Help with Transportation Options in London
Apr 10th, 2017, 06:16 PM
#62
"Buy paper 7day zone 1&2 travel cards (at Kings Cross when you arrive from Scotland). That will give all tube/bus travel for the week PLUS give you 2for1 discounts at many of the big London attractions."
This is what we did in 2013 when we spent six nights.
Since we are there for only 3 1/2 days this time, would that be prudent or something else? Thanks.
This is what we did in 2013 when we spent six nights.
Since we are there for only 3 1/2 days this time, would that be prudent or something else? Thanks.
Apr 10th, 2017, 06:31 PM
#63
Well - for convenience you might consider getting the 7-day travelcard but it will be overkill. Typically the break even point for a 7 day travel card id 4.5 days.
Otherwise -- assuming you want to use the 2for1's you'd need three daily travel cards. That is cheaper, cheaper but for the £6-ish you'd each be eating it would be easy to just get 7 day travel cards.
Otherwise -- assuming you want to use the 2for1's you'd need three daily travel cards. That is cheaper, cheaper but for the £6-ish you'd each be eating it would be easy to just get 7 day travel cards.
Apr 10th, 2017, 06:45 PM
#64
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Last June while there with family ( 5 adults, 2 under 11 and one 11 year old ) I went through all the math and ended up with PAYG Oyster. I considered the 2 for 1 aspect and think it cost me a bit more not buying the 7 day travel card and using the 2 for 1 option, but it wasn't all that much. It was worth paying slightly more for the ease of Oyster and not having to get myself to a train station after a 5 hour flight delay and late arrival in London.
Apr 11th, 2017, 03:18 AM
#67
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From the TfL website:
<i>Oyster is a plastic smartcard which can hold pay as you go credit, Travelcards and Bus & Tram Passes. You can use an Oyster card to travel on bus, Tube, tram, DLR, London Overground, TfL Rail, Emirates Air Line, River Bus services and most National Rail services in London.</i>
No need to pay for travel in advance. Get an Oyster when you arrive. For four nights/three days, I'd put £20 for pay-as-you-go to begin with, and see if you need to top up by the time you get to the third day. You can do this all over the place.
<i>Oyster is a plastic smartcard which can hold pay as you go credit, Travelcards and Bus & Tram Passes. You can use an Oyster card to travel on bus, Tube, tram, DLR, London Overground, TfL Rail, Emirates Air Line, River Bus services and most National Rail services in London.</i>
No need to pay for travel in advance. Get an Oyster when you arrive. For four nights/three days, I'd put £20 for pay-as-you-go to begin with, and see if you need to top up by the time you get to the third day. You can do this all over the place.
Apr 11th, 2017, 03:43 AM
#68
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Here’s my two-cents’ worth on this topic, especially if there's anyone reading this thread who's going to travel with a larger group:
In the past we (family)
• have used Oysters, loading them up, keeping them, enjoying the ease and value;
• and have used paper 7-day Travel Cards so that we could use 2 for 1 vouchers for a few places.
In June, heading up a group of 16 in London for 9 nights (with 3 day-trips using Rail Passes), after much contemplation, research, and comparing, I’ve decided to do something I’d never do for just my family—I’ve ordered Cards from TfL. I did this because of time and convenience considerations when considering shepherding a group.
• BECAUSE I HAVE A GROUP TO MANAGE: I ordered Oyster Visitor Cards for 14 of us. (Two of my group arriving separately will use “my” regular Oyster Cards upon arrival; they have plenty of time to go to the ticket office at Heathrow, check the balance, top them up, and ride the Tube in, meeting us later. I’ll get those cards back from them later.) Even with postage, this was about the same or less than what regular Oyster Cards with same amount loaded on them would have cost to purchase on arrival. Yes, the deposit for the Visitor Cards isn’t refundable, so in theory the cards cost more, but that’s only if we would have turned Oysters in for refunds. We won’t. We won’t have time. And this will save us much time upon arrival, not having to mess with purchasing Oysters for Tube in, arriving mid-afternoon after long flight and ready to just go into the city. Also, you can’t load a 7-Day Pass onto a Visitor Oyster Card; it can be topped up, however.
BUT I WOULD NEVER DO THIS WHEN TRAVELING AS A FAMILY; I’D STICK TO REGULAR OYSTERS.
• BECAUSE I HAVE A GROUP TO MANAGE: I ordered the 7-Day Travel Cards for 16 of us.
7 Day Travel Cards are going to be the best deal for our stay, in conjunction with a bit of money on the Oyster Card. So, we’d need to buy those, either ahead of time via TfL or once in London from a train station. However, the Cards ordered from TfL, although paper, are NOT good for 2 for 1 offers. But after much numbers-crunching/comparing/emailing/info-gathering, I determined that getting tickets to sites with their group/order-ahead prices instead of using 2 for 1 would end up costing each person less than $15 more in total for the 4 sites in consideration. Also, the 2 for 1 site made me a little nervous about considering using their vouchers for our group. It says specifically it’s not meant for groups. I was concerned we’d show up trying to use 8 vouchers and not be allowed to; or not be allowed to pay for all at once with one credit card so would have to have cash, and I’m not planning on carrying around 100’s. So, while the 2for1 plan is excellent for a family, I decided not to do that for us. Plus, having the Cards already in hand would mean I wouldn’t have to mess with buying 16 cards soon upon arrival, which would include having to have had those passport-sized photos, etc. So in the name of convenience/time-saving/less stress about the possibility of vouchers not being accepted, I opted for the Cards-by-mail ahead of time plan. The postage was very little.
BUT I WOULD NEVER DO THIS WHEN TRAVELING AS A FAMILY; I’D STICK TO EITHER BUYING THE PAPER TICKET IN LONDON OR LOADING UP A 7-DAY-CARD ON A REGULAR OYSTER.
In the past we (family)
• have used Oysters, loading them up, keeping them, enjoying the ease and value;
• and have used paper 7-day Travel Cards so that we could use 2 for 1 vouchers for a few places.
In June, heading up a group of 16 in London for 9 nights (with 3 day-trips using Rail Passes), after much contemplation, research, and comparing, I’ve decided to do something I’d never do for just my family—I’ve ordered Cards from TfL. I did this because of time and convenience considerations when considering shepherding a group.
• BECAUSE I HAVE A GROUP TO MANAGE: I ordered Oyster Visitor Cards for 14 of us. (Two of my group arriving separately will use “my” regular Oyster Cards upon arrival; they have plenty of time to go to the ticket office at Heathrow, check the balance, top them up, and ride the Tube in, meeting us later. I’ll get those cards back from them later.) Even with postage, this was about the same or less than what regular Oyster Cards with same amount loaded on them would have cost to purchase on arrival. Yes, the deposit for the Visitor Cards isn’t refundable, so in theory the cards cost more, but that’s only if we would have turned Oysters in for refunds. We won’t. We won’t have time. And this will save us much time upon arrival, not having to mess with purchasing Oysters for Tube in, arriving mid-afternoon after long flight and ready to just go into the city. Also, you can’t load a 7-Day Pass onto a Visitor Oyster Card; it can be topped up, however.
BUT I WOULD NEVER DO THIS WHEN TRAVELING AS A FAMILY; I’D STICK TO REGULAR OYSTERS.
• BECAUSE I HAVE A GROUP TO MANAGE: I ordered the 7-Day Travel Cards for 16 of us.
7 Day Travel Cards are going to be the best deal for our stay, in conjunction with a bit of money on the Oyster Card. So, we’d need to buy those, either ahead of time via TfL or once in London from a train station. However, the Cards ordered from TfL, although paper, are NOT good for 2 for 1 offers. But after much numbers-crunching/comparing/emailing/info-gathering, I determined that getting tickets to sites with their group/order-ahead prices instead of using 2 for 1 would end up costing each person less than $15 more in total for the 4 sites in consideration. Also, the 2 for 1 site made me a little nervous about considering using their vouchers for our group. It says specifically it’s not meant for groups. I was concerned we’d show up trying to use 8 vouchers and not be allowed to; or not be allowed to pay for all at once with one credit card so would have to have cash, and I’m not planning on carrying around 100’s. So, while the 2for1 plan is excellent for a family, I decided not to do that for us. Plus, having the Cards already in hand would mean I wouldn’t have to mess with buying 16 cards soon upon arrival, which would include having to have had those passport-sized photos, etc. So in the name of convenience/time-saving/less stress about the possibility of vouchers not being accepted, I opted for the Cards-by-mail ahead of time plan. The postage was very little.
BUT I WOULD NEVER DO THIS WHEN TRAVELING AS A FAMILY; I’D STICK TO EITHER BUYING THE PAPER TICKET IN LONDON OR LOADING UP A 7-DAY-CARD ON A REGULAR OYSTER.
Apr 11th, 2017, 07:13 AM
#69
>>What does Oyster card actually include? I am visiting London too. Four nights. Alone. Should I but some ticket in advance or pay right at the spot?<<
It is a transport ticket. It covers pretty much all your travel needs IN London. Buses, tube, DLR and trains in the center of town (not trains to other cities). It is not a 'pass' that gets you in to sites.
No need to buy in advance. An Oyster w/ £20+ PAYG (pay as you go) loaded on it will cover things. You can start w/ £20 and if you run out (the ticket gates will tell you when you balance is getting low) you can top it up with a little extra ££
It is a transport ticket. It covers pretty much all your travel needs IN London. Buses, tube, DLR and trains in the center of town (not trains to other cities). It is not a 'pass' that gets you in to sites.
No need to buy in advance. An Oyster w/ £20+ PAYG (pay as you go) loaded on it will cover things. You can start w/ £20 and if you run out (the ticket gates will tell you when you balance is getting low) you can top it up with a little extra ££
Jun 12th, 2017, 07:56 AM
#72
Original Poster
Circling back around on this. We are concluding our 7 days in London. In the end I opted to get each of us the Travelcard for zones 1& 2 good for 7 days. We got the paper ticket and availed ourselves of the offers for the 2 for 1 vouchers. We brought pictures from home and purchased the Travelcards at the Kings cross Station. They were £33 each. We used the tube or buses 4 times on most days. We used 5 of the 2 for 1 offers mostly for special exhibits in museums that were free for the regular exhibits. Since this was our first trip to London in many years we decided to use the 2 for 1 on the popular sites.
Most people seemed to use the contactless cards from what I could see. I was curious about using Apple Pay since my credit cards in the USA are not contactless. I did not notice people using their phones to tap in or out.
Thank you to all who provided info on this.
Most people seemed to use the contactless cards from what I could see. I was curious about using Apple Pay since my credit cards in the USA are not contactless. I did not notice people using their phones to tap in or out.
Thank you to all who provided info on this.
