GO NICHE

FLIGHTS TO London are routinely available for bottle tops. But how can you continue to be thrifty once you get there?

Universities around the world routinely throw open their dorms to anyone looking for cheap summer digs. But the accommodation available from the London School of Economics (LSE) is as far removed from sweaty student digs as a Ballsbridge penthouse is from a bedsit in Rathmines. And the locations are unbeatable.

The school has eight residential units to choose from; by far the best is Passfield Hall, in Bloomsbury (pictured), close to the British Museum and British Library and near the West End. Consisting of 10 beautifully restored Georgian town houses, it is open not just in summer but over Easter and Christmas as well.

But book early; availability is limited, and the property just won a silver medal at the Visit London awards. Singles cost £39 (€42), twins £60 (€64) and triples £75 (€80). And that includes breakfast.

For even better value, LSE’s Grosvenor House studios are self-catering apartments on Drury Lane, metres from Covent Garden. Each has a kitchenette and private bathroom. Singles cost £63 (€67) and doubles £90 (€96).

Or how about Northumberland House, where a single costs £59 (€63) and a double £79 (€84), to stay in a Grade II listed building just off Trafalgar Square. As the locals would say: Crikey!

• www.lsevacations.co.uk