London travel over long weekend

Slimeball20

Hi everyone,

I'm visiting London next month for a long weekend, Friday to Monday.

I'd like to know the cheapest way of getting around to see the sights i.e. British Museum, Science Museum etc etc.

I thought of getting a daily tube pass for the zones I will need as it works out cheaper than getting a 3-day pass and then a one day pass for the Monday.

I also looked at Oyster cards but don't know whether they're a good idea.

Can anyone suggest please?

Thanks.

Slimeball20

Bumping up.

balsingh

I think you will be better off with the Travelcard. Get an off peak one after 9.30 to save even more. Once you have jumped on and off the tube a few times, it becomes more costly to use any other type of card (including Oyster)

lisyloo

Once you have jumped on and off the tube a few times, it becomes more costly to use any other type of card (including Oyster)

I don't understand this comment.

There is a CAP on oyster cards of 50p BELOW the travel card rate.
So for example an off peak travel card is £5.10 but on Oyster you will only get charged £4.60.

You need to use the tube 4 times to justify a travel card.

The beauty of Oyster is that it will always charge you the cheapest fair (providing you always check out properly).

So 3 tube trips will be £4.50 (less than a travel card)
and 4 tube trips will be £4.60 (still less than a travel card).

Slimeball20

Thanks for your advice.

I would expect to use the Tube more than 4 times per day for journeys between stations - from my hotel and back for example but also for travelling to different sights during the day.

balsingh

lisyloo wrote:

There is a CAP on oyster cards of 50p BELOW the travel card rate.

I thought the cap was only against the Peak rate and not off-peak. I may be wrong though. If the cap is against the Off-Peak rate too, then the Oyster is definitly better.

Slimeball20

So I can travel for a set daily rate with an Oyster card which is cheaper than a Travelcard i.e. £5.20 per day no matter how many journeys I make?

Lemmy_Caution

Slimeball20: The answer to your question will depend on where you are staying. If you are likely to be using a train within London, then a travelcard will most probably be the cheapest. This is because most of the train stations in London do not have Oyster readers.
If you are going to be using only tube and bus, then Oyster is best (remember to touch in/out)
You can not buy a 3 day card. You can use the travelcard up to 4.30 A.M the following day.

lisyloo

I went at the weekend and my card was capped at £4.60 (off-peak travelcard is £5.10).
I went to lots of stations and never had any problem finding an Oyster card reader.

However there is a £3 refundable deposit with the card so if you aren't going back to London for a while then the travelcard may simply be easier because you don't have to queue up for a refund afterwards.

balsingh

As far as I know, EVERY tube station has Oyster card reader. Its worth noting that Oyster pre-pay cannot be used for National Rail trains.

Astaroth

I think they meant national rail when saying train station rather than underground/ tube which is why they say you cannot use it on trains (though I believe on some you can use prepay but it is the exception rather than the rule)