Exactly... You don't tip in pubs! But if you plan to be there for several drinks, you can always round up the first order by saying "keep the change" or "have one yourself" - but ONLY the once, Not after each order... (Which an American couple were doing in a pub in London last week). And IF a 'service charge' has been automatically ADDED on to a restaurant meal, I won't tip extra - So ALWAYS check the signs or menus to see if service is already included. 🤔
Do not tip, unless you REALLY want to tip. Also ask for gratuity to be taken off your bill as thats basically the resteraunt forcing you to tip. You are under no obligation to tip anyone we aren't americans. No one is going to think any different of you for not tipping here as we pay people a living wage. Of course if you are flush with disposable income do what you want its your money.
@@stewedfishproductions9554 But even so you can refuse to pay the service charge and have it removed from the bill. I always refuse to pay a service charge. I will tip the servers as I deem fit as often they DO NOT get any of the service charge. Also, who has the right to charge me extra to the advertised prices on the menu -----no one !
Tipping is at your own discretion. Usually if you've had a good meal and service. Don't tip in chain pubs like Wetherspoons only independent businesses. There's usually a jar on the counter if you want to tip.
As an add on to queue culture - when in a bar and waiting to order a round of drinks take a look around you to see who else is waiting. If the server comes to you before somebody who has been waiting longer you will be expected to casually nod and say 'this guy/lady was first'... DO NOT JUMP THE QUEUE..
@@Zara_zod1974 You are waiting to order, not already ordered. If the server looks to you to ask what you want, you tell them there is another waiting first and point them out.
I agree, although one episode of 'Dave gormans modern life is goodish' jokes about that, calling it 'the barlow', because you were supposed to be last, but no, now you're second, lol
I worked with an American woman who told me Scotland wasn't a country. I told her to say that to my Scottish colleague. She quite rightly had a look of worry on her face.... maybe it was my tone and facial expressions that gave it away. She didn't take up my suggestion, however. It was for the best 😆
Too dumb to realise that nobody can get on the train until the train has divulged itself of departing passengers. Nobody ever accused a Yank of being smart.
@@shreychaudhary4477 It better have pictures - 54% of ppl in the US struggle to read a newspaper, 29% are mathematically innumerate. Well done, the US Education System.
As an American, I'll add something else, whether traveling in the UK or France, Japan, Fiji, Australia, Canada, etc, etc.: *Politeness* . Saying "please," "thank you," "you''re welcome," and "may I have...?" will *always* set you apart in a positive way from those who say "yeah," "mm-hmm," and "gimme." Our lax (I think too lax) norms of politeness at home tend to not fly abroad, so keep that in mind.
That's the same if you go to the south in the United States, One of the things that I find frustrating for people who are not from the south is their lack of manners.
@@milliedragon4418 Well, I'm a rural Southerner myself. I tend to think that Southern hospitality and politeness are so - but only by US standards. In fact, we're losing that aspect of our culture quickly. I was in Cincinnati recently and heard more usage of "please" and "thank you" in a weekend than I'd hear in Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, Alabama, etc. My solution is to go to Canada and western Europe whenever I can because, for now at least, certain terms of politeness are still expected.
I completely agree. The one that is most egregiously misunderstood is “mm-hmm” when someone says thank you to you. This one infuriates me. To a Brit, rather than being a polite acknowledgment, this is tantamount to saying “yes, you should be grateful, and by the way you’re too unimportant for me to talk to.”
In a study 70% of people in England responded negatively, sometimes without being aware of it, because people didn't say please and thankyou, so it is particularly important.
1:07 You can live in a stately manner if you live in a stately manor, but you cannot visit a stately manner, only a stately manor. However, you can visit a stately manor in a stately manner if you are posh enough.
I like that you mentioned the National Trust, its honestly a fantastic way to experience what most tourists probably think of when they think of the UK.
They don't even allow trail hunting but they do have pheasant shoots at places like Fountains Abbey because they don't own the rights. There is apparently some trespassing on estates so that needs to be looked at.@@chriswilliams6568
I'm 17 seconds into this video and I would like to show my appreciation for you using the English flag and not the Union Jack when talking about England. Small detail, but this makes me happy.
@TarfuLuke that used to be the case but a long time ago ( I say that because I don't want to look it up) but the Union flag can be called the union jack generally now.. google it dude
@@TarfuLuke not true. If Churchill can call it the union jack so can we. A jack is a flag on a boat, but the union jack is so well known we can call it a jack even on land! Why are you trying to erase our seafaring past?
@sajteapot true remember that serving staff are just that:staff doing a job not slaves and servants and never click your fingers at someone behind a bar. Actually Americans are much better mannered in this respect than some nations I recently saw a German tourist in my local pub clicking his fingers to get attention, the more he clicked the more the barmaid ignored him when he started complaining loudly other customers reminded him that clicking your fingers is not only very rude it's can cause health problems for the clicker such as broken fingers
Your video just popped up on my recommended and as an Englishman (Norwich!) your tips and tricks seem absolutely spot on. Great video mate - you’re super knowledgeable about the UK and I love your passion for our country! Cheers!
There shouldn't really be a traditional 'line' at a bar. You are all horizontal against the bar front. If you know someone was there before you, if the bar tender asks you for your order first gesture to the punter who was there first.
@@chill579 Yes bar manners depend on your noticing who is standing at the bar just drinking and who is stranding at the bar waiting to be served. Observe the protocol . Take your turn . This is spdecially important if there is a crush - keep your eyes peeled and also try to catch the bar tender's eye when you get the chance . They will see you're waiting and come to you in your turn.
Sorry, but you're wrong about tipping. I've lived in the UK my whole life(nearly 50) and you are absolute not expected to tip anywhere other than entering national museums. Places that attract tourists often put out tip jars but its not really the same thing.
Yes cheeky companies are trying to force through the tipping culture but it's still optional and you can ask them to take that [naught word] off the bill. Usually waiters are fine with it but sometimes you get funny looks. But England does and should not have any tipping culture.
I run a tour company in York, and our American visitors are without doubt the friendliest, fun and interested people we take round, always happy to chat and fascinated in all the history.
Tipping has never been expected in the UK but in the age of us swiping our cards it's not even a concept really. That said certain upper tier restaurants will automatically add a percentage service charge to your bill.
It is rude not to if you have had table service. Generally, the smaller the restaurant chain (such as single family restaurants) the more rude it becomes.
@@DM-ur8vc Maybe that's it. The local restaurants I regularly go to are family run and the service is fantastic (they leave me alone when I don't want to be hassled, and act when I need something)
@@charlesunderwood6334 it's not "rude" at all. Tipping is entirely optional regardless of the business size. If you feel it rude, that's your personal opinion. But the service is included with the meal price, if the small family restaurant can't pay the bills, they need to review prices and not rely on tips to pay wages. Anything extra is entirely optional depending on the individual.
The chain restaurants, if tipping by card, don't always pass the money on to the staff so best thing to do is (if you want to, it's not expected) tip cash separately. There was a scandal some years back that companies were using tips to make up staffs' minimum wage. Another thing is never tip anyone AT ALL but restaurants (again, if you want to). Some places have a jar and I might stick a £2 coin in there but THAT'S IT. I work on the London Tube & this American lady once insisted on tipping me for helping her, even though I'm not allowed to accept it. I asked her to donate the money to my favourite charity instead.
@@patrickthurston8811 To line up, or to queue, is usually a thing in the US. However, there are some people who don’t respect it. They try to jump ahead because of impatience. I can’t stand that.
I don't understand the free for all culture. If the person serving sees someone do this they will tell you to wait in line. I've noticed African countries seem to be worst for this especially when I finish my shift where I work. The Africans just form a scrum no matter how many times they are told to form a queue.
@@patrickthurston8811 go to Universal or Disney, people constantly queue jumping! They leave one person in the queue and then 10 wait until they're near the front and then rock up and push past everyone
When I went to a nightclub in Miami I was asking people "are you in the queue" and they literally didn't understand what I was saying. Back of the line buddy! 😂
It's the same in the U.S. We just have more people eager to hold their hand out, but this guy just makes stuff up, for his channel, that's why he's wrong. 😂
@@malcolmdrake6137 We are certainly led to believe that in the USA, in a hotel say, someone will carry your bags to your room, and _expect_ to be tipped for doing so.
Solid list, I'd add just a couple of things: 1) Driving: Americans will probably want to request an automatic car when hiring, as we tend to be manual ("stick") by default. 2) Food: pies are a criminally-underrated traditional food, especially in the north
Never order a pork pie from the south as a Yorkshire man living in Somerset nothing infuriates me more than seeing a pork pie with chicken or other meat substitute in it and...... the jelly if a pork pie doesn't have the jelly its ruined. I can't even look in the butchers Down here, ciders not too bad though.
@@Mikeb1001y'see I would say pies are just traditional all over. Pie, chips/mash and gravy up north and in the Midlands but then in and around London (so Essex, Kent, Surrey etc) it's pie, mash and liqueur
Totally agree that Brits offer help even if you don't ask for it. My very first trip to the UK was in 1999. Coming out of the London Waterloo Station, I was walking my way to the London Marriott County Hall. There was no Google map then. I knew I was very close to the hotel but couldn't seem to find it. Suddenly, a Brit appeared. He said: 'Hey love, I saw you from my office window. You look lost. Can I help you find what you're looking for?' He then walked me to the hotel and even pulled my HUGE luggage for me (this was before luggage had 4 rolling wheels). I tried to offer him cash as gratitude for his help but he wouldn't take it. He just asked me to have a wonderful visit. My entire vacation in the UK was awesome. Everywhere I turned, there were many kind and friendly Brits. It set the stage for my love for the UK and its people. I've been back many times since then and will continue to visit the UK. It is the exact opposite of what I encountered on my first trip to Paris.
Also just to add, check open days. Even we Brits can get caught out! Some places like a stately home may be closed (especially Mondays). Hairdressers usually close on Monday too. Some smaller towns have what we call “Half Day closing”, usually a Wednesday. So you’ll find quite a few shops are only open for the morning, close at noon or 1pm. Not as common as when I was growing up, but it still happens in some places.
Mancunian (Manchester native) here, what a lovely guy! I love your enthusiasm towards England. Non-London parts of the country are definitely underrated. Happy travels mate, thanks for this fantastic video. Subscribed.
Politeness is the passport to having a relaxed and enjoyable time in the UK. Imagine the politeness factor in somewhere like South Carolina, then turn the dial up a few notches. If you are polite then even the police will go out of their way to help, if you are brusque or entitled then the response will be full-on bureaucracy.
I LOVE people from the South ! everytime i hear them talking in videos i think "Now they are my people it would be a fantastic time to get to hang out with people up that way if i ever visited America"
@@GeekyC. My daughter-in-law is from South Carolina, I have three grandchildren that live in Myrtle Beach. It is always a pleasure to spend time there with them, most everyone is polite, although there was a sign in the biker's bar door stating 'No guns No attitudes' which is a bit of a shock to someone from Sussex.
@@glynnwright1699 aww bless them i hope they continue to have a wonderful time there .. and oh god yeah id be very paranoid if i saw that sign but i guess youd have to get used to it
But learn what is considered polite where you will be visiting. In South Carolina, it's standard to address superiors as Sir and Ma'am - which I understand isn't a thing in the UK.
Another tip when visiting the UK, make sure you see some local theatre, there's a whole plethora of shows for a very reasonable price all across the UK, particularly in the cities. A great way of supporting the arts and you don't have to spend a fortune as you would in the West End!
Been watching Mark and his Wolters World adventures for a few years now. Can't believe you're in my home city of Chester... What a beautiful and stunning Roman City, so privileged to live here.
You mentioned the National Trust, but don't miss out on Historic Houses or English/Scottish/Welsh Heritage memberships as well. Historic houses include many of the privately owned houses and in general tend to be less manicured and sterile than the National trust ones. English Heritage tends to have mostly ruins, but if you like Castles can be worth having.
A big bit of advice I'd give to you as an American, which is advice that British people need too; don't neglect regional foods. Everyone knows about the big ones (and there's nothing wrong with them) but most regions will have unique local cuisine too. It's also good to remember that a lot of British food culture is based on getting the highest quality ingredients possible and cooking them simply, which means sometimes the best option is to buy some ingredients yourself and make a simple stew or roast. Unfortunately a lot of regional food is difficult to find these days as most people here now live on pasta and chicken nuggets instead of British food, but you can still find it at specialty shops, especially local farm shops that are normally a way out of town.
Many American tourists visiting London want to see Westminster Abbey but ask for directions to Westminster Cathedral (which does exist but is some distance from the Abbey). The Cathedral is well worth a tour but gaining a basic knowledge of what one wishes to achieve during the visit does not go amiss. Guidebooks are worth actually reading. 🙂
if you are on the escalator on the tube (underground) please stand on the right hand side. (especially if youre just going to stand there like a lemon 🍋).
And don't ignore the signs that even tell you to stand on the right hand side. And keep backpacks infront of you too, so you're not blocking the escalators either. Nothing like pissing off the locals and commuters when you stand where you like, especially during rush hour!
DRINKS: UK Beer = USA Ale UK Lager = USA Beer UK Cider = USA Strong Cider (alcoholic!) UK tap water = USA Bottled water (Still) We don't have an equivalent to USA tap water as we can drink from the tap without fear of death.
I live in the US and I’ve never had an issue with drinking tap water. It’s a massive country, with many of our individual states being comparable in size to European countries. 11 of our states are larger than the entirety of the UK. Just as in Europe there are areas where you should avoid the tap water, there are some places in the US that you should avoid it. It’s that simple.
Another tip if you're travelling to the UK: lots of historic towns are not big at all - often you can get a good flavour of a town in literally a day or two. Particularly in the North there are LOADS of great towns and cities to visit: Durham, York, and Lancaster are great examples - they're small but full of culture and history, easily digestible in a day or two as a traveller. You could spend two weeks touring the North of England/Scotland and see some amazing sights and never stay in the same place for more than two days.
@@mwd331 No just outside but I visit all over regularly for work. My mum's family was all from Southall and there's almost nothing left of my grandparents' community now
And Canada unfortunately. Worse, servers got minimum wage recently but tips are still socially expected. You usually don't get people confronting you if you don't tip though. I don't usually tip more than 10-15% percent anymore even though 18-20% started becoming the "standard"
@@joninawhitecoat No I have never done this, and in my experience it's more common in London than elsewhere. You do not have to tip in pubs - nobody expects it and let's keep it that way. US tipping culture is insane now.
I go to the UK all the time. I love London. I found a good place to stay on the strand near Covent Garden that was very reasonable. Going back again in July. Yorkshire is wonderful too. I loved walking all around Sutton Bank and taking a train to Whitby .
Shropshire (look it up on a map!) and Ironbridge in particular is the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution - lots of museums as well as the Ironbridge itself. (The Olympian games in Much Wenlock were the inspiration for the Olympic Games. Have you ever wanted to see an Iron Age hill fort?)
5:00 It's always so weird when I see landmarks of Liverpool in someone's video. John Piper's work on Paddy's Wigwam (the Metropolitan Cathedral shown here) is always good to see, even if it's like a 10 minute walk from my house.
As an Englishman I can say that this is all pretty accurate and good advice. I personally do tip in restaurants, but nowhere else. I tend to tip about 10% for good service. If service is poor then don’t, and if the server doesn’t give you the option then don’t force it! Nobody will chase you down the street for not tipping like happened to a relative of mine in the US! Here are a few other tips. When driving, there is no turn on red anywhere. Most petrol pumps do not require pre-authorisation, and do not ask for a postal code if they have pay-at-pump. This always catches me out when travelling in the US as it asks for a Zip code that I don’t have! When using the London Underground you can use Apple Pay or Google pay at the entry and exit barriers. Simply hold your phone on the contactless pad. If you visit Chester like this gentleman, then the zoo is worth a visit as it is one of the best in the world. The only one I’ve been to as good was in San Diego.
London is essentially a different country in its own right - people are different, culture is different. Nowhere in the rest of the country is like London.
8:55 not a Londoner but a Brit and I can confirm! I live about an hour and a half from London and I’ve never driven through neither have either of my parents, I always use the trains to get to and from and around London (and the amazing black taxis if I have luggage) which are excellent but if you want to get around outside of London you can do it by public transport but for a lot of places it is way easier by car.
I've never lived anywhere near London, but haven't owned a car for nearly 30 years because I simply haven't needed to. I've travelled all over the UK over decades. Public transport is fine.
Another often overlooked part of England is the Cotswolds. Absolutely gorgeous countryside area. Or if you're looking for charming seaside towns, I'd recommend Whitby and Devon.
You can buy train tickets from any of the companies, not just the one you are travelling on. So probably very little need to sign up for four different websites.
Yeah, I'd recommend National Rail or Trainline for train tickets - you can book specific seats on specific trains or open/flexible tickets where you can get on any train that day that's headed in the right direction. Remember though that you can't book tickets for metro systems like the London Underground, Liverpool's Merseyrail, or Manchester's Metrolink in advance. They're usually only £3-5 max per journey anyway, and you can easily buy on the day - just allow 10 minutes if it's your first time. In London you can even tap in and out using a debit/credit card or a special Oyster card which you top up, but make sure you have one of these for each traveller otherwise you might get stuck at the ticket barriers!
I agree with everything apart from the tipping i was and raised in england and we only tip if the service and food was exceptional but in general we rarely tip and people that work in hospitality will not expect to receive a tip.
8:34 Canterbury lovely little place you can spend a day here Bath a very interesting place with nice surroundings, you could spend 2 days here. The white cliffs of dover....they sound amazing but unless you're in a helicopter or go out on a boat, you'd be there for an hour tops. Tip from an Englishman. Stonehenge is a famous stone circle visit it briefly don't even both with the audio guides (you'll be surprised at how small it is) just walk around it take and then go visit Averbury, there are more stones that you can actually go up to and there is a pub in the middle and some quaint little shops.
Hello! I’ve lived in London my whole life and have been to so many parts of England - this is so accurate! Great representation of our beautiful country ❤️🤍💙
A huge one I would say as a dual citizen of the US & UK, is Americans; remember to say please and thank you literally every time you ask for or receive something. No exceptions. This is not all Americans by any means, but I’ve noticed particularly that American travellers from large cities such as New York and LA omit these words from their vocabulary almost entirely. In NYC it’s absolutely fine to just walk into a bar and say “I’ll have a beer” and that’s it and no one bats an eye lid. You wouldn’t necessarily get a reaction if you said that in the UK, but automatically everyone within earshot will have noticed that and have you marked down in their estimations. “I’ll take a pint of (insert beer of choice here) please.” And then “thanks” or “cheers” when that Amber goodness is handed over. Very easy, minimum effort, trick to not get people looking down their noses at you.
@@Shan_Dalamani yeah it’s not all of us but it is noticed when it’s missed overseas. I’ve lived in the Uk for about 5 years now and whenever I watch American shows it does just sting my ears a little when the courtesies are missed.
@@Shan_Dalamani To be fair, it may just be a different custom - to the extent that if you say please and thank you too much in NY you may be thought of as odd! Probably just charming/polite, though. But where the lack of them is the norm, not using them is not necessarily rude: like tipping in England. (Which _is_ acceptable - but usually should be done as an exception, when you have received good - quick, or kindly, say - service; _not_ as a matter of course.)
On the ordering food. Just check before sitting down. There are plenty of pubs that will take your order directly from your table. Some do table service some don't. Just check beforehand.
Brit here, you can spend weeks exploring the North, we have loads of castles and beaches that are so underrated. I spent 4 days in London 8 years ago and not wanted to go back, maybe on your first trip to England, but you can have a wonderful trip avoiding London entirely! Agreed with the queueing comment, we get very annoyed but we won't ever say to your face we will just tut and glare 😂 if you're getting rhe train around I recommend splitting the ticket, it will be cheaper most of the time. Great tip about national trust membership, English heritage is good as well, see where you are going and pick. Also it's raining the most I've ever seen this week, lots of puddles! Bring waterproof shoes😅 enjoy your trips! I used to live in York and I love seeing you there, very good city to visit!
@@chriswilliams6568 They don't mean splitting a ticket but splitting the journey. They are suggesting that you don't buy one ticket direct to your destination as it might be cheaper to break up the journey and buy several tickets for that route/destination. For instance, though I don't have specifics, if you are going from say Edinburgh to London - maybe purchase a ticket from Edinburgh to Carlisle, then Carlisle to Birmingham, then Birmingham to London or something like this and sometimes you don't even need to change trains.
@@chriswilliams6568 hello! There are some specific websites that do it for you, including Rail Easy. You end up with loads of tickets but it can save you loads.
@@NotesOfBoredom This is where ticket offices at the station(s) come into their own. Talk to the counter staff regarding the destination and they with sort out the most cost effective route for you. It might not be direct, but it's likely to save you lots of money. As an example, I went to Cardiff from the North West of England. The online cost was just north of £300. I spoke to the staff at the ticket office and the trip (via Manchester) came down to a more managable £76. get the idea?
@@NotesOfBoredom Though Edinburgh to London, I'd go down the east side (Newcastle, York, Darlington, Peterborough) - Carlisle is more for Glasgow to London, though I think you _can_ go from Edinburgh there. But it's a dog-leg.
Many of our villages have great hidden attractions and history. I grew up in Edwinstowe, a village next to Sherwood Forest most famous for the legend of Robin Hood. They also have medieval festival weeks where they have reenactments of old battles and how they would have lived. I would add a mistake I’ve noticed is being too loud. We’re generally reserved and will typically talk loud enough to have our own conversations. Having loud conversations which take over the room will be considered rude. Great video!
Ales in pubs are typically kept in cellars, which are considerably cooler than room temperature. They’re just not chilled like a lager. No need to tip that much either. Just round it up to the nearest fiver, and that’s only when you’ve had a sit down meal. Definitely use your manners, or you may find yourself waiting!
I’m from England, and I highly highly recommend visiting Northumerland! Stunning part of the UK! I have never visited London, from up North, and I don’t ever plan to. There’s plenty up North that people forget about!
Nice video, thanks! Glad you enjoy getting out and about, past the normal London-centric approach. The “half seven” thing has also caused much confusion in my experience too! I think to explain that “half seven” is an abbreviation oh “half PAST seven” helps (ie half of one hour after seven o’clock, 30 mins). It’s always great as an English person to have these weird little discombobulating semantic quirks of the UK pointed out, as we are so accustomed we can’t spot them. Totally get that it’s a strange old linguistic island 😂 I’m sure a few other noticed it too, but it is “Manor House” not “Manner”.
@@martinconnelly1473 yes I was thinking that's worth mentioning, that trains and cinema times etc will be a 24hr clock, I've seen tourists get confused with that.
Watch out for the sneaky 12.5% service charge, however. That said, it’s always hugely appreciated when I tip 10% for good service, which is sadly rarer than it should be. While we shouldn’t go as nuts as they have in America, I think more of a gentle tipping culture in bars and restaurants would provide much more pleasant and attentive service than we get now - not to mention putting a few quid in the pocket of people on a very poor wage.
@@mementomori1022 I mean ‘nuts’ in that specifically tipping culture has really exploded to a point that even Americans are complaining and describing it as such. Swiveling iPads seem to be the crux of the creep.
I kept getting recommended this randomly so decided to watch & wanted to say great video! Hope you had a lovely time visiting England, seem like a nice bloke! :)
Another benefit of getting the short-period membership of the National Trust ( and English Heritage ) is the free use of car parks. In some places, such as the Lake District, car parking is difficult but the parking passes are a great help. Another thing to be aware of is the length of daylight hours. In summer, specially in the north of England or Scotland, we have very long days and short nights. Some friends newly arrived from the US woke up, showered and dressed before noticing it was 4:30 AM.
That's a good tip! The NT own large amounts of land, especially coastline, as well as buildings and country estates, so there are many coastal places, like parts of the South Downs National Park, where you can park for free with NT membership but otherwise have to pay 👍🏻
Top tip, if youre using trains around the north check for strikes over the weekend ❤ also, check bus prices for evening journeys, In some cities the buses are cheaper as they are trying to compete with the trains, some places offer a night bus for a pound
My mum sold the mounted horns to the owners of the inn in Chester that you stayed at, must have been over 10 years ago now, back when she sold antiques. They threw in a nights stay with the deal. she still swears to this day that she saw a ghost that night. Crazy to see the horns again here!
i got back from my solo trip to london and edinburgh last month and had an absolute great time! lol i asked so many people so many questions and they were always so helpful and kind. i carried around some little tiny glass duckies in my pocket (when i remembered) and whenever someone was extra helpful or kind, i gave them a ducky and every person loved it! and it really brought out their smiles and friendliness. i'll be doing this every time i travel from now on! from police to information booth people to the random residents walking on the streets or doing laundry, no one was safe from being asked a question! 🤣😂 i did pretty well navigating on my own and took a train from euston to watford junction for harry potter and the lumo out of king's cross for edinburgh. haha i was even able to help a few tourists! that just tickled me to no end! can't wait to go back! my comfort with maneuvering the cities came from mark's videos as well as all the other videos i've watched and the facebook group london travel tips.
The football bit made me chuckle. The hype surrounding the England team is mainly generated by our newspapers. Most of us realise the team is good but are not world beaters and always expect them to fail at some point. Regards the trains though: Not sure you're correct there. You can generally book tickets for train services run by other franchises through a single APP. I have Northern as my primary APP and can book tickets on Avanti, Midlands and Transport For Wales through it for no extra charge. You just have to be careful of ticket restrictions.
14:55 - about the train lines, you don't necessarily need to sign up to different companies because you can buy tickets for most (if not all) trains in the UK through Trainline (with a fee) or even GWR (without a fee), but undoubtedly a little bit of your data will be sent to the operating companies anyway. But it does make it easier if you just want to download one app and have all your tickets in one place.
@@Mkbshg8 Ridiculous hyperbole. Our collaboration with nature is what our countryside is - and it's beautiful. There's plenty of wildlife. Deer are at record numbers.
Obviously tips are appreciated regardless of where you go even if it's just a couple of quid, but tip at a sit down restaurant rather than at a pub bar. a lot of the time service charge or gratuity charge is added on anyway and will be on the receipt.
One correction: it is true that we form queues, but we definitely do complain about it. In fact, setting up the queue is secondary to complaining about the queue. We actually complain about queues before we get to a queue. ‘Ahhh, the queues are going to be terrible, should we even bother?’
Tipping is not expected in the UK. It is becoming more of a thing, but it's not like the US/Canada where not tipping will cause offence. Many (perhaps even most) people do not tip at all.
Also if travelling by train, try and book as far ahead as possible. It can be much cheaper. Also choosing to travel on a specific train at a specific time will also be cheaper than an open ticket
It’s always interesting seeing England through the eyes of tourists. It usually blows peoples minds how close you are to history. My friend lived on a farm when I was in school and his house was over 350 years old and some of the out buildings were originally built over 1000 years ago. Where my sister lives there’s a 800 year old castle with its walls around the town and boats on the river that were built on the dock in the 1700s. I think most people go to the city’s instead of the smaller towns that hold onto the history. Also don’t forget over the thousands of years the vikings, Roman Empire, the French and many other places invaded and left their own history too.
Absolutely! We went to Berwick-upon-tweed this summer and loved the amazing almost complete fortified town walls and the docks. I live in St Albans which is packed with Roman, early Christian and medieval history and everything since, and I never grow tired of it!
Great Video as always! I am from the South East of England and I highly recommend our seaside towns of Eastbourne, Brighton, Hastings, and Bexhill-on-Sea. So much History here, you have Pevensey Castle and the 1066 Trail, Beachy Head and the South Downs National Park, The Harbour and beaches. Its just stunning😊
I would have thought that it would have been an obvious thing to work out. I know alot of American school children 14 or 15 year olds can't even tell the time so what hope have they of working out what half 7 means 🤣
@@lizvickers7156 Not obvious at all, if you leave out the "past". In Germany for example (as he says), "halb sieben" means half _to_ seven, i. e. 6:30. I always say the "half", but I know parts of England (and some generations) don't.
So interesting to watch this as an English person, your knowledge and passion is amazing and there's loads of great tips in this video. You're also bang on about making sure to visit other towns and cities than London. London is great but it's a completely different experience to pretty much everywhere else in the country.
Slight mistake at 15:00, but as long as it's a company that runs trains in the UK (except Eurostar), you can buy any ticket for any journey irrespective of the train company you bought from and the company that runs the route, and the price won't be any different. So you can buy all your tickets from one of these companies and It's always cheaper than a third party website like trainline or omio (so don't buy from them). While buying an anytime or off peak ticket gives flexibility, the savings with buying an advanced ticket for a specific departure time is often worth it.
Hebden bridge , Whitby , bourton on the water , Peak District, Haworth , pateley bridge, staithes, robin hoods bay , hawes , knaresbourgh , Harrogate, a few hidden jems in the north for people to explore when in England 😀
And it's not that you have to use one of the non affiliated sites that charge fees, you can buy tickets for trains in on the East Anglian trains site, trains for Wales on the Kent trains site, all the regional sites sell tickets for anywhere, they are required to. If you can find one that provides cashback, use that one!
Oh, that's just given me a good chuckle. Our rail system is not outstanding. It's absolutely awful. It's old and hap-hazard in coverage. It's permanently running at maximum traffic capacity. It's slow and inefficient. The trains are massively overcrowded to the point of being unsafe. It's massively unreliable, with constant delays, cancellations and strikes. It's also outrageously expensive to use, by far the most expensive in all of Europe. Countries with genuine outstanding rail systems, that put the UK to shame are Switzerland, Japan, Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, etc.
@@andywilliams7323 That's the legacy of inventing the transport. It was built haphazardly at the whims of major landlords and rail barons. Including at both ends of the spectrum: some landowners wanted their own personal station (and they were granted, usually if they financed the whole line), to objecting to being anywhere near the new railway and having to find new much more expensive routes to build. Very few new routes have been built since Victorian times. The track itself has been upgraded and replaced, but it's essentially still the Victorian system. 20th century urbanisation means it's difficult to change or expand the capacity of those routes. The railway built over fields are now surrounded by townscape. The other countries had the luxury of seeing our pioneering experiment and designing railways with some practical examples of how they work. But people have had the same complaints as now since at least the 60s: late, dirty, crowded etc. And that was the start of the diesel era!
I don't drive and rely on trains (and buses) in the UK and agree that the rail system is for the most part very good, although ticketing can be very confusing (especially for tourists!) and is genrally too expensive.
One thing about the National Trust is there's more than just the houses and there's the locations where the NT has free parking for badge holders. There's many NT and English Heritage properties that are access to ancient monuments , landscapes wildlife and beaches ,
.That is a really nice and , as an English person I'd say , a very helpful guide. Thank you for helping American tourists to make the best of their visit. I am hosting a conference this summer where there are a number of Americans coming so some of yuor advice is useful to me when I am briefing them and hoping to help them-enjoy themselves without making "mistakes".
You don't have to tip at all, especially in pubs and never when ordering drinks.
Yes, tipping is only a thing in restaurants with waiter service, and even then it is optional.
Exactly... You don't tip in pubs! But if you plan to be there for several drinks, you can always round up the first order by saying "keep the change" or "have one yourself" - but ONLY the once, Not after each order... (Which an American couple were doing in a pub in London last week). And IF a 'service charge' has been automatically ADDED on to a restaurant meal, I won't tip extra - So ALWAYS check the signs or menus to see if service is already included. 🤔
Do not tip, unless you REALLY want to tip. Also ask for gratuity to be taken off your bill as thats basically the resteraunt forcing you to tip. You are under no obligation to tip anyone we aren't americans. No one is going to think any different of you for not tipping here as we pay people a living wage. Of course if you are flush with disposable income do what you want its your money.
@@stewedfishproductions9554 But even so you can refuse to pay the service charge and have it removed from the bill. I always refuse to pay a service charge. I will tip the servers as I deem fit as often they DO NOT get any of the service charge. Also, who has the right to charge me extra to the advertised prices on the menu -----no one !
Tipping is at your own discretion. Usually if you've had a good meal and service. Don't tip in chain pubs like Wetherspoons only independent businesses. There's usually a jar on the counter if you want to tip.
As an add on to queue culture - when in a bar and waiting to order a round of drinks take a look around you to see who else is waiting. If the server comes to you before somebody who has been waiting longer you will be expected to casually nod and say 'this guy/lady was first'... DO NOT JUMP THE QUEUE..
What if you have a diffrw drink than them..? Do they just take your drink back and wait for their drink then go get yours..??there’s no point.
@@Zara_zod1974 You are waiting to order, not already ordered. If the server looks to you to ask what you want, you tell them there is another waiting first and point them out.
I agree, although one episode of 'Dave gormans modern life is goodish' jokes about that, calling it 'the barlow', because you were supposed to be last, but no, now you're second, lol
As a northerner, thank you for saying that there’s more to the UK than London. The north is fantastic
@@Philares66 and the people are nicer too
As a southerner we all know (apart from those in London) there’s more to England than London.
Wholeheartedly agree. From a Cambridgeshire boy.
@@chrisemptage1366not in Leeds they're not
@@matthewlewis2072 because people in Leeds aren’t white british. that’s why.
Calling a scotsman, English, isn't just a connotation, it's a confrontation.
I worked with an American woman who told me Scotland wasn't a country. I told her to say that to my Scottish colleague. She quite rightly had a look of worry on her face.... maybe it was my tone and facial expressions that gave it away. She didn't take up my suggestion, however. It was for the best 😆
Aye , gonna nae dae that
"You just made an enemy for life!"
It is fun though
Dont forget Wales. Not a county of England.
Another tip for public transport.
The people exiting the train/bus take priority. It frees up space, and it saves the chaos of a free for all.
I really don't know why this isn't more widely understood both in the UK and around the world! 😂
Too dumb to realise that nobody can get on the train until the train has divulged itself of departing passengers. Nobody ever accused a Yank of being smart.
@@csjrogerson2377 but here in the USA we have signs for them
@@shreychaudhary4477 It better have pictures - 54% of ppl in the US struggle to read a newspaper, 29% are mathematically innumerate. Well done, the US Education System.
@@csjrogerson2377 yeah it's a picture. Four arrows right where the doors are. Words are hard. Pictures are nicer.
As an American, I'll add something else, whether traveling in the UK or France, Japan, Fiji, Australia, Canada, etc, etc.: *Politeness* . Saying "please," "thank you," "you''re welcome," and "may I have...?" will *always* set you apart in a positive way from those who say "yeah," "mm-hmm," and "gimme." Our lax (I think too lax) norms of politeness at home tend to not fly abroad, so keep that in mind.
That's the same if you go to the south in the United States, One of the things that I find frustrating for people who are not from the south is their lack of manners.
@@milliedragon4418 Well, I'm a rural Southerner myself. I tend to think that Southern hospitality and politeness are so - but only by US standards. In fact, we're losing that aspect of our culture quickly. I was in Cincinnati recently and heard more usage of "please" and "thank you" in a weekend than I'd hear in Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, Alabama, etc. My solution is to go to Canada and western Europe whenever I can because, for now at least, certain terms of politeness are still expected.
@@milliedragon4418 Agreed.
I completely agree. The one that is most egregiously misunderstood is “mm-hmm” when someone says thank you to you. This one infuriates me. To a Brit, rather than being a polite acknowledgment, this is tantamount to saying “yes, you should be grateful, and by the way you’re too unimportant for me to talk to.”
In a study 70% of people in England responded negatively, sometimes without being aware of it, because people didn't say please and thankyou, so it is particularly important.
1:07 You can live in a stately manner if you live in a stately manor, but you cannot visit a stately manner, only a stately manor. However, you can visit a stately manor in a stately manner if you are posh enough.
The fish and chips that tourists have in pubs isn't the fish and chips that my generation grew up on
When we won at football we love our players and manager When we lose they're A holes 😅
You'd think he would've changed it by now?
Will he lose all his followers?
(I have no idea how you edit a published YT video?)
@@yannymac5283 you can't :( unless there's a copyright issue or something like that
@@michaelharrison3602yes, fish and chips should be wrapped up in a piece of the old 'News Chronicle'
I like that you mentioned the National Trust, its honestly a fantastic way to experience what most tourists probably think of when they think of the UK.
Don't forget English Heritage or its Scottish & Welsh equivalents. Many castles & historic places are run by them.
I just wish that the National Trust did not allow fox hunting on their lands.
If you want the woke version of our history that is!
@@OldeJanner Get a grip
They don't even allow trail hunting but they do have pheasant shoots at places like Fountains Abbey because they don't own the rights. There is apparently some trespassing on estates so that needs to be looked at.@@chriswilliams6568
I'm 17 seconds into this video and I would like to show my appreciation for you using the English flag and not the Union Jack when talking about England. Small detail, but this makes me happy.
It's only called the union jack when it's flown at sea. Its just the union flag.
Thanks for that! I hate it when people say Union Jack!
@TarfuLuke that used to be the case but a long time ago ( I say that because I don't want to look it up) but the Union flag can be called the union jack generally now.. google it dude
Me too. We have our own identity too
@@TarfuLuke not true. If Churchill can call it the union jack so can we. A jack is a flag on a boat, but the union jack is so well known we can call it a jack even on land! Why are you trying to erase our seafaring past?
Also 'please' and 'thank you' with all serving staff goes a long way.
I think that applies in any country 😂
@sajteapot true remember that serving staff are just that:staff doing a job not slaves and servants and never click your fingers at someone behind a bar. Actually Americans are much better mannered in this respect than some nations I recently saw a German tourist in my local pub clicking his fingers to get attention, the more he clicked the more the barmaid ignored him when he started complaining loudly other customers reminded him that clicking your fingers is not only very rude it's can cause health problems for the clicker such as broken fingers
Your video just popped up on my recommended and as an Englishman (Norwich!) your tips and tricks seem absolutely spot on. Great video mate - you’re super knowledgeable about the UK and I love your passion for our country! Cheers!
I agree. He gives excellent advice in a friendly way.
I Agree, Narrrwich (Norwich is a great city to visit) I also live here and there is lots to do and see in and around Norwich.
Yeeeeeeeeeellow
Nice to see me and jaackmate have the same taste in videos, a man of culture!
Fully agreed, American tourists get a pretty bad rap here so it's really nice to see a video like this too.
Jump a queue at a Bar, and often the barperson will completely ignore you until there is no queue.
There shouldn't really be a traditional 'line' at a bar. You are all horizontal against the bar front. If you know someone was there before you, if the bar tender asks you for your order first gesture to the punter who was there first.
The way it should be
We don't queue at bars, we line up against the bar. If you push through to the front though, definitely expect to be treated poorly.
@@chill579 Yes bar manners depend on your noticing who is standing at the bar just drinking and who is stranding at the bar waiting to be served. Observe the protocol . Take your turn . This is spdecially important if there is a crush - keep your eyes peeled and also try to catch the bar tender's eye when you get the chance . They will see you're waiting and come to you in your turn.
The queue at the bar is whoever the bartender decides to be served next. Us Brits are stalwart queuers but understand this rule implicitly.
Sorry, but you're wrong about tipping. I've lived in the UK my whole life(nearly 50) and you are absolute not expected to tip anywhere other than entering national museums. Places that attract tourists often put out tip jars but its not really the same thing.
I don't agree, I think tipping is becoming more and more of a norm...
Agree except for the museums, most free museums ask for a donation, but I've never known this to be aggressive in any way.
@thomuk2006 maybe due to American imperialism, but surely if anything the end of cash has moved things the other way.
You haven’t been out much recently, have you?
Yes cheeky companies are trying to force through the tipping culture but it's still optional and you can ask them to take that [naught word] off the bill. Usually waiters are fine with it but sometimes you get funny looks. But England does and should not have any tipping culture.
6:23 We have a saying which goes something like:" There’s no bad weather; just inappropriate clothing "!
As a motorcycle rider, I couldn't disagree more lol, a little drizzle makes riding quite a bit less fun.. I concider that bad weather lol
@@phased3941 maybe inappropriate times for biking 😆 I can believe you!
@@biddiemutter3481 ehaha
I run a tour company in York, and our American visitors are without doubt the friendliest, fun and interested people we take round, always happy to chat and fascinated in all the history.
Tipping? When I lived in London I never tipped nor felt any obligation to.
Tipping has never been expected in the UK but in the age of us swiping our cards it's not even a concept really. That said certain upper tier restaurants will automatically add a percentage service charge to your bill.
It is rude not to if you have had table service. Generally, the smaller the restaurant chain (such as single family restaurants) the more rude it becomes.
@@DM-ur8vc Maybe that's it. The local restaurants I regularly go to are family run and the service is fantastic (they leave me alone when I don't want to be hassled, and act when I need something)
@@charlesunderwood6334 it's not "rude" at all. Tipping is entirely optional regardless of the business size. If you feel it rude, that's your personal opinion. But the service is included with the meal price, if the small family restaurant can't pay the bills, they need to review prices and not rely on tips to pay wages. Anything extra is entirely optional depending on the individual.
The chain restaurants, if tipping by card, don't always pass the money on to the staff so best thing to do is (if you want to, it's not expected) tip cash separately. There was a scandal some years back that companies were using tips to make up staffs' minimum wage.
Another thing is never tip anyone AT ALL but restaurants (again, if you want to). Some places have a jar and I might stick a £2 coin in there but THAT'S IT.
I work on the London Tube & this American lady once insisted on tipping me for helping her, even though I'm not allowed to accept it. I asked her to donate the money to my favourite charity instead.
one thing us Canadians inherited from the British, queue culture, we definitely respect the line here too.
Is it not a thing in the US? (also Canadian)
@@patrickthurston8811 To line up, or to queue, is usually a thing in the US. However, there are some people who don’t respect it. They try to jump ahead because of impatience. I can’t stand that.
I don't understand the free for all culture. If the person serving sees someone do this they will tell you to wait in line. I've noticed African countries seem to be worst for this especially when I finish my shift where I work. The Africans just form a scrum no matter how many times they are told to form a queue.
@@patrickthurston8811 go to Universal or Disney, people constantly queue jumping! They leave one person in the queue and then 10 wait until they're near the front and then rock up and push past everyone
When I went to a nightclub in Miami I was asking people "are you in the queue" and they literally didn't understand what I was saying.
Back of the line buddy! 😂
How lovely to see you in my home city of Chester.
But regarding tipping, we only tip if we think we’ve had above average service. Tips aren’t expected
It's the same in the U.S. We just have more people eager to hold their hand out, but this guy just makes stuff up, for his channel, that's why he's wrong. 😂
My home city too friend 😊
I live 15 miles away from Chester in Nantwich.
same here just outside anyway, was nice to see him there.
@@malcolmdrake6137 We are certainly led to believe that in the USA, in a hotel say, someone will carry your bags to your room, and _expect_ to be tipped for doing so.
Solid list, I'd add just a couple of things: 1) Driving: Americans will probably want to request an automatic car when hiring, as we tend to be manual ("stick") by default. 2) Food: pies are a criminally-underrated traditional food, especially in the north
Oooo...good list!
You forgot to mention the bewildering array of names we give a bread roll!😂
@@voltore86 Wigan kebab! Pie on a barm with gravy
Never order a pork pie from the south as a Yorkshire man living in Somerset nothing infuriates me more than seeing a pork pie with chicken or other meat substitute in it and...... the jelly if a pork pie doesn't have the jelly its ruined. I can't even look in the butchers Down here, ciders not too bad though.
@@Mikeb1001y'see I would say pies are just traditional all over. Pie, chips/mash and gravy up north and in the Midlands but then in and around London (so Essex, Kent, Surrey etc) it's pie, mash and liqueur
@@AmazinglyAwkward Ask for a Wigan kebab in London and they’ll look at you like you’ve got three heads and speaking klingon
Totally agree that Brits offer help even if you don't ask for it. My very first trip to the UK was in 1999. Coming out of the London Waterloo Station, I was walking my way to the London Marriott County Hall. There was no Google map then. I knew I was very close to the hotel but couldn't seem to find it. Suddenly, a Brit appeared. He said: 'Hey love, I saw you from my office window. You look lost. Can I help you find what you're looking for?' He then walked me to the hotel and even pulled my HUGE luggage for me (this was before luggage had 4 rolling wheels). I tried to offer him cash as gratitude for his help but he wouldn't take it. He just asked me to have a wonderful visit. My entire vacation in the UK was awesome. Everywhere I turned, there were many kind and friendly Brits. It set the stage for my love for the UK and its people. I've been back many times since then and will continue to visit the UK. It is the exact opposite of what I encountered on my first trip to Paris.
Tippings optional and not all places ask for a tip on the receipt
Also just to add, check open days. Even we Brits can get caught out! Some places like a stately home may be closed (especially Mondays). Hairdressers usually close on Monday too. Some smaller towns have what we call “Half Day closing”, usually a Wednesday. So you’ll find quite a few shops are only open for the morning, close at noon or 1pm. Not as common as when I was growing up, but it still happens in some places.
Worth mentioning this isn't really a thing in larger cities. Almost everything is open every day of the week, typically.
Mancunian (Manchester native) here, what a lovely guy! I love your enthusiasm towards England. Non-London parts of the country are definitely underrated. Happy travels mate, thanks for this fantastic video. Subscribed.
I'm a southerner who prefers Manchester to London any day. I've been many times. Love the redbrick architecture, the canals, the people 😀
I'm enthralled by your passion for my damp and foggy island. I'm so pleased you've enjoyed your visit. Please come back soon.
As an Englishman, I can confirm that everything this man said is completely spot on.
Liverpool, York and Chester? Brilliant choices!
Old roman route
@@elwolf8536 I know the York/Chester route, then out along North Wales. But I didn't know Liverpool was Roman?
@mojosbigsticks no liverpool isn't, I live not far from the old Chester to York road that's part of the A58 in West Yorkshire lots of tangible history
@@elwolf8536 Isn't it wonderful to have that direct link? I live on Watling Street.
@@mojosbigsticks it certainly is !! Watling Street is part of meny an old story !!
Politeness is the passport to having a relaxed and enjoyable time in the UK. Imagine the politeness factor in somewhere like South Carolina, then turn the dial up a few notches. If you are polite then even the police will go out of their way to help, if you are brusque or entitled then the response will be full-on bureaucracy.
I LOVE people from the South ! everytime i hear them talking in videos i think "Now they are my people it would be a fantastic time to get to hang out with people up that way if i ever visited America"
@@GeekyC. My daughter-in-law is from South Carolina, I have three grandchildren that live in Myrtle Beach. It is always a pleasure to spend time there with them, most everyone is polite, although there was a sign in the biker's bar door stating 'No guns No attitudes' which is a bit of a shock to someone from Sussex.
@@glynnwright1699 aww bless them i hope they continue to have a wonderful time there .. and oh god yeah id be very paranoid if i saw that sign but i guess youd have to get used to it
But learn what is considered polite where you will be visiting. In South Carolina, it's standard to address superiors as Sir and Ma'am - which I understand isn't a thing in the UK.
@@Jim-the-Engineer Everyone calls me 'Sir' when I am in SC visiting family. I am the 'silverback' in the group!
Another tip when visiting the UK, make sure you see some local theatre, there's a whole plethora of shows for a very reasonable price all across the UK, particularly in the cities. A great way of supporting the arts and you don't have to spend a fortune as you would in the West End!
Been watching Mark and his Wolters World adventures for a few years now. Can't believe you're in my home city of Chester... What a beautiful and stunning Roman City, so privileged to live here.
Yep. As an Englishman who loves the rain, it doesn't rain ENOUGH for me!
You mentioned the National Trust, but don't miss out on Historic Houses or English/Scottish/Welsh Heritage memberships as well. Historic houses include many of the privately owned houses and in general tend to be less manicured and sterile than the National trust ones. English Heritage tends to have mostly ruins, but if you like Castles can be worth having.
A big bit of advice I'd give to you as an American, which is advice that British people need too; don't neglect regional foods. Everyone knows about the big ones (and there's nothing wrong with them) but most regions will have unique local cuisine too. It's also good to remember that a lot of British food culture is based on getting the highest quality ingredients possible and cooking them simply, which means sometimes the best option is to buy some ingredients yourself and make a simple stew or roast.
Unfortunately a lot of regional food is difficult to find these days as most people here now live on pasta and chicken nuggets instead of British food, but you can still find it at specialty shops, especially local farm shops that are normally a way out of town.
If you're from the US, you'll love the Parmo they serve in the northeast
What most Americans think of as a beer is what we call "lager". And it is served cold!
I'm not sure why Americans are confused by this, it even says 'lager' on Budweiser.
@@RickP2012 Which is owned by AB Inbev - a Belgian company!
@@thomasm1964 It has always said that for decades.
@@RickP2012 Nobody drinks Bud anymore though.
@@Mr196710 Being a lager drinker I'm not a fan of strong flavoured beers but even to me Budweiser tastes like water with all the flavour removed.
Many American tourists visiting London want to see Westminster Abbey but ask for directions to Westminster Cathedral (which does exist but is some distance from the Abbey). The Cathedral is well worth a tour but gaining a basic knowledge of what one wishes to achieve during the visit does not go amiss. Guidebooks are worth actually reading. 🙂
if you are on the escalator on the tube (underground) please stand on the right hand side. (especially if youre just going to stand there like a lemon 🍋).
To clarify: this is so that people in a hurry can get past people who aren't, without having to weave around them; it's not just a strange custom!
And don't ignore the signs that even tell you to stand on the right hand side. And keep backpacks infront of you too, so you're not blocking the escalators either.
Nothing like pissing off the locals and commuters when you stand where you like, especially during rush hour!
@@Wabbit_Hunta If you’re from the north, pissing off the locals when on the tube is pretty much a form of light entertainment!
DRINKS:
UK Beer = USA Ale
UK Lager = USA Beer
UK Cider = USA Strong Cider (alcoholic!)
UK tap water = USA Bottled water (Still)
We don't have an equivalent to USA tap water as we can drink from the tap without fear of death.
Lucky
I live in the US and I’ve never had an issue with drinking tap water. It’s a massive country, with many of our individual states being comparable in size to European countries. 11 of our states are larger than the entirety of the UK.
Just as in Europe there are areas where you should avoid the tap water, there are some places in the US that you should avoid it. It’s that simple.
Incorrect. Beer is the overarching term. Lager and bitter are styles of beer.
Faucet water I believe the Americans call it
@@RTWuk Alright Milky, Milky...... Calm yer pants down. Maybe also check your perfect dictionary mind for "Satire/ SarcaSM" EH?
Another tip if you're travelling to the UK: lots of historic towns are not big at all - often you can get a good flavour of a town in literally a day or two. Particularly in the North there are LOADS of great towns and cities to visit: Durham, York, and Lancaster are great examples - they're small but full of culture and history, easily digestible in a day or two as a traveller. You could spend two weeks touring the North of England/Scotland and see some amazing sights and never stay in the same place for more than two days.
Lancaster is the CITY of the county of Lancashire! Its not a town.
@@SylviaRufer I said there are loads of great towns AND cities in the north, don't get your knickers in a twist.
@@SylviaRuferYeah, stop being a clown. York and Durham are also cities. So what?
Americans, please use your "inside voice". Halve your volume, or even lower. Thank you and have fun! 🙂
😂😂
Remember, speaking louder doesn't mean you are being more positive, upbeat and getting your point across. You are just being more obnoxious.
its because they think they're all the main character and are all the most important there
Especially if you’re from the mid west or southern states. Please and thank you.
@@oeokosko i wouldnt care about people talking loud its kind of expected
I’m British and I LOVE Wolters Videos especially about England.
Your more knowledgeable about travel in England than most of us 😂
Thank you. That is really nice of you.
Thank you for bringing up the queues, good man.
As a Londoner I totally agree that London does not represent the rest of England at all. Enjoy your trip.
London is barely English anymore
@chrislyne377 do you live in London?
@@mwd331 No just outside but I visit all over regularly for work. My mum's family was all from Southall and there's almost nothing left of my grandparents' community now
@@chrislyne377 And that doesn't hurt it at all.
Worse place in England luckily I live in the best county of the country
The football shirt tip is a good one, some pubs won't allow you in wearing one.
Respect the guards in London they are soldiers and deserve respect
Never Ever touch them or get in their way when they march around.
You WILL regret it.
They deserve respect because they're people, their job should be irrelevant
I would have assumed that people would understand that mocking people carrying a weapon was not a good idea. But YT videos have proved me wrong.
@@StimParavane Never underestimate the stupidity of people.
Look how many unrepresented English they keep in subjection!
5:20 Liverpool for Everton haha. Oh that made my day.
Love your positivity and can tell you’ve really experienced the culture . Watched your video when I visited cusco. Cheers from Liverpool
Nope, you dont tip in England. It's entirely optional. US is the only place where it's "expected" because of your insanely low restaurant salary.
And Canada unfortunately. Worse, servers got minimum wage recently but tips are still socially expected.
You usually don't get people confronting you if you don't tip though. I don't usually tip more than 10-15% percent anymore even though 18-20% started becoming the "standard"
Tipping in restaurants is/was common, especially if you pay in cash. It's not uncommon in pubs either.
@@joninawhitecoat I am 67 and have always been a pub person. Nobody tips in pubs. Nobody.
@@rodjones117 You've never bought a round and one for the bartender?
"...and whatever you're having"
You've never done this?
@@joninawhitecoat No I have never done this, and in my experience it's more common in London than elsewhere. You do not have to tip in pubs - nobody expects it and let's keep it that way. US tipping culture is insane now.
I go to the UK all the time. I love London. I found a good place to stay on the strand near Covent Garden that was very reasonable. Going back again in July. Yorkshire is wonderful too. I loved walking all around Sutton Bank and taking a train to Whitby .
Go to
Newcastle
Berwick upon tweed
Cumbria
Northumberland
I come from Newcastle
Absolutely amazing castles and historical buildings
@@drobbo87 I will indeed Thanks for the recommendations .
I live not far from sutton bank, call in for a cup of tea next time your over.
@@johnlogan1333 How kind of you. I will indeed :)
Shropshire (look it up on a map!) and Ironbridge in particular is the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution - lots of museums as well as the Ironbridge itself. (The Olympian games in Much Wenlock were the inspiration for the Olympic Games. Have you ever wanted to see an Iron Age hill fort?)
Of all the places I have been in England, the people of Liverpool were the friendliest!
5:00 It's always so weird when I see landmarks of Liverpool in someone's video. John Piper's work on Paddy's Wigwam (the Metropolitan Cathedral shown here) is always good to see, even if it's like a 10 minute walk from my house.
Don’t forget you can ask for a taster in the pub and you will be given a very small level of the drink for you to see if you like it.
As an Englishman I can say that this is all pretty accurate and good advice. I personally do tip in restaurants, but nowhere else. I tend to tip about 10% for good service. If service is poor then don’t, and if the server doesn’t give you the option then don’t force it! Nobody will chase you down the street for not tipping like happened to a relative of mine in the US! Here are a few other tips. When driving, there is no turn on red anywhere. Most petrol pumps do not require pre-authorisation, and do not ask for a postal code if they have pay-at-pump. This always catches me out when travelling in the US as it asks for a Zip code that I don’t have! When using the London Underground you can use Apple Pay or Google pay at the entry and exit barriers. Simply hold your phone on the contactless pad. If you visit Chester like this gentleman, then the zoo is worth a visit as it is one of the best in the world. The only one I’ve been to as good was in San Diego.
London is essentially a different country in its own right - people are different, culture is different. Nowhere in the rest of the country is like London.
Really?
Yup. Its very foreign
8:55 not a Londoner but a Brit and I can confirm! I live about an hour and a half from London and I’ve never driven through neither have either of my parents, I always use the trains to get to and from and around London (and the amazing black taxis if I have luggage) which are excellent but if you want to get around outside of London you can do it by public transport but for a lot of places it is way easier by car.
I've never lived anywhere near London, but haven't owned a car for nearly 30 years because I simply haven't needed to. I've travelled all over the UK over decades.
Public transport is fine.
Another often overlooked part of England is the Cotswolds. Absolutely gorgeous countryside area. Or if you're looking for charming seaside towns, I'd recommend Whitby and Devon.
Can't argue with any of that. You know your stuff
You can buy train tickets from any of the companies, not just the one you are travelling on. So probably very little need to sign up for four different websites.
Trainline is a great app/site.
Yeah, I'd recommend National Rail or Trainline for train tickets - you can book specific seats on specific trains or open/flexible tickets where you can get on any train that day that's headed in the right direction.
Remember though that you can't book tickets for metro systems like the London Underground, Liverpool's Merseyrail, or Manchester's Metrolink in advance. They're usually only £3-5 max per journey anyway, and you can easily buy on the day - just allow 10 minutes if it's your first time.
In London you can even tap in and out using a debit/credit card or a special Oyster card which you top up, but make sure you have one of these for each traveller otherwise you might get stuck at the ticket barriers!
@@CWM93 Please avoid Trainline - they charge booking fees. Use one of the train companies.
Don't use Trainline, they charge extra.for.the privelege. Just use one of the rail.company's sites, does not matter.which one.
I agree with everything apart from the tipping i was and raised in england and we only tip if the service and food was exceptional but in general we rarely tip and people that work in hospitality will not expect to receive a tip.
You are absolutely spot on mate. Great advice. I love how enthusiastic you are about our country. Cheers mate.
8:34
Canterbury lovely little place you can spend a day here
Bath a very interesting place with nice surroundings, you could spend 2 days here.
The white cliffs of dover....they sound amazing but unless you're in a helicopter or go out on a boat, you'd be there for an hour tops.
Tip from an Englishman. Stonehenge is a famous stone circle visit it briefly don't even both with the audio guides (you'll be surprised at how small it is) just walk around it take and then go visit Averbury, there are more stones that you can actually go up to and there is a pub in the middle and some quaint little shops.
As a Brit, I think this is very good advice, and not delivered in a "Britain is peculiar" tone! Thank you!
Hello! I’ve lived in London my whole life and have been to so many parts of England - this is so accurate! Great representation of our beautiful country ❤️🤍💙
Everyone saying we don’t tip. We definitely do it’s just not frowned upon if you don’t. Tips get given for good service 😊
A huge one I would say as a dual citizen of the US & UK, is Americans; remember to say please and thank you literally every time you ask for or receive something. No exceptions.
This is not all Americans by any means, but I’ve noticed particularly that American travellers from large cities such as New York and LA omit these words from their vocabulary almost entirely.
In NYC it’s absolutely fine to just walk into a bar and say “I’ll have a beer” and that’s it and no one bats an eye lid. You wouldn’t necessarily get a reaction if you said that in the UK, but automatically everyone within earshot will have noticed that and have you marked down in their estimations.
“I’ll take a pint of (insert beer of choice here) please.” And then “thanks” or “cheers” when that Amber goodness is handed over.
Very easy, minimum effort, trick to not get people looking down their noses at you.
That's everyday courtesy in Canada. It's mindcroggling how the Americans don't understand that omitting 'please' and 'thank you' is rude.
And.on the bus, do not forget to say thankyou to the driver.when you alight!
@@Shan_Dalamani yeah it’s not all of us but it is noticed when it’s missed overseas. I’ve lived in the Uk for about 5 years now and whenever I watch American shows it does just sting my ears a little when the courtesies are missed.
@@Shan_Dalamani To be fair, it may just be a different custom - to the extent that if you say please and thank you too much in NY you may be thought of as odd! Probably just charming/polite, though. But where the lack of them is the norm, not using them is not necessarily rude: like tipping in England. (Which _is_ acceptable - but usually should be done as an exception, when you have received good - quick, or kindly, say - service; _not_ as a matter of course.)
@@G6JPG I'd rather be perceived as weird than rude. I take my manners everywhere I take my mouth.
Been to England a few times, and these are great tips! Never tried the bed & breakfast thing, but now it's on my bucket list. Thanks!
On the ordering food. Just check before sitting down. There are plenty of pubs that will take your order directly from your table. Some do table service some don't. Just check beforehand.
Brit here, you can spend weeks exploring the North, we have loads of castles and beaches that are so underrated. I spent 4 days in London 8 years ago and not wanted to go back, maybe on your first trip to England, but you can have a wonderful trip avoiding London entirely! Agreed with the queueing comment, we get very annoyed but we won't ever say to your face we will just tut and glare 😂 if you're getting rhe train around I recommend splitting the ticket, it will be cheaper most of the time. Great tip about national trust membership, English heritage is good as well, see where you are going and pick. Also it's raining the most I've ever seen this week, lots of puddles! Bring waterproof shoes😅 enjoy your trips! I used to live in York and I love seeing you there, very good city to visit!
What does “splitting the ticket “ mean please.
@@chriswilliams6568 They don't mean splitting a ticket but splitting the journey. They are suggesting that you don't buy one ticket direct to your destination as it might be cheaper to break up the journey and buy several tickets for that route/destination. For instance, though I don't have specifics, if you are going from say Edinburgh to London - maybe purchase a ticket from Edinburgh to Carlisle, then Carlisle to Birmingham, then Birmingham to London or something like this and sometimes you don't even need to change trains.
@@chriswilliams6568 hello! There are some specific websites that do it for you, including Rail Easy. You end up with loads of tickets but it can save you loads.
@@NotesOfBoredom This is where ticket offices at the station(s) come into their own. Talk to the counter staff regarding the destination and they with sort out the most cost effective route for you. It might not be direct, but it's likely to save you lots of money. As an example, I went to Cardiff from the North West of England. The online cost was just north of £300. I spoke to the staff at the ticket office and the trip (via Manchester) came down to a more managable £76. get the idea?
@@NotesOfBoredom Though Edinburgh to London, I'd go down the east side (Newcastle, York, Darlington, Peterborough) - Carlisle is more for Glasgow to London, though I think you _can_ go from Edinburgh there. But it's a dog-leg.
Many of our villages have great hidden attractions and history. I grew up in Edwinstowe, a village next to Sherwood Forest most famous for the legend of Robin Hood. They also have medieval festival weeks where they have reenactments of old battles and how they would have lived.
I would add a mistake I’ve noticed is being too loud. We’re generally reserved and will typically talk loud enough to have our own conversations. Having loud conversations which take over the room will be considered rude. Great video!
I live near Edwinstowe, great place and very interesting history.
From just down the road in Ollerton and I agree that those medieval festivals are great in Edwinstowe! Truly an amazing place
Ales in pubs are typically kept in cellars, which are considerably cooler than room temperature. They’re just not chilled like a lager.
No need to tip that much either. Just round it up to the nearest fiver, and that’s only when you’ve had a sit down meal.
Definitely use your manners, or you may find yourself waiting!
I’m from England, and I highly highly recommend visiting Northumerland! Stunning part of the UK! I have never visited London, from up North, and I don’t ever plan to. There’s plenty up North that people forget about!
Nice to see him filming in my home city of Chester, and not the usual London
Nice video, thanks! Glad you enjoy getting out and about, past the normal London-centric approach.
The “half seven” thing has also caused much confusion in my experience too! I think to explain that “half seven” is an abbreviation oh “half PAST seven” helps (ie half of one hour after seven o’clock, 30 mins).
It’s always great as an English person to have these weird little discombobulating semantic quirks of the UK pointed out, as we are so accustomed we can’t spot them. Totally get that it’s a strange old linguistic island 😂
I’m sure a few other noticed it too, but it is “Manor House” not “Manner”.
Say 19:30 and watch someone from the USA glaze over.
@@martinconnelly1473 yes I was thinking that's worth mentioning, that trains and cinema times etc will be a 24hr clock, I've seen tourists get confused with that.
Scouser here, great video but tipping really isn't a thing. You won't be thought any less of if you don't
Love my Scousers!!!
@@WhoeverwhateverwheneverNever been forced to tip anywhere in the world.
Watch out for the sneaky 12.5% service charge, however. That said, it’s always hugely appreciated when I tip 10% for good service, which is sadly rarer than it should be.
While we shouldn’t go as nuts as they have in America, I think more of a gentle tipping culture in bars and restaurants would provide much more pleasant and attentive service than we get now - not to mention putting a few quid in the pocket of people on a very poor wage.
@mementomori1022 No, the new standard of 18-20% tipping in the States is nuts. It's plain stupid in Canada where there is a real minimum wage.
@@mementomori1022 I mean ‘nuts’ in that specifically tipping culture has really exploded to a point that even Americans are complaining and describing it as such. Swiveling iPads seem to be the crux of the creep.
I kept getting recommended this randomly so decided to watch & wanted to say great video! Hope you had a lovely time visiting England, seem like a nice bloke! :)
If you do decide to drive in England, you should know that rush hour begins at 1430 and finishes at 1800
And don't drive in London. Ever. Ever. Ever. It's a nightmare and it isn't necessary.
1800? In London it goes beyond 1900.
Another benefit of getting the short-period membership of the National Trust ( and English Heritage ) is the free use of car parks. In some places, such as the Lake District, car parking is difficult but the parking passes are a great help. Another thing to be aware of is the length of daylight hours. In summer, specially in the north of England or Scotland, we have very long days and short nights. Some friends newly arrived from the US woke up, showered and dressed before noticing it was 4:30 AM.
That's a good tip! The NT own large amounts of land, especially coastline, as well as buildings and country estates, so there are many coastal places, like parts of the South Downs National Park, where you can park for free with NT membership but otherwise have to pay 👍🏻
Top tip, if youre using trains around the north check for strikes over the weekend ❤ also, check bus prices for evening journeys,
In some cities the buses are cheaper as they are trying to compete with the trains, some places offer a night bus for a pound
Lotta strikes in the south too
My mum sold the mounted horns to the owners of the inn in Chester that you stayed at, must have been over 10 years ago now, back when she sold antiques. They threw in a nights stay with the deal. she still swears to this day that she saw a ghost that night. Crazy to see the horns again here!
i got back from my solo trip to london and edinburgh last month and had an absolute great time! lol i asked so many people so many questions and they were always so helpful and kind. i carried around some little tiny glass duckies in my pocket (when i remembered) and whenever someone was extra helpful or kind, i gave them a ducky and every person loved it! and it really brought out their smiles and friendliness. i'll be doing this every time i travel from now on! from police to information booth people to the random residents walking on the streets or doing laundry, no one was safe from being asked a question! 🤣😂 i did pretty well navigating on my own and took a train from euston to watford junction for harry potter and the lumo out of king's cross for edinburgh. haha i was even able to help a few tourists! that just tickled me to no end! can't wait to go back!
my comfort with maneuvering the cities came from mark's videos as well as all the other videos i've watched and the facebook group london travel tips.
The football bit made me chuckle.
The hype surrounding the England team is mainly generated by our newspapers. Most of us realise the team is good but are not world beaters and always expect them to fail at some point.
Regards the trains though:
Not sure you're correct there. You can generally book tickets for train services run by other franchises through a single APP. I have Northern as my primary APP and can book tickets on Avanti, Midlands and Transport For Wales through it for no extra charge. You just have to be careful of ticket restrictions.
Purbeck Dorset, Dino country amongst some amazing nature and history, enjoy 🤞🕊
Great videos mate, and from my hometown of Chester, hope you enjoyed your stay.
14:55 - about the train lines, you don't necessarily need to sign up to different companies because you can buy tickets for most (if not all) trains in the UK through Trainline (with a fee) or even GWR (without a fee), but undoubtedly a little bit of your data will be sent to the operating companies anyway. But it does make it easier if you just want to download one app and have all your tickets in one place.
Our countryside is our best asset. Visit the ancient towns. And yes, London is essentially a different country to England.
Almost none of our countryside is natural and our wildlife driven to non existance.
@@Mkbshg8 Ridiculous hyperbole. Our collaboration with nature is what our countryside is - and it's beautiful. There's plenty of wildlife. Deer are at record numbers.
London felt more like Mumbai than England
@@UDRNeonVinylScratch Indeed. It's 37% native.
@@UDRNeonVinylScratch Because Mumbai has so many Europeans of course
Obviously tips are appreciated regardless of where you go even if it's just a couple of quid, but tip at a sit down restaurant rather than at a pub bar. a lot of the time service charge or gratuity charge is added on anyway and will be on the receipt.
As a Alabama crimson tide fan I get that feeling of switching on your team
Good to see you in Liverpool Wolter. Love you mate
love to the scousers!
One correction: it is true that we form queues, but we definitely do complain about it. In fact, setting up the queue is secondary to complaining about the queue. We actually complain about queues before we get to a queue. ‘Ahhh, the queues are going to be terrible, should we even bother?’
Tipping is not expected in the UK. It is becoming more of a thing, but it's not like the US/Canada where not tipping will cause offence. Many (perhaps even most) people do not tip at all.
Nope. Tipping is optional. Service charge is more of a thing and has been for a long time. Usually you find tip jars instead.
@@deadzio they call 'tipping here the service charge. It's optional.
Also if travelling by train, try and book as far ahead as possible. It can be much cheaper. Also choosing to travel on a specific train at a specific time will also be cheaper than an open ticket
6:10 - Depends on the time of year you come here with the whole rain thing, and yeah towards the start of the year are the wetter and stormier months.
It’s always interesting seeing England through the eyes of tourists. It usually blows peoples minds how close you are to history. My friend lived on a farm when I was in school and his house was over 350 years old and some of the out buildings were originally built over 1000 years ago. Where my sister lives there’s a 800 year old castle with its walls around the town and boats on the river that were built on the dock in the 1700s. I think most people go to the city’s instead of the smaller towns that hold onto the history.
Also don’t forget over the thousands of years the vikings, Roman Empire, the French and many other places invaded and left their own history too.
Absolutely! We went to Berwick-upon-tweed this summer and loved the amazing almost complete fortified town walls and the docks. I live in St Albans which is packed with Roman, early Christian and medieval history and everything since, and I never grow tired of it!
Great Video as always! I am from the South East of England and I highly recommend our seaside towns of Eastbourne, Brighton, Hastings, and Bexhill-on-Sea. So much History here, you have Pevensey Castle and the 1066 Trail, Beachy Head and the South Downs National Park, The Harbour and beaches. Its just stunning😊
Southend pier is quite neat too, aint much else here though
Best of all, the Isle of Wight. The jewel of the south.
Half seven stands for half an hour past 7, this explains it better I think. Thx
Where I live we say "Half past seven" etc.
I learned that from reading Harry Potter fanfiction.
I would have thought that it would have been an obvious thing to work out. I know alot of American school children 14 or 15 year olds can't even tell the time so what hope have they of working out what half 7 means 🤣
@@lizvickers7156 Not obvious at all, if you leave out the "past". In Germany for example (as he says), "halb sieben" means half _to_ seven, i. e. 6:30. I always say the "half", but I know parts of England (and some generations) don't.
So interesting to watch this as an English person, your knowledge and passion is amazing and there's loads of great tips in this video. You're also bang on about making sure to visit other towns and cities than London. London is great but it's a completely different experience to pretty much everywhere else in the country.
Slight mistake at 15:00, but as long as it's a company that runs trains in the UK (except Eurostar), you can buy any ticket for any journey irrespective of the train company you bought from and the company that runs the route, and the price won't be any different. So you can buy all your tickets from one of these companies and It's always cheaper than a third party website like trainline or omio (so don't buy from them). While buying an anytime or off peak ticket gives flexibility, the savings with buying an advanced ticket for a specific departure time is often worth it.
Hebden bridge , Whitby , bourton on the water , Peak District, Haworth , pateley bridge, staithes, robin hoods bay , hawes , knaresbourgh , Harrogate, a few hidden jems in the north for people to explore when in England 😀
I don't know why you had to sign up with 4 or 5 different train companies.
Tickets for all operators can usually be purchased from 1 site.
And it's not that you have to use one of the non affiliated sites that charge fees, you can buy tickets for trains in on the East Anglian trains site, trains for Wales on the Kent trains site, all the regional sites sell tickets for anywhere, they are required to. If you can find one that provides cashback, use that one!
@@chrisredditch It’s more that you sometimes get a deal by using the one you’re travelling on
Used to travel to the UK on business. Beautiful country. Round a bouts are easy. Rail system is outstanding.
You must have used a different rail system to me then. Been terrible since at least 2014. Strikes are currently long-running and no end in sight.
Oh, that's just given me a good chuckle. Our rail system is not outstanding. It's absolutely awful. It's old and hap-hazard in coverage. It's permanently running at maximum traffic capacity. It's slow and inefficient. The trains are massively overcrowded to the point of being unsafe. It's massively unreliable, with constant delays, cancellations and strikes. It's also outrageously expensive to use, by far the most expensive in all of Europe. Countries with genuine outstanding rail systems, that put the UK to shame are Switzerland, Japan, Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, etc.
@@andywilliams7323 That's the legacy of inventing the transport. It was built haphazardly at the whims of major landlords and rail barons. Including at both ends of the spectrum: some landowners wanted their own personal station (and they were granted, usually if they financed the whole line), to objecting to being anywhere near the new railway and having to find new much more expensive routes to build. Very few new routes have been built since Victorian times. The track itself has been upgraded and replaced, but it's essentially still the Victorian system. 20th century urbanisation means it's difficult to change or expand the capacity of those routes. The railway built over fields are now surrounded by townscape. The other countries had the luxury of seeing our pioneering experiment and designing railways with some practical examples of how they work. But people have had the same complaints as now since at least the 60s: late, dirty, crowded etc. And that was the start of the diesel era!
I don't drive and rely on trains (and buses) in the UK and agree that the rail system is for the most part very good, although ticketing can be very confusing (especially for tourists!) and is genrally too expensive.
One thing about the National Trust is there's more than just the houses and there's the locations where the NT has free parking for badge holders. There's many NT and English Heritage properties that are access to ancient monuments , landscapes wildlife and beaches ,
.That is a really nice and , as an English person I'd say , a very helpful guide. Thank you for helping American tourists to make the best of their visit. I am hosting a conference this summer where there are a number of Americans coming so some of yuor advice is useful to me when I am briefing them and hoping to help them-enjoy themselves without making "mistakes".