Weekend in London Advice - Tube etc

pcyuljr

Hello,

My partner and I are travelling to London on Friday 18th February and returning on Monday 21st.

I am after some advice on what would be the cheapest way to use the tube over the weekend and off peak on Friday and Monday (although Monday not essential as we leave early afternoon and can get to the station without using the tube). I assume most tourist attractions are in Zones 1 - 2 so I would only need travel to those two? I'm not sure how much it will cost, but are there any cashback/discounts people are aware?

Finally any other good value/discounts/offers/vouchers/tips I can take advantage of would be most appreciated. It's our first weekend there so I wouldn't mind some advice!

Thanks in advance.

dzug1

http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/?gclid=cpgpitkcr6ycfcse4qodcaebyg for 2 for 1 offers.

You need a rail ticket each to use these offers and it must be valid on the day you use the offer - if you are arriving in London by train that may do, but if not a one day travelcard for zones 1 and 2 (£6.60 each) bought at a rail station will cover you.

The same card bought at a tube station will not cover you, and an Oyster card won't either though both will work out at the same net fare.

p00hsticks

dzug1 wrote: »

You need a rail ticket each to use these offers and it must be valid on the day you use the offer

Note that the exception to this is if you have travelled into london using an advance single ticket, and also have one booked for your return - you can then take advantage of these offers on any of the days in between as well ...

From the FAQ on the website, under the heading

If for example you are buying single tickets, e.g.Advance tickets to London for a one-way journey on a Monday, and Advance tickets for departing London on a Friday you will be able to use the vouchers during the Monday-Friday period, provided you show both outward and return tickets (remember to tell the train company staffs that you need to keep your outward tickets!).

pcyuljr

Thanks for all the help, much appreciated.

To clarify, we are travelling with an advanced booked single on the Friday afternoon and returning with an advanced booked single on the Monday afternoon. I assume that we will be fine using the 'Days Out' offers (even though the tickets are singles and technically two separate weeks)

Just to confuse things, we are staying with friends in Tooting on the Friday and Saturday night and then at Waterloo Travel Lodge on the Sunday night. As such we are definitely going to need some tube access and not just make do with walking. However our train tickets already include tube travel to and from our depature station (Euston), so we will only need extra tube travel on the Saturday & Sunday.

Oyster appears the best recommendation. Should I book these in advance? How do I reclaim the deposit? Can they just be bought at any tube station? Do I need to add funds to them (like an FairFX travel card) or are they linked to my bank account like a debit card)? If adding funds, say I add £20 bt only spend £12, can i get it back easily? I'm not too sure how they work to be honest.

My tube travel plans would be;

Friday - London to Tooting - Already paid for as part of train ticket.

Saturday - Tooting to London - Probably at most two further journeys in the day at London - London back to Tooting

Sunday - Tooting to London (to hotel) - Probably at most two further journeys in the day at London.

Monday - Back to Euston station (already paid for on train tickets).

Thanks a lot.

dzug1

Oyster can be bought (and topped up) at any tube station - and at quite a few other locations as well. To get your deposit and any unspent cash back just take it to any tube station. There may be a limit as to how much they will pay out on the spot (£10 rings a bell) and it all has to have been paid by the same method. If not all is not lost - but the refund will come in the post rather than given to you straightaway. Or you can save it for a future visit.

No point in buying in advance