Always good to have a little information before you travel, so we have add some useful points below to help.

GMT; summertime is +1 and starts and ends as in the rest of Western Europe (starting on the last Sunday of March, ending on the last Sunday in October).

The internet is widely available as you might expect. Internet cafés are not as common as you might expect due to so many people carrying laptops, notebooks and Wi-Fi enabled phones around. Most cafés, restaurants, hotels and even pubs will supply you with free Wi-Fi so if you have the gadgets, take advantage of these! If you desperately need the internet and can’t find a café, pop into a library.

Food prices vary. In an expensive restaurant, a single main meal can cost up to £30. In chain restaurants (Frankie & Bennies, Bella Italia etc.) a main meal is normally around £18. Many pubs do the best value food with many doing a ‘2 for £20’ deal or similar at certain times of day.

Credit and debit cards are a widely accepted form of payment in the UK. Visa and MasterCard are accepted just about everywhere but AMEX is less so. If you have an AMEX card, we would advise bringing an alternative credit card with you as well. Some places no longer accept cash and very few places accept cheque’s. The Euro is not accepted as a form of payment in the UK & Northern Ireland.

About 10 per cent of the total fare is usual for licensed, metered taxis. Rural taxis and cabs usually charge a pre-agreed, flat fare and many people do not add an additional tip.

A service charge (tip) of 12.5% to 15% may be added to your bill but the practice is not universal in UK restaurants. And it may not always be easy to discover whether it is either. Some restaurants print their service charge policy on their menus (long gone by the time you pay your bill), while others make the service charge very clear on the bill. Don’t be embarrassed to ask. And don’t be too flustered to read your bill. It is not uncommon for waiters to leave the “total” line blank on credit card devices, tacitly inviting you to add a tip when you’ve already been billed for service. If service is included, you are not expected to add anything further, but you may want to add a small sum for particularly good service or extra attention. If service is not included, plan to leave a tip of 10 to 15 per cent.

You are not expected to tip with cash for drinks in pubs. If the barman gives you especially good service or fills several big orders for you, you can offer a small sum (the price of half a pint of beer, say), with the words, “and have one for yourself” or something similar. The barman (or barmaid) may pour themselves a drink on the spot or may put the money aside to have a drink later. You’re not expected to tip for food in pubs either but, with the growth of gastro pubs, this has become something of a grey area. If you feel the “pub” is more of a restaurant with a bar than a pub that serves food, you may want to leave a tip similar to what you would leave in a restaurant.

Tipping hotel staff is not necessary, but is always welcomed. You can tip a bellman a pound or two for helping with your bags or a doorman for getting you a taxi. Valet parking services are uncommon and, when available, there’s usually a charge for them, so tipping is unnecessary. Some hotels have started adding an optional service charge to bills. This is most common at hotels with spas and gyms, where staff are expected to perform extra services for you and is supposed to be distributed to staff members. If you would rather control the amount you tip individuals, you can have that service charge removed from your bill.

We urge you to purchase cancellation insurance & supplemental medical coverage (which covers pre-existing conditions.) This is a smart way to safeguard against life’s surprises.

Please note: to receive maximaum coverage, it is suggested to purchase within 21 days of your first payment.