How to Survive London on a Student Budget

How to Survive London on a Student Budget Walk as much as possible. A lot of your journeys could be quicker to walk, so not only are you saving money and getting your steps up, but you are also saving time. Did you know that the distance on the Piccadilly Line from Leicester square to Covent Garden is only 300 yards? By the time you have travelled down and up the escalators, you could have walked it in no time. Always put your destination into google maps, you will be surprised at how little time is needed to walk around London. Take advantage of student discounts Make sure you sign up to all of the student sites (UNiDAYS, NUS, and 16-25 Railcard) with these you can sign up for email alerts and they give you the best discounts for students. If you fancy going out for dinner you can check on the best student discount at your favourite restaurants/cafes. Also watch out for shopping centres having student events, some shops discount up to 40% during these selected times.   If you are savvy you can do all your shopping during these events and save so much!If you travel via trains a lot, maybe to visit friends or home for the weekend, the 15-25 railcard saves you a third on all rail fares, no matter how short or long the journey. With NUS you can even get a discount on purchasing the card. Double savings! Avoid convenience shops Local convenience shops, we all know can be a rip off. Some supermarkets increase their prices in local stores as they know the customers will pay it anyway. Try to plan a weekly shop to a large superstore, the prices will be cheaper and there are also a lot more options to choose from. You may have to do little top up shops in the convenience stores, but overall you will save so much each week by using the superstores instead. Move further out of central London after halls. In your first year it is best to stay in Halls, this way you make lots of friends at your own University and you can really enjoy your first year all together. However, in second year you have more options to move further outside of London. The key is to make sure your Travel costs do not outweigh the rent decrease. Look for young areas that are up and coming and will have cheaper rent such as, Kentish Town, Finsbury Park and Balham.Work out how much you are saving in rent and how much you travel will be. You will most likely be able to save something each month, just by not living in the popular areas in London. Visit free attractions on your days off Although London is one of the more expensive cities in the world. There is a lot you can do totally for free. Most museums and art galleries are all free. You can see a full list of free museums in London on the Time-out site. This means that some weekends you can soak up some culture without breaking the bank. You could even take a packed lunch with you to save on expensive cafà © prices.