EVENTS NOT TO BE MISSED

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There are marvellous experiences you never knew you could do, such as helping the Yeoman Warders lock the Tower of London up at night in the Ceremony of the Keys (free) or actually being inside Stonehenge (just £12.70). Britain also hosts unusual events that take place only once a year and there are some world-famous occasions that only happen here, as well as our popular Premier League football matches.

• Burns Night, 25 Jan
• Chinese New Year celebrations, 26 Jan
• Six Nations Rugby, from 7 Feb
• Olney Pancake Race, Buckinghamshire – 24 Feb
• Oxford-Cambridge Boat Race, 29 Mar
• World Pooh Sticks Championships – 29 Mar
• Grand National, 2 Apr

If you’ve never been, or have been putting off a trip because of the expense, now is the time to think again about Britain.

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NON-STOP SHOPPING

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Need a souvenir? No problem. Britons love to shop almost as much as they love talking about the weather. Clothes stores such as Primark and Topshop are a favourite with Britain’s fashion forward teens – even more so since Kate Moss designed a range for the latter – but for something more memorable, scour markets such as Portobello Road (www.portobelloroad.co.uk/) in London or shopping districts like the Jewellery Quarter (www.the-quarter.com/) in Birmingham. Antiques, arts and crafts, vintage clothes – just as every cloud has a silver lining, every high street has a bargain. And remember, foreign visitors can claim back the VAT (value added tax – currently 15%) charged on most goods; just ask for a VAT refund form in the store.

NIGHTS OUT

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International restaurants have long been the source of good cheap eats in the UK – choose from Indian and Chinese to Thai, Turkish and everything in between. But in the last few years British cuisine has undergone a revolution, led by good quality pubs – ‘gastropubs’ – with a focus on simple, traditional dishes done well. It’s great news for visitors: sensibly priced food in the classic setting of the British pub. Look out especially for lunch set menus, which offer a fixed price of around £10-11 for two courses.
Fish and chips, of course, should not be missed; every town will have at least one ‘chippy’ – check out www.seafish.org/plate (www.seafish.org/plate/) for local recommendations – but the best are usually on the coast.

Pre-Theatre dining offers tasty, affordable, early evening set-menus. Examples include St Alban (www.stalban.net/) (two courses for £15.50) and Michelin-starred Arbutus (www.arbutusrestaurant.co.uk/) (three courses for £17.50). Visit Top Table (www.toptable.co.uk/) for hundreds of restaurant offers.

Top restaurants also offer fantastic deals at lunchtime, for example three courses at Angela Hartnett’s acclaimed new Murano, in London, for £25; or Edinburgh’s Restaurant Martin Wishart for £22.50