United Kingdom: country facts, travel advice and health

Uber: book a ride-hailing car.Bolt: book a ride-hailing car.FreeNow: book a ride-hailing car or a taxi.LINK ATM Locator: find nearby cash machines that charge no withdrawal fee.Traveline: plan bus and train journeys across a region.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Cards or cash

Mostly cashMostly cards

Step 4 of 5: Cards are taken almost everywhere, but a little cash can still help.Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Money in United Kingdom

British Pound · £ · GBP

Avoid £50 notes, as many shops will not accept them.

No-commission exchange offices hide their fee in a poor rate; an ATM or a card is usually cheaper.

Supermarkets reduce the day's bakery and chilled food in the early evening.

Leave with Bank of England notes only; Scottish and Northern Irish notes are hard to change abroad.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Collect British Pound in CointryOur sister app for coin and banknote collectors · cointry.appOpen

Public holidays in the next 12 months

Mon, 30 Nov 2026 · Saint Andrew's Day

Fri, 25 Dec 2026 · Christmas Day

Mon, 28 Dec 2026 · St. Stephen's Day Boxing Day

Fri, 1 Jan 2027 · New Year's Day

Sat, 2 Jan 2027 · 2 January

Wed, 17 Mar 2027 · Saint Patrick's Day

Fri, 26 Mar 2027 · Good Friday

Mon, 29 Mar 2027 · Easter Monday

Mon, 3 May 2027 · Early May Bank Holiday

Mon, 31 May 2027 · Spring Bank Holiday

Mon, 12 Jul 2027 · Battle of the Boyne

Mon, 2 Aug 2027 · Summer Bank Holiday

Mon, 30 Aug 2027 · Summer Bank Holiday

Source: Nager.Date · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

02Free

Safety today

Germany, the US and the UK publish their travel advice openly. Here is what those that cover United Kingdom say, side by side, checked daily.

German Foreign Office says

No travel warning

Calm ●

Caution

Serious

Don’t go

Source: Auswärtiges Amt
Updated 13 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

U.S. Department of State says

Exercise increased caution

Calm

Caution ●

Serious

Don’t go

Level 2 of 4

Source: travel.state.gov
Updated 8 Sept 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Countrywise is a summary. The official page is authoritative.

03Free

Health

Bring all routine vaccinations up to date before the trip.

Vaccinations

Bring all your routine vaccinations up to date before the trip.

Talk to a travel clinic 4–8 weeks before you go.

Source: CDC
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Summarised from the CDC’s Travelers’ Health pages. Using them does not mean the CDC endorses Countrywise.

04Travel layer

In the app: the travel layer

The travel layer

Read a country like someone who’s been there.

What’s different from home, and what’s the lawMust-see places, free entry and World Heritage sites20 words to remember, with pronunciationStrange and surprising factsThe anthem and national symbolsSaved for offline use

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Must-see · 1London

Most of the country's big sights and world-famous landmarks.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Strange & surprising · #1

A British pint or gallon holds 19% more than the American measure with the same name.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

National anthem: God Save the King. The lyrics, translated, and the story are in the app. Source: Wikidata · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

35 World Heritage sites in United Kingdom, each with a photo and its story, in the app. Source: UNESCO World Heritage List

05Free

Deep facts

Economy
GDP	≈ $4 trillionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Per person	≈ $57,602Source: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Top exports	cars, gold, gas turbines, packaged medicine, crude petroleum (2023)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Population
Population	69.5 millionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Median age	40.9 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Life expectancy	82.2 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Religions	Christian (includes Anglican, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian, Methodist) 59.5%, Muslim 4.4%, Hindu 1.3%, other 2%, unspecified 7.2%, none 25.7% (2011 est.)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · 2011 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Geography
Area	243,610 km²Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Climate	temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days are overcastSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Terrain	mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeastSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Government
Type of government	parliamentary constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realmSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Calling code	+44Source: libphonenumber · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

About the data

Written from the sources we link, and checked against them before each release. Countrywise summarises public sources. We are not an official source. For safety and entry rules, always follow the official page we link to.

From your foreign ministry when it publishes its advice openly (Germany, the US, the UK). Otherwise we show those three side by side. Checked daily, with the date next to every entry.

CDC · 24 Oct 2026 ↗IANA Time Zone Database · 23 Oct 2026 ↗libphonenumber · 23 Oct 2026 ↗Nager.Date · 23 Oct 2026 ↗The World Factbook (archive) · 23 Oct 2026 ↗U.S. Department of State · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Unicode CLDR · 23 Oct 2026 ↗Wikidata · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikivoyage · 24 Oct 2026 ↗World Bank · 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Flag artwork from flag-icons (MIT licence).