A Bit About The UK
The United Kingdom (The UK) comprises four constituent countries. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Island. Each “constituent” country has its own capital city. London is the overall capital city of the UK and the capital of England. Cardiff is the capital of Wales, Edinburgh is Scotland’s capital, and Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland.
The UK is not connected to mainland Europe as it is an island nation and has no land border with any other country (except for Ireland and Northern Ireland). The only connection with Europe is via the Channel Tunnel connecting England with France. Most people who arrive or depart the UK either arrive by plane or boat/ferry.
Flight Times
Flight times to the UK all depend on where you are coming from and what airport in the UK you want to arrive at. Anything from 45 minutes from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport in the Netherlands to London Gatwick, to 19 hours from Sydney, Australia to London Heathrow.
Check out this free to use flight time calculator to work out how long it will take you to arrive in the UK.
About Gay UK
The UK is considered to be a very safe country to visit. The LGBTQ+ Danger Index, which ranks the 150 most visited countries ranked the United Kingdom number 6 with a rating of A- and a score of 299, making the UK a safe place for LGBTQ+ people who live there and tourists alike
Brighton is known chiefly as the ‘Unofficial Gay Captial’ of the UK with one of the most prominent LGBTQ+ communities in the UK. It is estimated that up to 15% of the city’s population aged 16 or over is thought to be part of the LGBTQ+ community. Brighton Pride also attracts over 160,000 people to its annual Pride celebration, making it one of, if not the biggest in the UK.
Useful Information For Your Visit
In all four countries that form the UK, they all use Great British Pounds (GBP) (£). In Scotland & Northern Ireland they have different notes, but you can spend either in any of the four countries. Coins are 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p, £1, £2. Notes are £5, £10, £20, £50.
The main language spoken in the UK by 98% of people is “British English”. However, the UK does have a lot of regional accents. You only have to travel 20 miles from Manchester where they have a Mancunian accent to Liverpool where they have a strong Scouse accent.
The UK has one of the safest plug designs in the world. The standard voltage in the UK is 230v (three-pin plugs)
Travel plugs can be picked up from the Airports or from online retailers like Amazon
October till March is Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
March till October is British Summer Time (BST) (GMT+1)
Check out the UK Government website for entry details from your home country. (There are too many to list!)
UK GOV WEBSITE
The UK has four seasons. The warmest time to visit is summer, June till August. With December till February being the coldest months.
Check out The MET Office for an up to date forecast for your visit.
As of January 2020. Duty-Free allowances have changed with the UK no longer being in the European Union. You can now bring back the following
1) 200 Cigarettes or 250g tobacco
2) 4 Litres of Spirit or 9 Litres if under 22%
3) £390 of “other” goods. Like new perfume etc…
Tipping is not as common in the UK as in other places like the United States. Service workers get a minimal or living wage.
Tipping is generally reserved for outstanding service or if someone has gone that extra mile.
Some places like restaurants might add a service charge if your party is over a certain number.
Fun UK Facts
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Passengers
arriving & departing. to or from a UK Airport in 2019
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- LGBTQ+
people are estimated to live in the UK, as of 2019 (3%)
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Teabags
a year Brits get through. Enough to fill 31,000 football stadiums
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Miles
