On 18 May 2004 06:56:08 -0700, (Chan WK)
wrote:

a) will fly into UK around July-August timeframe

From where?

b) probably take train from/to airport to/from London city centre to
save cost

Underground
http://www.thetube.com/
Zone 6 to zone 1 @ £3.80

Train
http://www.heathrowexpress.com/
Single £13.00 Return £25.00
Plus Zone 1 single tube fare @ £2.00

Coach
http://www.nationalexpress.com/nxairport/heathrow.cfm
Fares cost £15 return

c) training venue is University College of London (for
"histology-related work". Not sure which campus at this stage)

UCL really only has one main 'campus' (in the sense that UoL Colleges
don't really have campus structures), so she will probablty end up in
an area called Bloomsbury.

d) she is not a frequent traveller, so preferably staying at somewhere
close to UCL

To give a range of places near UCL - get her to check prices:

University of London Halls of Residence Vacation List
http://housing.lon.ac.uk/site7/Vacation.htm

Goodenough College
http://www.goodenough.ac.uk/frame.html

Holiday Inn Bloomsbury
http://www.london-bloomsbury.holiday-inn.com/

Some transport-related questions :
1) what is the mean of getting around in London,

Bus and Underground (Tube) will be most likely is she's near UCL.
Day Bus pas is £2.50
Day Travelcard (tube and bus) Zone 1 and 2 £4.30

as well as to/from the airport?

See
http://www.baa.com/main/airports/hea...ere_frame.html

2) how much will it cost? (assuming not taking taxi which I was told
is prohibitively expensive - she does have budget constraints)

See (b) above. for cheapest options.

Some probably off-topic questions :
3) how much for accommodation which is close to UCL? (to minimize
travelling effort for her safety)

Generally VERY expensive by the standards of people who don't live
here. You might have some luck with the options above.

If she wants cheap, she'll need to go further out.

4) how much for meals?

From a few pounds for take-away food, to whatever she can afford! This
is very difficult to answer.

If she's near UCL, I suggest she eats in the numerous College staff
catering outlets/dining rooms/Senior Common Rooms as these do lunch
for around £5 and dinner for betwen £5 and £10. They may have reduced
hours over summer though.

Otherwise, see http://www.visitlondon.com/inspiration/eat_london/
and http://www.squaremeal.co.uk/ which has prices.

Please bear with me since I have never been to London before, hence
all these detail questions. TIA.

The Official Website for London http://www.visitlondon.com/ for an
overview. Start there.

I suggest you do some reseach to start with. Much of the above is
pretty basic stuff that people ascertain everytime they go on
holiday...


Cheers,

Jason.