Im excited after reading this thread - and Ive lived here most of my life....

Oh - I almost forgot - you won't find a pub open at midnight - they close at 11pm. There are (few and far between) bars that stay open till 1am and 3am, though, but they're not "traditional" pubs. Most, but not all, places that are open after 11pm charge an entry fee as it's so difficult to find anywhere open at that time. Wretched licensing laws.

Soho (Leicester Square/Picadilly Circus area) is a good place to find a concentration of late night places still serving drinks. Before 11pm, there are thousands of pubs to choose from all over London.

Mark

Hehe not often people speak about London and Whitby at the same time. The north east coast is superb, notleast as its less touristy.
Whitby has a big Goth festival on this weekend :))

Ignorant comment. Are you even a Brit?

Cockneys (the true East End of London) are some of the most genuine people you could ever meet.

Thread starter (venus) spending time in the city is really overpriced (typical tourist trap). It`s worth checking out the counties outside London if you get a chance (Essex, Herts and further North).

This is a decent link worth checking out: http://www.londontown.com/London/Pla..._go_in_London/

What did you do paint the hotel walls or something?
London kicks ass

Never been to london before

youre telling me :1orglaugh - let's go downtown for a hotdog!

as for the cockneys "are some of the most genuine people you could ever meet"... well, its the same as anywhere really. some are nice some are crooks... trust them as much as you would any other friendly stranger, i.e. not very much.

generally, im sure you'll have a great time.

IMO, London is great for Indian food, if you're into that.

Some of the best Indian food can be found around Brick Lane - but if you dont like it REALLY hot make sure you tell them.

I've never been down to London, its so close compared to some other places I've been.

My girlfriend wants to go soon tho, she's been once and loved it. I might take her soon.

London is a great city, but expensive. Except for the beer and ale!

Take the tube. Much faster and less expensive than taxis. Just take a couple minutes when you enter the underground to get your bearings.

Most pubs close at 11:00 as has been posted.

If you want sex check out Punter Net and go to one of the "parties". Typical is three girls over three hours for 120 pounds.

Visit Soho (just beside Piccadilly station) to check out the sleeze. Great bookshops as well. Short fast sex with lovely young women can be had for 30 pounds. Look for the "model" signs in the open doorways.

*Do not* go for the "Private Shows". They will roll you for 100-200 pounds.

Have fun!

I vote for this post as being the greatest contribution to this thread.

Yeah, I hear it's a real BLAST!!! :disgust

i stayed at the landmark when i was there and it was like 400 pounds a night. london is a fucking expensive city.

You wanna travel up North then where the Kormas end up like Vindaloo. :Oh crap

London freaking rocks. Been here since July and I ain't leaving...oh wait my passport says i gotta leave in Dec. Nevermind.

I guess I should say on average the food's not very good, but there are some really great exceptions. All the Chinese is good, as is the Indian if you're into that kind of food. I found one French restaurante that had no prices: you literally paid what you thought the meal was worth, but it was so good, you typically paid more than if there were prices. I did anyway.

I was there for about a year and a half, and there was about 1-2 weeks that were really nice, meaning sunny and warm. I just went there for a visit about a month ago, and I was surprised that it was again sunny and warm for the first few days. Then I went to Leeds and it wasn't so good anymore, and overcast by the time I got back to London.

The country side can be beautiful, though, and the women are great. :)

you all are a riot...thats why I am visiting London :)

and no, not going for sex or strip clubs, just interested in see the local culture.

yeah, I've been there once or twice

A touch of cynicism there Sarah? :winkwink:

London has some of the top resturants in the world. If you don't like traditional English food then don't worry because except for fish and chips you aren't likely to find it anyway. A resturant without prices? Where was that because I never even heard of that but it does show that you can get just about anything you want to eat in London.

The number one eating tip in regards to London is don't go near the Angus/Aberdeen Steak Houses. They are ONLY for tourists that don't know any better.

Also, it always kind of pisses me off when people go on about the weather. Firstly, London gets such little snow or really cold weather that it makes up for lack of constant sunshine for me. It is true that this isn't the sunniest city in the world but then again it isn't California. That said, the summers are starting to get hotter and hotter here...I would rather they didn't.

It does however have some of the most incredible history and culture you will find anywhere. It is also one of those cities that someone either loves or hates. If you love it then it will get under your skin and become a part of you.

Similar to New York, it is a city where you can find whatever you want to find and make the city suit whoever you want to be. Is there bad stuff here? Hell yeah! Is there great stuff here? You better fucking believe it.

A friend said that I am proof that not all Americans are born without the sarcasm gene.

Or be like me and go the Korma route...yes I am a wimp.

:1orglaugh :thumbsup

I am always saying that the one dish that you can not get a good version of here is pizza. I had to go to Belgium to get a good pizza they way I would expect to get them back home (I haven't checked out Italy yet...lol). I was actually happy when Pappa John's opened up here.

Yeah..don't stay near either airport..they aren't even really in London. It would be like flying into Newark and staying there to visit NYC.

Go to http://www.lastminute.com and check out the deals they have on hotels and shows. Even Londoners use that site.

You're simply wrong about the food as Sarah pointed out. It's just a matter of taking the time to look and explore. There's a HUGE range of very good quality food available from every part of the globe often at reasonable prices. Again it's a matter of looking. If you find yourself in London again spend a little more time finding good places to eat as there's plenty. If you're stuck read a food guide ot two.

And yes to the weather in Leeds. I really can't understand why people say the London weather is bad because to be honest it isn't. Again the only people who have any justification for bitching are people who like living in temps of 90+ and sweating all day. Personally I'd find weather like that horrible. However, travel to some places up North and dry days really are the exception :(

You think that about the north? I'm from Sheffield, but now live in Cardiff, and it is much much wetter here than the north ever was.

And yeah, the food is London isnt crap. there is just about everything and anything you could want, and at just about every standard.

Everywhere outside of London gets so much more rain. I think the problem is that outsiders (re: Americans) see everywhere in the UK as London and so lump everything into it.

Every time I have been to the midlands it pissed it down.

Culturally and historically its magnificent. If you like the arts and museums then its great for that too. Also, look out for little gems that dont get mentioned too often like Borough Market which has been around for about 8 or 900 years and is superb. Shoreditch and all around that area its a rich mix of cultures, so if you dig on that scene then that area is great, especially for food (be more careful at night though lol).

If you stay at the old County Hall you have the London Eye outside, its a five minute stroll across Westminster bridge to Parliament Square which has Westminster Abbey as well. Then its a 10 to 15 minute stroll up to Trafalgar Square from which you are central to everything.

Plus points: History, sights to see, culturally diverse, food (yes it is good in general).

Minus points: Expensive, Tube is shit, people arent generally the friendliest.

In a nutshell, yes it well worth a visit.

Depends on the part of the North. Funnily enough I've lived in Cardiff too and it really was dryer than my current location. Besides....sheffield isn't THAt far North. Bloody soft Southerners ;)

I'd imagine a lot of it has to do with topography. Parts of Wales certainly get dumped on a lot including Cardif. I'm convinced my current location has that beat though. It's like living in a swamp :(

Taken from a weather site and sadly not very far from me at all. On the plus side property is cheap here! :D

Avoid the airport hotels. The prices are extortionate, especially if you don't reserve a room in advance. It's better to find a smaller, less extravagant hotel which is closer to the attractions, instead of being 20 miles away paying more than £200/night in the Hilton.

The biggest problem with London is that it's full of foreigners :1orglaugh

Watch out for Jack the Ripper, too!

http://www.hotels-london.co.uk/image...front-text.jpg

Actually, that's one of the best things about London. The fact that people from all over the world live here and Just Get Along is fantastic. It's the occasional backward little areas outside London that I hate, populated by ignorant, ill-educated bigots hell-bent on protecting their peculiar perceptions of a static, insular and xenophic society. /rant

Venus, if you'd like a quick zoom around the highlights of central London's sights and pubs from a local, hit me up - I love showing visitors around! (Not if it's raining, though).

yeah don't take a black cab they will rip you off.

Black cabs are fine and are not licenced..more like never take a mini cab in central London and *especially* if they are roaming the streets looking for passangers because that is illegal and risky.

Don't eat anywhere where there's tourists. You'll get 2nd class food for 1st class prices and then some. You'll get food that will only fill you up, but nothing that will make you stand up and yodel.
Got back couple of days ago after visiting my sister. Last time I was pretty lucky in finding decent resturants (nothing spectacular though). This time every single place I went to sucked BAD.

Brick Lane is great! go with a few people and and watch as shop owners/employees bargain for your business. Most offer around 20% off the bill and first few rounds of drinks free also

Matt

Well. The educated/ non-Muslim people get along fine.
But if you happen to go to Whitechapel and the surrounding area you may well have been stopped by a car full of Muslim lads who will then tell you to "get out, this is Muslim land". I have, and so have many of the people I do business with in that area.
And if you go to Speakers Corner you would be treated to a sermon informing us all that Islam will rule the UK and that all white people will be killed. So it's not all rosy.

If you are a fitness buff check out one of my faves One Aldwich Beautiful hotel with a nice 24 hour gym.

If the Gym isn't necessary I definitely recommend #5 Maddox. http://www.living-rooms.co.uk/