Afternoon Tea: Claridge's and The Ritz may be teatime institutions in London, but cakes and tea in one of Claridge's restaurants starts at $61. For another charming experience — with less outlay — The Shop at Maison Bertaux in Soho offers a patisserie and tea shop on its first floor that serves éclairs, cheesecake and Mont Blanc cakes for around $40 for three people. In the basement, there's a shop that carries clothing by APC, Sonia by Sonia Rykiel and Eley Kishimoto. Meanwhile, in South London's 19th-century Borough Market, Shipp's Tearooms offers tea, cakes and sandwiches for $34, served in a pale pink room where tiny tea cups hang as an installation from the ceiling, and customers can buy the floral tablecloths and china. The Shop at Maison Bertaux, 27 Greek Street, W1D 5DF; +44-5601-151-584. Shipp's Tearooms, 4 Park Street, SE1 9AB; +44-207-407-2692

Primark: Every Brit "It" girl worth her Jimmy Choos bulks up her designer wardrobe with pieces from penny-pinchers' favorite shop, Primark. Jam-packed with on-trend T-shirts, dresses, skirts, jackets and coats, lingerie, shoes and accessories, the chain's Oxford Street flagship heaves round the clock with bargain hunters. Primark, 499 Oxford Street; +44-207-495-0420

Cocktails: At The Berkeley Hotel's Blue Bar, clients receive the entire contents of their cocktail shaker when they order a Blue Bar Martini (14 pounds, or $27.30), so canny customers can almost squeeze two martinis out of one order. Constantly replenished nibbles, including stuffed olives, glazed nuts and cheesy crackers, means there's one less expensive meal put on the credit card. At Soho Hotel's Refuel bar, a Soholistic (10.50 pounds, or $20.50), a blend of muddled fresh raspberries, blueberries, strawberries and red currants shaken with Skyy vodka, cassis, cranberry juice and fresh lemon, packs an antioxidant punch. It's a way to save precious pennies on cold remedies and antiaging treatments. The Blue Bar at The Berkeley, Wilton Place; +44-207-235-6000. Refuel at The Soho Hotel, 4 Richmond Mews; +44-207-559-3000