 | London Transportation | Tips 41 - 50 of 1907 |  |
Trains from Kent and Sussex come into (and obviously leave from )Charing Cross Station - (How many hours of my life have been spent waiting for a train here???)
Last train to the coast on a Friday night is 23.37 and on Saturday nights it's 23.30. If you don't think you can manage this early - book a hotel. Leave a Comment
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When travelling to Gatwick Airport you would need to catch a train from Victoria Station.
The Gatwick Express trains depart every 15 minutes and take just 30 mins to the airport and a single (one-way) adult fare is currently 14GBP.
Gatwick Express
You can also get other trains to Sussex and the Kent coast from this station. Leave a Comment
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London by bus
Buses in London now operate on a flat cash fare of £2.00 (£0.90 with Oyster prepay) for any journey anywhere in London.
There is no transit/transfer facility on London buses. If you change bus you have to buy another ticket.
Most visitors to London will find that a TravelCard is the most convenient and best value transport ticket, but if you know that you are not going to use the tube, you might be better off using Bus Saver tickets. You can buy these at newsagents and Tube ticket offices. They cost £6.00 for six tickets, saving you £1.00p on the cash fare each trip. When you board the bus, you should tear off the hexagonal portion of the ticket and hand it to the driver or conductor.
You can also get Bus Passes, which are valid on all bus routes (and the Croydon Tramlink). A one-day Bus Pass costs £3.50. If you have an Oyster prepay card, bus fares are 90p (up to a daily maximum £3).
On most routes within the central London Pay Before You Board area you are now supposed to have a ticket before you board the bus - you cannot pay the driver. This only applies in a fairly small area. You can tell by looking at the bus stop sign - if the route numbers are on a yellow background then you have to pay before you board. There will be ticket machines next to the bus stop. Of course, if you have a TravelCard, Bus Pass, or Bus Saver ticket you can use those on any bus anywhere in London.
It is worth remembering that, since there are no bus fare zones any more, all TravelCards are valid for any bus trip anywhere in London, no matter which zones the card is valid for. Leave a Comment
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Travel around London in sterling compared to other currencies is pretty expensive - we hated it when we were here as tourists converting to Aussie and Kiwi money - and unfortunately prices went up heaps last year and horridly again this year!
Now i have quite excitedly found out that the new Oyster card system enables much cheaper tube travel. Usually i use saver ticket bus tickets to get from home into the city - £6 for 6 tickets(dont know if their price has just changed again as single tickets have dropped from £1 to 90p) - or if travelling a bit in one day i used to splash out and get a one day travel card - or even better a weekend travel card which inclides the faster overground train routes - but now they are even more expensive.
carnets are now no longer available (used to get 10 tickets for £11.50)
now i have found out that by getting a £3 oyster card then adding value of whatever amount you decide, you then can use it to get one zone travel for £1.50 each and buses for 90p a ride. This saves from the enormous price increase of a one zone tube ride from £1.50 to £3 for those not using an oyster card!
Also handy I find is having a zone 2 and 3 travel pass for the week which covers all the underground and overground except zone 1 and includes all buses everywhere - then use the single swipe for any zone 1 tube trips plus there are so many bus routes in the city centre that I only use the tube if in a hurry. Tube stations such as Vauxhall - which connects with the overground - and Earls Court are handily both Zone 1 and Zone 2 stations. Leave a Comment Theme: Subway/MetroPhone: 08453309876Website: oystercard.com
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London has an incredible public transportation system. The Tube (subway train system) and the buses are the best way to travel in the city. We took a cab only once, and that was after a late dinner.
If you are going to be exploring the city for 3 days or more, I highly recommend getting a a Visitor TravelCard. There are several zone and length-of-stay options to meet individual needs. We got a weeklong Zone 1 & 2 travelcard, which we used 5 or 6 times a day, getting more than out money's worth.
THE CATCH: These passes cannot be bought once you are in London. They must be purchased prior to you trip. I ordered mine on line a month before we left and got them about a week later. You receive a voucher that you cash in at a train station for the weekly pass. We went to the train stop at Heathrow airport, exchanged the voucher for a pass, and headed off.
It beats having to dig for unfamiliar change in a big crowd. And if you get confused and accidently exit the station or get on the wrong bus, you get a do-over at no extra charge! Leave a Comment
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Although you no longer see the iconic Routemaster buses on London’s streets, you see plenty of others, mostly in the traditional bright red. In recent years there has been a policy of introducing more buses, and encouraging a reduction in the number of cars through the congestion charge. This makes travelling by bus in the city an attractive option – it’s reasonable value and unlike the tube you can see where you’re going and enjoy the sights along the way. But you’re still likely to encounter traffic jams, so I wouldn’t choose the bus if in a hurry.
If you do want to catch a bus in central London, look out for the bus stops where you should find plenty of information about the routes that pass that spot, and often about others in the area too. For complete route information though, download a map from the website below.
Once you know what route you want to take, you’ll need to buy a ticket, and in central London that means buying one in advance (in the suburbs you can pay the driver). There are machines at each stop but they don't all give change so make sure you carry some coins. It’s cheaper to buy an all-day pass if you’re going to be making lots of journeys, or even better, if you’re in town for more thana couple of days and plan to use the tube as well, get an Oyster (see my tube tip).
By the way, some of the routes pass so many famous sights they make a good value alternative to the sightseeing buses. Try the number 11 – you can start in the west in Chelsea, travel the famous Kings Road, hop off in Victoria for a short detour on foot to see Buckingham Palace, then return to the bus and head east past Westminster Cathedral, Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament, to Trafalgar Square. From there the route follows the Strand and another famous street, Fleet Street, to St Paul’s Cathedral and the City of London, where it finishes.
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If you want to get somewhere easily with the least hassle in London, then a Licensed Black Cab is they way to do it.
However it does come at a cost. I almost never use them as the premium is just to high in comparison to buying a travelcard that lets you use the buses, trains and underground in London, but if you really don't want to travel with the great unwashed and you have a big wallet, then taxi is your transport! Leave a Comment Theme: Other
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Elsewhere, under Local Customs, I’ve provided a tongue-in-cheek guide to using the London Underground, or “tube” as it’s more usually called. Here though is some practical information you may find helpful.
Firstly, and I can’t stress this too much, get a map (downloadable from the website below, though it’s better to have one of the small folded ones you can pick up for free at every station). This is a complex transport system with many lines, and most of those branch a lot. Even locals refer to the map whenever they travel somewhere off their regular routes. Plan ahead, and check where you’ll need to change lines, and in what direction you’ll need to travel each time. Each line has a distinct colour and name, and all the passageways in the stations are well signposted, so armed with this information you should be OK.
Secondly, if you’re in London for any length of time at all, consider getting a so-called Oyster card. These can be bought for a fixed period of time, such as a month, or can be used to carry a certain amount of value, topped up in advance (with a minimum of £3 the first time you buy). Your fare is deducted each time you touch in and out of the tube system at the barrier gates, or when you board a bus. Travelling with an Oyster is always cheaper than buying a ticket each time: for example at present a single fare in zone one (the central zone) is £1.50 with Oyster and £4.00 without. Plus it saves you the hassle of queuing or finding change for the ticket machines.
Thirdly, remember that as in any big city, crime can be a problem. On the tube this is mostly likely to take the form of pick-pocketing or bag-snatching, so do keep a careful eye on your belongings. Having said that, I’ve used the tube regularly all my life, and daily for the last nine years, and so far have never been robbed – and yes, I realise I’m tempting fate saying that ;) but I wanted to reassure you all. So get out there and enjoy the city!
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I have to admit that I normally travel around London by Underground. It avoids the congestion and it is simple to know when to get off, as well as working out which bus number you need and where the stop is to get on.
However buses have the advantage that you can see what is around as you travel, so you can just hop off at the next stop if you see something you like.
A bit of "horses for courses" really. If you haven't visited London before, you probably want to go on one of the big red double-decker buses just to say you have been on one! Leave a Comment Theme: Bus
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A Zeppelin!!!
Ok I must admitt it was just a temporary occasion and only meant for 12 passengers and 2 crewmembers on its 2-days flight over London.
On Sunday and Monday a German-built Zeppelin, baptized NT Youkosu Japan was making its inauguration flight above London and Greenwich where it crossed the Greenwich meridian .
It is on its way on a 10 000 miles flight to Japan where it will be used to fly tourists around. Its arrival is due for August.
Zeppelins are named after the inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin, who flew in the first on 2nd July 1900. They where used during the World War I to bomb London and other cities. The first Zeppelin raid on London took place on 31st May 1915. The raids would go on till June 1917.
Zeppelins were popular way of transport, between the 2 World Wars, until the disaster with the Hindenburg in America in 1937: 36 people died in that crash and inferno when the balloon caught fire. Leave a Comment Theme: Other
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