GenXer

This will be my first time in London. I'll be flying into Gatwick. I'm planning to take the National Express to get into the city. They will be dropping me off at the Victoria Coach Station.
Do you know how much a taxi will charge for two persons from the Victoria Coach Station to the Best Western Phoenix Hotel located on 1-8 Kensington Gardens Square, London, England, W2 4BH? Is it easy to get around London using the Tube? Do they have a website and can I buy tickets online?
Thank you.

WillTravel

Why are you taking the National Express bus from Gatwick into London? Either the express or non-express train is likely to be much quicker, and the savings for the bus is not very much.

I can't say what a taxi would cost, but if you are keen on saving money, you could do the transfer by tube from Victoria Station (which is where the train drops you off, as opposed to Victoria Coach Station a couple blocks away).

It's very easy to get around using the tube in London. No need to buy tickets online and I don't recommend you do so, unless there's some deal I haven't heard of. Just get a daypass each day, unless you are there long enough for a weekly pass to pay off.

Robespierre

The taxi fare will probably be about £10, depending on wait time. London is gridlocked most of the day.

Navigating the tube is really easy. You'll find lots of advice at thetube.com

Don't buy the Visitor Travelcard from TfL. There are much better deals in London, such as the Off-Peak Day Travelcard (valid from 9:30 weekdays, all day weekends)for £4.30, or 7-day Travelcard season ticket for £17.

If you like buses, a 7-day pass good for all of Greater London is £9.50 (the Travelcards mentioned above are only valid in the central city).

janis

I agree - I wouldn't take the Nat'l Express. I'd take the Gatwick Express Train or the slightly cheaper and slightly slower Thameslink train and then the Tube.

Either would be faster and cheaper than the bus to Victoria Coach Station and cab to the hotel.

GSteed

After you get to Victoria area, check the bus options. Use the Tourist Information Office at Victoria Station. How much luggage? Maybe a taxi will be worth extra cost?

flanneruk

Apart from the fact that the coach is a rotten way of getting into London from Gatwick, the coach station is just far enough from the tube station to be a real pain if you're carrying more than a briefcase.

But, given the location of your hotel, I'd want to get a cab from Victoria anyway.

Go to www.tfl.gov.uk. Follow for the Journey Planner: input either of the stations as your start point and the postcode of your hotel as the destination. Select "more search options" in the bottom right of the screen, and limit your selection as you wish.

After you've pressed "search" and got the results, you'll be offered the option of seeing maps for both your start point and your destination.

You'll see, when you select these maps (which actually draw the walk from the bus stop or tube station you've selected to the street you want: that's the joy of alphanumeric postcodes), that the walk to your hotel, from both the nearest tube station (250 yds) and from the nearest bus stop (400 yds), is longer than certainly I would want to take with luggage.

You're probably hardier than me, and you're bound to be a more frugal packer than Mrs F.

But the maps on the Journey Planner not only help you solve virtually every transport dilemma in London: playing with them can while away any number of wet afternoons.