How to book a West End theatre break on a budget

I recently took my mum to London to see a West End show (namely Hairspray) and we managed to do it for such a bargain price. I thought I'd break down the costs and show that you *can* enjoy a budget London theatre break in 2021!

It worked out like this...

🚌 National Express to London - £14.40pp

🏡 Hotel near Kensington Gardens - £37.10 

🎭 Theatre tickets - £78pp

🚌 Flixbus to Liverpool - £6.49pp

So for £222.89 or roughly £111 per person, we went to London, saw Hairspray, stayed overnight and made it back home again. What a bargain!

Booking our hotel

I booked our hotel through Booking.com - and £37.10 is obviously an absolute bargain of a price. I only booked it around 2-3 weeks before we were due to go, so I wasn't expecting to get anything that cheap but I sorted the results into lowest price first, scrolled past the hostels and places with shared bathrooms, and landed on the Hyde Park Boutique Hotel. We had a twin room which was a really decent size, had a big wardrobe, working window, decent bathroom and coffee making facility. It was also super clean. 10/10 would recommend; it's an equal distance from Queensway and Paddington tube stations, and only a 5 minute walk from Kensington Gardens. I was sooooo pleased with it for the price and would highly recommend if you're looking for somewhere to stay on a budget London theatre break.

Theatre tickets

So when it came to our Hairspray tickets, I used Seetickets to order them. Prices are generally the same wherever you look and it's rare to get a discount on West End show tickets but it is what it is. I paid £78pp for seats in the dress circle, which looked like they wouldn't be the *best* view but I checked online to see what people had said about this particular theatre and any seats to avoid, and it all looked okay. Which it was! We had a great view and of course, the show was incredible.

Transport to and from London

Now, travelling from Liverpool to London is expensive. With only booking the trip a couple of weeks in advance, it was looking around £180 per person to travel to and from London. I just didn't want to pay that, so we decided to suck it up and get the coach! Yes it takes 5 and a half hours and it's nowhere near as comfortable but it was also less than £21 each, return. We travelled down with National Express, who dropped us off at Marble Arch, and travelled back up with Flixbus from Finchley Road. 5 hours on a coach honestly isn't as bad as you think... I promise!

So you absolutely *can* book a budget London theatre break, you just have to shop around. Read reviews, use cashback sites, consider your options. It is possible - and you'll have a ball. I'm planning to do a round up of where we ate/drank in London too, so keep your eyes peeled for that...