London confused Oyster, Travelcard & London Pass

Why not do the Hop On Hop Off bus.

I did the HOHO, did one route, switched buses for a 2 route, on both routes took the whole routes without getting off and the next day took the 3rd route to the Tower of London then finished that route.

Why not do the Hop On Hop Off bus.

 

 

 

 

 

I did the HOHO, did one route, switched buses for a 2 route, on both routes took the whole routes without getting off and the next day took the 3rd route to the Tower of London then finished that route.

That’s the way we saw London the first time. Excellent way to pick and choose your options

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Kind of forgot about the HoHo that would be a great options for our first afternoon.

I'm not sure there will be a next time, we've been talking about going for 30 years. We had planned to do it for our 30th anniversary and it will be 42 next year. :)

Cindy, I notice you visited Le Havre, what did you do when you were there if you don't mind my asking.

 

Also does anyone have a suggestion for what would be a good sightseeing option for our first day. Hopefully sleeping on the plane on our overnight flight and scheduled to land about 11:30am, So will have part of an afternoon and evening on Wednesday when we arrive. I'm sure we will be tired but I don't want to waste and a day.

 

Thanks

 

Sandi

I did a review, it's in my signature... But, we LOVED our Operation Overlord tour there! We didn't book through RCI, I found 2 other women in my roll call who were looking for people to share it. So there were 8 of us. one couple, a woman with her parents, and us with our teenage son. It was absolutely amazing, just perfect. Our tour guide was awesome, worth every penny! And it's cheaper than RCI's offer, which is similar, but on a tour bus with 80 people. And you can't get to the smaller areas, you can't go the backroads, etc...

Why not do the Hop On Hop Off bus.

 

 

I did the HOHO, did one route, switched buses for a 2 route, on both routes took the whole routes without getting off and the next day took the 3rd route to the Tower of London then finished that route.

So the London Pass includes a 24 hour or 1 day pass for one of the HOHO companies. I forget if it's good for 24 hours, or just 1 business day. we did use it, but it was a waste to us. We spent way more time sitting in traffic, we could have walked to where we were going faster. If you want it for just an overview, it's probably nice. But it was a little cloudy, a light mist was falling, and traffic was awful! We were going from the area of the British Museum to St. Paul's Cathedral.

Why not do the Hop On Hop Off bus.

 

 

I did the HOHO, did one route, switched buses for a 2 route, on both routes took the whole routes without getting off and the next day took the 3rd route to the Tower of London then finished that route.

When we did the HOHO, we had taken the National Express from Southampton to London and arrived early afternoon so it was a great way to get an overview.

I found that we did not visit enough places to get our value out of the London Pass except for the line for the Tower of London which is now not included in the London Pass. The next few times we were in London, we just paid the entrance fee for the sights we wanted to visit.

We also got 8 people from our Roll Call for a tour with Overland for Le Havre, a great tour, much better than the ship's tour.

For Liverpool, I used http://www.pooloflifetours.com for a Beatle tour, a great tour, we got out of the van many times to see houses and places, which the ship tours could not do.

Check out your Roll Call and see if others have organized any tours that you can join. For my very active Roll Call sometimes we had so many people wanting to go, we had 3-4 vans going for the same tour.

I think the Tower of London is still included in London Pass but it just doesn't indicate Fast Track as some of the other attractions do.

I think the Tower of London is still included in London Pass but it just doesn't indicate Fast Track as some of the other attractions do.

Yes, that's true. But the line at the Tower was one of the longest for sure, and that's getting there when they opened. Well, the line for the Eye was longer, but we paid the extra money for the fast pass option on those tickets (not London Pass). I wasn't in the mood to wait in a 45 minute line, the extra money was worth being able to walk right on. ;)

Is the Eye like a ferris wheel or since the car is enclosed do you feel a little more secure? I'm not a ferris wheel fan but it looks like the views would be amazing. I've read that the Shard is overpriced.

Is the Eye like a ferris wheel or since the car is enclosed do you feel a little more secure? I'm not a ferris wheel fan but it looks like the views would be amazing. I've read that the Shard is overpriced.

 

I have done both and prefer the Eye.

 

The Shard - I found looking out, the places seem much farther away than looking out the Eye. You take a couple of elevators up to different floors. I can't remember if we were outside or just looked through glass to see the sites.

 

The Eye - Ferris wheel shape with enclosed cars. The cars rotate very slow, it seems like you hardly move, it takes a awhile for a full rotation. When the car gets to the ground the doors open, you walk in and doors close. The car is all windows with a railing waist high running around the inside of the car, in the middle of the car is a bench. If you do not like heights, you can sit on the bench and still see the sights.

 

I found once we got off the Eye, we could walk and see other places, with the Shard not much around. Where we stayed we could walk to the Eye, the Shard we had to take a bus.

 

I would purchase timed tickets, the line was long before it even opened in August.

My Visa has the 4 semi circles on it, it sounds like it is contactless?

 

At many of the stores/restaurants here, you can tap the store/restaurant's machine with your credit/debit card to pay.

yes that sounds right , looks like wifi symbol

Is the Eye like a ferris wheel or since the car is enclosed do you feel a little more secure? I'm not a ferris wheel fan but it looks like the views would be amazing. I've read that the Shard is overpriced.

don't bother with the shard, look at 'the sky Garden' instead.it's a building known as the 'walkie-talkie' opposite the shard on other bank, so surrounded by tower of london, the gerkin, the shard, and lots of other landmarks. best of all it's free! you do need to book admission though, the calendar doesn't open too far in advance, abou t2-3 weeks, so you need to be on the ball about booking a slot but once you are in you can stay as long as you like. there's a bar and food, but the views are amazing. Not many things in London are free but this is one of the best!

The Sky Garden is a place I hadn't heard of and sounds pretty cool. Website says they are only booking a week ahead right now, adding to my calendar to remind me to start checking next April/May.

Thanks

Sandi

don't bother with the shard, look at 'the sky Garden' instead.it's a building known as the 'walkie-talkie' opposite the shard on other bank, so surrounded by tower of london, the gerkin, the shard, and lots of other landmarks. best of all it's free! you do need to book admission though, the calendar doesn't open too far in advance, abou t2-3 weeks, so you need to be on the ball about booking a slot but once you are in you can stay as long as you like. there's a bar and food, but the views are amazing. Not many things in London are free but this is one of the best!

I wouldn't bother with the Sky Garden.

It is a pain in the backside to book tickets, it has the ambiance of an airport departure lounge, and the views are not great (especially as they are all behind glass - even the outside balcony).

Far better is the new(ish) viewing balcony at Tate Modern. No booking, free, and superb views of St Paul's; plus you can see some art as well.

Is the Eye like a ferris wheel or since the car is enclosed do you feel a little more secure? I'm not a ferris wheel fan but it looks like the views would be amazing. I've read that the Shard is overpriced.

It really depends on how hard it is for you with heights and such. But the eye is totally enclosed, a large car, you can walk around or sit on the bench in the middle. We enjoyed it, it's 30 minutes long to go around, and great views. We have our own here in Chicago, but it's like 5 minutes around and has some open air parts. I liked the eye much better, although a lot more expensive.

As far as heights go I just don't like them. Which is nice for DH cause he always gets the window seats on planes, I can look straight out the window but don't like looking down.

Since DH won't comment to wanting to see anything and just tells me whatever I choose is fine, Tate Modern looks like a good option as that's on my list already and free.

Try to do the London Eye at dusk - up in the day - down as the lights come on. Also the Eye is near to many other tourist attractions (Houses of Parliament, South Bank etc.).

It depends whether you are doing the Westminster area stuff or the Tower of London (City) area stuff as to which view you might want to try for.

<boast on> I just look out of our 8th floor flat window and see the lot! <boast off>:D

OMG, I was going to post this same question. Glad to know I'm not the only one confused :D

We will be spending a week in London after our cruise. After reading all the posts above, it sounds like we might be best to get the Travelcard? We do plan on going to Liverpool one day, so maybe that makes a difference, although I thought that we might be able to get some special priced fares if we booked early (like February or March) for our mid-May Liverpool trip. (I posted another question a few months ago and got a lot of input from all you locals who actually understand the train schedules and pricing!).

I have a faint recollection of getting some free admissions to some sights if we picked up our Travelcard at a rail station and showed our airline Ticket? But maybe I am confusing things with that?

So, basic question--one week in London post-cruise. Is a Travelcard or Oyster the best way to go?? (And it seems to me i remember that we get a free river cruise if we get something--maybe the London Pass?)

London Pass might work for us. We plan to do all the touristy stuff--the eye, Tower Bridge, Ripper tour, Parliament, Big Ben (silenced :-( ), etc etc.

Thanks

ML

 

So, basic question--one week in London post-cruise. Is a Travelcard or Oyster the best way to go?? (And it seems to me i remember that we get a free river cruise if we get something--maybe the London Pass?)

 

London Pass might work for us. We plan to do all the touristy stuff--the eye, Tower Bridge, Ripper tour, Parliament, Big Ben (silenced :-( ), etc etc.

 

Thanks

ML

Just to add a complication; if you got to Liverpool by train, you will qualify for the excellent value 2for1 deal. https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

Just to add a complication; if you got to Liverpool by train, you will qualify for the excellent value 2for1 deal. https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

This is an excellent example of why I am so confused! I followed the link, went to 2For1 Liverpool. We don't have train tix yet, but it looks like we need a TravelCard purchased from a National Rail Station. And it isn't clear to me we can use this for same day travel to/from Liverpool. Plus, we want to do a Beatles Tour which isn't offered.

So, what is a National Rail station? (Waterloo, Euston, Kings Cross, ???) Can I use this card on London tube?

Is there a better link for Liverpool rail/tours?

Sorry for the questions. i'm sure it is clear to all you Brits who understand the differences in rail travel, but for us Yanks it's a bit harder to figure out!

ML

This is an excellent example of why I am so confused! I followed the link, went to 2For1 Liverpool. We don't have train tix yet, but it looks like we need a TravelCard purchased from a National Rail Station. And it isn't clear to me we can use this for same day travel to/from Liverpool. Plus, we want to do a Beatles Tour which isn't offered.

 

So, what is a National Rail station? (Waterloo, Euston, Kings Cross, ???) Can I use this card on London tube?

 

Is there a better link for Liverpool rail/tours?

 

Sorry for the questions. i'm sure it is clear to all you Brits who understand the differences in rail travel, but for us Yanks it's a bit harder to figure out!

 

ML

The 2FOR1 days out deals are used by the rail companies to promote their services. Thus, you are required to have a same-day train ticket to take advantage of them. Thus, if you travel to Liverpool by train, you will be able to use the 2FOR1 deals on that day.

The travelcard-printed-on-National-Rail-paper is a trick to be able to take advantage of the deals without a train ticket to London. It's the only circumstance under which I would consider using a paper travelcard rather than an Oyster card; however, I've always wondered if purchasing a train ticket for a short journey within London (say, between Waterloo and Clapham Junction) in order to take advantage of the discount would be cost-effective.

With the day fare capping, I just used my iPhone last week to touch in and out and saved money over a 7 day Travel Card. It depends on how much you use the TFL but for the week, it was cheaper for me.

I had left my Oyster Card at home and rather than buy another one, I tried the Apple Pay on the iPhone and it worked quite well on both the tube and buses. Looks like I'll turn in the Oysters next trip and get my 10 quid back.

Has anyone used Oyster and Pay-as-You-Go to travel from Gatwick Airport to St. Pancras International in London on Thameslink? Is that fare counted in daily capping?

Has anyone used Oyster and Pay-as-You-Go to travel from Gatwick Airport to St. Pancras International in London on Thameslink? Is that fare counted in daily capping?

I have used contactless from Gatwick, but to London Bridge, not St. Pancras. But that doesn't affect the answer to your real question [emoji6]

Yes, a Thameslink or Southern service does count against daily capping. However, if you are starting from Gatwick that will be the Zone 1-9 cap, which is £31 if you start in the Peak (early morning), or £19-30 Off-Peak. It depends how much more you use the card that day in London whether or not you hit the cap, of course.

Gatwick Express fares do not fall in the cap, but can still be paid by contactless/Oyster

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I have used contactless from Gatwick, but to London Bridge, not St. Pancras. But that doesn't affect the answer to your real question [emoji6]

 

Yes, a Thameslink or Southern service does count against daily capping. However, if you are starting from Gatwick that will be the Zone 1-9 cap, which is £31 if you start in the Peak (early morning), or £19-30 Off-Peak. It depends how much more you use the card that day in London whether or not you hit the cap, of course.

 

Gatwick Express fares do not fall in the cap, but can still be paid by contactless/Oyster

 

 

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The chart I’m looking out from the TFL website says the Daily Anytime cap for Zones 1-9 is £17.20, while the Daily Off-Peak cap is £12.10. Or should I be looking at Zones 1-9 + Shenfield? Our first journey will be after 10:00 a.m. on a Saturday, so that should be off-peak.