BACK ROADS GREAT BRITAIN
Telephone System
Telephone service is provided by
British Telecom (BT ). Phone numbers
in Great Britain have an area code of
four or five digits beginning with “0”,
followed by a local number. When
dialling within the country, use the full
area code. When dialling from abroad,
drop the initial 0. When calling within
the same area code, you only need to
dial the local number.
To call Great Britain from abroad: first
dial your country’s international access
code, followed by the country code
for Britain (44), and the local area code
(minus the initial 0), and number.
Public pay phones take either coins
or phonecards. These are the
cheapest way to make calls and you
can buy cards at newsagents
and post offices in various
amounts. International
phonecards can be an
even cheaper way to call
abroad. Making calls from
your hotel room is generally
expensive, as most hotels
add a surcharge. Check the
charges at reception before
using the telephone.
Peak period is Mon–Fri 8am–6pm.
Both local and international calls are
cheaper after 6pm and at weekends.
There is a charge for using Directory
Enquiries, but you can look numbers
up for free on the internet. Calls to
mobile phones are more expensive.
Numbers beginning with 0845 are
charged at a local rate and 0870 at
national rate. 0800 and 0808 numbers
are toll-free. Avoid numbers beginning
with an 09 prefix – these cost up to
£1.50 per minute.
Mobile phones are convenient but
find out what the roaming chargesThese can be loaded up with money
before travelling and used in various
shops and ATMs abroad. They are
available from Thomas Cook, Travelex
and various banks. Most airports have
foreign exchange counters, but it is
easier to use a debit or credit card to
withdraw cash from one of the many
ATMs or “cashpoints” around. Check
with your bank or card provider what
they will charge you for using your
card abroad. Symbols on the ATM will
tell you which cards it accepts. Cirrus
and PLUS are widely used in Britain.
Major credit cards including Visa,
Mastercard and American Express are
accepted at most hotels, restaurants,
shops and petrol stations, but you
will need cash at pubs, small shops,
guesthouses and B&Bs. Credit card
companies are increasingly vigilant
against fraud, so it is wise to let them
know you will be using the card
abroad, so that they don’t put a block
on its use. It is also a good idea to
carry a different card for back-up.
Great Britain has largely converted
to the Chip-and-Pin system, which
requires the purchaser to enter the
card’s pin number rather than a
signature. If your card does not have
a chip and uses the magnetic strip
and signature system, then it may
not be accepted.Above Foreign newspapers for sale on a
newspaper stand14
Banks and Money
Sterling is the currency in Great
Britain. One pound is divided into 100
pence. There are £5, £10, £20, £50 and
£100 notes, and 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p,
50p, £1 and £2 coins. Scotland issues
its own bank notes, which are usable
in England. But some shops south of
the border won’t accept them, so it’s
best to ask for change in English notes
if you’re nearing the end of your stay.
Traveller’s cheques are a safe way to
carry money abroad, but they have
been largely replaced by Cash
Passports – a prepaid currency card.Symbol for a Tourist
Information Pointwill be. Great Britain is part of the GSM
system – US phones need to be tri-
band or quad-band and have
international roaming activated to
work here. Check with your supplier
before leaving. If you plan to make a
lot of calls, consider buying a cheap
“pay-as-you-go” mobile in the UK.Internet and Mail Services
You’ll find internet cafes in all the large
towns and cities. Many hotels and
guesthouses have internet access and
there are Wi-fi hotspots at coffee
shops and around the country.
The national postal system is Royal
Mail. In addition to main post offices,
there are sub-post offices in shops and
newsagents throughout the country,
where you can send packages as
well as letters and cards. You
can also buy stamps at many
newsagents. First-class mail
within the country takes
1–2 days. Allow 3–10 days
for international air mail,
depending on the final
destination. Post boxes
are painted red.