What cities/towns to avoid in Britain

[Libby]

London is super expensive. Bath also looks way overpriced.

What cities should be avoided because they are too expensive?

[Kim]

I definately don't recommend missing Bath, it may be over priced but it's an incredible little town. Well worth it!

I feel the same about London, I adore it. It's definately not cheap but it's London and you kind of just have to pay it.

Kim

[Libby]

I've already been to London. I spent 2 weeks there years ago and really enjoyed it. But it's soo expensive!

Bath really holds no interest for me. I'd rather spend the time in the dales I think.

[MuvverRussia]

Personally, I'd say avoid Bath- instead spend more time in London. Then again I'm slightly biased . Also, I'd say that London isn't that expensive if you know where to go and carefully budget, I'd argue that excluding accommodation it's on a par with other cities around the UK.

Generally I'd avoid the dales though (the Brecon Beacons in Wales are much better, as is Snowdonia, as well as the Lake District), but that's just me. I have no wish to spend time in Yorkshire (the old North/South rivalry coming to play now...). You'll probably find Northern England less touristy, as well as being slightly cheaper- places like York are definitely worth a visit though.

Overall it's Carpe Diem. If you find Bath expensive then I reckon you'll find most of the UK 'way overpriced'- in this scenario you just have to bite the bullet and pay up, after all when are you next going to have this opportunity?

[LHR02]

Agree with MR here....London doesn't have to be so over the top budget wise if you will look for/search out 'bargains'. But speaking generally, I really didn't find any place in UK significantly less than London or Bath. It's expensive over there relatively speaking no matter where so if your budget won't support London or Bath then likely it won't last long anywhere else. But I can't get my head around planning a trip on cities to 'avoid'. Spent 4 days in York and spent something in the area of $50 less total than I did in London, just as a reference point.

[Eagle]

A few more comments on this topic......

I agree with dustoffmom -- don't plan your trip on the basis of what cities to avoid. Figure out what you want to see, and plan on visiting those destinations.

I couldn't tell from your profile where you're located, so didn't know what your "home" currency is? However, generally speaking everything in Britain is expensive for those of us that don't live there. I tried not to think about the currency exchange rates when I was buying things, but it was always kind of in the back of my mind. If you plan your trip well, you can minimize the lodging and food costs to some extent. A good Guidebook can help in this regard (I use Rick Steves books extensively in my trip planning).

I didn't make it to London on the last trip, but really enjoyed York, North Yorkshire, North York Moors and Winchester. I will definetely see London, Bath and the Cotswolds next time, and probably the Lakes District on a future visit. And of course Ireland and Scotland......

Good luck with your trip planning. Cheers!!!

[MuvverRussia]

I suppose the strength of GBP at the moment really doesn't help you guys- the interbank rate is currently $1.86 US and $2.45 CAN to £, for USD it's the highest it's been since around '93-'94. It makes everything from the US incredibly cheap though, which is good from my perspective.

Also, Libby are you a student? If so London isn't too bad- there's over 150,000 students in London and lots of places do student discounts that help (they generally knock off around 10%), also there's some pretty good student only bars and stuff.