London Travel Card or Oyster Card

[dinks4disney]

We are going on the Knights & Lights tour in the spring & will be in London for 3 or 4 days prior to joining the ABD Tour. We have been researching the pros & con of both the London Travel Card & Oyster Card for getting around London & area while we are on our own. Has any one used either or both & which in your opinion is better (economically & practically).
BTW it's minus 25 C & windy. brrrr
Thanks

 

[jennypenny]

I would like to know this also We leave for London in two weeks. My husband says the oyster card looks better. If no one answers I might ask on the UK board.

 

[ga9497]

We didn't do the London card because a lot of places offer free admission for children or you can get 2 for 1 entrance fees off this site

The Oyster card is a card that allows you to use the tube and buses as often as you wish within the time you purchase them for. These were easy to get right at the first tube station we went to. Children under age 11 ride for free and children up to 15 cost 1 pound per day.

We figured out the cost of the attractions we wanted to see taking in to account any free admissions or 2 for 1 deals we could use and then compared the total to the cost of the London card. We found that the card didn't make sense for us based on the cost.

I looked up my receipts and the Oyster card in 2007 cost us £23 per adult for 7 days
My then 10 yr old was free. My then 12 yr old paid £1 per day - total for the 4 of us £53

We received 2 for 1 admissions or discounted admission to almost every place we went. We didn't go to Madam Tussauds as personally I think it is a rip off. I went many years ago with friends and the price was reasonable but now the price has gotten out of hand

 

[rkdahl]

We've been to London several times recently. Purchasing the London Pass Card (attractions and travel) depends on your schedule and activities we found. If you plan it, use it wisely and stay active it works well and it's convienent. But the shorter your stay the less the value in my opinion. We have used it for 7 day or longer stays but never for anything less.

In my opinion, you'd be better off getting a visitor travel pass (tube only) or Oyster card for the tube only and then do that attractions on a pay per use basis.

Whatever you choos.....have fun!! It's a great place to explore and visit!

 

[ga9497]

We've been to London several times recently. Purchasing the London Pass Card (attractions and travel) depends on your schedule and activities we found. If you plan it, use it wisely and stay active it works well and it's convienent. But the shorter your stay the less the value in my opinion. We have used it for 7 day or longer stays but never for anything less.

In my opinion, you'd be better off getting a visitor travel pass (tube only) or Oyster card for the tube only and then do that attractions on a pay per use basis.

Whatever you choos.....have fun!! It's a great place to explore and visit!

Even if they do the visitor pass for the tube only, usually, the Oyster card is still the better option especially if they have children under age 11 as they ride for free. It is always best to figure out the price of admission to the places you want to visit vs the cost of doing it separately especially if you can get the 2 for 1 admission or free admission for kids to some locations.

I do agree that if you are in london more then 7 days then the pass sometimes give you more value

 

[dinks4disney]

We meant to say the London Travel Card (transportation only) & we are not travelling with any kiddies. Is the Oyster Card still the better option? We figured even while on the ATD we would still make use of one of the cards to get around during our free time.

 

[crashbb]

The Oyster card is a card that allows you to use the tube and buses as often as you wish within the time you purchase them for. These were easy to get right at the first tube station we went to. Children under age 11 ride for free and children up to 15 cost 1 pound per day.

No - the Oyster card is simply a plastic reusable card. It CAN be loaded with a 7 day travel card and then it can be used as you said (use the Tube/Buses as much as you want in 7 days). It can also, however, be loaded with cash. You swipe it (well, touch it to a touch pad) each time you use it and the appropriate cost is deducted.

Getting an Oyster card is always worth it. They cost 3 pounds but you can get the money back if you return it at the end of your trip. I keep mine and it gets passed on to whoever is traveling to London (it it transferable and reloadable).

Now, deciding what to put on the Oyster card. First, I've never found the London Pass (travel and attractions) to be worthwhile but YYMV. In terms of a travel card or cash:

1) For the travel card, you need to choose which zones it will be good for. The London tube is divided into 6 concentric zones, starting with zone 1 in the centre of London. Most sites are within zones 1/2 so you can get the cheapest card (good only for zones 1 and 2). However, if you travel out of these zones (e.g. go out to the airport, some further afield sites), you'll need to pay for those trips.

2) Only 7 day travel cards can be loaded on the Oyster, but smaller ones (e.g. 3 day ones) do exist.

3) Will you be using the Tube every day or will you be taking day trips out of London? For example, if you are going to go spend the day in Windsor or Oxford, you won't be getting use of your travel card that day.

4) If you do the pay-as-you-go Oyster, the maximum you will charged per day is 50p less than the equivalent 1 day travel card. Any trips after this amount has been deducted will be free. Note also, that instead of paying 4 pounds per trip (the standard "cash" rate), you are charged 1.5 pounds (depends on distance traveled), so take that into account when factoring your costs.

5) I haven't traveled with children, but I know that they also have reduced/free fares in the pay-as-you-go system, so check that out if you are taking kids.

For me, I tend to go with the pay-as-you-go option since I'd be paying for me travel to/from the airport anyway (I usually take the tube) and I know that there are days where I will take few or no trips.

I highly advise the London forum on www.tripadvisors.com for more info. about your transportation options.