The Website for People Who Love Britain - Anglophiles
Two small annoucements we wanted to let everyone know about today. We now offer FREE SHIPPING on all of our guidebooks for sale in the Anglotopia Store. That's right - when you order any of our guidebooks, you only pay for the book and we'll mail it to you for FREE (USA and Canada only). We've also gotten a lot of requests to combine our two … [Read more...]
This was post was written by Anne Marie Clarke from Across the Pond Vacations. I don’t know about you, but it seems like everywhere I go these days, people are requesting customization. Money doesn’t seem to pass hands without the customer requesting that their end product, be it a latte or a laptop, is customized specifically for them. I … [Read more...]
The folks over at Time Out have put together an excellent guidebook dedicated to disabled travel in London. Here's some more information about it: Time Out Open London is a guide that helps visitors to meticulously plan their stay in London, from arrival to departure. It provides the most inclusive visitor experience possible, as well as … [Read more...]
Some great London landmarks which sports fans will love to visit London is set to be the sporting capital of the world in 2012 as the Olympic flame is lit once more in an English stadium. Of course, not everyone will be lucky enough to get tickets to see the Games but there are lots of great sports-related sights to see in Britain’s biggest … [Read more...]
School holidays have a tendency to strike fear into the hearts of parents, who start battling for cheap package holidays to the most popular family-friendly destinations. It doesn’t have to be this way! There are plenty of options for enjoying an equally-exciting staycation in Britain. Here are some fun-filled attractions for channelling your … [Read more...]
A couple of months ago, I visited London during the Royal Wedding week (yeah, I know, we didn't mention it in the least at the time, did we?) Since I got back I have been horribly remiss on writing about everything I did because I moved to a new city and took on two new jobs in the weeks surrounding the trip. But I can't let the opportunity pass to … [Read more...]
There is no better way to get to know a city other than by foot. Strolling around a certain location gives you the option to see not only the most touristic landmarks, but also to explore living areas and learn how people live there, where they hang out and what are their hidden hotspots. When deciding to sight-see a city by foot, it is wise to go … [Read more...]
Jonathan helpfully reminded me that today is exactly 100 days until the royal wedding. That means it's about 96 days until the day that I arrive in London for my first-ever excursion to the UK. Due to a lucky bit of fortune in having a wonderful person offer me lodging while they, as many Londoners apparently plan to do, escape the hoopla … [Read more...]
If you're planning to be in London over the next couple weeks - don't plan to taking a flight on the London Eye, it will be closed due to essential yearly maintenance. According to About London: Every January, the London Eye needs to close for a few weeks maintenance and this season the annual maintenance period is from 8 January to 21 … [Read more...]
Rick Steves recently posted the ideal 1 week London itinerary on his blog - and I can't find anything to disagree with. It's pretty packed but you can see everything in London worth seeing in a carefully scheduled week. Here's his take on the perfect 1 week London Itinerary: Day 1: 9:00 — Tower of London (crown jewels first to beat … [Read more...]
Did you know that the peak hour for suicides on London Underground is 11am? Or that Pimlico is the only tube station on the entire network that doesn't include any of the letters in the word 'badger'? Or that the best place to see a mouse (should you so wish) is Oxford Circus or Waterloo on the Bakerloo line? We interviewed the fantastic Annie … [Read more...]
I had to go to the Houses of Parliament for a meeting today. As you do. I was early for my meeting, so I did a couple of things that a tourist probably wouldn't. Firstly, I went into St. Margaret's Church. Never heard of it? Well, that's probably because it stands right next door to Westminster Abbey. So you've got the HUGE abbey saying … [Read more...]
The following is a guest post from Graham Greenglass, a London Taxi Driver and London Tour Guide. Check out his cool London tours here. London is a small village of eight million people. You don't believe me? Here's a story to illustrate my point. Firstly, I suppose you should know that I'm a London taxi driver and on any day I can drive … [Read more...]
London is a particularly magical place at Christmas time and I can't wait to experience it myself for the first time this year. So, I've decided to put together a quick guide to Christmas in London for 2009. London Christmas Lights Most of the major Shopping Streets in London now have their Christmas lights turned on. The most popular are the … [Read more...]
Editor's Note: In my recent guide for Americans traveling in the UK - one topic that elicited the biggest response was my take on tipping in London. Apparently, I was completely wrong on most counts in regards to tipping in Britain. Sadly, I must concede that on this point, I am but yet another confused American. Thankfully, Anna, our Bona Fide … [Read more...]
Photo from Flickr by World of Good Okay, this post is for all of you chaps who have ever fancied being a quintessential English gentleman for the day. BUT IT IS SECRET. This stuff is normally only known by true bonafide Brits (like me) and I shouldn't really be divulging such secrets but... ho hum, I thought Jonathan might like to try being … [Read more...]
Pardon this moment of self promotion. I'm currently in a photo contest over at BritFancy and the prize is a walk from London Walks - something I'd love to do on my trip to London in November. It's a close race and I would appreciate any votes in my favor. My picture is the first one - Gold Hill. You have until June 28th to Vote. Click here to … [Read more...]
Trafalgar Square is one of my favorite London attractions and many people don't know that there is a empty plinth (stand) for a statue that was never made. Now, instead of an empty plinth, it's given over to various art projects to display something that reflects modern London. This summer, living people will have a chance to be the fourth … [Read more...]
British Airways announced this incredible deal on Twitter today that I HAD to share with you guys. Not only are airfares at record lows right now, but if you book by Thursday, April 23rd they'll also include a Free London Pass which gets you free access to many top London Attractions. Some airfares are as low at $156 each way (not including … [Read more...]
Richard Cudlip is a London Black Cab Driver who keeps an awesome blog called The Cabbies Capital. He's also active on Twitter. He's put together a great post for Anglotopia on Things You Must Do in London that aren't necessarily in the Tourist books. Being a London obsessive, I couldn't really have a better job. I get to drive around my great … [Read more...]
I recently discovered an awesome new site for people planning a trip to London (or if you already live there). It's called Spoonfed and it's a London events guide. They bill it as the "the smart, definitive guide to things to do in London." What makes this site different from other London events sites is that it harnesses the power of social … [Read more...]
I'm a proud iPhone owner and love keeping Anglophile stuff at my fingertips on my phone. I've been testing out apps for some time now and I think it's a good time talk about my 10 best iPhone apps for Anglophiles. Top 10 Best iPhone Apps for Anglophiles NetNewsWire This isn't an Anglophile apps per se, but it's a good one to have in your … [Read more...]
The Monument is one of those second tier tourist attractions in London. I've never actually been there, but I definitely will make a visit to it on my next trip. It's recently been renovated and reopened, all of a sudden turning it into an interesting tourist attraction. The Monument, located the City of London, was build to commemorate the … [Read more...]
One of the must see attractions when you go to London is the Tower of London. It's something you really only need to see once, yet it's a fantastic experience, especially if you go on a tour with one of the iconic Beefeaters. But if you're looking for a different way to experience the Tower of London, there's a little known ceremony that the … [Read more...]
Picture from Flickr: marcusjb One of the biggest controversies in London in the past few years was the decision by the former Mayor, Ken Livingston to take the classic Routemaster Bus out of service and replace it with the hated bendy buses, despite promises to do otherwise. Well, last year Ken was pushed out and a new mayor, Boris Johnson … [Read more...]
The Londonist tipped me off to this awesome video. For a project called URBAN EARTH - a man named Daniel Raven-Ellison walked across all of London, taking a picture every 8 steps. It took two days and he turned it into a pretty cool short film. You can see it below. Check out URBAN EARTH here. … [Read more...]
Heard about this from the Leaky Cauldron: Warner Bros have now opened a new contest to win a trip to London and tour the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The Hogwarts Holiday contest, open to residents of the US to people 13 years and older, runs now until December 31, with the winner announced on January 7, 2009. The winner will … [Read more...]
I was excited to hear today that the UK government has cut the VAT - Value Added Tax by 2.5%. What does this mean for Anglophiles? A cheaper trip to the UK. To those that don't know, VAT is basically the sales tax in Britain and the rest of Europe. It's not exactly a sales tax though, as VAT is built into the prices of goods and services, … [Read more...]
Image from The Guardian Well, it looks like the consumer is going to lose another one... The BA/VA fuel surcharge refund has been delayed, indefinitely. For those not familiar with the transatlantic price fixing scandal, check this out from one of my other blogs: British Airways and Virgin Atlantic have been in the news for the last few years … [Read more...]
The Washington Times recently featured an article about how now is the time to book a trip to Europe. Prices are down, airfares are down, exchange rates are down. You can tell as much in the sidebar on this blog, airfares are a steal right now! Many people have been turned off of going to England because of a weak dollar and all around expensive … [Read more...]
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Anglotopia was founded by Jonathan and Jackie Thomas in 2007 in a closet in Chicago. Anglotopia is for people who love Britain - whether it's British TV, Culture, History or Travel - we cover it all. Anglotopia is now our full time jobs and we spend our time working on the site and planning our yearly trips to Britain. Join us as we explore Britain and everything it has to offer!
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