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Sightseeing tours United Kingdom
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United Kingdom
(England & Scotland)
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TOURIST GUIDE TO SIGHTS, TOUR ACTIVITIES, ATTRACTIONS, TRAVEL AND EXPLORATION
London is the place to start. Nowhere in the country can match the scope and innovation of the metropolis, a colossal, frenetic city, perhaps not as immediately attractive as its European counterparts, but with so much variety that the only obstacle to a great time is the shockingly high cost of everything. It's here that you'll find Britain's best spread of nightlife, cultural events, museums, galleries, pubs and restaurants. The other large cities, such as Birmingham, Newcastle, Leeds or Liverpool each have their strengths: Birmingham has a resurgent arts scene, for example, while people travel for miles to sample Newcastle's nightlife. These days Manchester can match the capital for glamour in cafés and clubs, and also boasts the inimitable draw of the world's best-known football team.
Information for visitors to the United Kingdom
London Listings
AIDS HELPLINE: tel 0800/567123.
AIRLINES: Aer Lingus tel 0645/737747 ( www.aerlingus.ie); Aeroflot tel 020/7355 2233 ( www.aeroflot.co.uk); Air France tel 0845/084 5111 ( www.airfrance.com); Alitalia tel 0870/544 8259 ( www.alitalia.co.uk); American Airlines tel 08457/789789 ( www.aa.com); British Airways tel 08457/222111 ( www.britishairways.com); Buzz tel 0870/240 7070 ( www.buzzaway.com); Canadian Airlines tel 020/8577 7722 ( www.cdnair.ca); Delta tel 0800/414767 ( www.delta-air.com); EasyJet tel 0870/600 0000 ( www.easyjet.com); Go tel 0845/605 4321 ( www.go-fly.com); KLM tel 0870/575 0900 ( www.klm.com); Lufthansa tel 08457/737747 ( www.lufthansa.co.uk); Qantas 08457/747767 ( www.qantas.com); Ryanair tel 0541/569569 ( www.ryanair.com); United Airlines tel 0845/844 4777 ( www.ual.com); Virgin tel 01293/747747 ( www.fly.virgin.com).
AIRPORT ENQUIRIES: Gatwick tel 01293/535353 ( www.baa.co.uk); Heathrow tel 0870/000 0123 ( www.baa.co.uk); London City Airport tel 020/7646 0000 ( www.londoncityairport.com); Luton tel 01582/405100 ( www.london-luton.com); Stansted tel 01279/680500 ( www.baa.co.uk).
AMERICAN EXPRESS: 30-31 Haymarket, SW1 tel 020/7484 9600; www.americanexpress.com. Mon-Sat 9am-6.30pm, Sun 10am-5pm. Piccadilly Circus.
BANKS: Opening hours for most banks are Mon-Fri 9.30am-4.30pm, with some staying open half an hour later, and some high street branches opening on Saturday mornings.
BIKE RENTAL: Bikepark, 14 Stukeley St tel 020/7430 0083; www.bikepark.co.uk. Mon-Fri 8.30am-7pm, Sat 10am-6pm Covent Garden. There's also a branch at 151 Sydney St, SW3 (tel 020/7565 0777), which is open on Sundays.
CAR RENTAL: Avis tel 0870/606 0100 ( www.avis.com); Global Leisure Cars tel 0870/241 1986 ( www.globalleisurecars.com); Hertz tel 0870/599 6699 ( www.hertz.com); Holiday Autos tel 0870/530 0400 ( www.holidayautos.com).
CONSULATES AND EMBASSIES: Australia, Australia House, Strand, WC2 tel 020/7379 4334 ( www.australia.org.uk); Canada, MacDonald House, 1 Grosvenor Square, W1 tel 020/7258 6600 ( www.canada.org.uk); Ireland, 17 Grosvenor Place, SW1 tel 020/7235 2171; New Zealand, New Zealand House, 80 Haymarket, SW1 tel 020/7930 8422 ( www.newzealandhc.org.uk); South Africa, South Africa House, Trafalgar Square, WC2 tel 020/7451 7299 ( www.southafricahouse.com); USA, 24 Grosvenor Square, W1 tel 020/7499 9000 ( www.usembassy.org.uk).
CULTURAL INSTITUTES: French Institute, 17 Queensberry Place, SW7 tel 020/7838 2144 ( www.institut.ambafrance.org.uk); Goethe Institute, Princes Gate, Exhibition Rd, SW7 tel 020/7596 4000 ( www.goethe.de/london); Italian Cultural Institute, 39 Belgrave Square, SW1 tel 020/7235 1461 ( www.italcultur.org.uk).
DENTISTS: Emergency treatment: Guy's Hospital, St Thomas St, SE1 tel 020/7955 4317 (Mon-Fri 8.45am-3.30pm).
ELECTRICITY: Electricity supply in London conforms to the EU standard of approximately 230V.
EMERGENCIES: For police, fire and ambulance services, call 999.
HOSPITAL: For 24hr accident and emergency: Charing Cross Hospital, Fulham Palace Rd, W6 tel 020/8846 1234; Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, 369 Fulham Rd, SW10 tel 020/8746 8000; Royal Free Hospital, Pond St, NW3 tel 020/7794 0500; Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel Rd, E1 tel 020/7377 7000; St Mary's Hospital, Praed St, W2 tel 020/7886 6666; University College Hospital, Grafton Way, WC1 tel 020/7387 9300; Whittington Hospital, Highgate Hill, N19 tel 020/7272 3070.
LAUNDRY: There are self-service launderettes all over London. Duds'n'Suds is a good central outfit with TV, pool and pinball: 49-51 Brunswick Shopping Centre, WC1 tel 020/7837 1122 (Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat & Sun 8am-8pm; Russell Square).
LEFT LUGGAGE AIRPORTS: Gatwick: North Terminal tel 01293/502013 (daily 6am-10pm); South Terminal tel 01293/502014 (24hr). Heathrow: Terminal 1 tel 020/8745 5301 (daily 6am-11pm); Terminal 2 tel 020/8745 4599 (daily 6am-10.30pm); Terminal 3 tel 020/8759 3344 (daily 5.30am-10.30pm); Terminal 4 tel 020/8745 7460 (daily 5.30am-11pm). London City Airport tel 020/7646 0000 (daily 6.30am-10pm). Stansted Airport tel 01279/680500 (24hr). TRAIN STATIONS Charing Cross tel 020/7839 4282 (daily 7am-11pm); Euston tel 020/7320 0528 (Mon-Sat 6.45am-11.15pm, Sun 7.15am-11pm); Victoria tel 020/7928 5151 ext 27523 (daily 7am-10.15pm, plus lockers); Waterloo International tel 020/7928 5151 (Mon-Fri 4am-11pm, Sat & Sun 6am-11pm).
LOST PROPERTY AIRPORTS: Gatwick tel 01293/503162 (daily 7.30am-5.30pm); Heathrow tel 020/8745 7727 (Mon-Fri 8am-5pm, Sat & Sun 8am-4pm); London City Airport tel 020/7646 0000 (Mon-Fri 6am-9.30pm, Sat 6am-1am, Sun 10.30am-9.30pm); Stansted tel 01279/680500 (daily 5.30am-11pm). BUSES tel 020/7222 1234. HEATHROW EXPRESS tel 020/8745 7727. TAXIS (black cabs only) tel 020/7833 0996. TRAIN STATIONS Euston tel 020/7922 6477 (Mon-Sat 6.45am-11pm, Sun 7.15am-11pm); King's Cross tel 020/7922 9081 (daily 8am-7.45pm); Liverpool Street tel 020/7928 9158 (Mon-Fri 7am-7pm, Sat & Sun 7am-2pm); Paddington tel 020/7313 1514 (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm); Victoria tel 020/7922 9887 (Mon-Fri 7.30am-10pm); Waterloo tel 020/7401 7861 (Mon-Fri 7.30am-8pm). TUBE TRAINS London Regional Transport tel 020/7486 2496.
MOTORBIKE RENTAL: Scootabout, 1-3 Leeke St, WC1 tel 020/7833 4607; www.hgbmotorcycles.co.uk. Mon-Fri 9am-6pm, Sat 9am-1pm.
POLICE: Central police stations include: Charing Cross, Agar St, WC2 tel 020/7240 1212; Holborn, 70 Theobalds Rd, WC1 tel 020/7404 1212; King's Cross, 76 King's Cross Rd, WC1 tel 020/7704 1212; Tottenham Court Road, 56 Tottenham Court Rd, W1 tel 020/7637 1212; West End Central, 10 Vine St, W1 tel 020/7437 1212. City of London Police, Bishopsgate, EC2 tel 020/7601 2222.
POSTAL SERVICES: The only late-opening post office is the Trafalgar Square branch at 24-28 William IV St, WC2 4DL tel 020/7484 9304 (Mon-Fri 8am-8pm, Sat 9am-8pm); it's also the city's poste restante collection point. For general postal enquiries phone 08457/740740, or visit the Web site: www.royalmail.co.uk
POLICE HOLIDAYS: January 1, Good Friday, Easter Monday, First Monday in May, Last Monday in May, Last Monday in August, December 25, December 26; if January 1, December 25 or 26 fall on a Saturday or Sunday, the holiday falls on the following weekday.
TELEPHONES: A variety of companies have public payphones on the street, the largest one being British Telecom (BT). Most phones take all coins from 10p upwards, though some only take phonecards, available from post offices and newsagents, and/or credit cards. International calls can be made from any phonebox, by dialling 00, then the country code; to reach the operator, phone 100, or for the international operator phone 155. London phone codes changed in 2000, and all London numbers are now prefixed by the new area code 020. The old 0171 numbers are now prefixed with a 7, while 0181 numbers have an 8 in front of them.
TIME: Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is used from October to March; for the rest of the year the country switches to British Summer Time (BST), one hour ahead of GMT.
TRAIN ENQUIRIES: For national train enquiries, call 08457/484950.
TRAVEL AGENTS: Campus Travel, 52 Grosvenor Gardens, SW1 tel 0870/240 1010 ( www.usitcampus.co.uk); Council Travel, 28a Poland St, W1 tel 020/7437 7767 ( www.destination-group.com); STA Travel, 86 Old Brompton Rd, SW7 tel 020/7361 6161 ( www.statravel.co.uk); Trailfinders, 42-50 Earl's Court Rd, SW5 tel 020/7938 3366 ( www.trailfinders.co.uk).
Edinburgh Listings
Banks: Bank of Scotland, The Mound (head office), 38 St Andrew Sq; Barclays, 1 St Andrew Sq; Clydesdale, 20 Hanover St; HSBC, 76 Hanover St; Lloyds TSB, 120 George St; NatWest, 80 George St; Royal Bank of Scotland, 42 St Andrew Sq.
Bike rental: Biketrax, 11 Lochrin Place tel 0131/228 6633; Edinburgh Cycle Hire, 29 Blackfriars St tel 0131/556 5560.
Car rental: Arnold Clark, Lochrin Place tel 0131/229 8911; Avis, 100 Dalry Rd tel 0131/337 6363; Budget, 394 Ferry Rd tel 0800/181181; Easy Rent-a-Car tel 0906/586 0586; Europcar, 24 E London St tel 0131/557 3456; Hertz, Waverley Station tel 0131/557 5272; Mitchells, 32 Torphichen St tel 0131/229 5384; Thrifty Car Rental, 42 Haymarket Terrace tel 0131/337 1319.
Consulates: Australia, 69 George St tel 0131/624 3333; Canada, 30 Lothian Rd tel 0131/220 4333; Germany, 16 Eglington Crescent tel 0131/337 2323; Netherlands, 53 George St tel 0131/220 3226; USA, 3 Regent Terrace tel 0131/556 8315.
Dentist: The National Health Service Line (tel 0800/224488) will tell you where the nearest surgery is. For emergencies go to Edinburgh Dental Institute, Lauriston Place (tel 0131/536 4920).
Exchange: Post offices will exchange currency commission-free. There are currency exchange bureaus in the main tourist office (Mon-Wed 9am-5pm, Thurs-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 10am-5pm) and beside platform 1 at Waverley Station (July & Aug Mon-Sat 7am-10pm, Sun 8am-10pm; rest of year Mon-Sat 7.30am-9pm, Sun 8.30am-9pm).
Hospital: Royal Infirmary, 1 Lauriston Place (tel 0131/536 1000), has a 24hr A&E department, although note that it is moving in stages to a new location to the southeast of the centre. Also at the Western Infirmary, Crewe Road North.
Internet access: The Cottage, 136 Nicolson St (daily 24hr; tel 0131/531 1881); easyEverything, 58 Rose St (daily 24hr; tel 0131/220 3580); Web 13, 13 Bread St (Mon-Fri 9am-5.30pm, Thurs until 7pm, Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 11am-5pm; tel 0131/229 8883).
Laundry: Capital Launderette, 208 Dalkeith Rd, Newington tel 0131/667 0825; Sundial Launderette, 7-9 East London St, Broughton tel 0131/556 2743; Tarvit Launderette, 7-9 Tarvit St, Tollcross tel 0131/229 6382.
Left luggage: Lockers at Waverley Station and St Andrew Square bus station.
Libraries: Central Library, George IV Bridge. The National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge, is for research purposes only.
Lost property: Edinburgh Airport tel 0131/333 1000; Edinburgh Police HQ tel 0131/311 3141; Lothian Regional Transport tel 0131/554 4494; Scotrail tel 0141/335 3276.
Pharmacy: Boots, 48 Shandwick Place (Mon-Fri 8am-9pm, Sat 8am-7pm, Sun 10am-5pm; tel 0131/225 6757).
Police: In an emergency call 999. Otherwise contact Lothian and Borders Police HQ, Fettes Avenue tel 0131/311 3131.
Post office: 8-10 St James Centre (Mon 9am-5.30pm, Tues-Fri 8.30am-5.30pm, Sat 8.30am-6pm; tel 0845/722 3344).
Rape crisis centre: tel 0131/556 9437.
Taxis: Airport Taxis tel 0131/344 3344; Central Radio Taxis tel 0131/229 2468; City Cabs tel 0131/228 1211.
Glasgow Listings
Bike rental: Only a few bike shops rent out bikes. Dales, 150 Dobbies Loan tel 0141/332 2705, a block north of the Buchanan Street bus station, has a few bikes available. There's a better selection at West End Cycles, 16 Chancellor St tel 0141/357 1344, conveniently placed close to the start of the Glasgow to Loch Lomond route, one of a number of special cycle routes which radiate out from the city. For further details, check .
Books: Borders, 98 Buchanan St; Waterstone's, 153 Sauchiehall St. For second-hand: Caledonian Bookshop, 483 Great Western Rd, or Voltaire & Rousseau, 12-14 Otago Lane.
Car rental: Arnold Clark, Castlebank St tel 0141/339 9886; Avis, 161 North St tel 0141/221 2827; Budget, 101 Waterloo St tel 0141/221 9241; Europcar, 38 Anderston Quay tel 0141/248 8788. Car-rental firms at the airport include Budget tel 0141/889 1479, Europcar tel 0141/887 0414 and Hertz tel 0141/887 2451.
Dentist: National Health Service line tel 0800/224488 lists local and emergency dentists. Glasgow Dental Hospital, 378 Sauchiehall St (tel 0141/211 9600).
Hospital: 24hr casualty department at the Royal Infirmary, 84 Castle St tel 0141/211 4000.
Internet: EasyEverything is open 24hr at 57-61 St Vincent St. Internet Exchange is at 136 Sauchiehall St.
Laundry: Harvey's, 161 Great Western Rd; Laundromat, 39 Bank St; Majestic Laundrette, 1110 Argyle St.
Police: Strathclyde Police HQ, Pitt Street tel 0141/532 2000; Stewart Street station, Cowcaddens tel 0141/532 3000.
Post office: General information tel 0845/722 3344. Main office at 47 St Vincent St (Mon-Fri 8.30am-5.45pm, Sat 9am-5.30pm); other city centre offices at 87-91 Bothwell St and 228 Hope St.
Taxis: TOA tel 0141/429 7070.
