stacy

I am very confused about all the passes and combination of passes out there for London. This will be my first trip to London and we will be there for 4 1/2 days. I want to see and do as much as possible, but of course want to see the most talked-about sites most importantly. Would a 3-day LondonPass be worth it (especially since it will still leave us 1 1/2 days "pass-less")? Has any used this pass and had good/bad experiences with it? For the attractions it does include, does it include tha main part of it, or just some little part and you still have to pay out of your pocket for the main tourist part? Also, we are staying with a friend in St. Albans, and I think I read the Londonpass includes transporation to and from St. Albans (since some of the sites are there), as well as to Windsor. Is this correct and if so, how does that work? Is it unlimited? Would this fact make this pass more beneficial to us (i have no idea what the train fare it to St. Albans)? Also, do the 3 days have to be consecutive or is the pass "smart" enough to know otherwise (we might have to take a day off in the middle to visit a friend up north)? As you can tell, I have many questions so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! We are very confused by all the passes and different travel cards/deals out there! Thanks so much!

Patrick

We stayed in St. Albans for two weeks a couple of years ago -- part of a community theatre exchange, with us performing a play there for one week, then "vacationing" for the second week. Although we went to London virtually every day, we were advised by our St. Alban's hosts that the shorter term passes wouldn't be effective especially as you change lines in north London. We bought round trip tickets each day, and a couple of days included the all day travel card for London (one day after 9:30). It was not expensive.
Enjoy St. Alban's, it's a very interesting town.

elvira

The LondonPass can be bought in London WITHOUT the travelcard, and that's the best deal. I am extremely fond of passes to attractions and sights, not only for the cost savings but for the skipping of lines.

For transportation, buy your pass or carnet in London. There are weekend and one day travelcards, and you can pick the zones you want (usually 1-2 will cover your sightseeing needs; if you go beyond, you buy only a ticket from zone 2 to your destination).

There are 60 sights covered by the pass; I suggest a 3 day pass (it is 3 consecutive days), then for 1 1/2 days, do the free stuff (like British Museum) or what isn't covered by the pass.

Linda R.

Elvira, I am curious as to why you recommend the pass without transportation? I will be staying in the Victoria station area and if I cover all the major sites in London, would the pass be a better deal for me or should I do as you suggested; Pass separate from transportation

elvira

The VisitorTravelcard that's included with the LondonPass when bought in the U.S. covers 6 zones (which you don't need). Prices without travel are £17.50, £26.50, £31 and £43 for adults for a one, two, three or six day pass respectively. A three day pass w/travelcard costs £18 more!! Also, suppose you plan on a three day pass and buy ahead - then you get to London and find out a couple of sites are closed, or you find something different to do - and you've paid for 3 days when maybe you need only 2.
Or maybe when you arrive you decide you're better off with a 1 day pass and a 2 day pass, because the other 1 1/2 days in the middle you won't need the pass. And if you buy your travelcards when you arrive, you can get one-day passes or weekend passes - or even a carnet for the 1/2 day...

stacy

Elvira - thanks for the responses! I am still confused about the "includes transportation to windsor and St. Albans" which I read on the site. Do you know anything about this part of the pass? Is this correct? Is it unlimited travel to and from these towns or one time trip only? If i purchase the pass without the travelcard, will it still include the free train trip(s) to windsor and st. Albans? We are staying w/a friend in St. Albans, so this is an important aspect of this pass for us. Thanks again!!

Linda R.

Thanks for the advice Elvira, I guess I will wait until I get there!!

Linda R.

Lidija

On their website www.londonpass.com there is an email address for questions, i would ask them directly. [email protected] I asked them a few questions last year and they were very quick to respond. Hope you get the answers to your questions.

elvira

I don't like the VisitorTravelcard, not only for the price, but it's not usable before 9:30am. It's what provides the free fares to St Albans and Windsor. R/T fares to St Albans and Windsor are around £7. Unless you like getting a late start, that 'free train ride' is only good on the return.

If you're planning to start your days after 9:30, and will spend more on individual tickets and day passes than what the VisitorTravelcard costs when bought w/the LondonPass, then buy the LondonPass w/VisitorTravelcard before you leave the U.S. (you can't buy the Visitor Travelcard in the U.K.). Since I'm usually on the road by 8 or 8:30, that VisitorTravelcard is useless to me.

mary lewis

I am not sure what the London Pass is but we have bought the Visitor TravelCard for the tube two times before getting to London (i.e. bought it in the U.S.) A couple of things to note - it may be used at any time the tube is open (i.e. before 9:30 - for sure we have done it) and you do not have to get all 6 zones - you can get a 2 zone card - which is really all you need. We found it very convenient to get these ahead of time and be ready to go once we got to London - they are a bit more expensive but well worth it to us.

vicki

I did some checking to try and answer your question. If you buy a “London Pass” at the website www.londonpass.com a 3 day pass will cost you $71.71 at today’s exchange rate. It includes a “London Visitor Travel Card” and I quote from the site-
“Your London Pass comes with a London Visitor Travelcard. The Travelcard is date stamped for the dates you wish to use it. It can be used on the public red buses, tubes and trains zones 1-6 (i.e in Greater London).
The free public transport covers Greater London with additional free travel to Windsor and St. Albans.”
I quote some more-
“With your 1Day Adult and Child Passes, the public transport element is valid from 9.30am until midnight. With all other passes it is valid for 24 hours from midnight until midnight for the dates designated.”
I assume this to mean if you buy a 3 day London Pass on their site it will include unlimited travel in the above mentioned areas 24 hours a day for the entire 3 days. The days are consecutive and you must decide at time of order what those dates of use will be.
Some other things to consider:
A 3-day London Pass bought in London (no travel) good only for admittance to attractions would cost $45.37.
A 1-day travel card, zones 1-6 would cost $6.88 per day but is only good for travel after 9.30am and I don’t know if it includes St. Albans.
A 3-day London Visitor Travel Card bought on the internet (not available in London) would cost $29.00 zones 1-6 and $20.00 zones 1-2. again I am not sure if St. Albans would normally be in a 6 zone card but I think it is good any time of day.
The Rail Europe site also has the London Pass and Visitor Travelcard but they are priced separately at $49.00 and $29.00 respectively so the total would be $78.00.
I hope that this is at least as clear as mud and that your math skills are honed. Good luck in planning your trip.

vicki

Just one more thing to add. I ran all of the amounts through a currency converter so they are all in USD. I thought that would make it easier.

stacy

Thanks for everyone's help and research!! You guys are great! Anyway, we are leaving for London in less than 2 weeks, so we ended up deciding to order the 3 day Londonpass with visitor travelcard. Mainly, it was said here that it is 18 GBP extra ($26.52) to get the pass with visitor travelcard, but to buy a travelcard each day in lodon is almost 5 GBP (~$7.50) a day (and w/St. Albans transportation is more like 8 GBP), therefore for a total of [email protected] each is 15 GBP (~$22), and then that still restricts your travel to only after 9:30am (we're hoping for early starts!) and you have to wait in line, have the cash, etc. each day, so for the 3.3 extra pounds each (~$5 each), to us, the conveince is worth buying the pass w/visitortravelcard. Plus, the London Pass is including the visitor travelcard for an additional 18GBP ($26) which is a better price than sold at the Britain Travel Agency here in the US (there price for a 3-day travelcard is $32).
I am not 100% positive if this is the best buy for us or not, but it was getting to the point that all the research and comparisons between different options were driving us nuts - it seems as though there is positives and negatives to every option. And since we were cutting it close on time (10 days needed for delivery) we had to jump to a decision. I will let you all know how it worked out for us when we get back! Thanks again!!

Lesli

To the top for Calvin.

Lesli

Calvin -

This topic was discussed at great length just recently. I have "toppped" one thread for you, and/or, do a text search for "london pass" to find lots of detailed information.

elaine

top again for Calvin