What's that? Let us explain. The Oyster card is an essential step toward saving money on public transportation in London. It's a travel "credit card" that offers substantial discounts on all London public transportation—the Underground, bus lines, and the Docklands Light Railway. Let's break some costs down for you. A single Underground ride in Zone 1 costs £2 during peak hours (essentially weekday rush hour) and just £1.80 at all other times with the Oyster card. Without the Oyster card, that same individual journey will run you a whopping £4. A single bus journey costs £2 without an Oyster card and £.90 with one. The difference adds up quickly. We don't know how direct we should be here. Every visitor to London should purchase an Oyster card!
You can purchase Oyster cards on the Oyster website or at one of over 2,200 Oyster ticket shops throughout London. You can put money on a card to debit per journey, charge a pay-as-you-go card, or apply a seven-day or monthly Travelcard to your Oyster card. Any way you go, the savings are huge. Note that the purchase of a pay-as-you-go Oyster card requires a £3 refundable deposit on the card itself.
The fastest and cheapest way to get around London is by Underground. Londoners refer to the Underground as the Tube, and they love to complain about it. While it's true that track work, delays, and slow trains are chronic issues, most visitors fall in love with the energy of the Tube and the sheer volume of people it transfers from place to place. Additionally, platforms have handy electronic signs indicating the arrival time of the next train. There are the oh-so-delightfully cushioned seats. And lastly, who can fail to be moved by that booming voice famously urging you to "mind the gap"?
Trains run every 3-10 minutes from Monday through Saturday from 5:30 AM to 12:30 AM and on Sunday from 7:30 AM until 11:30 PM. Note station closing times! Running to catch the last train is something of a tradition, especially on weekends. The alternative is to board a night-bus filled with drunks or an expensive and hard-to-find taxi.
Tickets must be bought in advance from the booth or machines around the station. Hold on to your tickets, as you can be charged a £10 penalty for failure to produce a valid ticket. A one-way trip costs £4.60 for an adult and £1.00 for a child.
The Tube is divided into zones that radiate out from central London. Most tourists will only very rarely need to venture beyond the borders of Zone 2.
One and three day tickets good for travel on the Tube and Dockland Light Railway can also be purchased. A one-day peak-inclusive pass costs £7.20 and one-day pass exclusively for off-peak travel runs £5.60.
Travelcards can save visitors money. Travelcards, which can be purchased ahead of time online, cover Tube, bus, trams, Dockland Light Railway, and National Rail for periods of one, three, or seven consecutive days.
The Travelcard pricing scheme is complex. A one-week adult Travelcard for London's Zones 1 through 6 is priced at £47.60 (£33.30 reduced).
For more information, check out the official Transport for London website.
London's bus system, though slower than the Tube, is just as easy and even less expensive than the Tube, costing just £2 per ride. (With the Oyster Card, a ride costs just £ 1.20.) A One-Day Bus Pass runs £3.90, and a bus ticket six-pack costs £4. After midnight, night buses (prefixed with the letter "N" in front of the route number) prowl the streets. Night buses run limited routes, so do the necessary advance research. Night buses are also usually something of a madcap adventure, especially on weekends when they fill with late-night partiers hitting clubs or ready to hit the sack.
In you're in a group of three or more, taxis may be a good transportation option. London's metered taxis are black cabs, starting at £2.20 (tariff #1), with a surcharge (tariff #2) after 6:00 PM and on holidays (tariff #3). Generally, taxis are easy to wave down. A yellow light over the cab's wind-shield indicates a free cab.
A 10-minute cab ride on a Friday night will cost around £5.60 on the way out and about £6.40 return. A surcharge of £2 applies to cabs reserved by telephone.
To book taxi in advance, call +44 (0)20 7272 0272.
Related posts from our blog
Looking for flights to Europe? Use Yahoo! FareChase
