I booked a few days off work at the end of January just after I got back from Dublin for a mini break in London. One thing that I learnt from this break is never (EVER) to book a mini break straight after pay day. It lures you into the false sense of security that you’ve got loads of money to spend and leaves you completely skint for the rest of the month and practically begging for work on People Per Hour (oh, just me then?!). But I did have the best time ever and here’s what I did.
Getting there
I travelled down with National Express as coaches to London are a lot cheaper than getting the train, even beating Megabus for prices. The coach does take a lot longer, nearer four hours rather than just two which the Chesterfield to London train takes. However, it didn’t feel too bad and I amused myself by taking excited holiday selfies and trying to get into the coach toilet. It turns out you need a coin to unlock it – who knew?
When I arrived I was pretty hungry from the journey and I indulged in Fresh Pizza Company at London’s Victoria Station which is an all you can eat pizza and pasta buffet for just £7.50. This is ridiculously good value in London. I’ve talked a lot on here about how London has the best restaurant chains (check out my review of The Rum Kitchen here) and this is no different.
Wicked on the West End
I got tickets for us to see Wicked on the West End on the first night as I’d seen it a few months ago and absolutely loved it. It’s the other story behind the Wizard of Oz and follows the Wicked Witch from the film through her university education up to meeting the wizard himself and beyond. I won’t ruin the story for you if you’ve not seen it but I’d highly recommend it. It’s full of fantastic songs and it’s a really brilliant story which some musicals nowadays seem to miss.
It wouldn’t be London without a delicious brunch
We stopped for brunch on the second day at Canada Water Cafe which is just outside the Canada Water tube station and near to where we were staying in Rotherhithe, east London. I had poached eggs and smoked salmon (standard fave) which was really delicious and set us up nicely for a day of exploring.
Doing something different
I’ve been to London countless times (see A Weekend in London when I visited for my mum’s birthday and The Perfect Girls’ Weekend for a mini break with the besties) and I’ve seen most the main tourist attractions so this time I wanted to do some different things.
First of all we headed to the Emirates Cable Car. This ride goes over the River Thames and gives you some fantastic views of London including Canary Wharf and the Shard. You can get discounted tickets with your Oyster card or day travelcard. You also get entry to the Emirates exhibition afterwards where I had great fun pretending to fly an Airbus.
The entrance to this is near to the O2 arena and so we had a little look around here. It’s mainly restaurants so it’s a good place to stop for a bite to eat.
After this we headed to the Olympic Park. Unfortunately I never made it down during the actual Olypmics. It was great to see the stadium and the sculpture outside. There was an exhibition to celebrate the Year of the Bus where there were loads of London bus sculptures all beautifully decorated. I loved the Cath Kidston one! We had to walk through Westfields to get to the Olypmic Park and I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I’ve never been before and I’ve never seen a shopping centre so big, it’s like four times the size of Meadowhall or the Trafford Centre.
Anyone who wants to visit London on the cheap knows that the best way to occupy your time is to visit one of the city’s many free museums. We went to the Imperial War Museum where interactive exhibits and films sit side by side with real life spitfires and tanks. Exploring conflicts from World War I all the way up to the current day and the Iraq war, there is so much to see. We managed to see two and a half floors before closing time. The holocaust floor was particularly poignant with the anniversary having just been.
Read more of my top tips for visiting London here.
