Yet the area is still relatively undeveloped in terms of places to stay. As indicated by the recent opening of CitizenM, this has started to change. Even without its fascinating history, it would be well worth investigating Southwark for convenience alone: London Bridge allows easy access across the city, and—with direct trains to Gatwick—out.

Although hotels in the area are mainly geared toward business travelers and sometimes lack the convivial atmosphere of elsewhere in the city, that does mean there’s a good chance of picking up a room on a last minute deal. And that means more money to spend on the area’s numerous attractions.

The brightly decorated bar at the CitizenM Bankside is open ’round the clock. Photo: Rosapolis.

Where to Stay

CitizenM London Bankside
20 Lavington Street
Doubles from $180 to $330

It’s illustrative of the kind of changes going on in the area that Southwark was selected as the first London location for this rapidly expanding contemporary chain. The formula remains the same here as in other branches: pristine but tiny space age-style rooms equipped with swish technology. Downstairs is devoted to a sociable communal area complete with designer chairs, quirky interior touches and a 24-hour bar.

ibis Styles London Southwark Rose
47 Southwark Bridge Road
Doubles from: $162 to $550

With an abundance of museums, galleries and independent shops in the neighborhood, Southwark is known for its sense of style. That’s probably why its been earmarked for both CitizenM and ibis Styles branches—the latter’s offering being the Southwark Rose. This hotel offers the reliability of the ibis chain with a just a little bit more pizzazz, and is a clean and comfortable base from which to explore the delights of the area. Décor is bright and bold and beds are reassuringly  comfy.

LSE Bankside House
24 Sumner Street
Doubles from: $112

If you’re after the location but are less bothered about the frills, LSE Bankside House offers a great budget summer alternative. Essentially it’s college accommodation made available to visitors over the summer vacation. There are 560 rooms available, all decorated in a uniform student style. Facilities are basic, but the rooms are very clean and offer  great value for London.

Chorizo and rocket sandwich? Yes, please! Photo: peripathetic.

Where to Eat

Borough Market
8 Southwark Street

You’ll be spoiled for cheap eats with a visit to London’s famous foodie paradise, Borough Market. It’s open every day of the week except Sunday, though you’ll encounter its full force if you visit on a Thursday, Friday or Saturday.

Be guided by your taste buds, but a firm favorite from the market’s huge number of stalls is Brindisa’s Chorizo sandwich: juicy chorizo, piquillo peppers and rocket served in a ciabatta roll for £3.95 (you’ll be able to spot the stall from the ever-present queue). Another pick is Roast—an upscale restaurant within the market—which offers their tasty fare through a takeaway booth for a fraction of its usual price. Their succulent roast pork and crackling roll comes highly recommended for £6.50.

Leon
7 Canvey Street, The Blue Fin Building

Leon is one of London’s best-loved food chains. Their slogan is “naturally fast food” and they feature healthy salads and hot dishes at lunch (all priced at around £5 to £7), with slightly more substantial food on offer each evening. Food is speedy and tastes indulgent but contains enough fresh ingredients and vitamins to keep your mom from worrying.  This spacious branch scores extra points due to its great location behind Tate Modern and its striking semi-industrial décor. It looks expensive but your check will tell you otherwise.

El Vergel
132 Webber Street

If you’re the kind of person who enjoys chumming up next to your neighbor at communal tables with your wine served by the tumbler, this unpretentious Latin American eatery could be the perfect place for you. It’s open for breakfast and lunch and serves up enticing specials each day alongside the traditional tacos and tortillas. The most popular item on the menu remains the generously portioned £7.50 Latin American breakfast, including scrambled eggs with salsa, chorizo, kidney beans and village bread, all washed down with tea or coffee.

The George Inn gives a taste of Dickensian London. Photo: Jon’s pics.

Where to Drink

The George Inn
75-77 Borough High Street

While not the cheapest pint in town, you do get a free tourist attraction thrown in with your drink at the George Inn. Dating to the seventeenth-century (even having been mentioned in novels by Charles Dickens), this remarkable coaching inn is now owned by the National Trust. Inside is as “olde worlde” as you might expect, with low oak beamed ceilings and quaint nooks to hole up for the evening in. There are plenty of tables set outside in the cobbled yard too, which are ideal for watching the world go by—as people have been doing in this spot for over 300 years.

The Lord Nelson
243 Union Street

It doesn’t look so promising from the outside—it’s a pub on the corner of a modern housing estate. And the décor—English eccentricity at its most kitsch—certainly won’t be to everyone’s taste. But it would be foolish to let those things prevent you from paying The Lord Nelson a visit. It has a great location close to Tate Modern, but not on the usual tourist trail, it’s got some of the friendliest service for miles around, and some of the cheapest pints too. Take time to enjoy their menu, which offers great home-cooked food at very reasonable prices.

A night at the Roxy might include dinner, drinks and a movie. Photo: STML.

Bonus: Roxy Bar & Screen
128–132 Borough High Street

Roxy is a nice enough bar in its own right but, on weekdays and Sundays, it’s also a great place to catch a cheap movie. For only £4 (about a third of the price of most London cinema tickets), you can sit back in one of their comfy sofas and enjoy a screening. There’s usually a varied program of movies each week, including recent releases, special themed double-bills, as well as sing-alongs and artier offerings.

With a sociable atmosphere and tasty food alongside the drinks menu, it makes an enjoyable and wallet-friendly alternative to the multiplex.

Interested in other neighborhoods?

Check out our Cheapo guides to Soho and South Kensington.  And for a look at the whole city’s hotel scene, take a look at our London listings!

The post London: A Cheapo’s Guide to Southwark’s hotels, restaurants and bars appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

1. Ride the RV1 or number 11 bus
From £1.40

For as little as £2.40 (or £1.40 with an Oyster card) for a journey, you can take in the best of London from the comfort of these public buses. Instead of paying over the odds for an expensive tourist bus, these two central London bus routes take in the main attractions and you can jump on and off as you go.

The RV1 starts in Covent Garden and will take you past Somerset House, across Waterloo Bridge and down past the London Eye, Royal Festival Hall and the Oxo Tower. It carries on past London Bridge and City Hall before crossing Tower Bridge and stopping at the Tower of London and ending its route at Tower Gateway Station.

Alternatively, the number 11 bus travels between Fulham Town Hall and Liverpool Street Station, calling at Westminster Abbey, Horse Guards Parade, Trafalgar Square and St Paul’s Cathedral along the way. More information.

Experience the sights (and smells!) of Borough Market for free. Photo: Kenjonbro

2. Visit to Borough Market
Free

This haven for foodies is the ideal place to wile away an afternoon without frittering away too much cash. With food from all over the world, most of the stalls at Borough Market offer samples so you can happily try a whole lot of different tastes before deciding what to have for lunch. Head there at the end of the day around 4:30 pm and you might also benefit from larger freebies as the traders get rid of their leftovers before packing up and going home.

3. Happy Hour at Match Bar
Beer for £3, 2-for-1 cocktails, cheap food

It’s rare to find a central London cocktail bar with a decent Happy Hour even on the weekends, but this cool locale tucked away behind Oxford Street is the perfect place for a little bit of indulgence if you’ve been window shopping and successfully managed not to blow your budget!

From 8 pm-10:30 pm Monday to Thursday and 5 pm-8 pm on Saturdays Match Bar offers 20% off small food platters, bottles of beer for £3 each or two delicious cocktails for the price of one, meaning you can even treat a friend and get change from a tenner!

4. River cruise
From £4

A leisurely cruise down the River Thames is a great way to explore London if the weather is good. KPMG Thames Clippers stop at lots of lovely landmarks, from the London Eye all the way to Greenwich Pier. A single adult ticket costs £6, but you can get 10% off with a pay as you go Oyster card, or 1/3 off with a Travelcard. Alternatively, an unlimited hop on/hop off “Roamer” ticket will cost you £9.10 with a Travelcard.

5. Bar Kick
£2 beer and cheap cocktails

Much more than just a bar, head to Bar Kick with a few £1 coins and spend a fun-filled afternoon playing table football. If you’ve got a competitive streak, you may also want to sign up as a member and play more seriously in the tournaments. Head down between 4-7pm any day of the week and you’ll also benefit from £2 bottles of beer and cocktails for £4.85 each! Located at 127 Shoreditch High Street, nearest station is Shoreditch High Street Overground.

Hang out over London on the Emirates Air Line. Photo: Martin Pettitt

6. Emirates Air Line
From £3.20

The Emirates Air Line opened just in time for the London Olympics and is an alternative way to cross the river from north to south London. This brand new cable car offers a five-minute journey over the River Thames from Greenwich in the south of London to the Royal Docks in the north (or vice versa). Fares start from £4.30 for a single and £8.60 for a return, but with your Oyster card you’ll only have to pay £3.20 or £6.40 respectively, leaving you with more than enough for a pint of beer once you’ve reached the other side!

Read our related post on more cheap ways to get great views of London.

7. More London Scoop
Free

Every summer you’ll find a huge program of exciting free events going on at the amphitheater at More London, right by London Bridge station. There is anything from films and theatre, to dance, art and music, all totally free. Overlooking the river, it’s a fab place to include on any summer itinerary – just stop by and see what’s happening, or alternatively, sign up to the More London mailing list and receive updates direct to your inbox.

National museums, including the British Museum (above), are free to enter every day! Photo: Moria

8. Museums
Free

One of the most fantastic things about London is the fact that the museums are free. You could spend weeks exploring everything from the British Museum and the National Gallery, to the Science Museum and the Tate Modern, without parting with a penny. So make the most of it, Cheapos!

Here’s our list of 20 free museums in London.

9. Royal Court Theatre
£10 tickets

You have to be quick off the mark, but it is possible to bag a theatre ticket for just £10 in London. There are £10 tickets to every Monday performance at the Royal Court Theatre. Located in Sloane Square, this famous theatre prides itself on showcasing the work of up and coming young writers and its productions can vary greatly in style.

10. Parks and gardens
Free

If the weather goes in your favor, you’ll find that the liveliest places to spend a sunny afternoon in London are in actual fact, absolutely free. Whether you’re exploring well-known spots such as Hyde Park, Regent’s Park, Green Park or Hampstead Heath, or lazing about in smaller green spaces like Highbury Fields and Clapham Common, there is no shortage of open, green space in London. So pack a picnic and get exploring!

Also in our guide: Looking for more ideas about ways to save in London? Head over to EuroCheapo’s London Guide to read about great affordable hotels in London, plus articles on budget tips, transportation passes, and more.

The post London: 10 cheap things to do (for under £10!) appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

We recently asked our London correspondent, Nina Derham, to pull together a blockbuster itinerary for London-bound tourists intent on taking in as much as possible in one day. Here’s a sampling from her one-day itinerary, which we’ve just published in our London guide:

1. Start with a morning coffee from Borough Market.

The post How would you spend one day in London? appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

So grab an eco-friendly cloth bag (nothing else will do in London), make sure you have lots of cash, and get shopping—here’s my guide for navigating the busy weekend market schedule and making sure you hit the right spots at the right times.

Borough Market

What it’s good for: Food, glorious food.
When to go: Thursdays (11 AM – 5 PM), Fridays (noon – 6 PM), Saturdays (8 AM – 5 PM)
Location: Underneath London Bridge on the Thames at the London Bridge Tube stop.
Website: www.boroughmarket.co.uk

The lowdown: One of the biggest outdoor food markets in the world, Borough Market is a must for any foodie… well, any visitor to London, really. You can find just about anything here: organic meats, gourmet cheeses, fruits and vegetables, unbelievable pork pies, venison burgers, giant cauldrons of Jamaican curries and paellas, and of course lots of sweets. Prices are relatively reasonable, too. Expect to pay about £5-10 for lunch.

Broadway Market

What it’s good for: A little bit of everything and the best people watching.
When to go: Saturdays from 11 AM – 6 PM
Location: Broadway Market (it’s a street) in Hackney, East London.
Nearest train stop is London Fields on the National Express overground line (from Liverpool St. Station).
Website: www.broadwaymarket.com

The lowdown: What started off as a small neighborhood market has in recent years started to draw in folks from all over the city to pick up vintage clothes, organic meats and cheeses, artisanal cupcakes, and crafts from local boutiques.

It’s small—just one street—but you can easily while away an afternoon snacking and watching the East End fashionistas strutting up and down the road like it’s a catwalk. Finish off the day with a couple pints at one of the two local pubs—Cat & Mutton or the Dove.

Columbia Road Flower Market

What it’s good for: Flowers, plus shopping at independent boutiques.
When to go: Sundays from 8 AM – 4 PM
Location: Columbia Road in Hackney, East London. Nearest tube is Old Street.
Website: www.columbiaroad.info

The lowdown: Noisy, crowded and unmistakably London, this market gives you the best flavor of what market day was probably like in Victorian times. The flower vendors try to out-shout each other with their cockney accents and their impossibly low prices: “Ten roses for a fiver! Ten roses for a fiver! Get ’em before they’re gone!”

The other reason to go is the line of cute boutiques, cupcake shops, perfumeries, and art galleries lining the road, many of which only open their doors on Sundays. Be sure to check out Ryantown, where London artist Rob Ryan sells his quirky wall hangings made of cut paper.

Brick Lane

What it’s good for: Vintage and indie designer clothing, exotic foods.
When to go: Sundays from 10 AM – 6 PM
Location: Brick Lane, East London. Nearest tube is Liverpool Street.
Website: www.sundayupmarket.com

The lowdown: Heaving on weekends and as chaotic as East London gets, with vintage clothes sellers, student fashion designers, ethnic food hawkers and locals with all sorts of bric-a-brac spread out on blankets all vying for your attention.

Two spots not the miss: the Upmarket in the Old Truman Brewery (where most of the clothing is found), and the food vendors in the courtyard behind it—you’ll find everything from Sri Lankan to Mauritian to Mexican (spelled “Maxican” by the Chinese stall owners). Don’t waste your time at the Spitalfields Market next door—it pales in comparison to this raucous party.

The post London: The 4 best weekend markets for bargain shopping (and people watching) appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.