A quick guide to British hotels and what to expect from them

How far in advance do you need to reserve a hotel room?

How British hotels differ from American ones

Don't use the most famous booking engines; use the ones with the largest selection and lowest rates

Comparison-shop dozens of booking engines at once

All about how I select lodgings for this site

Tips for finding great restaurants in Britain

A dozen ways to lower your hotel costs

Hotels try to pad your bill with overpriced extras and ancillary fees; here's how to avoid them

Opaque rates can save you up to 60% if you book a bit blindly

Get a hotel in the suburbs or next town over to save money

A traveler's guide to learning how to pack light and love it—or, how to fit everything you need for a six month trip into a single, carry-on sized bag

A great picture is worth a thousand travel miles—Tips, hints, and recommended photo and video gear

12 travel photography tips for capturing great shots on the road

Avoid the scandalously high prices of the hotel minbar

Avoid the scandalously high cost of making a phone call from your hotel room

The hotel garage will often be far costlier than a nearby public garage or other parking option

Breakfast at a B&B is lovely—but at a standard hotel, you probably won't be getting your money's worth

Hotel laundry services are obscenely overpriced

User review sites are handy, but take their advice with a grain (make that a shaker) of salt

A few notes on bathrooms in British hotels

Hotel sites often feature special sales and promotions you won't find on the booking engines and aggregators

A room with "external facilities" (shared bath down the hall) always costs less for this minor inconvenience

A Full English breakfast is lovely and worthwhile; a dull, continental-style one isn't worth the added expense

Crowd the clan into one room rather than renting two

Shop around, ask lots of questions, even haggle, and you can often get a room for much less

Offer pounds rather than Visa, and sometimes you can get a slight discount

Ways to sleep for free in the U.K.

Hostels, B&B's, apartments, farm stays, castles, university dorms, campgrounds...there are so many of these budget options I needed to create a whole separate section on this website just to fit them all in

Hotels' official star ratings have nothing to do with how clean, central, comfortable, or charming a hotel is—just how many (often pointless) amenities it offers

All the steps you can take to find the lowest price on the perfect place to stay

Saving yourself from sightseeing overload

Picnic like a king on the budget of a pauper

Advice, resources, & tours for female travelers to the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, and queer travelers in the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for handicapped travelers in the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for student travelers in the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for mature travelers in the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for families traveling in the U.K.

Advice, resources, & tours for pilgrims, Christians, and spiritual travelers in the U.K.

Information and concerns for gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual travelers in the U.K.

Advice and tips for single travelers in the U.K.

Tips and advice for how to get the most out of seeing the sights, museums, and monuments during your British vacation

General tips, hints, and recommended photo and video gear

Release your inner Scorsese and shoot better holiday videos to take YouTube by storm

Prix-fisse, tourist menu, lunch menu—a fixed-price or set tourist menu may not be the best meal you could have at that restaurant, but it's certainly often the best budget option

Tips to save money on dining in Britain and eat better for it

Do not leave 15% when the gratuity is already included

If you cannot avoid the breakfast charge, make the most of it

Be your own chef and you can save money and add an extra cultural experience to your trip

Lunch at a fancy restaurant will often cost less than dinner

Become a street food gourmet

From fish 'n' chip to food trucks, there are many excellent (and inexpensive) British versions of fast food to try

Skip the big slab of meat and order two starters instead—more variety, lower cost

Eat less; save more

Bottled water costs $2–$10. Tap water does not.

Pick the Chateau My-Brother-In-Law, last-year's vintage

Sights and experiences you can get for free in the U.K.

Be a sightseeing V.I.P.—Sightseeing passes grant admission to dozens of sights, avoiding the lines and saving money

Online ticket prices can be cheaper than buying them on-site (and will also save you time waiting in line)

Sightseeing discounts for children, students, seniors, families, and teachers

A guide to getting the most out of visiting Britain's museums

How to save money while traveling about England