5 reasons to choose the United Kingdom for your working holiday

Going on a working holiday is an amazing, life-changing experience, but it can be hard to pick the best WHV destination. If your goal is to have opportunities to travel and experience different scenery and cultures, then you should consider the United Kingdom. Here are five of the main reasons why the UK should be your top choice for a WHV.

Note: The WHV in the UK is officially known as the Youth Mobility Scheme, but we use the term WHV throughout for ease.

1. The chance to live in London

There’s a reason why people all over the world dream of living in London. Consistently ranked as one of the best cities in the world (alongside the likes of New York, Tokyo or Paris), it’s undoubtedly one of the coolest places to base yourself for your UK WHV. It’s impossible to be bored in London, as you’ll be spoiled for choice with all the great restaurants, cafes, pubs and clubs, and tourist attractions on offer.

Even though the cost of living is high, there’s plenty of work available. Thankfully, there’s also lots of free or low-cost things to do: museums and galleries, gardens and parks, street parties and festivals, cheap West End tickets, Christmas lights… the list is endless.

2. An abundance of travel opportunities

With that being said, there is so much more to the UK than just London. Experience true Northern kindness in Yorkshire, Liverpool, Newcastle or Manchester. Head to the beaches in Devon and Cornwall—yes, the UK has blue waters and clean sand, if you know where to look! Be blown away by the scenery in the Scottish highlands, the Welsh mountains or the Northern Irish countryside.

If that’s not enough, you’re only a short flight, train ride or ferry away from mainland Europe. It’s completely feasible to spend your weekends (or even a long day trip) exploring the continent, with cheaper travel deals than you might be used to in your home country.

3. A rich history

Did you know that many of your favourite films and TV shows (Harry Potter, Bridgerton, Downton Abbey, etc.) were filmed in real locations around the UK? The period buildings you see on screen aren’t fake; you can find this beauty and history around every corner in the UK.

Spend your WHV exploring medieval castles and stately homes, walking cobbled streets and staying in quaint thatched cottages. You can see everything from Stonehenge to the HMS Belfast, the Roman Baths to the Tower of London, Hadrian’s Wall to Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, etc.

4. Diverse food

You may have heard the UK being mocked for bland, “wartime” food, but this is a thing of the past! Thanks to its long history of immigration, you can now find authentic cuisine around the UK from every culture imaginable—Chinese, Indian, Ethiopian, Vietnamese, Greek, etc. British classics are not to be scoffed at, either. We’re talking fish and chips, roast dinners, full English breakfasts, cream teas…

Before the end of your WHV, you’re bound to fall in love with the food scene in the UK. You might also find yourself developing strong opinions on the right way to eat a scone (jam or cream first?), the proper word for a bread roll (cob or barm cake?), or what makes the perfect cup of tea (never, ever using the microwave).

5. Safe for working holiday makers

If you’re considering a WHV in Australia, you need to worry about bushfires and venomous spiders. If you’re debating a move to Canada, you must prepare for snowstorms and grizzly bears. For a WHV in New Zealand, you have to learn earthquake protocol, and so on.

The good news is there’s nothing particularly dangerous about the UK (apart from the threat of phone theft in London, though this is on par with any major city). The UK gets a bad rap for being grey and miserable, but at least it’s generally safe for travellers, as long as you use your common sense.