Unspoken London rules every tourist should know 📝
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- Опубліковано 29 лют 2024
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‘Downtown’ is American. It’s not used anywhere in the U.K., not just London!
But we do love to say down south 😂
We don’t use downtown, but we do use down town 😅
@@KamaalJones That is such a GREAT remark I need to explain it for Americans. We don't use 'the downtown' as a noun. We call it the 'the town centre' or 'the city centre'. However, if we are actually going there we often say we are 'going down town'. Two words. Clear? Good.
How’d they know abt London, there American?
So what about Downtown Abbey?
Never get the underground from Covent Garden to Leicester Square. Quicker to walk
And charing X to embankment
A nice stroll down Long Acre.
I second this, it’s really not (too) far
If u live in central cycling or bus is always cheaper
@@taiterobinson793 Absolutely agree with you. And healthier and much cheaper.
The escalator rule is not unspoken, you get reminded of it and there are signs
Shame few people in London actually speak English nowadays to understand the signs
@@jamesmacdonald1116 good thing there are also pictograms of standing on the right too 👍
I was going to say this myself
@@jamesmacdonald1116when you visit other countries are you fluent in their languages? Or do you expect tourists that visit here to hold that standard. Because it is only really tourists that don’t follow these rules
@@wotzcheez yes
Top Tip: Take the No11 bus from Liverpool St station to Sloane Square and you'll pass a lot of the sights.
With an Oyster travel card you can just hop on and off without paying for a tour bus
As someone who has lived in London for the past 18 years, the most annoying part on the underground is not people standing on the right side of the escalator but rather people not moving out of the way at the bottom and the top of the escalator.I understand you're new to the area, I know you don't know where you're going, but move aside and then look it up! Only the wealthy can afford to live in central, most of us spend 1+ hours to get to and from work every day, and we count every minute, you being in our way really sparks up our passive aggressiveness !
You'd be surprised by who does live in very central London and who isn't rich. I lived just off T Square and both ends of Oxford St
Thank you for sharing! I'm going on a trip, too! By the way I found it possible to use code on trainpal to get a discount on the purchase of tickets, which saved my budget lol! 🎉
Who's "our"?
Why is it "keep right" in England but "keep left" in Australia. I mean you guys colonised us and have us drive in the left like you guys. How'd you end up with keeping right?
Wealthy and those in social housing
The best part of the video is u mentioning it is better to walk rather than taking a public transport.
I have walked miles and miles in the city of London.
Thx for sharing 👏
As a Londoner, I can definitely stand by these!
I can't agree more! It is helpful for tourists ~ By the way, I found that I can get a discount on tickets with code on trainpal ~🎉
As someone from the Netherlands I must say I love the escalator rule and even follow it in my own country.
I'm from Australia & have always done it, about 2/3 of people do it here in major cities, with the rest really letting us down
@B_men. Geweldig!
But people do actually do it in NL as well.
It’s the silent rule.
This rule also applies in France, I thought it was like that everywhere in Europe
@@augth it wasn't like that when I went to Madrid. I can't remember what Milan was like 😂
Also don't say the river 'T A Y M E S' it's pronounced ' T E M S' and don't get upset when we correct you.
And don't say Thames river either. It's river Thames!
She mentioned that.
The same things apply for Munich.
Was expecting the Brits to stand on the left and walk on the right, due to different traffic rules 😅
the escalator you can take will always be on the left, the right hand escalator(s) will be going the other way.
Overtaking is just on the left and the reason is probably arbitrary.
Me too!!
More people are right handed than left handed, so it makes sense for people to hold onto the rail on the right.
It's drive on the left, here - not be stationary on the left.
@@wessexdruid7598 don't you have the faster line on the right? If you want to pass another vehicle, do you do that on the line to the right or left of it?
Sometimes it's also quicker to walk than to get the tube, especially during rush hour when you might even have to queue for the train. And I don't just mean stuff like the Leicester Square to Covent Garden thing, but also journeys like London Bridge to Liverpool Street. You have to get down to the platform, wait for a train, maybe walk through long corridors when changing, get back up again once you arrive. You can walk quite a bit in this time.
I always walk around London,it's quicker for me
You can defy catch me power walking everywhere...I've lived in London practically my whole life and learnt the hard way MANY times 😂
Sta.nding on the right on London Underground escalators. Is not an unwritten rule. It is written into the Bylaws.
Section 9 (1) States.
No person shall use any escalator. Except by standing or walking on it in the direction intended for travel. Persons shall keep to the right of escalators when not walking.
9 (6) states A person who attempts to breach any of the Bylaws 9 (1) to 9 (5). Shall be liable to the same penalties under the Bylaws as if he had breached the Bylaw.
😂😂😂😂
I always used to get the tube, until a friend who lived in London told me how near a lot of the places I wanted to visit were to each other.
I went on the subway once in NY, then thought I’d rather save money and walk. Lost a load of weight and got to places eventually. So it’s all good. Plus London street signs are easier to read (in my opinion) there is just one name of a street rather then 42nd and Main or whatever. That was much harder to grasp. Plus on the underground there are occasional maps in the wall, with “you are here”. So it’s easier to get around.
We used to play tricks with family and friends who visited, Go into town, say I have a few things to do, here is your tube map, I will meet you here and point at a station. off the would go, and 30 minutes later I would meet them as they exited the station 100 yards down the road from where I left them. (Favourite was Waterloo to Southwark its 1 stop on the Jubilee line, or you walk along the platform at Waterloo East and down the steps )
We have the same rules on the TTC in Toronto. It mimics road traffic rules in a way. Slower moving traffic on the right, passing on the left.
In the clip you can clearly see a sign asking people to stand on the right
And please queue… for transport, in shops etc. Not queuing is the practice of barbarians.
This is an old one but tourists (especially American tourists) need reminding often. We know we have some difficult to pronounce names here so if you get stuck on how to say something just ask someone. Most people won’t mind. So if you want to go to Leicester Square as someone first how it’s pronounced. By the way you say it as “LESTER Square” please don’t ever say the dreadful “LIE-SESS-TER” you will just be met with lots of eye rolls and tutting.
I once heard Americans call is Lei-CHESTER Square. 😂
The escalator rule also exists in Australia, just in reverse. And yes people will remind you it exists!
The Oz way makes more sense as it's consistent with how you overtake someone when driving (or walking) in countries that drive on the left
Everyone blocks the escalators in Oz. They need lessons
As someone who lived in London for 40 years, and worked in central London for 15 years. My top tip is Walk, forget the Tube or Bus, Many of the big sites are minutes apart. Also (and this is a tip for the locals as well) LOOK UP! above the modern glass frontages in shopping areas are fantastic old buildings, statues, and Bridges between the buildings that many miss.
Another little tip is When in Knights Bridge, take a break from the main road with the shops and take a wander around the roads off the main streets. The hustle and bustle disappears and you will find yourself in quiet streets with birds signing.
I always prefer to walk in London and even if it’s a few miles as I don’t live there I still enjoy seeing all the buildings
My mother would take us to London during the School Holidays. We would go to the museums in South Kensington and would often walk back to King's Cross which was about 3 miles.
I like these video shorts , well presented and good content 👍
Yay! Thanks!
The first one is also a rule in São Paulo, Brazil
Being born and lived in London all my life I can't stress enough how much I learnt from this video
We actually call Central London ‘town’ even if we live in London. I live in Primrose Hill, but if I were going to say, Fitzrovia, I’d call that ‘town’
The escalator rule only really applies when on the underground. There are signs telling people to stand on the right.
In my experience, we'll apply these rules to every escalator we come across. If it works, it works. Although tbf, I wouldn't begrudge someone not doing it outside of a train station.
You'll see more of London walking
When you're alone, and life is making you lonely you can always go Downtown London.
You cannot 😂😂
Not Get out of the way, more likely to be a perhaps harshly stage whispered
Excuse me!
G.o.o.t.w. is stereotypically New York I'd say.
Your videos and guide were so helpful for my trip toLondon. Your tips made it so much easier and I will be forever grateful! Thank you!!!!
Happy to help!
Standing on the right on an escalator on the Underground isn’t an unwritten rule. It’s literally all over signs on the escalators.
Unless it is pissing down with rain - i never need the tube. I can easily walk from kings cross and be over the thames in half an hour. Easy to walk around and you see far more of the city that way.
I work there and commute in from Cambridge and i can leave home and be at work in just over 1 hour including walking to the office.
The first rule applies for all of Europe
And dont ask me for directions . I got lost for 40 mins yesterday 😅 trying to find Bancroft Road. Was supposed to be 3 mins walk
This would be even funnier if it turned out to be your way to work or something 😅
Great advice from a kind american lady 👍 and a great team 👍
The reason we don't say downtown London is because it has multiple centres. It would make sense in pretty much any other British city in context. In London we'd say "in town" or "in central" generally for talking about the Soho and surrounding areas.
There's a research that shows standing on both sides increases escalator's throughput capacity. I don't quite get how it works but it works. At any given time an escalator with two rows of standing people has more people on it than an escalator that has people walk. I.e. the density is higher with both sides full.
This is critical for peak hours. When passenger flow is low, it doesn't seem to make any difference.
True its quicker for everyone if the escalator has two lines of standing people. Trouble is people don’t care about everyone and they want to move faster as an individual. After the experiment they asked people what they preferred and most said to keep walking on the left
Good luck trying that in London 😂
@davidm4614 , one may (may!) rush when there are not many people, when the escalator works well below its carrying capacity.
In rush hours people should be discouraged from trying to overspeed others cuz it can create issues, especially on an escalator. One trips and falls and the domino effect can do the rest. In rush hours the stand-on-both-sides rule caters to the needs of most people, one person's rush mustn't be respected, as it were, when estimating any metrics you can come up with.
The same works on highways: "playing checkers" (this is what we call switching from lane to lane in a hurry) is bad for the traffic flow in general and creates waves of congestion.
Rushing is only allowed for special services: fire brigades, balances, police.
As for the Moscow metro, trains arrive insanely frequently, like every minute or two (and I used to take it for granted). There's no need to rush. If you rush thru a crowd, you risk tripping and falling. If you keep a train's door open to catch this train or let someone hurrying in, this disrupts the train traffic. Their schedule is already very dense and your rush or encouraging other people's rush can cause a wave of train delays. This is a very solid reason not to rush in Moscow metro. One person must not disrupt the system.
In my first months in Moscow I sometimes behaved like an idiot thinking I was smarter breaking the rules. I was full. I found out very soon that my haste isn't even good for myself.
Yes, they trialled it at Holborn station a few years ago. Standing on both sides reduced congestion by 30%... Somehow 😅
Or the postalcode, like: is that E20?
Even as a lifelong local I've always found standing on the right on escalators insane when in every other mode of transport or moving in general, you keep left and allow people to pass on the right.
And please never make eye contact with us on the tube, it’s just not cricket….
You all sound like rude cold people
Don't Sing in Downtown London 🎶 they won't give you a Dime 😅
“Unspoken rules” the first one is signposted everywhere
I use Uber so not so worried about where to stand but on a curb.
Why Do I stand in the right side if there keeps the left? Isn't the left side the slow one? As in Australia?
Most people are right handed, so standing on the right allows you to grip the handrail with your dominant hand.
Never climb the stairs at Covent Garden. Just take the fucking lift. You'll regret it otherwise. It's like 191 steps and the first 'rest' spot is at like 128, at that point you might as well finish it.
If you want the exercise that badly, walk from Leicester square.
Only one thing was London specific, the rest is common sense
That’s just it, common sense is the things that go without being said _because_ it’s part of your everyday life. But cultures differ, and because of that so does common sense. Most USAers don’t live in a megacity with comprehensive public transport, so Tube etiquette would be entirely new to them.
I can tell you from my upbringing in small-town Oklahoma that if you _walked_ on an escalator that was already moving, and especially go around other people to do so, you’d be the weirdo. They’d look at you funny like, “Where do you have to be that’s so important?”
@@Magic_beans_ Iam from a half milion city in Europe that has no metro, its still an unspoken rule to stand on the right on escalators and let space for people that are in hurry on the left.
On the escalator you can walk down on either side, but if you stand then stand on the right.
The people standing on the right will block you walking down on that side though 😉
@@loveandlondon Bloody hell, come on, apply your brains! You only walk on the right when there is no one in front of you.
U forgot something, we politely line up, for a bus or a shop watever. 1st come 1st serve is our motto. U will have a problem if u try to jump the line for the bus or anything. we take mental notes often 😂
Unspoken? There's literally announcements played next to every bank of escalators TELLING you to stand on the right and walk on the left 😂😂😂
Use a London black taxi and your have no problems and get there safely and they will help you to where u want to go
You must be a black cab. Guys just use Uber
@@TH3YGXNE no I’m not actually but there is 4 people with luggage why would they want to squeeze into an Uber car
Get in iconic London black taxi with a driver that knows where he’s going and has completed the knowledge of London that would me my advice
If youre outside the centre, we call the centre "the city" (the city of london is an offical area)= not to be confused with the financial district, also called the city .... Ok, i can see how this might not be helpful
Haha it's confusing isn't it
@@AIJimmybad I'm from South west London, 'the west end' is an old east Londoner way to say "going up town" or "going up the city" and I would personally only ever call the theatre district 'the west end' - you are right to say not all people use the same terms as I can guarantee some of us in Wandsworth still call the centre 'the city'. But it's all just silly londonisims
We definitely don't. I'm 48 years old Londoner born and bred. We refer to central London as 'town'. As in 'I'm going into town'
@@user-yh4fr1tt1c true true, town and city would be the only acceptable ones for me!
Into town would probably be my favourite but because I didn't live near the high street 'going into town' could also just mean going to the nearest town centre (Clapham, Wandsworth, Wimbledon for us)
Reading this in London
As a Londoner, if you don’t follow then the rules on the tube (stand on right of escalator, wait for people to get off the train before getting on, don’t stand in the way at bottom of escalators or gates) then we will hate you. It’s totally personal.
LOL
Unspoken London Rules. Rule #1 is written on every escalator on the Underground. You can even see it in your video.
If you say be downtown London…..WE KNOW WHAT YOU ARE!
Yeaa so I was there last week and I wanted to go to this place, It said 20 minutes with public transport, I said hmm let me check walking, walking was 19 minutes. I said f that let me walk. Especially since it was peak hour
Big tip, get a bus on the road out of there
I thought brits held the left lane in traffic.. but not on an escalator
Probably because "downtown" is very American. No one else says that. Most cities in the rest of the world tend to have specific names for the central parts of the cities. For example where I am from....Cape Town....it is called the city bowl. The term "downtown" also often makes eff all sense as the central area is not "down" from anything. It may be in a Northern, Western, or Eastern direction. So the term "downtown" just sounds nonsensical.
Visited London over 20 years ago. Glad I had that chance because I won't be setting foot in the UK again. It's not British anymore.
Ugh god you sound so annoying
Or when bus drivers go on strike😅
The first one is literally a written rule
Haha
Unspoken?
It actually says everywhere to keep right 😂😂
The first one isn’t an unspoken rule. There are literally tons of signs on every escalator on the underground
You'd think it be like Australia on the escalator on the left, cause we drive on the left 😂
@@AIJimmybad no apparently it's the right hand side on the escalator in London and I noticed this on the tube. In Australia we stand on the left, so people can pass quickly on the right
Everything's upside down in Australia!
To be fair for once these are all both accurate and also probably useful to a foreigner
Like the background 🎶
But what side of the sidewalk are you supposed to walk on????
Doesn't matter!
So everyone just runs into each other all the time
Nice city
Where is that area in the very last part of the video?
Neals yard in seven dials
Ask for the toilet and not restroom like in America
Down town london ☠️☠️☠️
Generic advises that are applicable to every city in the world I'd say 😂
Why is an American giving travel tips for London
I know right? ew gross
I won't remember
No such thing as central London either. Its west end or city of london.
LOL
They are the 2 parts of Central London
West London is the Best London.
I don’t understand why people come to London for a holiday, it’s crowded, smelly, dirty, wet and an overpriced tourist trap. Go somewhere nice with a beach and pleasant weather where you can relax and enjoy yourself.
You're gonna hate our videos then lol
@@loveandlondon Na I don’t hate your videos, just as a 37 year old cockney that has lived in central London my entire life I don’t get why it’s a holiday destination lol.
Unspoken?? There are so many signs to stay on the right!!
Given that we drive on the left, it makes no sense to stand to the right on escalators.
UK logic: We drive on the left, we walk on the left, but we stand on the right and tell no one. 🤨
😎
Or hire a bike.
What is the tube, I’m from Michigan
Our underground train system ❤️
@@loveandlondondon't lie to the man. It's a tunnel system we use to avoid having to talk to tourists on our way to work. The whole "underground train system" thing is just a hoax. In reality, londoners use the tube. It's a high-powered capsule pipeline for people.
Interesting, so Brits use right-hand-traffic on escalators.
And who are you to sell London guide what do you know as an american…why is it everytime american go to anitger country always make money of something too opportunistic
Hey Cora! Our founder Jess has lived in London for 11 years and has worked in travel since she started. Over 4 million people every month find our (mostly free) content helpful, but if you don't, no worries!