A Guide for Brand New Londoners

Moving home, especially if doing so involves relocating to a new town or city such as London, can be a stressful experience.

However, while such moves are liable to come with a number of inherent concerns and apprehensions, they also present new opportunities to reinvent oneself, to experience an array of exciting things that would otherwise not be viable, and meet people you would likely not have come into contact with otherwise.

Moving to London, given its immense size, huge population and infinite possibilities, can easily be overwhelming, especially if the city is very new to you. But fear not! In this article, we’ll take a look at what you should do to ensure you fit seamlessly into the framework of the UK’s capital, allowing you to make the most of your time in London from day one!

Thoroughly assess your financial situation

London is expensive. This is common knowledge, but if you’re moving from a small town or village, the cost of living in the capital is still likely to take you by surprise to an extent.

Moving to London and then having to spend the majority of your income on rent can be dispiriting, so make sure that you divide up your finances carefully, look at where you can reasonably afford to live – the outer boroughs such as Barnet and Acton are a good place to start – and then stick carefully to a budget.

It’s also worth realising that when you first move, there’s every chance you’ll have to move to a smaller abode than the one you’ve just left, so you'll have to make use of storage for some of your belongings. Luckily, options for local storage shouldn't cost much, and you should easily be able to budget for it.

Don’t forget about your health

It can be very easy to travel large distances in London without having to exert too much energy. With the tube, incredibly frequent buses and Ubers on every corner, it can be easy to choose convenience over exercise.

While it will often be the case that public transport is the most appropriate means of travel, you should always remember to make time for exercise or go for a run – there is a massive link between levels of fitness and mental well-being, and the last thing you want when moving to a new city is to feel unnecessarily browbeaten.

Join some clubs or teams

Logic would seem to dictate that given there are around 8 million people living in London, it should be fairly easy to make friends and build a network of people to spend time with.

This can absolutely be the case, but you will need to make the effort to join a club or team because Londoners are notoriously reluctant to engage in conversation with strangers.

London is, however, full of clubs, teams, enterprises and societies, so you're bound to find one with similar interests to yours. If you make an effort, you’ll make friends in no time!

How Travellers Can Find Cheap Accommodations in the UKAccommodation is the biggest expense for travellers, beating food, entertainment, sightseeing, transportation, and other travel costs by a significant amount.