Oyster card HELP Please

[gatita]

Please could someone be so kind as to guide me through the process of getting an Oyster card. It would be 3 days in late January, mid week, travelling mainly between Paddington and the West End. I am unsure which option I should go for, and can two of us share one card? e.g. swipe it twice rather than have 2 cards? and lastly how much should I put on the card?

I thought there was a scheme where I could travel all over for one standard price, or am I dreaming.
YUK this is confusing:confused:

[moonrakerz]

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/default.aspx

[Legal Eagle]

You can apply for an Oystercard online using the link the previous poster gave. They will post it out to you for free but there is a £3 deposit per card.

Singles in zone 1 (i.e. between Paddington and the West End) will be £1.60 in 2009. If you only use the card in Zones 1 & 2, starting after 9.30am, the amount you spend on the card will be capped at £5.10 per day (the cap is £6.70 if you start pre-9.30am).

If there are two of you, you will need a card each - you can't share.

You can top up the cards at the automatic ticket machines which are available in all tube stations, if you run out of credit.

Hope that helps!

[dzug1]

and to complete the picture, when you leave London you can hand the Oyster back and get the £3 deposit and any unused cash refunded.

[gatita]

Thank you SO much all of you for your help, that really is a great help!:A
I take it it IS much cheaper to have one of these, even if its only for about 4 journeys a day max?

[dzug1]

Thank you SO much all of you for your help, that really is a great help!:A
I take it it IS much cheaper to have one of these, even if its only for about 4 journeys a day max?

Yes it's cheaper - you get reduced fares anyway and the daily cap is rather less than two normal fares.

[daveyjp]

We used one on our last visit to London - last time I went there Oyster was in it's infancy. By far the easiest way to pay for tube and bus fares - 90p for a bus trip from St Pauls to Regent Street was a bargain.

We bought ours from the tube station and loaded it with £15 for three days stay. Mine still has £6 on it, but I'll use it again sometime.

The max you will spend in a day is the cost of a one day travelcard. Any trips over this price are free.

The info mentions nothing of being able to cash it in when you leave London.

[Keith]

When you buy the Oyster card, you pay a £3 deposit, by handing back the card you can get a refund of that deposit and any money held on it.

Easiest way is to use a vending machine in an underground station to purchase one and then top it up at the nearest auto machine :)