West End Live

The wealth of musicals on offer from the West End can be beguiling, but get yourself to Trafalgar Square for the 23rd and 24th June 2012 and you can see exclusive performances from the casts of Billy Elliot the Musical, Chicago, Jersey Boys, Les Misérables, Disney's The Lion King, Matilda The Musical, We Will Rock You and many many more.

In amongst the singing and dancing on stage there will also be opportunities for audience participation and celebrity guest presenters.

Price: FREE - no tickets are needed

When: 23rd - 24th June 2012

Where: Trafalgar Square, London

Big Dance

Big Dance is a pretty massive event this summer in its own right - with loads of workshops, flashmobs and performances all around the UK happening between 7th and 15th July 2012.

The aim is to showcase diverse dance styles from traditional Scottish Highland Flings to disco - and to encourage you to join in of course!

For the grand finale Big Dance will be taking over Trafalgar Square for one spectacular dance performance with an astounding 2000 dancers!

Price: FREE - no tickets are needed

When: 14th July 2012

Where: Trafalgar Square, London

BT River of Music

For one weekend in July you can explore a whole world of music all along one stretch of river. Stages set up at various venues that line the River Thames will host such diverse acts as the Scissor Sisters, jazz orchestras, and Beninoise Grammy award-winning singer Angélique Kidjo.

Price: FREE - no tickets are needed

When: 21st & 22nd July 2012

Where: Various Locations
Asia stage - Battersea Park
Africa stage - Jubilee Gardens
Europe stage - Trafalgar Square & Somerset House
Americas stage - Tower of London
Oceania stage - Greenwich Old Royal Naval College

BBC Radio 1's Hackney Weekend 2012

If we're going to round up the exciting events of the summer we couldn't very well leave out Radio One's Hackney Weekend, their biggest ever free, live ticketed event. Yes, the tickets have all gone already. Bully for you if you managed to get one.

It looks to be an amazing event, headlined by Florence & The Machine, Jay-Z, Lana Del Ray and Jessie J. The rest of us can hear the results on the radio of course.

Price: FREE - But tickets are needed

When: 23rd - 24th June 2012

Where: Hackney Marshes

Oil Tanks at Tate Modern

Most of London's art galleries will be putting on some celebratory exhibition this summer, but the Tate Modern, already the world's most visited modern art gallery, will be opening a whole new extension.

The ex-power station's vast oil tanks have been transformed into spectacular exhibition spaces and the Tate Modern is planning a live programme of performance and event-based art capable of filling the 30-metre wide circular rooms.

Price: FREE - No tickets are needed

When: Opening 1st July 2012

Where: Tate Modern, Bankside

The events we've selected for our highlights are all free - which is obviously a major help when you're trying to plan a day out on a budget.

These events will be busy so you can save a lot of time avoiding queues as well as helping out your wallet by planning ahead and bringing food and drink with you.

As for any trip to London get your hands on an Oyster card - the savings on public transport will soon cover the cost of the card itself.

You might have spotted that Trafalgar Square cropping up again and again in the events listings. Whilst the pedestrianised square forms a natural focal point for these grand interactive events, its central location does make finding a cheap hotel nearby somewhat more challenging.

For budget options try the Tune Hotel in Westminster - borrowing the low-cost airlines' sales model this hotel offers a basic, clean hotel room for a low rate - and you pay extra depending what services you use - If they supply a towel that's £1.50 for example, or room service costs £7.50.

London has a lot of characterful hotels located around Russell Square, which is about 30 minutes from Trafalgar Square on foot. There are several prestigious hotels like Hotel Russell, but plenty of smaller, cheaper options too. King's Cross would be a good area to look for a hotel too. There are more hotel chains here, and whilst it's a little further away it has excellent transport links.

If you don't mind a bit of a journey (and we are anticipating a busy summer for London's tube network) then you will obviously be able to get cheaper deals outside the centre. Ordinarily hotels in London's east are considerably cheaper - but what with the events at Stratford that looks to be reversed for summer 2012. Try west London or south London instead!