For flights to France, you may want to consider other airports (Yann, what international airports are near Parthenay ?), as well as Paris. Similarly for the UK, look for flights into any of Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Birmingham, East Midlands, Leeds-Bradford, Liverpool or Manchester. All are within 120 miles of Birmingham.
If you are with an airmiles scheme, make sure you claim your airmiles. If you are not with an airmiles scheme, make sure you join one before you fly. A return flight to the UK is 8,000 miles from Eastern USA, 12,000 miles from Western USA, 21,000 miles from Australia and 24,000 miles from New Zealand. Airmiles schemes typically give free flights starting at 30,000 miles accumulated over five years. When picking a scheme, make sure you pick an airline that (a) is in an alliance with the airline you are flying with (or you won't be able to collect the airmiles), and (b) you are likely to use for a free flight. You do not have to be in the airmiles scheme for the specific airline you are flying with, but you can only claim free flights with the specific airline.
Because of the density of traffic, you will probably find that you cannot drive safely for as long as is possible in other countries. I prefer not to drive for more than 4 hours in a day in the UK, but have had no problem driving for 8 hours in a day in the USA and Downunder. However, because the UK is small, this is not so much of a problem as it would be in other countries.
In the UK and Ireland, drive on the left (as Downunder). In France, drive on the right (as in the USA). If you hire a car, you will find that the driver sits on the other side of the car to where you are used to, and the hand-brake and gear lever are now in the other hand to normal. However, in all cases, the accelerator is under your right foot.
Also be aware that the driver in a taxi will be on the other side to normal, and when crossing a road, the traffic will pass close to you in the opposite direction to normal. But the most surprising thing is, if someone is trying to navigate for you, you will almost certainly get confused as to which way to turn when told to turn left or turn right ! (Ask them to use "turn with the curb" or "turn across the traffic" instead).
If you are hiring a car in the UK, then you will almost certainly get a manual (stick-shift) car, unless you specifically ask for an automatic. You will probably also find that hiring a car in the UK is more expensive than at home.
If you are driving in the UK, buy a Road Atlas. A Road Atlas which covers the whole of the UK will cost about GBP 8.00. If you are going walking in an area, then more detailed maps are also available. Road Atlases and Maps can be bought in many shops, including garages (gas stations), gift shops and bookshops.
There are a number of toll-bridges in the UK, and the first toll-road has just opened. These are usually clearly indicated for a significant distance before the tolled section. Toll-roads can usually only be paid for with cash. Credit cards are not normally accepted.
Americans, we have no such thing as a four-way stop. At a junction. there will always be one direction which has right of way. However, we do have roundabouts. This is a circular island in the road, which everybody orbits in a clockwise direction (or anti-clockwise/counter-clockwise in France). In the UK, traffic on the roundabout always has priority over traffic joining the roundabout. In France, the opposite is generally true. We also do not have "Turn right on red" (or in our case, "Turn left on red"). If a traffic light is red, you must stop and wait, no matter which direction you are going. If different rules apply for different directions, then green arrows will light up when you are allowed to procede in the indicated direction.
Australians, if your lane is disappearing, and the lane gets narrower until you cannot drive in it, you must give way to all traffic in the lane you are joining. However, if the line between two lanes disappears, and then the double-width lane narrows back to a single lane, then as in Australia, the car in front has priority.
New Zealanders, if you wish to turn right, and a car approaching you head on wishes to turn left (down the same road you are turning down), then they have priority, and you must wait for them.
To dial a UK number from outside the UK, dial ++44, then the rest of the number except drop the leading 0. To determine the value for ++, ask your local operator. Some common examples are in the table below.
To dial an international number from the UK, dial 00, then the country code, then the phone number. To find out your country code, ask your local operator before you leave, or ask the UK operator once in the UK.
Examples:
| Country | To dial the UK from this country | Example : To dial UK number (01555) 555555 | To dial to this country from the UK. | Example : To dial this foreign number from the UK... | ... Dial this number |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | Dial 0044 | 0044 1555 555555 | Dial 00 then country code | ||
| USA and Canada | Dial 01144 | 01144 1555 555555 | Dial 001 | 201-555-5555 | 001-201-555-5555 |
| Australia | Dial 0044 | 0044 1555 555555 | Dial 0061 and drop the leading zero | 03 5555 5555 | 0061 3 5555 5555 |
| New Zealand | Dial 0044 | 0044 1555 555555 | Dial 0064 and drop the leading zero | 021 555555 | 0064 21 555555 |
If you are bringing a mobile phone (cellphone) to the UK, then it will work if it is from North America and it is a tri-band phone, or it is from the rest of the world and is a dual-band or tri-band phone. However, you will have to enable "roaming" before you leave your home country. Dial your mobile phone (cellphone) company to do this.
It has recently become illegal to use a mobile phone (cellphone) without a hands-free kit while driving in the UK. The police are clamping down on this heavily.
| US Dollars | Canadian Dollars | Australian Dollars | New Zealand Dollars | UK Pounds | Euros | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Pound is worth | $1.77 | $2.32 | $2.39 | $2.73 | �1.00 | E1.42 |
| 1 Euro is worth | $1.25 | $1.63 | $1.68 | $1.92 | �0.70 | E1.00 |
Up to date rates for hundreds of currencies can be found at www.xe.com. If you have a WAP enabled mobile phone (cellphone), then this address will also work on your phone.
If you intend to buy your Pounds and Euros before you come to Europe, then you can get cash or travellers cheques. If you get travellers cheques then you will be able to convert them to cash at any major bank in the UK. Banks are generally open from Monday to Friday, from 9am to 5pm. You can also theoretically spend them wherever you can spend cash - but this is at the discretion of shop-keeper. You can also bring foreign currency with you, and exchange it for local currency at a major bank or bureau d'exchange. However, they will not accept foreign coins (even if they are pre-bundled), only notes.
All major credit cards are also accepted at most reasonable size shops, and in restaurants. Any card with a Visa or Mastercard symbol will be accepted in the UK, as well as some others. However, you may not be able to use a credit card in small shops, bars, taxis, etc, so you will also need some cash. You can also use any credit card with a Visa or Mastercard symbol on, in a cash machine (ATM), provided you have a pin number. Most airports have a cash machine (ATM) in the terminal building, so if you do not have time to change some money before you travel, do not worry (and do not use the bureau d'exchange in the airport - they are usually very expensive).
Before using a credit card abroad, you should check the following three things with the card issuer (or in the terms and conditions for the card) :
If any of these are high (especially if there is a minimum charge per foreign transaction), you may wish to consider finding a better credit card for using while abroad.
Americans: The alcohol regulations in the UK are more relaxed than in the USA. As long as you look to be clearly over 18, you will not be asked for ID in order to get into a bar or club. It is also legal to drink alcohol in public places, and it is not an offence to be drunk in public. However, you can be charged with being drunk and disorderly - so if you are drunk, don't make a nuscience of yourself... As in the US, we have off-licences (liquor stores), but alcohol can also be bought in supermarkets, 7-11 type shops, etc.
Downunders: The alcohol regulations in the UK are more strict than Downunder. Each bar and club will have a fixed period of time during which they can serve alcohol, and these times will be enforced. Usually it is until 11pm for a bar, and until 2am for a nightclub. There is also a limited drinking up period after they stop serving - after which your drinks will be removed and you will be asked to leave. Alcohol bought in a bar or club, must be drunk in that bar or club, and alcohol from outside may not be brought into the bar or club. Alcohol can also be bought for private consumption, but only at an off-licenced shop, and these are never part of a bar or club.