Entry requirements | Organizing your trip | Visiting | Eating | Paying | Speaking |

Entry requirements

Passport and visa service

UK Border Agency

Diplomatic representations

Foreign & Commonwealth Office

For more information

Embassy of the United Kingdom in Greece
1 Ploutarchou Street
106 75 Athens
Phone: +30 210 7272 600
Fax: 7272 720

http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1025627711397

Organizing your trip

Means of transport recommended in town

Recommendation

In cities, due to traffic congestion, the use of public transport (Underground or buses) is recommended.
Taxis are widely available. Taxis drivers are highly trained but they speak mostly English. Pedestrians are injured and even killed every year in accidents, forgetting that traffic drives on the left.  Extra care should be taken when crossing streets.

Maps of urban networks

Transport for London (Maps)

Means of transport recommended in the rest of the country

Recommendation

The country has a good rail network. Intercity lines provide fast services between London and major cities, and there are services to the southeast, to the Midlands, north and south Wales and between Edinburgh and Glasgow. Some rural areas are less well served.
The National Rail network is now operated by train operating companies. Internal flights depart regularly to major cities.

Rail companies

Rail.co.uk

Flight from Greece

Two aircraft companies offer direct air connections from Athens to London : British Airways and Olympic Airlines. For low cost company check Easy Jet and Flyglobespan. To find out air connections from Greece to the United Kingdom click here

Traveling by yourself

Recommendation

There is a good quality road and motorway network. Roads tend to be congested, particularly in the South. There are a lot of trucks on the roads; only the heaviest loads travel by rail. In London, avoid parking in the street, as parking spaces are reserved for those with a resident's permit.

Road maps

Multimap

Find an itinerary

The Automobile Association's route planning facility.

Visiting

Different forms of tourism

Historical

Roman remains, castles, palaces, Stately Homes. Museums of our maritime heritage or the Industrial Revolution. The UK has a wealth of historic places to visit.

Cultural

Painting, literature, theatre and music. Prestigious and leading-edge museums, galleries and centers for arts and crafts.

Nature

49 designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, 40 National Scenic Areas, 14 National Parks and an amazing 27 World Heritage Sites, 5 of which have World Heritage status due to their outstanding natural features. The landscape is very varied. Scotland and Wales are mountainous with Ben Nevis (Scotland) the highest peak in the UK and Snowdon the highest peak in Wales.

Religious

Many thousands of beautiful churches, abbeys and cathedrals spanning 13 centuries of history. They are found in every city, town and village, and most are open for visitors to enter and explore freely. Canterbury Cathedral is one of the UK 's top destinations.
Consult Visit britain website.

Thermal

There are several spa towns in Britain, Bath Spa being a very popular destination because of its historic past (Roman remains).

Beach

Best areas are the South-East, the South-West, Wales, Norfolk, Northumberland and Scotland. Visit Goodbeachguide.

Winter sports

The natural snow resorts are in Scotland and all have invested heavily in recent years.

Outdoor activities

For a list of activities for all tastes, from walking, cycling, riding, golfing to sailing, visit Visitbritain.co.uk.

Shopping

Britain is a great place for speciality shopping, whether for souvenirs or luxury treats.

Tourism organizations

British Tourist Authority
Official on-line Guide to England

Eating

Food specialties

Examples of traditional (family) English dishes include: Full English breakfast, Bangers and mash (sausages and mashed potato), Fish and chips (battered fish and chipped potatoes), Shepherd's pie or Cottage pie (minced meat and mashed potato gratin), Cornish pasty (potato, meat and vegetables in pastry), Bread and butter pudding, Apple pie, Treacle tart etc.
Typical dishes are listed and pictured on Woodlands

Drinks

England is famous for its beer (dark ale, served draught in pubs) and cider, and Scotland for its whisky. The south of England produces a very small quantity of wine. There is a wide range of waters, fruit juices and non-alcoholic drinks available.

Dietary restrictions

None.

Paying

Domestic currency

British Pound

ISO Code

GBP

To obtain domestic currency

The Pound Sterling (£) is divided into 100 pence.
Banknotes: 5, 10, 20 and 50 GBP; Coins: 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 pence, 1 and 2 GBP.
Additional bank notes issued by Scottish banks (including 1 GBP notes) are legal tender in all parts of the UK.

Possible means of payment

Credit, debit cards and travelers cheques (preferably in GBP) are widely accepted. Cash can be obtained from the many ATMs available across the country.

Exchange rate on

Automatic Teller Machines (ATM)

To find out the locations of ATMs in in the United Kingdom, click on the link to your credit card: Visa, Mastercard or American Express

Speaking

Official language

English. Welsh in Wales.

Other languages spoken

Welsh in Wales.

Business language

English

Getting some knowledge

Useful English business phrases can be found at About.com

Free translation tools

WorldLingo - Free online language translator
Systran - Free online translation box
Promt - Free on-line translator
Systran - Free Greek-English-Greek translator
Tranexp - Free Greek-English-Greek translator
Ectaco - Free Greek-English-Greek Dictionary

We can translate your foreign-language documents.

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Last updates: May 2012