London might not rule the world anymore, but it’s still one expensive city. The pound is nearly double the rate of the U.S. dollar. If you don’t look at the currency symbol next the numbers, it seems cheap – but it’s not. The London Olympics added more to London’s infrastructure and drew international attention, and of course, there will never not be Anglophiles flooding into the Tower of London or Abbey Road Studios invariably seeking the ghosts of John Lennon or Anne Boleyn (ghosts adjusted to taste). That being said, transportation and hotels are a huge cost for visitors.