Business

London is a world business hub, and doing business here (not including the media and new-technology industries) is as formal as you would expect from the English. Looking smart at all times is still seen as a key indicator of professionalism, along with punctuality and politeness. Business cards are commonplace.

Business Hours

While the City of London continues to work a very traditional Monday to Friday 0900 to 1700 routine (the Square Mile is deserted at weekends), business hours elsewhere in the city are extremely flexible. Larger shops and chain stores are usually open until 1900 Monday to Friday, as well as until at least 1700 Saturday and Sunday. Thursday is late night shopping in the West End.

Banks in central London are now usually open until 1700, although counter transactions after 1530 are usually not processed until the next working day. Post offices vary in their opening times, but most are open from 0900 to 1730 Monday to Saturday. Pubs and bars usually open from midday until 2300, shortly after which punters will have to leave unless the premises has a late licence.

Restaurants are usually open for lunch from noon until 1430, and dinner from1900 until 2200. Those hours are for ‘food served’ rather than ‘restaurant open’.

Restaurants are usually open for lunch from noon until 1430, and dinner from1900 until 2200. Those hours are for ‘food served’ rather than ‘restaurant open.

Climate

The old adage that ‘London doesn’t have a climate, it has weather’ refers to the fickleness of the atmospheric conditions in the region. Plan a picnic in a park in the morning and it will be raining by noon; go to a film to escape a wet and dreary afternoon, and you’ll emerge to bright sunshine in a blue, cloudless sky. You just never know.

But London does have a climate – in fact, among the mildest in England – known as ‘temperate maritime’, with mild and damp winters and moderate summers. It’s wise to expect cloudy weather and rain even in the height of summer.

In July and August temperatures average around 18°C but can occasionally soar to 30°C or more. During most summers, however, you’ll be lucky if the mercury tops the mid-20s. Even so, the summer of 2003 was one of the hottest ever on record for Britain and much of Europe. London sizzled at a record-breaking 37.9C in August, breaking once and for all the stereotype of the mild English summer.

In spring and autumn temperatures drop to between 11° and 15°C. In winter they hover just below 6°C; it very rarely freezes in London these days and snow is a very infrequent visitor. It may seem mild, but the dampness can often make it feel much colder.

For the Greater London weather forecast, ring Weathercall on 0906 654 3268, at a cost of 60p per minute.

Electricity

The standard voltage throughout the UK is 230/240V AC, 50Hz. Plugs have three square pins. Adaptors for European, Australasian and American electrical items are available at any electrical store.

Holidays

Britons don’t get a lot of holidays compared with other developed countries, although things are definitely a lot better than they were before the Bank Holidays Act was passed in 1871. Until then employers only allowed their workers to take off Christmas Day and Good Friday.

Public Holidays

Most attractions and businesses close for a couple of days over Christmas, and those that normally shut on Sunday will probably do so on Bank Holiday Mondays.

New Year’s Day 1 January
Good Friday/Easter Monday late March/April
May Day Holiday first Monday in May
Spring Bank Holiday last Monday in May
Summer Bank Holiday last Monday in August
Christmas Day/Boxing Day 25 & 26 December

School Holidays

These change from year to year and often from school to school. Moreover, public (i.e. private) school holidays tend to differ from those of state schools. As a general rule, however:

Summer holiday late July–early September
Autumn half term last week of October
Christmas holidays 20 December–6 January
Spring half term one week in mid-February
Easter holidays two weeks either side of Easter Sunday
Summer half term one week end of May/early June

Legal Matters

Should you face any legal difficulties while in London visit any one of the Citizens Advice Bureaux throughout London or you can contact the Community Legal Services Directory (Tel: 0845 608 1122).

Driving Offences

The laws against drink-driving have become tougher and are treated more seriously than they used to be. Currently you’re allowed to have a blood-alcohol level of 35mg/100mL but there’s talk of reducing the limit. The safest approach is not to drink anything at all if you’re planning to drive.

Drugs

Illegal drugs of every type are widely available in London, especially in clubs. Nonetheless, all the usual drug dangers apply and there have been several high-profile deaths associated with ecstasy, the purity of which is often dubious. Cannabis has recently been reclassified as a Class C drug, which means possessing small quantities will not result in the user being arrested. However, there are still stiff penalties for dealing and handling large amounts of the drug. No other drugs have been reassessed, and be warned that other drugs are treated much more seriously.

Fines

In general you rarely have to cough up on the spot for an offence. The exceptions are trains, the tube and buses, where people who can’t produce a valid ticket for the journey when asked to by an inspector can be fined there and then – £5 on buses and £10 on trains and the tube. No excuses are accepted.

At the time of writing, the British government was in the process of giving police new powers to impose on-the-spot fines for antisocial behaviour. These run from £40 for being drunk and disorderly, buying alcohol for under-18s or throwing fireworks in the street, to £80 for making false 999 calls or wasting police time.

Medical Services

Reciprocal arrangements with the UK allow residents of Australia, nationals of New Zealand, and residents and nationals of several other countries to receive free emergency medical treatment and subsidised dental care through the National Health Service (NHS; Tel: 0845 4647). They can use hospital emergency departments, GPs and dentists. Visitors of 12 months or longer, with the proper documentation, will receive care under the NHS by registering with a specific practice near their residence.

EU nationals can obtain free emergency treatment on presentation of an E111 form that has been validated in their home country. Travel insurance, however, is advisable as it offers greater flexibility over where and how you’re treated and covers expenses for an ambulance and repatriation that won’t be picked up by the NHS.

Hospitals

Royal London Hospital

Tel: +44 (020) 7377 7000
Whitechapel Rd E1; tube Whitechapel.

University College Hospital

Tel: +44 (020) 7387 9300;
Grafton Way WC1; tube Euston Square.

Dental Services

To find an emergency dentist phone the Dental Emergency Care Service (Tel: +44 (020) 7955 2186) between 0845 and 1530 Monday to Friday, or call into Eastman Dental Hospital (Tel: +44 (020) 7915 1000; 256 Gray’s Inn Rd WC1; tube King’s Cross).

Telephone

British Telecom’s (BT’s) famous red phone boxes survive in conservation areas only (notably Westminster), while some private phone companies have painted theirs black and installed them around Piccadilly and Charing Cross. More common these days are the glass cubicles with phones that accept coins, phonecards and/or credit cards.

BT offers £3, £5, £10 and £20 phonecards that are widely available from retailers including most post offices and newsagents. A digital display on the telephone indicates how much credit is left on the card.

The following are some important telephone numbers and codes:

International dialling code 00
Local and national directory enquiries 118 500
International directory enquiries 153
Local and national operator 100
International operator 155
Reverse-charge/collect calls 155
Time 123
Weathercall (Greater London) 0906 654 3268

Be advised that some of the numbers above are charged calls. Some special phone codes worth knowing include:

Toll-free 0500/0800
Local call rate applies 0845
National call rate applies 0870
Premium rate applies (from 60p per minute) 09

Calling London

London’s area code is 020 followed by an eight-digit number beginning with 7 or 8. You only need to dial the 020 when you are calling London from elsewhere in the UK. To call London from abroad, dial your country’s international access code, then 44 (the UK’s country code), then 20 (dropping the initial 0) followed by the eight-digit phone number.

Local & National Call Rates

Local calls are charged by time alone; regional and national calls are charged by both time and distance. Daytime rates apply from 0800 to 1800 Monday to Friday; the cheap rate applies from 1800 to 0800 Monday to Friday; and the cheap weekend rate applies from midnight Friday to midnight Sunday. The last two rates offer substantial savings.

Calls to local and national directory enquiries cost 11p per minute from public phones (minimum deposit of 20p) and 40p from private phones.

International Calls and Rates

International direct dialling (IDD) calls to almost anywhere can be made from nearly all public telephones. To call someone outside the UK dial 00, then the country code, then the area code (you usually drop the initial zero if there is one) and then the number. For example, to ring Melbourne, where the area code is 03 and the code for Australia is 61, you would dial 00-61-3-1234 5678. To reach Boston, where the area code is 617 and the code for the USA is 1, dial 00-1-617-123 4567.

Direct dialling is cheaper than making a reverse-charge (collect) call through the international operator (Tel: 155). International directory enquiries (Tel: 153) cost a whopping £1.50 per minute from private phones.

Some private firms such as Callshop offer cheaper international calls than BT. Try the Earl’s Court branch of Callshop (Tel: +44 (020) 7390 4549; 181a Earl’s Court Rd SW5; tube Earl’s Court; h 9am-11pm); in such shops you phone from a metered booth and then pay the bill. Some cybercafés and Internet access shops, such as Internet Lounge in Earl’s Court, also offer cheap rates for international calls.

It’s also possible to undercut BT international call rates by buying a special card (usually denominated £5, £10 or £20) with a PIN that you use from any phone, even a home phone, by dialling a special access number. There are dozens of cards available – with bizarre names such as Alpha, Omega, Banana Call, First National and Swiftlink – available from newsagents and grocers. To decide which is best you really have to compare the rate each offers for the particular country you want – posters with the rates of the various companies are often displayed in shop doors or windows.

Mobile Phones

The UK uses the GSM 900 network, which covers the rest of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, but is not compatible with the North American GSM 1900 or the totally different system in Japan (though many North Americans have GSM 1900/900 phones that do work here).

If you have a GSM phone, check with your service provider about using it in the UK, and beware of calls being routed internationally (very expensive for a local call). You can also rent one from various companies, including Mobell (Tel: 0800 243 524) and Cellhire (Tel: 0870 5610610) from around £20 per week, depending on the hire period. In this case, however, you can’t use your existing number.

Tipping

Many restaurants add a ‘discretionary’ service charge to your bill, but in places that don’t you are expected to leave a 10% to 15% tip unless the service was unsatisfactory. Waiting staff are often paid derisory wages on the assumption that the money will be supplemented by tips. It’s legal for restaurants to include a service charge in the bill but this should be clearly advertised.

You needn’t add a further tip. You never tip to have your pint pulled in a pub but staff at bars now often return change in a little metal dish, expecting some of the coins to glue themselves to the bottom. If you take a boat trip on the Thames you’ll find some guides and/or drivers importuning for a tip in return for their commentary. Whether you pay is up to you.

Tourist Information

London is a major travel centre, so along with information on London, tourist offices can help with England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland and most countries worldwide.

Tourist Information Centres (TICs)

London’s main TIC is the Britain and London Visitor Centre (BLVC).
1 Lower Regent St, SW1
Tube: Piccadilly Circus.
Opening hours: 9.30am - 6.30pm Mon, 9am - 6.30pm Tue - Fri and 10am - 4pm Sat & Sun. Jun - Sep, Sat & Sun 10am-5pm.

BLVC is operated by VisitBritain and is a one-stop shop for visitors to London and Britain. The centre provides free information, travel and destination advice and itinerary planning from the highly trained information staff in at least eight different languages. Visitors can redeem their London Pass vouchers and purchase Transport for London Travelcards. BLVC also offers a range of commercial services such as a travel agent, ticket agent, currency exchange (including VAT refunds) and a souvenir shop. Visitors to the centre can also access the Web in the internet lounge.

A few London boroughs and neighbourhoods have their own TICs. These include:

Bexley Hall Place TIC

Bourne Road, Bexley, Kent, DA5 1PQ
Tel: +44 (0)1322 558676 Fax: +44 (0)1322 522921
Website: www.bexley.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Sat 10am-4.30pm, Sun 2pm-5.30pm.

City Information Centre

St. Paul's Churchyard (opposite St Paul’s Cathedral), EC4M 8BX
Tel: +44 (0)20 7332 1456
www.cityoflondon.gov.uk
Opening hours: Apr-Sep, Mon-Sun 9.30pm-5pm. Oct-Mar, Mon-Sat 9.30am-12.30pm.

Croydon TIC

Katharine Street, Croydon, CR9 1ET
Tel: +44 (0)20 8253 1009 Fax: +44 (0)20 8253 1008
Website: www.croydononline.org
Email: tic@croydononline.org
Open: Mon, Tues, Wed & Fri 9am-6pm, Thu 9.30am-6pm, Sat 9am-5pm, Sun 2pm-5pm.

Greenwich

Pepys House, 2 Cutty Sark Gardens, Greenwich, SE10 9LW
Tel: +44 (0)870 608 2000 Fax: +44 (0)20 8853 4607
Website: www.greenwich.gov.uk
Email: tic@greenwich.gov.uk
Open: Daily 10am-5pm.

Harrow TIC

Civic Centre, Station Road, Harrow, HA1 2XF
Tel: +44 (0)20 8424 1103 Fax: +44 (0)20 8424 1134
Website: www.harrow.gov.uk
Email: info@harrow.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm. Sat & Sun closed.

Hillingdon TIC

Central Library, 14-15 High Street, Uxbridge UB8 1HD
Tel: +44 (0)1895 250706 Fax: +44 (0)1895 239794
Website: www.hillingdon.gov.uk
Email: clibrary@hillingdon.gov.uk
Open: Mon, Tue & Thu 9.30am-8pm, Wed 9.30am-5.30pm, Fri 10am-5.30pm, Sat 9.30am-4pm.

Hounslow TIC

The Treaty Centre, High Street, Hounslow TW3 1ES
Tel: +44 (0)845 456 2929 Fax: +44 (0)845 456 2904
Website: www.cip.org.uk
Open: Mon, Tue & Thu 9.30am-8pm, Wed, Fri & Sat 9.30am-5.30pm. Sun 11.30am-4pm.

Kingston TIC

Market House, Market Place, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 1JS
Tel: +44 (0)20 8547 5592 Fax: +44 (0)20 8547 5594
Website: www.kingston.gov.uk
Email: tourist.information@rbk.kingston.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Fri 10am-5pm, Sat 9am-4pm, Sun closed.

Lewisham TIC

Lewisham Library, 199-201 Lewisham High Street, SE13 6LG
Tel: +44 (0)20 8297 8317 Fax: +44 (0)20 8297 9241
Website: www.lewisham.gov.uk
Open: Mon 10am-5pm, Tue-Fri 9am-5pm, Sat 10am-4pm, Sun closed.

Richmond

Old Town Hall, Whittaker Avenue, Richmond, TW9 1TP
General enquiries: +44 (0)20 8940 9125 Accommodation: +44 (0)20 8940 0057 Fax: +44 (0)20 8940 6899
Website: www.visitrichmond.co.uk
Email: information.services@richmond.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Sat 10am-5pm, May-Sep Sun 10.30am-1.30pm.

Swanley TIC

London Road BR8 7AE
Tel: +44 (0)1322 614660 Fax: +44 (0)1322 666154
Email: touristinformation@swanley.org.uk
Open: Mon-Thur 9.30am-5.30pm, Fri 9.30am-6pm, Sat 9am-4pm, Sun closed.

Southwark TIC

Vinopolis, 1 Bank End, SE1 9BU
Tel: +44 (0)20 7357 9168 Fax +44 (0)20 7357 9042
Website: www.southwark.gov.uk
Email: tourism@southwark.gov.uk
Open: Tue-Sun 10am-6pm, Mon closed.

Twickenham TIC

The Atrium, Civic Centre, York Street, Twickenham, Middlesex TW1 3BZ
Tel: +44 (0)20 8891 7272 Fax: +44 (0)20 8891 7738
Website: www.richmond.gov.uk
Open: Mon-Thu 9am-5.15pm, Fri 9am-5pm, Sat & Sun closed.