be valid for further calls at another time. Of course you can use these cards from home once you have access to a residential line. Even over a residential line the quality of the connection varies, but in the main and over time these cards will work out much cheaper than calling directly through BT.
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Communications in UK
Having means of communication is very important, especially in the first few days after your arrival. You may want to contact a few people after arrival to let them know that you landed safely. You may want to contact a few friends to meet up with them. You may want to start the hunt for a job or place to stay within hours after clearing Immigration control.
All your needs and wants will be fulfilled through your being able to contact and be contacted by other people. Most people’s highest priorities initially are work and accommodation. These needs can onlycbe satisfied through communication with other people. Fortunately there are several ways in which this can be achieved in the UK.
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Hotels and B&Bs in London
If you’ve come over with a family, or a flatshare or hostel isn’t up your street, then you can either book into a hotel or Bed and Breakfast (B&B) for your first few nights. The hotel/B&B option is the more costly option, but you get what you pay for. You will have access to a better range of services and facilities. Most markedly you will have privacy. On average the rooms will be cleaner, better furnished and better equipped. Your possessions may be safer too. Breakfast will often be included in the rate, but may be very basic (toast and cereals) in cheaper establishments.
Prices for hotels tend to be highest in Zone 1 and become cheaper as you move away from the city centre, except near the airports where business travellers keep rates high. Booking yourself in on a weekly (or monthly basis if you can afford it) will reduce the daily rate considerably. Prices start at about £40 a night in Zone 1 and then that will not buy you anything special either. A decent 3 star hotel in a good location will start at about £100 a night. Four and five star hotels naturally cost more than that and there are some that charge in the thousands of Pounds per night. This hotel option is most suitable for the wealthy and those being relocated by their employers.
Bed and breakfasts offer much better value for money. They are often couples who own a large house with many rooms and run it as their business. The service is more personalised, breakfasts are usually very good and the overall feel is less institutionalised. The number of guests on the property tend to be small (20 or fewer) so its also quieter. However, facilities may be limited. Rates start at about £20 per night with the average being around £30 per night.
B&Bs do not tend to operate in central London because of the cost implications. If they do, they are almost as expensive as full-blown hotels and you’re paying for the difference in location compared to other B&Bs. The further out of central London you go, the more prevalent B&Bs become and cheaper too. However, you have to know good areas from bad. Access to public transport is also a consideration.
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Hostels in London
Hostels are still largely the domain of young people on the tightest of budgets. Standards vary greatly with some being outright dumps and others being better than hotels. Rooms and facilities are basic. Rates vary accordingly, but just because a hostel may be charging more than its neighbour, it doesn’t mean its any better. In fact, it may be the reverse because it knows its neighbour (competitor) may be fully booked. Always as to see a room before making any commitment. Remember that people occupying a room tend to come and go, with some having a reason to steal to keep themselves going. Rates start at about £8 a night per bed and can go as high as £25 a night per bed for the better ones. The average is about £12 per night. If you find a hostel to your liking, it works out cheaper if you pay for a week in advance. Some hostels limit long-term stays to 2 weeks. Better hostels have “private” rooms with just two beds in them which suits couples better, but these cost more. Prices vary according to demand, season, physical condition of the hostel, its financial situation and the state of competition. Prices can fluctuate on a daily basis. Most hostels are to be found in the Earls Court and Victoria areas in Western Zone 1. TNT and similar magazines always carry adverts by hostels, usually in the back section with the classifieds.