I'm taking my 13 year old grandsons to London in April and trying to decide whether an oyster card or a travel pass would be better. For myself I think the PAYGO oyster card is best, There seems to be a 11-15 Oyster card but they need a photo. Is this a possibility for my grandsons or is only for residents?

Non-residents can get them, but you need to have done it on line at least three weeks in advance (using a digital photo). So unless your trip is late in April you are out of luck.

Here's a link that you should find helpful:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/faresandtickets/1020.aspx

You can still purchase single day pff-peak child rate travelcards for your grandson if you are traveling on a travelcard:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/faresa...kets/2908.aspx

And yes, the reason I know about this is that I'm getting ready to do the same thing. I'd planned on getting my 15-year-old daughter a Zip card but didn't have a suitable photo, and by the time she got one to me it was too late to have the card made. If you do still have time you'll have to designate a pick up point for retrieving the card.

Are you sure you can do this online if you're not a UK resident? I live in the US, and just tried to load money onto my existing Oyster. The site insists on a UK post code, and even when I used my sister's UK postcode, and had Capital One on the phone while I tried to put the charge through, it still wouldn't work. Now I'll have the hassle of loading it at Heathrow.

I can't be absolutely sure myself, as I couldn't complete the process due to it's being too close to our travel dates. The web site did accept our personal details (which presumably included our address, though I can't recall precisely now).

Only somebody's who has successfully made the purchase could tell for sure. It's altogether possible that the process for the Zip card and the process for re-loading an Oyster card aren't quite the same.

Just get a £1 per day Travelcard for your grandsons which is usable as long as your grandsons are travelling with you. It covers all zones so even includes the trip from LHR to Central London

I got the photocard online from the U.S. for two of my daughters (so it can be done). I just used a digital photo I already had and cropped it to fit the required size. I picked up the cards at Victoria station because we were taking the train in from Gatwick and we needed to buy my Oyster card anyway. The webwsite won't take a date less than three weeks out, but I picked up our cards few days early with no problem -- that would be a risk though.

I did the same from France for my son, with no problem (took a picture of him and resized it). We'll be arriving at Euston station with the Eurostar but since it is a Sunday (19th April) we'll have to collect the cards from Picadilly.

Thanks for the information. Weare leaving April 11 so I don't think I have the time.

Can I buy an Oyster card for myself and single day travel tickets for the boys? Would that be the best way to go? I