How to Travel to London, England

Dmitry B

The common history with the United States, the English-language and the country's many historical sites and hiking venues makes England a popular destination for Americans. Many visitors start their journey in London, before continuing on to other areas of the United Kingdom.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

Things You’ll Need:

The common history with the United States, the English-language and the country's many historical sites and hiking venues makes England a popular destinations for Americans. Many visitors start their journey in the most important city, London, before continuing on to other areas of the United Kingdom.
The common history with the United States, the English-language and the country's many historical sites and hiking venues makes England a popular destinations for Americans. Many visitors start their journey in the most important city, London, before continuing on to other areas of the United Kingdom.

Step 1

Obtain a passport. Make sure your passport expires at least six months after the day of travel. According to the UK Border Agency, Americans do not need a visa for a short tourist visit, but can easily apply online for longer stays.

Step 2

Travel by plane. The best way to find flights from the U.S.A. to London is to browse a travel website like Travelocity.com. Enter your departure point and the dates of travel and the site presents you with an extensive list of flights. Unfortunately, airlines severely restrict the amount of luggage you can bring and may charge you excess luggage fees for such gear as bicycles, canoes and skis.

Step 3

Travel by ocean liner for an elegant and relaxing experience. Many ships cross the Atlantic, primarily from New York, including the Queen Mary 2, which is run by Cunard. The one-way crossing takes 6 days, during which you can hear a lecture on British History, attend a formal Captain's Dinner or watch a Shakespeare play. You can also bring an unlimited amount of luggage and equipment.

Step 4

Take Eurostar if you're already in France or Belgium. You can be in London in under 2.5 hours if you take the fast Eurostar train from Paris, which crosses the tunnel under the English Channel known as the Chunnel. (Other departure points include Calais and Avignon in France, and Brussels, Belgium.) You can experience two first-class services, Business Premiere and Leisure Select, or the Standard second class, each with various prices and legroom. The train runs every 30 minutes during peak hours, with as many as 24 trains per day. Large sporting items do incur an extra charge.

Step 5

Take a ferry if you're near a European port. Many ferries cross the North Sea from the European coast taking anywhere from an hour to go from Boulogne, France to Dover up to 19 hours from Santander, Spain to Portsmouth. Note that none of them go directly to London but frequent trains connections can take you to the city. Onboard accommodations can range from simple seats on the fast routes to the cabins, clubs and boutiques on the longer journeys. Baggage is generally unrestricted and in some cases, can include cars. For more information, check Direct Ferries, which is linked under Resources.

Resources

Article Written By Aurelio Locsin

Aurelio Locsin has been writing professionally since 1982. He published his first book in 1996 and is a frequent contributor to many online publications, specializing in consumer, business and technical topics. Locsin holds a Bachelor of Arts in scientific and technical communications from the University of Washington.

Editor's Pick

5 Top North American Wildflower Hikes

Springtime brings a sense of new beginnings and new life as flowers begin to bloom and fill the air with their sweet and pleasant fragrance. Luckily we can see wildflowers all summer long, since spring hits at different times throughout North America. See flowering cactu...
More National Parks...
Popular Article

National Park Substitutes: Great Spots Without the Crowds

Coping with crowds at national parks can get tiresome, especially during the peak tourist season. If you want to escape from the herd, or just take a breather from the bustle of bigger attractions, the United States has plenty of less-visited but still worthwhile spots t...
More National Parks...
Featured Destination

Prevent Yourself from Getting Lost While Hiking

When you're hiking you're going to want to make sure you stay found. What I mean by that is that you've put an itinerary in the car, you know the area that you're hiking to, you know the route and the trail you plan on being on, you know what the trail markers are going ...
More Camping Basics...