What's better than a day spent shopping?

Birmingham is full of shops and what's better than a day spent shopping in the area. It's always hard to find your way around a new area. So why not try and find the information centre and ask for attractions you can visit while living in the area etc. For shops, you will notice that most things in the city are linked with one another e.g. The Bull Ring is attached to Palisades which is above the train station. You will also notice that there are a lot of the same shops in the area e.g. H and M. It took me a while to find my way around the area but once you know where things are, they are easy to remember. Don't go too crazy with all the shops though. A friend of mine spent loads of her grant in there on her first few weeks of uni as she was excited about all the shops.

On another note it might be a good idea to get to know the uni etc first before you head out to the town. After all you're going to be there for 3 years so you don't have to rush. I personally tried to get to grips with the uni and my accommodation first before I branched out more. Even when I did it was to the near by shops and then the town centre. It feels less overwhelming getting to know one area first before getting to know another.

Although most people hate doing it food shopping needs to be done. Normally the best time to do it is during the week when everyone is at work or school. However Friday is always a busy day. In the area there are also 24 hour Tesco's which could be useful but at certain times they are out of the essentials and although it might be an ideal time for you to go, it might be better to go at a different time.  Supermarkets are the best place to get bargains as they are always doing buy on get one free or discounts on certain products. At times it's a good idea to buy more than you need e.g. 6 Super noodles for £2. At the time you are making yourself spend more then you would but in the long run you will save money.

I find the best bargains from shops are £stretchers, the £1 shop and home bargains. They are all what they say on the label. They are cheap shops to get bits and bobs from. I love these shops and although you might not be going in to get something, you normally come out with something or another.

Other shops that I think are great are Primark and Matalan. Some people get worried about the clothes their wearing not being designer but as a university student you don't have the money to spend on designer wear. It's far easier to head to Primark etc and pick up 5 tops for the price of 1 in a designer shop.

Don't forget to stop for something to eat with all that shopping going on. There are plenty of places to stop for food in the town centre. The Pavilion even offers a food court at the top of the shopping centre. An Internet cafe is also available, so you can stop for some food and to check your emails as you might not be able to access them at home.

Something useful to known about the area is travel. The buses and trains in Birmingham are reasonably cheap. When I got to the area I was very surprised about how cheap they were. I'm used to paying £5 something to get to town and back which is the same distance as I was from Birmingham town centre. However, I only pay £1.50 each way in Birmingham. It might be a good idea to research travel when you get to the area. You never know when you might need it. A lot of students use it to even get to their campus. Although I can drive and have a car, it's easier in my opinion to get to the town centre by bus or train than driving. Parking in the area is expensive so you might as well take advantage of the cheap public transport. Again taxis are also cheap. So you could get some friends together for a day out and split the taxi cost and you would save even more money.