London, now
 

Now that central London busses run at doubled speed, it becomes worthwhile to ride on the top of a bus for any journey that would be 5 stops or less by tube. Both weekly and daily London travel cards include busses, and any tube ticket office will give you the central London bus map free. Stops are well signed for where busses go to from there. I used to suggest this for children, away from the rush hour. I now recommend it for any age, any time.<BR><BR>While I am writing, may I say that our suburban front gardens boast early primroses, daffodils, and snowdrops, while the gardeners of the City have made their first plantings of spring flowers in many tiny gardens. I know I am prejudiced, but London is looking good.<BR><BR>Welcome<BR><BR>ben.haines@btinternet. com<BR>

Mr. Haines, How nice to hear that! I will be there weekend after next. Now if you can just promise nice weather, all will be perfect. :-)

Such good news. Generally I prefer busses to being underground, but my past bus experiences in London have mainly been sitting stalled in traffic. Are you really saying the new regulations have made it THAT much better??

and I will be there in April .. let's hope the flowers continue to look good and the traffic is flowing well (and the tube is running with no problems ... am I asking too much here??? :-) :-) <BR><BR>Thanks for the update Ben, it is very nice of you to post this type of info.

Grasshopper: The likelihood is that it will rain. Sorry. <BR><BR>Patrick: To my own surprise, yes, that is what I am saying.<BR><BR>Lori: I am afraid an important section of the Central Line is out of service.<BR><BR>Ben Haines

Ben, do you recommend single day or weekly travel cards? My itinerary doesn't involve a lot of jumping from place to place, so I am trying to determine the best way to go.<BR><BR>Thanks.

Biscuit.<BR>Zone 1&amp;2 daily travels cards are &pound;5.10 (can be used before 9:30 AM) or &pound;4.10 ( can only be used after 9:30 AM)<BR>Zone 1&amp;2 weekend travel cards ( valid on both Sat &amp; Sun) are &pound;6.10<BR>Zone 1 weekly travel cards are &pound;16.50 ( can be used before 9:30 AM)<BR>Zone 1&amp;2 weekly travel cards are &pound;19.50 ( can be used before 9:30 AM<BR>All travel cards will give you unlimited rides on tubes and busses during the period that the cards are valid.<BR>Most tourist attractions are in Zone 1.

Ben, I thought I read there was a new bus service inaugurated (part of London Transport) that was a hop on / hop off that covered many of the tourist sites but I haven't found any refernce to it. Do you know? <BR><BR>And how in H do the buses run at doubled speed?

Mr. Haines,<BR>I will be in London during the last week in March, any advice on the best place to go in the city to see spring bulbs in bloom? <BR>I have always loved riding the busses, fast or slow, but it is nice to hear they are moving faster now.<BR>Thanks.

I am also a fan of London buses. Many tourists don't take them for some reason and take the tube, even when the journey is short.

Sorry to butt in, but to the best of my knowledge the hop-on-hop-off tourist buses are an independent commercial venture.<BR><BR>Buses are running faster because the congestion charge (in its first week and a bit) seems to have led to a much larger reduction in other traffic than anticipated. But the first week was the school half-term, which perhaps exaggerated the effect - this week traffic seems to be a little closer to what it was before, but still at the upper end of the predicted reduction (somewhere about 20% fewer cars in the centre than before). And it's great - let's hope more people realise that fellow-Londoners who use the buses don't all have heads below their shoulders and unpleasant personal habits.<BR><BR>As for spring bulbs, I would always try Kew:<BR>http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/events/updatekew.html<BR><BR>You can't always guarantee what comes on when, but there is always something to see there.

Biscuit: x x x has covered London travel cards well.<BR><BR>Mr Smith: The only bell that rings is that a newish bus service under Transport for London runs along the south bank from Westminster to Tower Bridge. It is not designated as hop on hop off. But of course if you have a London travel card you are entitled to hop on hop off on every bus. If you see a nice ice cream parlour you just ring the bell and leave at the next stop.<BR><BR>If you used to trundle along the Strand, Regent Street, and Oxford Street in 40 minutes, and now take 20, you have doubled your speed.<BR><BR>Mrs Wilde: I am afraid I do not know, as I tend to see places that I can see from a bicycle. I have a childhood memory of beautiful and flourishing bulbs in Hyde Park beside the Serpentine, but am afraid I have forgotten whether north or south. So I have just phoned the Royal parks agency, and a bright young man says late March is strong in tulips, and that he invites you to try the Rose Garden in Hyde Park, near the gate near Hyde Park tube station, or (which I now recall I like a lot) in St James Park either side of the Serpentine (where the Queen does not mind if you feed her ducks, but asks you to throw them something more tasty than white bread, says the young man). But if I know Fodors forum readers, assorted Americans are going to give you better answers than we mere English can.<BR><BR>Hiroshi. Tourists with limited time did not like to spend it at 3 1/2 miles an hour on busses. Even now, they will start a little nervous at the map-reading tasks involved. But once they are up there and rolling it might become habit-forming. If you once learnt to take busses in Paris and Berlin you will know what I mean.<BR><BR><BR>Ben Haines

I understand why people are nervous of buses - even Londoners - where does it go, how will I know where to get off? When will it arrive? The Tube is much simper to navigate and, beyond occasional delays, is an efficient way to travel around. <BR><BR>Having said that, I get the bus to work and much prefer it - the bus conductors are all mad but I can see daylight, I can always get a seat, and if I'm stuck in traffic I can get off when I want. It's also much cheaper.<BR><BR>Traffic is lighter, but that doesn't mean traffic jams are a thing of the past. It may be best to avoid buses in the centre of town between 5.30pm and 7pm - it took me 1 1/2 hours to go 3 miles the other day.

Ben, thanks. That is the new route I'd read about. I'm amazed that the new regulations have made that much a difference in traffic flow.<BR><BR>I've generally found that the bus conductors and drivers are helpful if you tell them where you want to get off - just be sure to sit in the back bottom on the double deckers and the left front on the others. They do have functions other than tour guides. Passengers will also be helpful.<BR><BR>

&quot;Oh,to be in England, now that spring is there...&quot;<BR><BR>Another nice place to see bulbs is Hampton Court,thousands daffodils really dancing in the wind.<BR>

So if I have a travel card I can hop on any bus (the double decker buses right?)...do I just flash the card...? Sounds easy and fun...especially on the first day to see the city! We will definetly do this!

Any London bus, any size. The polite way is to have your card in your hand as the bus draws up to you.<BR><BR>Ben Haines<BR><BR><BR><BR>

The buses were easy to navigate in London. I just got back; never bothered with the tube, although that is mostly because the central line was not functioning. <BR><BR>With the travel card, sometimes you show the card to the bus driver when you first get on. Other times, a ticket-taker will come around once everyone is on the bus. You'd show your travel card to her, or if you didn't have a card, then you'd pay the fare right there. The fare was a pound. <BR><BR>I can't wait to go back!

Thanks Ben...so easy and helps to know exactly what to do...not to sound stupid but how do you go through the tube with your travel card..do you insert it into a receiver in order to get through a stile or do you have to stand in line?

Hmathis,<BR>Your travel card will be about the size of a credit card and will have a magnetic strip on the backside.<BR>You will insert the card into a slot on a turnstile -like machine that 'reads' the validity of your card.<BR>The card will be swiftly 'spit' out for you to collect as you pass through the 'turnstile'. Be sure to collect your card because you will need it when you exit the tube station at your destination.<BR>Then you proceed to the Tube platform, sometimes this will involve taking an escalator, or an elevator, or stairs. Stand on the right side of the escalators and allow those people who are dashing down to pass you on your left. *S*<BR>Be sure to know which Tube line you need to take, many tube stations have multiple lines passing thorough them. Follow the signs.<BR>When you reach the correct platform, stand behind the yellow line. <BR>There will be an electronic overhead sign that will tell you in how many minutes the next train will arrive and what its destination is.<BR>When the train arrives, people will tend to shove towards the doors. <BR>Don't panic if you find your self on the wrong train or on one going in the opposite direction that you intended to go. Just get off at the next stop and then wait for the correct train .<BR>When you arrive at your destination, either follow the &quot;Way Out&quot; signs to the street or if necessary follow the signs that lead you to the line you need to transfer to .<BR>When you reach the ticket level at your final destination , you will once again feed your tube card into the 'turnstil'. If your card is valid for more journeys it will be 'spit' out..be sure to take it.<BR>If your card has reached the limit of its validity then the card will be swallowed. *S*<BR>The tubes are not difficult to navigate, but they can be very crowded.<BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR><BR>