London has a reputation as one pricey city, but you don’t have to live like the Queen to see the best of the capital… Here’s our tips for a cheap day out in London!
 
Start at Oxford Street, the busiest shopping street in the capital. Budget fashionistas should make a beeline for Topshop where Kate Moss’s collection be snapped up for far less than her designer threads.
 
Walk to Carnaby Street -Far calmer and cooler than the mania on Oxford Street, Carnaby has been the hippest shopping street in London since its sixties heydey. You may not find much mod fashion, but there are still loads of unique boutiques and independent shops to check out here.
 
Continue on a quest for urban cool and walk to Newman Street, for a glimpse of infamous street artist Banksy’s latest work.

From here head to Covent Garden where you’ll find Stanfords, 12-14 Long Acre, one of the best independent Travel Bookshops around. Travel Experts since 1901, browse the extensive selection of guides, maps, journals and photography books and pick up a few travel tips on the way.
 
Have lunch with Leon, 73-76 The Strand, a rare breed of fast-food chains, offering gourmet, healthy, locally-sourced food and a bargain meal out. It’s famous for the ‘Superfoods Salad’ with huge chunks of feta and quinoa, and the ‘Low-Gi’ brownie with Valhrona chocolate and almonds makes a suitably naughty-but-nice desert.
 
Get your lunch to go and you can munch it (out of eco-friendly containers, naturally), whilst walking along the Embankment, and look out over the Thames.
 
Cross over the Millenium Bridge, by St Paul’s Cathedral, and marvel at the view of London from both sides of the river. The bridge was criticised for ‘wobbling’ in the wind when it was first built, but is the pedestrianised walkway is the nicest way to get across the Thames.
 
Check out the best of abstract and contempoary art at the Tate Modern, Southbank, a huge art gallery housed in an old flour mill. It’s free to get in to the permanent collection, and there are ever-changing exhibitions as you enter the main foyer – from a giant crack across the entire floor, to a huge metal spider! Have a coffee in the funky cafe at the top, and you’ll also get great views over the river.
 
When night falls, the coolest Londoners head east, and Shoreditch has been the home of the city’s edgiest bars and clubs for a while now.
 
On the corner of Great Eastern Street, The Foundry is as cool as they come – edgy, bohemian and with free live music events.
 
And when it’s time to head back to the hostel for the night, try St. Christopher’s Inn Village which is a short night bus away. This hostel has won awards time and time again for its friendly, party atmosphere, great facilities and extras for its guests – from rooftop BBQ’s in the summer to free walking tours of the city.

Heading to London for a weekend? Check out our suggestions for spending 48 hours in London but not too much cash!