Please critique my transportation plans for London
I live in the U.S. and will be visiting London in November with my teenage (age 15, will turn 16 in London on 11/27) daughter. We will land at Heathrow on Saturday, 22 November and will depart on Friday, 28 November. We'll be staying at base2stay near the Earls Court tube station. We expect to use the tube/buses every day, and the rail on two occasions. I have read the many posts on the best way to get around, and have also looked over the relevant London transport websites. Here's what I have come up with for best price and convenience. Please let me know what you think:
Travel from Heathrow to London Victoria coach station via National Express (6 pounds.) Go to the Victoria train station and purchase a 7 day PAPER travelcard for zone 1 (in order to take advantage of 2-for-1 deals) and pick up my daughter's 11-15 zip card, which I will have ordered in advance on the tfl website. Either use our new travelcards to take the tube to Earls Court station, or if too tired, spring for a cab. While in London, among other things, we plan to visit Kensington Palace, the Tower, and the Globe Theatre, thus the advantage of the 2-for-1 deals. We also plan to take a day to visit Hampton Court (2-for-1) and another day to visit Windsor Castle. I assume just buying a day return rail ticket at the station on the day of our outing is our best bet? We leave for home on Friday the 28th via Gatwick. I plan on taking the tube or a cab to Victoria and the Southern Train to Gatwick (10.90 pounds for each of us, since my daughter will have turned 16 the day before.) Thanks for looking this over. I know that there are a million posts asking for help on this topic, and your patience with me is appreciated. |
For starters, I would just take the Piccadilly line from Heathrow to Earl's Court.
Have a wonderful trip! |
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I agree that it would be easier to take the tube from Heathrow to Earls Court on your arrival. The only advantage to going to Victoria Station would be if you want to buy your 7 day PAPER travelcard and pick up your daguther's card right away. IIRC, the Victoria coach station (where the National Express coach arrives) is quite a good walk from the Victoria train station. Not sure if you really want to do that upon arrival w/luggage.
For Hampton Court and Windsor, yes, you can just buy your cheap-day return ticket when you get to the station. The cheap-day return is only valid after 9:30am I believe. I just found out about this Windsor Castle/train ticket combo deal: http://www.southwesttrains.co.uk/SWT...dsorCastle.htm Looks like they have a Hampton Court Palace deal too - but you'd be better off using the 2-for-1 entry discount anyway. |
Thanks for your input, everyone. I was thinking of going directly to Victoria so that I would have my travelcard ready to go, but perhaps I should take the tube from Heathrow to Earls Court, check in and unload my luggage, and grab a cab to Victoria rail station to deal with the travelcards and then take the tube back to the hotel. Sound better?
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After you arrive at your apartment, if you're up to it, you can certainly take the tube from Earl's Court to Victoria. Even though the single fare is £4, it'll still be cheaper than the taxicab.
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Thanks yk, of course you're right. We'll see how tired we are. And thank you, also, for the link to the discounted admission deal to Windsor Castle. Which brings to mind another question...does it really matter whether I take the train from Paddington or Waterloo? Paddington is on a direct tube line from my hotel, but there is one change on the rail journey, however it seems quick and easy. Waterloo involves a change of tube line, but direct rail. Any other advantages/disadvantages?
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If you're packing light, you could save a few pounds by taking the Tube from LHR to Victoria (£4). Transfer from the Piccadilly Line to the District Line at Hammersmith by walking a few feet to the other side of the platform. Buy your paper travelcards at Victoria and use them to get to Earl's Court and for any other rides you take that day.
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samsmom- the Windsor Castle discount link I posted above, is offered by South West Trains. They operate from London-Waterloo to Windsor Riverside. This is the nonstop one.
The other route you mentioned, from Paddington to Windsor Central (w/change in Slough), is operated by a different railway company, the First Great Western. I don't see them offering an equivalent deal on their website. So, if you want to save a few £, you'd have to go with the South West train route from Waterloo to Windsor Riverside. The Riverside is slightly farther from the castle, but no more than an additional few minutes' walk. |
TimS, we'll each have a small/medium rolling suitcase. Is getting from the tube part of Victoria station to the rail portion a big deal? Thanks for the tip on the Hammersmith transfer point.
yk, thanks for clarifying the special offer. The transport seems like six of one, half a dozen of the other, so Waterloo and the discount admission tickets it is! |
The Victoria Tube station is below the train station. Walk up to street level and walk into the train station. It doesn't get any shorter than that! :)
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I can't recall for sure if the Victoria tube station has escalators. I think it does, but perhaps someone else will know for sure.
The key thing is for you and your daughter be able to carry your suitcases up 2 flights of stairs without difficulty. If you can do that, you won't have any trouble taking the tube in London w/luggage. |
Why do you want to go all the way to Victoria Station? You can buy paper travel cards at Olympia which is one stop from Earl's Court. Or 3/4 of a mile from your hotel if you want to walk it.
(As for escalators at Victoria Coach station - yes there are. But they don't go all the way to the surface. There is a flight of stairs after you get off the escalators.) |
samsmom:
First of all, have a grand visit to London...daughter will be enchanted, I'm sure. Just a little tip for you To type the £ sign in your posts, merely hold down the ALT key and hit the numbers 0163 on the number pad. To type the € sign, ALT key and number 0128. Happy Travels...(bring money) Stu T. |
janisj, if I am understanding the Days Out site correctly, the paper travelcard must be purchased at a National Rail station in order to have the National Rail logo required for the 2-for-1 offers. I would be delighted to be wrong about that, and go to the closer station!
Stu, thanks for the good wishes and the tip! I am going to copy and paste it into a file for future reference. Everyone, thanks for your help. As I mentioned above, I realize that there are numerous posts enquiring about transportation options, and it is very generous of you to address my specific situation. |
samsmom1127: "<i>janisj, if I am understanding the Days Out site correctly, the paper travelcard must be purchased at a National Rail station in order to have the National Rail logo required for the 2-for-1 offers. I would be delighted to be wrong about that, and go to the closer station! </i>"
Yes -- That is why I suggested you go to Olympia. Kensington Olympia IS a National Rail station. (Victoria isn't the only train station where one can buy paper travelcards) . . . . . |
Oh, and to clarify even more - Kensington Olympia is also a tube station.
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Thanks janisj. I knew that Kensington Olympia was a tube station, but I didn't know that it was a rail station. That does seem to be the easiest/closest spot to get my travelcard.
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If you look at a tube map - see the stations w/ a red symbol that looks sort of like a <b><font color="red">z</font></b> w/ 2 lines across it? Those are tube stations that are also train stations.
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Hi,
If I buy a 3 day Travelcard, which is a paper card, will I still be eligible for 2-4-1 offers ? |
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