Everything You Always Wanted to Know About London, but Were Afraid to Ask By Ed Seabough Senior Vice President Group Division Travelink American Express Travel NOTE: Underlined names of shops, restaurants, etc. are links to websites for further information…hours, maps, reservations, and more . GENERAL INFORMATION Currency Weather British Sterling is the currency used in Great Britain, and Winter 35-45 degress F. Some rain 100 pence are equal to one-pound British Sterling. Check Spring 36-62 degrees F. Some rain with your bank for the most current rate of exchange. Remember that American Express traveler’s cheques give Summer 51-71 degrees F. Some rain you a better rate of exchange than US dollars in cash. Fall 39-65 degrees F. Some rain Hotels are not a good place to exchange money because Clothing rates are high. Banks in London will be the best places to General – Any time of the year the weather can be cool. A convert your US currency/traveler’s cheque to British London Fog or all-purpose coat will be practical. The pounds. The banks will be open Monday to Friday, but layered look will be good. Don’t forget your umbrella. closed on Saturday and Sunday. Normally, you do not get a Frankly, the English tend to be more formal than we are. good rate of exchange at the Bureau de Change. However, Should you wish to go to Tea at either Brown’s Hotel, The there are two on Oxford Street: one across the street from Ritz, the Savoy or the Dorchester, you would not be seated the Cumberland Hotel at Hyde Park Corner; and one across were you not wearing proper attire; thus, missing one of the street from Selfridge’s Department Store that are open the great experiences in England. (Men should wear a coat all day Saturday. Usually they offer a rate close to the bank and tie.) rate. Passport Credit Cards Please make sure your passport will not expire within six Most of the department stores and major shops will take months of your return date. American Express, Visa or MasterCard. The street markets and antique markets will take only currency in British Electrical Appliances pounds. The US electrical current is 110 volts. The electrical current in England is 220 volts. Also, the electrical plugs in England Theater are different. There are hair dryers in the bathrooms at Should you want to go to the theater, we suggest you go most hotels, but you may prefer your own. Therefore, to directly to the theater to purchase your ticket. London be safe, it might be good to take an adapter that changes theater tickets run from 50 to 80 British pounds. Also, 220 to 110 volts, and a set of plugs (electrical plugs to fit remember that it is possible to purchase theater tickets at the Concierge Desk in your hotel or at the half price foreign outlets). theatre ticket kiosk in Leicester Square. VAT http://www.londontheatre.co.uk/ This is a government tax on all goods and services of 17.5%. It is possible to receive a refund, providing you Duty complete a special form, which may be obtained from the The Congress of the United States has set the resident store. Some stores will only give you this form if you spend exemption at $800 to simplify the international traveler’s over a certain amount. Please be aware of these filing re-entry into the US. The next $1,000 in items is dutiable at requirements when shopping. Ask for the form at the time a flat 10% rate. of purchase. (For an American to understand VAT he must first understand the rules of Cricket. When you understand Cricket, please call us to explain it! Ha Ha.) Gifts You Bring With You Sunday Services : (please check for time changes on website) Whether given to you by others or intended for someone 7:30 a.m. – Matins else, may be included in your $800 or $25 exemption. You 8:00 a.m. – Eucharist may not include gifts for business, promotional, or other 8:30 a.m. – Open for sightseeing commercial purposes. 12:30 p.m. – Eucharist 4:00 p.m. – Open for sightseeing Gifts You Ship From Abroad 5:00 p.m. – Choral Evensong If worth $50 or less in fair retail value where shipped, can be received in the US free of duty and tax if the same Brompton Oratory – (Catholic) person does not receive more than $50. Mark the package Brompton Oratory is an Italian Renaissance style Roman “UNSOLICITED GIFT” and indicate contents and retail Catholic Church opened in 1884. The nave is the third value. The US Postal Service collects duty on improperly widest in England. The organ contains nearly 4,000 pipes. marked consolidated packages and individual gifts worth (Please check for time changes on website) more than $50. Duty cannot be prepaid. You do not Saturday Service 6:00 p.m. declare gifts you have shipped. Sunday Services 8 a.m., 9 a.m. (Latin), 10 a.m., 11 a.m. (Latin), 12:30 p.m., 4:30 p.m., 7:00 p.m. Baggage You are allowed one suitcase, which you check and one Houses of Parliament carry-on, which will go in the overhead compartment on Here the House of Commons and the House of Lords the plane. become the governing bodies of Great Britain. Sir Charles Barry’s 1840-1850 late Gothic building has been restored sin the war. The clock, Big Ben, is housed in the tallest tower of the structure. SIGHTSEEING Madame Tussaud’s (Typical Tourist) Madame Tussaud’s is the oldest wax exhibition in the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace world with a history that spans more than two hundred Every morning at 11:30 a.m. during the summer months, years. Some of Madame Tussaud’s earliest work in wax the famous ceremony of the Changing of the Guard takes goes back to portraits of the French Royal Family at the place in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace, the Queen’s Palace of Versailles during the time of King Louis XVI and London residence. During the winter months the ceremony Queen Marie Antoinette. Some of these figures can still be takes place every other day, weather permitting. seen today, along with a portrait of Benjamin Franklin, made while he was in Paris seeking aid to form a United Westminster Abbey - (Protestant) States of America. Dating mainly from the 13th century, Westminster Abbey is one of the most beautiful examples of Gothic Tower of London architecture in England. Worship services are held daily. Started around 1078, under William the Conqueror, the Here kings and queens are crowned. Prince William and whole tower is one of the oldest buildings in the capital. Kate Middleton were married in the abbey. It is also a Scores of famous people were beheaded here: Sir Thomas national shrine to artists, poets, heroes, and statesmen of More; two of Henry VIII’s wives (Anne Boleyn and Britain. Catherine Howard); and the Earl of Essex. But today, you’ll remember the tower most for the dazzling Crown Jewels. Sunday Services: (please check for time changes on website) 8:00 a.m. – Communion Piccadilly Circus 10:00 a.m. – Choral Matins The statue of Eros stands in the middle of this roundabout, 11:15 a.m. – Sung Eucharist which is the very heart of the West End, the theater and 3:00 p.m. – Evensong shipping district. 5:45 p.m. – Organ Recital Trafalgar Square 6:30 p.m. – Evening Service With its statues of lions, the fountain, and the tall column supporting the statue of Lord Nelson, is a memorial St. Paul’s Cathedral – (Protestant) commemorating Nelson’s victory over the French at St. Paul’s Cathedral was completed in 1711 when its Trafalgar. architect, Sir Christopher Wren, was nearly 90 years of age. This baroque structure with its famous dome is unequaled for beauty of outline. Here Britain’s famous heroes, Lord Nelson and the Duke of Wellington, lie buried, as well as the architect Wren. SIGHTSEEING Imperial War Museum (Not so Typical) Exhibits relate to World War I and World War II. Apsley House – 149 Piccadilly, Hyde Park National Gallery The historic 18th century home of England’s most famous Houses one of the greatest collections of Western general, the Duke of Wellington. The collection of European Art in the World. paintings, furniture, and porcelain is worth the visit. Open April to Nov, Wed-Sun – 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Check the Victoria & Albert Museum website for other times of the year. Houses collections of Antique English Furnishing, China, Crystal, Silver, Fabrics Paintings, Prints etc. Chiswick House and Gardens – Burlington Lane Designed and built around 1730 by the Third Earl of Tate Gallery of Art Burlington. The rich interior and the gardens are the work One of the world’s great collections of Modern Art. of William Kent. There is very little furniture in the house. Open April – October, Sun - Wed, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Gardens open daily, year round, from 7 a.m. to dusk SHOPPING Kenwood House – Hampstead Lane Fortnum and Mason – Piccadilly Once the house of Lord Mansfield, this beautiful house, This 200-year old store is worth a visit just to see the men, decorated by Robert Adam, has fine paintings (Rembrandt, who wait on you on the ground floor, dressed in morning Vermeer, Hals, Reynolds, Gainsborough and Turner). The coats (split-tail coats). A very English store. The Fountain furniture is marvelous.