I started to read Lauratg's trip report but as soon as I got to the part where she thanks Robespierre for telling her about the DaySave pass they'd ordered for the train trip in from Gatwick, I knew this was something I had to research. I tried doing an advance search here but pulled up absolutely nothing.

Can someone explain to me what the DaySave Pass is and how I can find out more about it? We're flying into Gatwick and staying near the West Brompton Station in mid-June. Is this something we'd be able to use? And do I still have time to order one?

I was particularly interested in her mention of not having to wait in the fairly long line at the train station at Gatwick. Our flight (from Barcelona) comes in at 3:55 and we're hoping to get checked into our hotel and back out in order to do a London Walks tour (just a tube stop or two from our hotel) at 7:00. (Though we know that may be unrealistic and have alternative plans.) So saving time at Gatwick would be wonderful.

Thanks!

What DaySave is: http://www.southernrailway.com/main.php?page_id=189

You'll take the Southern train to Victoria, then the District Line Underground to West Brompton (with a change - the stations are on two different legs of the District). Use the Journey Planner at http://tfl.gov.uk

Ours were delivered to Arizona within a week, IIRC.

Thank you very much, Robes!

Note that the DaySave passes are only valid for off peak travel. As per Southern's web site this means:

"DaySave can be used as follows:
- Anytime on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays
- Not before 10:00 Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays)
- Not between 16:45 and 19:15 Monday to Friday when boarding trains from East Croydon, London stations (Victoria, London Bridge and Clapham Junction)"

I ordered DaySave passes for our London-Gatwick transfers (to London on a Saturday, return on a Sunday) via the web site and they arrived by mail within a few days. Very easy to use: as I recall we showed the pass upon exiting at Victoria (not checked on the train) and showed it on boarding at Victoria, checked once during the trip, and then again when exiting at Gatwick. Our return trip was a bit longer, as it made several extra stops, but it wasn't a significant difference in time for us.

Note that if you are traveling via tube on the weekend you may encounter significant changes in service: Circle was down both the weekends we were there, and much of District was down over Easter weekend, as well as Jubilee. The buses are great once you figure out how to use them.

Thanks, Therese. I appreciate that info! I noticed the off-peak bit but also noticed it said trains coming <i>from</i> Victoria so thought maybe it wouldn't apply to us?

Robes, not that I didn't trust your directions. I know that you definitely know your way around London! But I thought I'd remembered reading that we could take a train directly from Gatwick to West Brompton Railway Station.

This is from a TripAdvisor review of the hotel where we're staying:

From Gatwick: Take the train headed to Victoria Station, but get off at "WEST BROMPTON". Frpm there you can walk or take the #190 bus to Lillie St & North End Road intersection. Walk 3 blocks to hotel.

But when I look at the route maps on the Southern Line web site, I can't find any that show a West Brompton stop between Gatwick and Victoria Station.

So I went to the hotel web site which also mentions taking the train directly to West Brompton. But says to use the Connex Rail Link. As nearly as I can tell, that no longer exists. But I found this on Google:

http://www.thetrainline.com/Buy_Tick...3_200941319190

I have no idea what kind of train this is. Perhaps a commuter line of some sort?

Does anyone know anything about this?

Yes, so long as you're traveling to (rather than from) London during the afternoon rush you call use the DaySave.

As for taking the entire trip by train, tfl's journey planner (go find this link and start using it---very, very helpful) you can switch at Clapham Junction (one of the stops on your trip into London) and switch to the Overground to West Brompton.

Ah, just looked at your link and that's the same itinerary. I've not specifically used the Overground, but it's included in the London transit network (so Oyster and Travelcard will both work on it). Here's a map of it:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloa...etwork-map.pdf

Do remember to touch in and out if you're using an Oyster card, even if there aren't gates at the station.

West Brompton is not on the line from Gatwick to London Victoria.
It's on a line which by-passes central London, and is used by Southern trains from East Croydon and Clapham Junction to Milton Keynes (every hour), and by London Overground trains from Clapham Junction to Willesden Junction (every half hour).
From Gatwick to West Brompton, you therefore have one change at East Croydon or Clapham Junction.

Thanks again, Therese. Apparently our internet signal is weak. None of the links are working for me right now. But if I read that web site I linked correctly, it looks like buying tickets there for our journey from Gatwick to West Brompton would be cheaper than a DaySave Pass?

I haven't really figured it out yet. But we'll probably be going with Travelcards rather than Oyster cards in order to use the 2-for-1 deals. And we won't be taking the train back to Gatwick. Instead we'll be taking one to York and Edinburgh and then flying out of Edinburgh.

If it's just the two of you then it looks like a wash, price-wise. If you want paper TravelCards (as opposed to either pay-as-you-go Oyster or TravelCard loaded onto Oyster) then you need to buy them at a National Rail station. I don't know if if West Brompton or Clapham Junction sell them, but poking around on the tfl site or the national rail sites should yield the required info. We got ours at Victoria.

If you're going to use twofers on arrival day, DaySave is acceptable. We visited the War Rooms/Churchill in 07 with them.

Since the Southern pass is valid all over the southeast, you might want to think about a quick trip to Brighton or something - for "free." Just a thought.

Thanks again, Robes.

Does anyone have any opinion as to which journey (taking the train to Victoria and then the tube or switching to the overground at Clapham Junction) would likely be easier with luggage? Or faster?

Thanks again.

Hi CAPH52- did you plug this into the TFL's journey planner? There are advance options you can check, such as one for the "least walking".

Thanks, yk. I'll check that out now that our internet seems to be back up to speed. Or at least as speedy as it ever gets!