Study Abroad London: The Underground

The London Underground, or the Tube, is going to be absolutely necessary for those studying abroad in London. It might seem daunting at first but I promise you will quickly master the Tube and will be traveling all over London ‘til your hearts content.  Here are some tips that might help you adjust to transportation in London.

-        First thing you need to do is buy an Oyster card. My recommendation is for your first time you buy a 7 day travel card for zones 1 and 2.* This might not make a ton of sense now, but when you get to London find the nearest Tube station and it will all slowly make sense

-        Second tip is to go onto tfl.gov.uk.  Click plan a journey. Enter in your starting point and destination. This is going to help you figure out which Tube lines to take and which stations to transfer at. Whenever you’re going somewhere new this will help you not get lost or turned around on the Tube.

-        Third tip is that on the escalators make sure you stand to the right. The left side is for walking up. It’s not a confusing concept but people will get mad at you if you are standing on the left side.

-        Last thing you need to know is when you get off at a popular station (ex. Paddington) you will need to walk fast. The first time I made a transfer at this station I almost didn’t have enough time to read the signs the crowd of people were walking so quickly. London is a fast paced city and that speedy pace is seen in the Tube stations too. Walk fast are you might get trampled.

The Tube is great and it really will get you everywhere you need to go. Yes it’s crowded and hot and unfortunately not all lines run at night, but it really is the best mode of transportation around London.

*Zones 1&2 is really where everything you want to see is

Study Abroad London: 10 Things to Pack

1.      Passport- This is an obvious necessity. They won’t let you into the country without your passport. Make sure you have a passport that won’t expire before you plan on leaving the country.

2.      Comfortable Walking Shoes- Walking in a London is a must and your feet will thank you if you bring comfortable shoes to walk around in. Blisters suck and you don’t want to deal with them the whole time you’re abroad (side note: if you do get blisters moleskin works miracles. It is a thousand times better than just a band aid).

3.      Umbrella- It rains a lot in London. That’s not just a rumor you’ve heard. Bring an umbrella with you everywhere you go while in London and you will say dry. A raincoat is also a nice thing to bring but if you have to pick one, choose the umbrella. A compact umbrella that fits in your purse or bag is the best.

4.      Planner- Studying abroad is a crazy whirlwind and if you are anything like me, you are making plans to travel all the time. A planner helps keep all your travel plans organized and helps you make sure you don’t plan a trip to Germany while you’re supposed to be in class (yes you still have to attend all your classes while studying abroad).

5.      Camera- This is probably another obvious one, but you want to bring a camera (or at the very least a phone you can take pictures on). I personally recommend a camera so you can have better quality pictures and bring memory cards so you never run out of space for all the fabulous pictures you take. I also recommend getting a camera that allows you to send pictures to your phone, it makes uploading pictures to Instagram really easy!

6.      Medications- Make sure to bring any prescription medications you are on so you don’t have any problems. I also recommend bringing any over the counter medications you might need to take (Tylenol or Ibuprofen). It makes it so much easier if you already have them. Also public transportation is huge in this city so if you get even a little motion sick I recommend bringing Bonine  of Dramamine that way you’ll never feel queasy on the tube or those double decker buses.

7.      Letter from School- This is another formality for getting into the country. If you are studying abroad when you go through customs they will ask to see your acceptance letter from your school saying that you are indeed studying abroad. Make sure you have it because it’s one of the pieces of paperwork they care most about.

8.      ID- The drinking age in the UK is 18; however, they will still card you. So make sure to bring some form of ID with your birthday on it so you can enjoy a pint at the pub (I recommend getting cider if you aren’t much of a beer person like me. It can be very yummy!).

9.      Solid Bag- You will definitely need a good bad to carry all your stuff in when traveling and when even just going to class. I recommend bringing more than one bag, different sizes so you don’t have to bring a backpack just to go to the market. I also recommend getting a bag with zippers. Theft is definitely a real problem in big cities like London and zippers help keep your belongings a bit safer.  

10.   An Open mind- Yes, I know, this one is totally cheesy, but it is also totally true. After the first week of being here students decided to drop out of the program and returned home because they were homesick and not having fun. You might not have fun your first week studying abroad. It’s a new situation and there is a lot to adjust to. It can be very overwhelming, but if you keep an open mind and throw yourself into new experiences it can help you get through the rough patches and you can really enjoy your time abroad!