Here in Britain we can’t resist a freebie and whether you’re looking for music, museums or markets, we’ll prove you really can get something for nothing. So stash your cash and read on to discover 10 activities that won’t cost you a penny.
1. Free Museums
Fancy journeying back to the time of the dinosaurs, meeting an Egyptian mummy or experiencing wartime Britain? Then seek out Britain’s free museums and galleries. Try Glasgow’s sparkly new Riverside Museum (link is external) with historic vehicles funkily displayed in a triumphant Zaha Hadid building, Tate Britain in London with its unmatchable collection of work by JMW Turner or the Merseyside Maritime Museum (link is external) for a dose of British seafaring history. There are loads more all over the UK to suit every taste.
2. Historic Ceremonies
For a good old bit of pomp and pageantry book ahead to see the Ceremony of the Keys (link is external) at the Tower of London or take yourself down to Buckingham Palace to see Changing the Guard every day. If you want a glimpse of the Queen, line the Mall to see Trooping the Colour (link is external) (in June) or attend the State Opening of Parliament.
3. Parks and gardens
The UK’s stuffed with enticing green spaces with lush grass, perfumed flowers and acres of room to wander in. In London, Greenwich Park (link is external)
has terrific views across the river to Canary Wharf, Regent’s Park
boasts fragrant rose gardens and Richmond Park guards ancient trees and
roaming deer. Or head to the Royal Botanic Garden (link is external) in Edinburgh for a huge range of native and exotic plants, mature trees and outdoor sculptures.
4. Free concerts
Want to see a gig or concert for free? Then get down to the Wales Millennium Centre (link is external) for free lunchtime and early evening concerts or the Southbank Centre (link is external)
in London for regular gigs covering everything form jazz to classical,
dance and rock. You’ll also find that pubs and clubs up and down the
country often have free gigs for all to enjoy – so keep your eyes and
ears open and check local listings. In Scotland you can’t beat an
impromptu folk session in a pub, with whisky flowing to get you in the
mood.
5. Street theatre
Head
to Edinburgh in August as the Festival kick-starts a manic programme of
entertainment that often spills onto the Scottish capital’s streets.
Larger shows in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (link is external)
are also often free and you might just catch the next big thing. In
London you can enjoy street entertainment year round at Covent Garden or
on the South Bank near the London Eye.
6. Shopping and markets
Even without cash to splash, there’s a special pleasure in checking out some of the most famous shops in the world. Harrods (link is external)
in London is a landmark in its own right and the tile-decked,
caviar-stuffed foodhall has to be seen to be believed. If markets are
more your thing, seek out Borough Market (link is external)
in London selling alluring food of every description and offering free
samples or Columbia Road flower market that transforms London’s East End
with a riot of colourful blooms. In Scotland, the Barras market in
Glasgow is the place to sample Glaswegian banter at its best.
7. Public art
Art
needn’t be confined to galleries and round Britain there are a number
of inspiring, large-scale sculptures for all to see. Anthony Gormley’s Angel of the North (link is external)
near Newcastle has become an iconic figure with his stirring Another
Place at Crosby Beach not far behind. Andy Goldsworthy’s Striding
Arches, a series of stone sculptures in Dumfries and Galloway in
Scotland, are an impressive sight, as is Thomas Heatherwick’s enormous
shimmering sculpture Bleigiessen (link is external), the centrepiece of the Wellcome Trust’s Gibbs Building in London. To find out more about public art in the UK visit Public Art Online (link is external)
8. Carnivals, festivals and parades
Britain has a packed calendar of free events throughout the year celebrating everything from food to flowers. Cardiff Big Weekend (link is external) hosts the biggest names from pop, the Notting Hill Carnival (link is external)
in London is a weekend of non-stop partying Caribbean style and Bonfire
Night in November sees firework displays up and down the country.
9. Prehistoric monuments
In Britain you can’t go far without bumping into something really ancient. The Avebury (link is external)
stone circle in Wiltshire is thought to be over 4,000 years old and
wandering freely among the stones is a magical experience. The Cerne Abbas giant (link is external), a huge, naked figure etched in chalk on a hillside near Dorchester is also shrouded in mystery and the Uffington White chalk Horse (link is external) is equally awesome in scale. For more details on Britain’s free ancient monuments visit the National Trust (link is external).
10. Take a walk
With
the long summer days and warm weather there’s no better or cheaper way
to explore Britain’s beautiful countryside than on foot. No fewer than
15 National Trails (link is external)
pass through some of the most stunning and diverse landscapes in
England and Wales and offer clearly marked long-distance walking routes.
Check out the equivalent long distance routes (link is external) in Scotland if you want to walk north of the border.
