need help with working out travel options to london via train

shed_head_2

We are going to Legoland windsor August 28th to Sept 4th, I thought it would be nice to take the kids to the natural history and science museums for a day whilst we are there. I have got myself well confused trying to work out the best travel options.

Southern railways have an offer that kids travel for one pound, then there is the tube station travel card option or travel from windsor on whatever network that is on. now my head hurts :eek:

Any input ideas or suggestions would be gratefully received.

Oh there are two adults, one oap (who thinks he counts as an adult) and two children five of us altogether and my friend is lending me her family and friends rail card

Jeff_Bridges_hair

Would be great if we knew where you were travelling from too..

Livingthedream

shed_head wrote: »

my friend is lending me her family and friends rail card

Lol, a bit naughty but make sure a female member of the group displays the railcard if challenged as by the rules there not transferable.

Livingthedream

Jeff_Bridges_hair wrote: »

Would be great if we knew where you were travelling from too..

As their at Legoland would take a guess at Windsor and Eton Riverside or Central to London, but I could be wrong:o

Jeff_Bridges_hair

Livingthedream wrote: »

As their at Legoland would take a guess at Windsor and Eton Riverside or Central to London, but I could be wrong:o

Doh! I read it as going there not staying there

Livingthedream

Don't worry I did the same was going to recommend a SWT London to Legoland ticket which includes bus fare from WNR to Legoland, then read that they wanted to go to a museum.

Anyway back to the OP use (your) Family and Friends railcard as that should be the cheapest.

shed_head_2

Sorry for the muddle guys,

we are staying on a camp site at hurley, we have a car with us and we are able to travel to a train station. I wan to take the kids into london to the science museum. When I started looking for an advanced train ticket I realised that we had a number of options. As I am not local to the area and with all the offers etc on I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.

Drive to tube station and then get a travel card for us all
Get on the train at maidenhead and take pot luck! (nearest station to where we are staying.)
drive to a station on the southern network and take advantage of the kids travel for a £1 offer.
About the time I started to try and work out which tube station/southern network station was best for us to drive to my brain froze and I posted on here for help.

Thanks so much for your replies and interest.

Shed

Stigy

shed_head wrote: »

Sorry for the muddle guys,

we are staying on a camp site at hurley, we have a car with us and we are able to travel to a train station. I wan to take the kids into london to the science museum. When I started looking for an advanced train ticket I realised that we had a number of options. As I am not local to the area and with all the offers etc on I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions.

Drive to tube station and then get a travel card for us all
Get on the train at maidenhead and take pot luck! (nearest station to where we are staying.)
drive to a station on the southern network and take advantage of the kids travel for a £1 offer.
About the time I started to try and work out which tube station/southern network station was best for us to drive to my brain froze and I posted on here for help.

Thanks so much for your replies and interest.

Shed

How old are the kids?

On the tube kids under 11 travel free, although on National Rail it's only kids under 5. With that in mind, if the kids are under 11 you could buy them child returns in to Central London (Paddington's probably easiest as you'll be on First Great Western's route at Maidenhead) and not worry about the tube.

If kids are over 11 then I'd suggest getting travelcards from Maidenhead to Zones 1-6 of London (although the destinations you want are in zone 1, unfortunately you have to get all zones as you'll be travelling from Maidenhead, which of course, isn't within and of the zones!). You could travel to a southern trains station, but given the distance you'd need to travel to reach one, it's probably easier to go from the local station to you.

I too read that you were going on the train to Legoland, too, and thought to myself "They do know that Legoland isn't anywhere near the Science museum, don't they?" :beer:

dzug1

Driving to Maidenhead and getting a day travelcard from there (£13.50 per adult before discounts) is probably going to be your easiest option. Further in parking is going to be more difficult and fares not a lot different. Slough might do - the fare is £2 cheaper, there are some fast trains and there's a large multistorey car park near the station.

Tube might be Uxbridge or Hillingdon - the latter has quite a big car park. But they are a fair drive away and the travel time into London is no quicker than from Maidenhead

Forget Southern - you are the wrong side of London for them to be any use. You'd need to go to somewhere like Epsom.

Livingthedream

shed_head wrote: »

Sorry for the muddle guys

No worries, just had a giggle that 3 of us made the same mistake

firespire

So you have three adults and two children in Hurley wanting to go to London and use the tube/buses there. OK.

Driving to a tube station and getting each of yourselves London Transport tickets I think would be more expensive. Going to a Southern station seems impractical and I can't see it being cheaper.

I would travel from Maidenhead.

The cheapest ticket is the Off Peak Day Travelcard getting you to and from London and allowing you to use the transport there (zones 1-6).
If you go on a Saturday/Sunday you can travel at any time,
If you go in a weekday you are not allowed to arrive into London before 10am and are not allowed to leave London on the 17:50 train, the 18:45 or 18:51 because some trains are barred on this ticket in the "peak".

You need to forget the Family Railcard (works out more expensive). You need instead to ask for a Groupsave discount. With Groupsave you only pay for two adults and get two more tickets at no extra price then any additional children are £1.
As dzugi says the Adult fare is £13.50. So you would pay £27 for your 3 adults and the first child who will travel on an "adult" ticket plus £1 for you second child. Total = £28.

There is also something called a Off Peak Family Travelcard but you don't want that as you have 3 adults and would be much more expensive as that product is only for two adult families.