Mark

Folks,<BR> I'm going to London this summer for the first time. I understand they have a pretty good subway station there and I plan to use it extensively. I just have a couple questions (I know, I can research it, but I figure I'd just hit a few experienced people first): Can someone explain the &quot;zones&quot; system? I live in Washington, DC. The further you go, the higher the fare.<BR>Is it roughly the same? We will be a family of three. Is the family fare card the best bet? Coming from Heathrow, which is cheaper-taking a cab or tube? Thanks.<BR><BR>Mark

KieranB

Mark,<BR>Zones radiate from the centre, the further from the centre you travel the more zones you pass through thus you pay more. See the maps at www.thetube.com. Tube is cheaper than taxi, there's also the Heathrow Express train http://www.heathrowexpress.co.uk/<BR><BR>For details of all the transport options from Heathrow see http://www.baa.co.uk/main/airports/heathrow/getting_here_frame.html<BR><BR>Have a good trip. Kieran.<BR>www.vistaphotos.com

kathy

Hi, Mark,<BR>this is a pretty common question here - and there are lots of answers! Try Transport for London website at<BR>http://www.transport-for-london.gov.uk/tfl/ . This website is terrific - I particularly like the journey planner section - you can even get walking maps of the major tourist areas of London!<BR>Info on a Visitors card and London tube zones is at http://www.ticket-on-line.com/cgi-bin/web_frameset.exe?crypto_block=E%2D%2D%2DPSrqEnPdBc lTbDWMtLQ8%2D0%2D%2DY&amp;lang=en&amp;user_id=lu&a mp;output_template=vtc_zone_guide<BR>That's a large webaddress but cuts right to the info you want, I think.<BR>

janis

Well first off - forget about a cab. Probably &pound;50+<BR><BR>as for your other questions: How old is the child and how long is your visit? There are various family cards for week days, full weeks and weekends. But they are good for families w/ younger children - not for older teenagers or young adults.<BR><BR>There are 6 zones. 95% of the tourist areas are within zone 1. LHR is in zone 6. Travel within any one zone is the cheapest. Travel that includes multiple zones go up in price the more zones covered. <BR><BR>Getting in from LHR via tube after a tiring overnight flight can be a problem or not depending on how well the family travels/sleeps on planes, etc. The easiest is to get a car service. These are not cabs and need pre-booking. Will cost between &pound;25 and &pound;35 and drop you right at your door. The tube is cheap and efficient - but very few hotels are right at a tube station so after your 45+ minute tube ride you will have to lug your bags - often several blocks.<BR><BR>For a family I would recommend a car service into town and either daily or weekly zone 1 travel cards after you are there.<BR><BR>If you are staying near Paddington another option would be the Heathrow express train - but if you are not near paddington you would have to take a cab (expensive and a long taxi queue at the station) or the tube (cheap but the same luggage/exhaustion problems as above) to your final destination.

Damn not

QUIT posting long URLS w/o spaces. They screw up the thread for everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jen

No, they don't. They wrap quite nicely for me.<BR><BR>The zones are concentric circles, so the system works much like DC's. Most tourist attractions and hotels are in the center, Zone 1. Unlike DC, each pass is good for a specific amount of time rather than a specific dollar value. Daily, weekly, etc. passes are priced by zone and alow unlimited rides on tube and bus (or just bus).<BR><BR>I'm pretty sure that famly travelcards are only available on a daily basis, not weekly. They are certainly the most economical alternative, if you're wiling to wait until 9:30 on weekdays to purchase them. Check the official web site, as I recall kids uner 5 go free and family travelcards are OK through age 15. When you buy them, you explain who you've got, as in &quot;I need family travelcards for two adults and one chld.&quot; Then each person gets a card, and in theory at least you should all travel toether. They aer very very cheap -- kids go for 80p.<BR>To get from the airport to your hotel, I'd recommend a car service like Swiss Cottge or Ray's London Transfers (www.london-transfers.com). A bit pricier than the Heathrow Express, even for a group of 3, but well worth it IMHO.

just

Dear Damn Not,<BR>Have you considered that the issue of the long URL's might be yours?<BR>The addresses that are posted in the above messages did not 'screw up the threads' on my screen. <BR>Each of the URL's wrapped just fine .