RossLonTravels

The outskirts

2010-08-29T16:50:00.000-07:00

Defining the exact boundaries of London is not really an easy task. Considering the wider concept of the Greater London Area, in fact, London territory is extremely vast.

Trying to stay within a more limited radius, there are nice places that definitely deserve to be visited in the London area, once again the choice to do so or not depends on the time you’ll have available to you.

Canary Warf (nearest tube/DLR station: Canary Warf)

If you have been in Paris and have visited “La defence” it will be very easy to you to find out what the place is about but, actually, not exactly what it looks like. Although Canary Warf might be renowned as the home to many UK’s biggest organisations, criss-crossed by many channels the area is much more pleasant than you could ever imagine.

A mix of big and tall building, bridges and coloured mansions placed on the water front, Canary Warf is well worth a visit.

Additionally, with its more than 200 shops, this is also one of the most popular shopping destinations around London.

The lunch-hour rush time should be avoided, but if you want to have an insight of what it happens there during that time you could be ready to be there before lunch and wait after lunch for your meal.

Nonetheless, whatever the time you would prefer to visit it, Canary Warf is a must visit place.

Richmond (nearest tube station: Richmond)

Located in London zone 4 you can reach this lovely place just riding the District line, but be sure that, even though you are travelling on a southbound train, you are getting on the right train, that is the one whose final destination is Richmond and not Wimbledon.

In order to fully enjoy the visit and the place, you are strongly suggested to visit the place on a sunny day. Although the town is relatively small, the place also offers very good opportunities for shopping, so that if you still need to buy something and are undecided to go, never mind about that, the high street will surely give you the opportunity to do a very good shopping.

But the reason you are suggested to go is obviously not a shopping related one. Richmond, in fact, will provide you a lovely and pretty different possibility to enjoy the River Thames. The water front, in fact, with its hotels, restaurants, bars and lawns can offer you a relaxing and lovely experience, just have a go.

Greenwich (nearest DLR station: Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich/Greenwich)

Located along the borders between zone 2 and 3, Greenwich is another place definitely well worth a visit. Described as one of the most “picturesque and oldest parts of London”, and home to the Greenwich University, this place really hold a particular fascination for its visitors.

You could both go shopping at the Greenwich Market and visit the Royal Observatory, with which the famous meridian is supposed to coincide. You could also decide to pay a visit to the National Maritime Museum and the Queen’s House. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to see the Cutty Sark vessel until 2011, since it is currently undergoing refurbishment.

If you are passionate for theatre you could enjoy a performance at the Laban or at the Greenwich Theatre, whilst if you prefer to east a local dish you could pay a visit to the historic Trafalgar Tavern Pub, one of Charles Dickens' regular haunts, and taste a dish of whitebait, a delicacy made of small, young fish of various different types, fried and eaten whole.

Wimbledon (nearest tube station: Wimbledon Park/Wimbledon)

If you are a tennis player and fan, you won’t possibly miss to visit one of the most famous temples of this sport and the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum.

Located in London zone 4 you can reach this lovely place just riding the District line but, once again, be sure that even though you are travelling on a southbound train you are getting on the right train, that is the one whose final destination is Wimbledon and not Richmond.

Wimbledon also is a lively town where you could also enjoy a shopping experience.

O2 (nearest tube station: North Greenwich)

The O2, whose original name was the Millennium Dome, resisted all the criticisms it had to face before, during and well after its opening in year 2000 and is now home to the major music shows and to other kinds of events in London.

Wembley (nearest tube station: Wembley Park)

If you are a soccer passionate and fan, than you would possibly like to visit the famous and massive Wembley stadium. It is also possible to take a guided tour of the premises, but tickets are required.

Royal Botanic Gardens (nearest tube station: Kew Gardens)

If you fancy plants and flowers, then you could love to visit the Royal Botanic Gardens. To reach the place you should travel on a District Line, be sure to travel on the Richmond branch, and you should get off just one stop before Richmond, where the train terminates.

Credit Card Payment Warning

2010-08-28T05:51:00.000-07:00

Taking for granted that all of our payments are nowadays usually made by credit cards, the assumption is even more taken for granted when considering the expenses made during a trip.

There are, anyway, few things you should know before travelling to the UK on how to use your credit card.

First of all, be aware that in the UK swipe credit cards are no longer used. Some retailers’ cashiers could also say you that credit cards with no chip are even illegal. Although this is absolutely wrong, it is nonetheless true that in London swipe credit cards are no longer issued and that, bit by bit, they won’t no longer be accepted at all.

All the major chains, shops and retailers actually still have the opportunity to swipe your card, but be ready to face some resistance, especially if you will be paying for a small amount, on accepting such a type of card.

But this is not really the only thing you need to know when using your credit card in London.

When you are paying by credit card, whatever the thing or service you are paying, the card is recognised by the processing system as a foreign card and some retailers, like Harrods, but it also could happen in some hotels, will charge your credit card with an amount already converted in your local currency, for instance Euros. This is really everything but convenient for you, in that the conversion rate but, most of all, the commissions they apply to you will be particularly high.

This could also happen at the airport duty free shops, at Stansted for instance, the difference is that whilst at the airport the cashier is actually asking you if you do prefer to be charged in pounds or in your local currency before processing the payment, at Harrods cashiers are directly processing the payment in your local currency, without any warning. This, in some cases, can also account for making the final price you pay for a particular item sensibly more expensive than you were supposed.

What worse, although untrue, the slip they will give you as a receipt for payment clearly states that you have been warned of the fact to be paying in your local currency before processing the payment, that you agreed with that and that that is even your choice.

As anticipated above, this could also happen when you’ll be paying your hotel bill. Even though you have made your reservation online, in fact, many websites do not charge you any amount of money, or charge you just a small percentage of the total cost, at the moment of booking, so that you’ll be paying the whole cost at the hotel reception once there. Well, in that occasion, it may happen that the receptionist, without any warning, will charge your credit card, for the total amount or for the balance due, in your local currency, at a very unfavourable exchange rate.

The problem is not, instead, occurring if you’ll pay your bill with a debit card, the payment is immediately processed by your bank and you’ll pay the usual commission as stated in your initial agreement signed with your bank.

According to the amount of money you have to pay, the difference could really be not that much irrelevant, so be careful.

If you are short of cash and need it and you both have a credit and debit card, avoid to use your credit card at any ATM (hole in the wall) and use instead your debit card to withdraw any amount of money, commissions, in this case, are, in fact, sensibly lower.

Shopping

2010-08-28T05:45:00.000-07:00

Shopping around London definitely is a lovely experience and the only serious risk you can face is to use your credit card so many times to empty your bank account and do not even find it out, so be careful and try to let emerge your self-restraint capability.

Oxford Street and Regent Street can, without any question, be considered the pulsing heart of London. Both streets are literally teeming with department stores and shops of every kind and size. Moving on from Marble Arch towards Oxford Circus the first department store you’ll find is Primark, where you could able to buy cloths, and not only clothes, at extremely cheap prices.

Then, on the opposite side you’ll find Selfridges & Co., a totally different kind of department store. Renowned as the House of brands, Selfridges is a multi-storey store offering designer clothing and other different kind of items, including a selection of cooking utensils, which are everything but ordinary.

That’s not all, spread across the street and among the most well known high-street brands you’ll find department stores such as John Lewis, House of Fraser and Debenhams.

If you are not comfortable in the crowds you can turn in one of the many side streets and continue your shopping in all tranquillity.

But, according to your budget possibilities, just be careful if turning into New Bond Street (which will then change its name in Bond Street throughout), where you’ll just find haute couture showrooms. Starting from Oxford Street and going through New Bond Street till Piccadilly, you’ll, in fact, run across all the major fashion designers’ ateliers, literally from A to Z, Armani to Zegna, but also Burberry, Louis Vuitton, Dolce e Gabbana, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo and will finish your walk in Piccadilly where a De Beers show room is located.

From Oxford Street you could also very easily access St. Christopher’s Place and Berwick Street.

Delimited by Oxford Circus and Piccadilly Circus, also Regent Street will offer you lot of shopping opportunities from mid-sized to very expensive brands, including the Apple Store, Church’s Shoes Maker, Hamleys and many others.

From Regent Street you could also take a look at Jermyn Street, famous for its men clothing and tailor made shirts shops, but also for its shoe shops as well, here the style is rigorously British.

If you want to try an even more remarkable and genuine taste of British Style a visit to Savile Row is somewhat like compulsory. Home to Henry Poole & Co., credited as the first suit handmaker in the street and, most of all, with having invented the tuxedo, Savile Row also includes names such as Ozwald Boateng, Gieves & Hawkes and Huntsman and Sons.

Still in the area you can’t miss a walk through Carnaby Street and Kingly Court, where you could buy one-off fashion creations and unique products.

London offers shopping opportunities across the whole city, so that also in Covent Garden and the neighbouring areas you’ll find plenty of interesting shopping places. The Covent Garden Market and shops in Neal Street, Mommouth Street, Floral Street, Shorts Gardens and Neal's Yard, will give you the change to buy clothing, cosmetics and shoes inspired to the latest urban trends.

Ride either the District or the Circle tube line and get off at Sloane Square for a real mix of shopping opportunities and original interior design solutions offered by Heal’s, Cath Kidson and Peter Jones. But don’t miss to pay a visit to Vivienne Westwood’s World’s End, where punk style was born in the 70s, and to the Chelsea Antiques Market.

Other pleasant shopping opportunities are offered at Knightsbridge and Brompton Road, where the iconic Harrods and Harvey Nichols are located. In Brompton Road you could also decide to shop at the Emporio Armani, whose store also includes the Emporio Armani Café.

Last but not least, you shouldn’t miss a shopping experience at Portobello Road and Market, the road, long nearly one mile, offers a whole range of stalls offering different kind of items, once there don’t miss to pay a visit to the nearby Westbourne Grove.

If you like the concept and reality of “everything under one roof”, Westfield Shopping Centre or Retail Complex is what it takes. Located in London zone 2 and renowned as the biggest urban shopping centre in Europe, you’ll be able to find here over 700 brands, a cinema, a gym and several restaurants and cafes (nearest tube station: White City).

As you can see London really offers a wealth of shopping opportunities, the only serious problem here, especially if you are a shopping addict, is take self-control.

Another thing, rather unusual for European citizens, is that contrary to expectations, CDs and DVDs are cheaper in London than in other European countries. In particular HMV, the famous British chain, is constantly launching offers, sales and promotions making really cheap to buy both CDs and DVDs. If you are used to download music and movie files from the internet, have a go you could really readdress your opinion about this practice. Having the chance to buy music and video at reasonable prices you could find worth it to pay for them.

During your shopping it is very likely that you would take a break now and then and one of the best way to enjoy a break in London is to sip a coffee whilst eating a snack.

London doesn’t really lack of places where to do so, the main coffee bar chains in the UK are: Costa Coffee, Starbucks, Caffe Nero and Prêt a manger. You could also find some French and Italian patisserie around London, offering handmade croissants and traditional cookies, which really represent the ultimate choice for a pleasant and relaxing break.

All of these places are equipped with very comfortable furniture which made your afternoon tea, or your breakfast, absolutely enjoyable so that, as they used to say during a flight, just seat back, relax and enjoy your break.

Prices vary accordingly, if the price of a medium cappuccino and a croissant at Costa can approximately be of £4, in one more traditional patisserie, the price would start from £7/8, but it can, nonetheless, definitely be worth it.

What to see

2010-08-27T05:57:00.000-07:00

There are so many things to see in London, really one is spoilt for choice. What to see very much depends on the time you have available to you and on what your favourite things to do, when visiting a new place, are.

Nonetheless, whatever your tastes, there are a number of must-see places in London, places you can’t really miss to see.

Westminster Cathedral (nearest tube station: Westminster), Buckingham Palace (nearest tube station: Green Park), Tower Bridge (nearest tube station: Tower Hill), Tower of London (nearest tube station: Tower Hill), Saint Paul’s Cathedral (nearest tube station: Saint Paul’s) and the Millennium Bridge (nearest tube station: Saint Paul’s and Blackfriars), definitely are amongst them.

In particular the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace is a lovely “show” definitely worth to be seen. The protocol includes soldiers on parade according to meticulously crafted choreographies, whose rhythm of march is beaten out by drummers and trumpets.

You could also take a tour of the Tower of London (nearest tube station: Tower Hill), guided by a Yeoman Wanders, and discover its ancient history, accessing the Tower’s prison, the place of execution, the arsenal and the Crown jewels.

If you fancy exhibits and museums you should definitely visit the British Museum (nearest tube station: Tottenham Court Road and Holborn), where you could see impressive works made by man all over the history, from the ancient Egyptians to the ancient Romans. You could also marvel at some vestiges of the past, roman temples and even some impressive, massive statues. Amongst the most important things to see, need to be listed: the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon sculptures, and the mummies in the Ancient Egypt collection.

Entry is totally free of charge; a £3 offer would, anyway, be appreciated by the museum management, which is really nothing compared to what you can see. Your contribution will allow the museum management to keep free of charge the entrance to the venue. Special exhibit, nonetheless, could require tickets.

The National Museums (nearest tube station: Charing Cross) towers the scenery of Trafalgar Square, where you could gaze up at paintings and works made by artists such as Van Gogh, da Vinci, Botticelli, Constable, Renoir, Titian and Stubbs. Also here entry is free of charge, but even in this case, a £3 offer would be appreciated, for the same reasons listed above. Once again, after all, it must be said that £3 is equal to a totally free entry; you could literally need hours to visit and enjoy the masterpieces these museums are exhibiting.

Another museum, worth to be visited and whose entry is free of charge, “sitting grandly on the banks of the Thames” is the Tate Modern (nearest tube station: Blackfriars). The site, which previously was a power station, offers exhibitions by contemporary artists such as Damien Hirst to Gauguin. Although entry is free, some exhibits can require tickets.

Staying in London’s Bankside, once home to derelict wharf building, it is worth say that in the area you also find the Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, Vinopolis, Clink Prison (London's oldest jail) and London Dungeon, which, without any question, is the most popular London’s horror attraction (nearest tube station: London Bridge).

If you like animals and, of course, if you’ll get the time, you could also pay a visit to the Natural History Museum (nearest tube station: South Kensington) in order to stare at dinosaurs exhibit, its collections of the tallest and biggest animals in the world, a Blue Whale and to pay a visit at the Darwin Centre. Even in this case, entry to this amazing museum is free, but, also in this case be ready to pay an entry ticket for special events.

Another worth-a-visit museum in London is the Science Museum (nearest tube station: South Kensington), where, amongst the other things, you could familiarise with the last three centuries’ major scientific technological development. Also in this case, entry is usually free, but some exhibits may require tickets.

The National Maritime Museum (nearest DLR station: Cutty Surk for Maritime Greenwich), acknowledged as one of the greatest museum of its genre, will allow you to discover and get acquainted with the traditions of maritime London. Usually free, some exhibits could require tickets.

If you are passionate about art and design, you can’t really miss to pay a visit to the Victoria & Albert Museum (nearest tube station: South Kensington), which boosts an amazing collection of artefacts, paintings, sculptures and furniture from around the world. Usually free, some exhibits could require tickets.

If you want to gain an in depth knowledge of prehistoric London, how it was managed during the Roman and medieval period, you can’t miss to see, then, the Museum of London (nearest tube station: Barbican and Saint Paul’s). Entry is free.

If you are, instead, interested on finding out more about the conflicts form the World War 1 to the present and to learn more about the espionage in The Secret War and the holocaust, then the Imperial War Museum (nearest tube station: Lambeth North) is what it takes. Entry is usually free, but some exhibits could require tickets.

For those who are passionate about contemporary design, architecture and industrial design the Design Museum (nearest tube station: Tower Hill and London Bridge) could represent a must see.

If you are curious to find out how public transport has been evolving through the years in London, a visit to the London Transport Museum (nearest tube station: Covent Garden) is suggested. You could look at a collection of approximately 80 vehicles which have helped Londoners and tourists to travel across the city over a period of 200 years.

If you are now considering that London can just offer you museums, you are pretty wrong, there are, in fact, many more places to visit and many more things to do.

A definitely lovely place to see is, for instance, Trafalgar Square. Closed to the vehicles circulation in 2003, Trafalgar Square is now one of the biggest pedestrian squares in London, where many major events are continually held throughout the year, under the constant scrutiny of Admiral Nelson, who towers the whole area from the top of his column.

In the immediate proximity to Trafalgar Square is the National Portrait Gallery and St. Martin in the Field Church (nearest tube station: Charing Cross) where you could enjoy a lunch or evening classical concert.

North of Trafalgar Square is Leicester Square (nearest tube station: Leicester Square and Piccadilly), where you could buy theatre tickets at discounted price in one the theatre booths located in the area. Theatre in London definitely is one of the main attractions of the night life, successes like Les Miserable, Mamma Mia, Billy Elliot, The Phantom of the Opera, just to name but a few, are masterpieces everybody knows.

One of the major, arguably the major, concert venues in London is the Royal Albert Hall (nearest tube station: South Kensington), located just opposite to the south side of Hyde Park. Coming into Hyde Park from there, you’d find The Serpentine Gallery (nearest tube station: Lancaster Gate) which hosts one the most visited contemporary art gallery in London.

The London Eye (nearest tube station: Westminster), brainchild of architects David Marks and Julia Bartfield, has its origins back in 1994, when a competition was launched by the London press in the form of “what sort of structure could be built in London to celebrate the millennium”. The project didn’t actually win the competition, but it attracted a lot of interest and support from many Londoners so that, lot of hurdles notwithstanding, it was finally realised. The project was then implemented by British Airways, that’s also why the London Eye experience is called and described as a flight.

For those with a head for heights, here are some other places where you could enjoy great views of the city.

The top-floor restaurant and bar of the above mentioned National Portrait Gallery, offers amazing views towards the Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square (nearest tube station: Leicester Square).

The Windows on the World restaurant and bar at the London Hilton offers lovely panoramic views of Hyde Park and Buckingham Palace (nearest tube station: Hyde Park Corner).

The “other” Hilton, i.e. the London Hilton Metropole, offers unbeatable panoramas from its 23rd floor restaurant (nearest tube station: Edgware Road).

Also the highest point of Saint Paul’s Cathedral outer Dome offers an impressive views of London, but take note, in order to enjoy it, you need first to climb 530 steps (nearest tube station: Saint’s Paul).

The Westminster Cathedral, provided with an elevator, offers lovely sights of London that, on a clear day, can allow you to see as far as Hampstead Heath (nearest tube station: Victoria Station).

You could also enjoy a lovely panoramic view from the Studio Lounge located on the 5th floor of Watestone’s, arguably the biggest bookshop in Europe (nearest tube station: Piccadilly).

If you like to have a panoramic view of the bank district, including the Bank of England, you could book a table for lunch at the Coq d’Argent, one of the trendiest lunch spots in London, located in the Oxo Tower (nearest tube station: Bank).

In the area located between Westminster and Waterloo Bridges, on the South Bank of River Thames, there are several cultural places worth to be mentioned (and to be seen): The Sea Life London Aquarium, the County Hall where the London Film Museum is located, the Hayward Gallery, the Queen Elisabeth Hall, the Purcell Room, the Royal Festival Hall, the Royal National Theatre, the Old and Young Vic, the BFI London Imax Cinema and the British Film Institute (nearest tube station: Waterloo).

Other places you shouldn’t eventually miss to see in London are Piccadilly Circus (nearest tube station: Piccadilly), Kensington (nearest tube station: High Street Kensington), Marylebone (nearest tube station: Marylebone and Bond Street) and Covent Garden (nearest tube station: Covent Garden), with its street artists who are constantly entertaining visitors with their shows and performances.

Notting Hill and Portobello’s Road and Market (nearest tube station: Notting Hill Gate), definitely are amongst the must-see places. Should you be there in August you could also enjoy and join the carnival parade.

Another lovely place to see is Soho where the London Chinatown is located. If you like Chinese cuisine this is the right place where to seek for a Chinese restaurant (nearest tube station: Piccadilly).

If you are curious to see the area where Jack the Ripper was carrying out his criminal activities in the past, than Brick Lane is a place you should definitely visit (nearest tube station: Aldgate East). You could also decide to join the “Jack the Ripper walking tour”.

It must also be said that the area has relatively recently been rejuvenated and it is now considered very posh, teeming with trendy restaurants and bar where especially young people are used to spend their night life.

If you are a Sherlock Holmes fan, you then have to visit Baker Street (nearest tube station: Baker Street), where you could find a shop entirely devoted to the most famous detective in the world.

Unless you are not planning to stay in London for months, it is really unlikely that you could ever be able to visit it in a matter of weeks, let alone of days. Discovering the whole of London is a real quest, and wherever you go, you’ll find something interesting and particular to see. The more you go around, the more you’ll realise there are still so many things to see. This is possibly why, no matter how many times you have already been there, you’ll always find worth and lovely to come back to London.

Introducing London

2010-08-26T10:47:00.000-07:00

London definitely is one of the most vibrant, exciting, inspiring, and multiethnic, interesting and compelling cities in the world. To the extent that retailers, the like of Selfridges & Co., on drafting their company “vision” consider “keeping pace with a sense of rejuvenation, in order to reflect the Spirit of the City”.

Strolling around the streets of London you’ll continuously have the chance to hear people speaking a wide array of foreign languages all the year round.

London has traditionally been considered a very expensive city, which, in general, could be considered rather true, but it is also true that the high Sterling exchange rate of the past has actually been one of the main factors contributing to this unlovely reputation. For strange it might seem, London is nowadays offering plenty of opportunities for good bargains.

Nonetheless, sipping a medium cappuccino and a chocolate twist in any given Costa Coffee bar will cost you £4.20 which is not actually that cheap.

Nonetheless, the internet definitely opens you a lot of opportunities to plan and book your travel and stay at more affordable budgets than you could be supposed to need only few years ago.

Nonetheless, it cannot be denied that having a good insight of the different options and opportunities available, for instance in terms of accommodation, would definitely help you to save a good deal of money. London offers a wide range of options able to meet all the different tastes and budgets, the problem here is to find a suitable minimum, as for the maximum, in fact, it could reach the heavens.

Where to stay

2010-08-25T04:38:00.000-07:00

London offers a whole array of possibilities in terms of accommodation, ranging from hostels to superior luxury hotels.

Accommodation prices are subject to changes throughout the year, so that, hotel rooms will be definitely cheaper during the fall-winter time, when you could also find lovely room at affordable prices, representing very good value for money. If you are, instead, considering to spend time in London in the summer time, namely from June to September, be ready to pay higher hotels rates and be sure to book your rooms well in advance.
Hotels in London are located everywhere across the city, so that you could first better decide in which area you’d like to spend your stay in London, and, then, narrow your hotel search within the area in which you have decided to stay.
If you want to stay within zone 1, Bayswater, Kensington, Paddington, Victoria and Earl’s Court definitely are amongst the most attractive and strategic areas within which narrow your search. All of these areas offer you excellent public transport services and lot of amenities.

If you are lodging in a hotel in Paddington, it is very likely that you also are at walking distance from Hide Park and Oxford Street. If you have decided to stay in a hotel in Victoria, you can, instead reach, still walking, Westminster and the Big Ben in just 10 minutes time.

Bayswater is a very lively area, very close to Notting Hill and offering so many amenities you could also decide to spend your evenings there.

As for breakfast, unless you’ll book in a very good hotel, in general, there are some common issues guests are used to cope with, in hotels whose accommodation costs are below £50/60 per night.

One is the size of the breakfast room, usually very small and unable to accommodate all the guests at one time, so that often people are obliged to queuing in order to have their breakfast. And if queuing is something British people love, or are used to, this doesn’t necessarily apply for all other people, who could find it boring and unpleasant to wait in a corridor to have their breakfast.
The other problem relates to the quantity and variety of the continental breakfast. You should usually be ready to get a couple of toasts, butter and jam, orange juice, cereals and coffee or tea.
If you are expected to be served croissants or “real” coffee you’d be surely disappointed, in that, in the largest number of cases you won’t.
In particular, as for the coffee, some hotels are even used to serve you just hot water, you could, then, be supposed that they misunderstood your order, but actually it is because you simply have to add instant coffee powder to get your coffee ready.

Transport within London

2010-08-24T13:04:00.000-07:00

Once you get there you could find even outrageous the price you need to pay to move around London by public transport. A single tube ticket is in fact worth a staggering £4, but you can (or rather, are suggested to) consider a couple of other available options.

If you are just going to London for a one-off trip, then you are strongly suggested to buy a Travel card, you can check in the Transport for London website for details about the different fares www.tfl.gov.uk.

Be aware that fares depend on the zones you are travelling through and that London is divided into 6 different travel zones.

If, instead, you are thinking and planning to go to London from time to time, even now and then, you could consider buying an “Oyster Card”. This card, which can be bought rather everywhere in London, will allow you to pay “just” £1.80 for each journey and you can top-up it in every tube station and online.

The choice between the Oyster card and the Travel card very much depends on the number of journey you are likely to have during each day of your stay. If you are likely to move back and forth and high and low through London the Travel card is definitely the best option, if you are just riding a very limited number of journeys per day, then the Oyster card could reveal to be more appropriate.

If you are just travelling within zone 1, a daily travel card off-peak price is £5.60, whilst a daily any-time travel card will cost you £7.20.

Peak single fares apply from 06:30 to 09:30 and from 16:00 to 19:00, Monday to Friday. At all other times and bank holidays, the Off-Peak single fare applies.

Nonetheless, take note that if you should buy an Oyster card you’ll never spend, on any given day, considering the different zones within you are moving, more than you will be spending if buying a travel card. In other words, Oyster card daily expense is capped to a daily maximum, which is fixed to the same amount you’d have spent to buy a daily travel card. So that, in case you are using the Oyster card on a pay as you go single fares mode and you should use it for a large number of times, the maximum amount which will be detracted to your total credit won’t be higher than the cost of a daily travel card, considering, of course, the zones you are travelling to and from.

One think you need to know about the London Underground system is that if you are using an Oyster card you have to touch in and out, in fact you card will be charged only when you actually touch out. The amount that will be detracted from your Oyster card will depend, in fact, on the stations of entry and exit, this is particularly relevant if you are travelling across different zones, but if, for any reasons, you should forget to touch out you’ll be automatically charged the maximum daily amount (that is the cost of a daily travel card).

Bus costs £1.20 each journey and you just need to touch in.

London with its 12 underground lines, DLR, over ground lines and buses really boasts an amazing transportation system. Really no need to rent a car, on the contrary, should you do that, you will immediately realise that is will just be a useless and expensive burden, congestion charge and parking in Central London are, in fact, really expensive and you won’t have any convenience at all on going around London by car.

How to reach Central London from the airport

2010-08-24T13:03:00.000-07:00

Once at the airport, whatever that airport is, you always have several options available to you in order to reach Central London.

From Heathrow, you can both ride the tube, a coach or a, definitely more expensive, taxi.

From Stansted Airport you can either ride a train, i.e. the Stansted Express, but note that it will terminate at Liverpool St. Station, a taxi or a coach.

Should you opt to use a coach, you can both reach Central London by the National Express Services (Single ticket £10, return ticket £17) or a Terravision service (Single £9, return ticket 14£). As you can see there is a small difference in price between the two companies, but you’d better decide which service use according to your final destination in Central London.

Should you need to get to Golders Green, St. John’s Wood, Marble Arch and Baker Street, you should use the National Express services. If you need to go to Victoria Station or Liverpool Street you can both ride a National Express or a Terravision service. You can also buy a coach ticket with Easyjet when you book and buy the flight online.

London City Airport is actually located in Zone 3 of London and you can comfortably and conveniently ride the DLR (Dockland Light Railway) to reach Central London.

If, instead, you arrive to Luton Airport, you can reach Central London both by train and coach, a taxi still remain a more expensive, but available, option.

The trip by train, although not particularly nightmarish, is a little bit more complicated, you need in fact, to catch a bus at the airport which will bring you to the Luton Parkway railway station, than ride the train to Farringdon, where you be able to finally take the subway.

Also from Gatwick Airport Central London can be reached by different means. By train you can ride both the Gatwick Express and a Southern Train, usually calling just a couple of times before arriving to London Victoria, where the train terminates.

If you should decide to travel by a Southern train, be aware that you can book your journey online and save some money. Advanced online booking, in fact, can also allow you to just pay as little as £3 for each single ticket (usually costing at least £9 during off-peak periods), the only problem being that you need to book for a specific train. If this could be easy to plan for your coming back journey to the airport, it is not exactly so when you arrive. In fact, it is rather tricky to exactly predict beforehand if your plane will land on time, how long it will take to claim you luggage and to pass the passport inspection.

If you want, instead, ride a coach be aware that at Gatwick, differently from Stansted and Luton, coach services are operating during a limited period of the day, or put it in another way, they are not operating round the clock.

Taxi, also in this case, obviously is amongst the possible viable options.

How to get there

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Wherever you live, with its five international airports (Heathrow, Stansted, Gatwick, London City and Luton) London is definitely one of the most easy to reach destinations. Particularly from European Countries, thanks to the low-cost carriers like Ryanair and Easyjet, it is possible, in fact, to fly to London at very affordable rates.

Of course, plenty of possibilities are also available to you if you’d prefer to fly by a flag carrier, enjoying a higher level of comfort and service. After all, even flag carriers are proposing today very good flight offers and, very often, also very good “flight + accommodation” offers, making flying with flag carriers quite affordable and enjoyable.

Should you decide to fly Ryanair, Easyjet or another low-cost/no-frills airline, consider that just the “basic price” of your flight is actually low. Should you carry one or more items of luggage, should you subscribe an additional insurance online, should you like to board before other passengers (buying a priority board option) and should you use to buy snacks and drinks during your flights, you should seriously better consider to take a look at your national flag carrier in order to compare prices, before booking your flight with a low-cost carrier.

Moreover, be aware that low-cost carriers are used to charge you administrative costs, namely an additional fee for paying your ticket with a credit card. This fee can be avoided only if you use a pre-paid credit card. In particular, Ryanair won’t be charge you any additional fees only if you use a pre-paid MasterCard, whilst Easyjet won’t charge you any additional fees both if you’ll buy your ticket by a MasterCard or a Visa card.

Within the EU area London can also be easily reached by high speed trains: the TGV (Train à Grand Vitesse), for instance, links London St. Pancras to Paris, whilst Eurostar trains are linking, for instance, London to Rome, Milan, Brussels and other European cities.