London United Kingdom Tourism: Getting Around

Home > Travel Guides > Europe > United Kingdom > England > London > Getting to Know > Getting Around

Getting Around

hide display ads

London Travel & Vacation Deals

Sponsored Links

Fly to Paris for $475

Check out the Air France Early Bird Sale. Book before July 7th!
www.AirFrance.us

Experience Europe

Enjoy higher service standards only from British Airways
www.britishairways.com

London's Official Website

Everything you need to plan, book and get the most from your vacation
www.visitlondon.com

By Public Transportation

Note: This guide went to print shortly after the bombings on July 7, 2005. For transportation updates and possible closings, please check www.tfl.gov.uk.

The London Underground and the city's buses operate on the same system of six fare zones. The fare zones radiate out in rings from the central zone 1, which is where most visitors spend the majority of their time. Zone 1 covers the area from Liverpool Street in the east to Notting Hill in the west, and from Waterloo in the south to Baker Street, Euston, and King's Cross in the north. To travel beyond zone 1, you need a multizone ticket. Note that all single one-way, round-trip, and 1-day pass tickets are valid only on the day of purchase. Tube and bus maps should be available at any Underground station. You can download them before you travel from the excellent London Transport (LT) website: www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl. (You can also send away for a map by writing to London Transport, Travel Information Service, 42-50 Victoria St., London SW1H 0TL.) There are also LT Information Centres at several major Tube stations: Euston, King's Cross, Oxford Circus, St. James's Park, Liverpool Street Station, and Piccadilly Circus, as well as in the British Rail stations at Euston and Victoria and in each of the terminals at Heathrow Airport. Most of them are open daily (some close Sun) from at least 9am to 5pm. A 24-hour public-transportation information service is also available at tel. 020/7222-1234.

Travel Discounts -- If you plan to use public transportation a lot, investigate the range of fare discounts available. Travelcards offer unlimited use of buses, Underground, and British Rail services in Greater London for any period, ranging from a day to a year. Travelcards are available from Underground ticket offices, LT Information Centres, main post offices in the London area, and some newsstands. You need to bring a passport-size photo to purchase a Travelcard; you can take a photo at any of the instant photo booths in London's train stations. Children under age 5 generally travel free on the Tube and buses.

The 1-Day Travelcard allows you to go anywhere throughout Greater London. For travel anywhere within zones 1 and 2, the cost is £5.30 ($9.80) for adults or £2.60 ($4.80) for children 5 to 15. The Off-Peak 1-Day Travelcard, which isn't valid until after 9:30am on weekdays (or on night buses), is even cheaper. For two zones, the cost is £4.30 ($7.95) for adults and £2 ($3.70) for children 5 to 15.

Weekend Travelcards are valid for one weekend, plus the Monday, if it's a national holiday. They're not valid on night buses; travel anywhere within zones 1 and 2 all weekend costs £6.40 ($12) for adults or £2 ($3.70) for kids 5 to 15.

1-Week Travelcards cost adults £17 ($31) and children £7 ($13) for travel in zones 1 and 2.

The 1-day Family Travelcard allows as many journeys as you want on the Tube, buses (excluding night buses) displaying the London Transport bus sign, and even the Docklands Light Railway or any rail service within the travel zones designated on your ticket. The family card is valid Monday through Friday after 9:30am and all day on weekends and public holidays. It's available for families as small as two (one adult and one child) to as large as six (two adults and four children). Cost is £2.80 ($5.20) per adult and 80p ($1.50) per child.

You can also buy Carnet tickets, a booklet of 10 single Underground tickets valid for 12 months from the issue date. Carnet tickets are valid for travel only in zone 1 (Central London) and cost £15 ($28) for adults and £5 ($9.25) for children (up to 15). A book of Carnet tickets saves you £5 ($9.25) over the cost of 10 separate single tickets.

Don't Leave Home Without It--For another option for public transportation in London, make sure you buy a London Visitor Travelcard before you leave home. This card, which allows unlimited transport within all six zones of Greater London's Underground (as far as Heathrow) and bus network, as well as some discounts on London attractions, isn't available in the U.K. You don't even need a passport picture. A pass good for 3 consecutive days of travel is $35 for adults, $16 for children 5 to 15; for 4 consecutive days of travel, it's $46 for adults, $19 for children; and for 7 consecutive days of travel, it's $69 for adults, $29 for children. Contact BritRail Travel International, 44 S. Broadway, White Plains, NY 10601 (tel. 800/677-8585, or 800/555-2748 in Canada; www.raileurope.com). It will take up to 2 to 3 business days for the card to reach you at home.

The Underground

The Underground, or Tube, is the fastest and easiest way to get around. All Tube stations are clearly marked with a red circle and blue crossbar. Routes are conveniently color-coded.

If you have British coins, you can get your ticket at a vending machine. Otherwise, buy it at the ticket office. You can transfer as many times as you like, as long as you stay in the Underground. The flat fare for one trip within the Central zone is £2 ($3.70). Trips from the Central zone to destinations in the suburbs range from £2.20 to £3.80 ($4.05-$7) in most cases. It's also possible to purchase weekly passes, going for £17 ($31) for adults or £7 ($13) for children in the Central zone, and £38.30 ($71) for adults or £16.50 ($31) for children for all six zones.

Slide your ticket into the slot at the gate, and pick it up as it comes through on the other side and hold on to it -- it must be presented when you exit the station at your destination. If you're caught without a valid ticket, you'll be fined £10 ($19) on the spot. If you owe extra money, you'll be asked to pay the difference by the attendant at the exit. The Tube runs roughly from 5am to 11:30pm. After that, you must take a taxi or night bus to your destination. For information on the London Tube system, call the London Underground at tel. 020/7222-1234, but expect to stay on hold for a good while before a live person comes on the line. Information is also available on www.londontransport.co.uk.

The long-running saga known as the Jubilee Line Extension is beginning to reach completion. This line, which once ended at Charing Cross, has been extended eastward to serve the growing suburbs of the southeast and the Docklands area. This east-west axis helps ease traffic on some of London's most hard-pressed underground lines. The line also makes it much easier to reach Greenwich.

By Bus

The first thing you learn about London buses is that nobody just boards them. You "queue up" -- that is, form a single-file line at the bus stop.

The comparably priced bus system is almost as good as the Underground and gives you better views of the city. To find out about current routes, pick up a free bus map at one of London Transport's Travel Information Centres, listed above. The map is available in person only, not by mail. You can also obtain a map at www.londontransport.co.uk/buses.

As with the Underground, fares vary according to distance traveled. Generally, bus fares are £1 ($1.85), slightly less than Tube fares. If you want your stop called out, simply ask the conductor or driver. To speed up bus travel, passengers have to purchase tickets before boarding. Drivers no longer collect fares on board. Some 300 road-side ticket machines serve stops in central London -- in other words, it's "pay as you board." You'll need the exact fare, however, as ticket machines don't make change. It will still be possible to pay on the double-decker red buses that continue to serve 20 of the 60 major bus routes in London, although in time these may be phased out.

Buses generally run 24 hours a day. A few night buses have special routes, running once an hour or so; most pass through Trafalgar Square. Keep in mind that night buses are often so crowded (especially on weekends) that they are unable to pick up passengers after a few stops. You may find yourself waiting a long time. Consider taking a taxi. Call the 24-hour hot line (tel. 020/7222-1234) for schedule and fare information.

By Taxi

London cabs are among the most comfortable and best-designed in the world. You can pick one up either by heading for a cab rank or by hailing one in the street (the taxi is available if the yellow taxi sign on the roof is lit); once it has stopped for you, a taxi is obliged to take you anywhere you want to go within 9.5km (6 miles) of the pickup point, provided it's within the metropolitan area. To call a cab, phone tel. 020/7272-0272 or 020/7253-5000.

The meter starts at £3.80 ($7.05), with increments of £3.40 ($6.30) per mile thereafter, based on distance or time. Each additional passenger is charged 40p (75¢). Passengers pay 10p (20¢) for each piece of luggage in the driver's compartment and any other item more than 2 feet (.6m) long. Surcharges are imposed after 8pm and on weekends and public holidays. All these tariffs include VAT. Fares usually increase annually. It's recommended that you tip 10% to 15% of the fare.

If you call for a cab, the meter starts running when the taxi receives instructions from the dispatcher, so you could find that the meter already reads a few pounds more than the initial drop of £3.60 ($6.70) when you step inside.

Minicabs are also available, and they're often useful when regular taxis are scarce or when the Tube stops running. These cabs are meterless, so you must negotiate the fare in advance. Unlike regular cabs, minicabs are forbidden by law to cruise for fares. They operate from sidewalk kiosks, such as those around Leicester Square. If you need to call one, try Brunswick Chauffeurs/Abbey Cars (tel. 020/8969-2555), in west London; London Cabs, Ltd. (tel. 020/8778-3000), in east London; or Newname Minicars (tel. 020/8472-1400), in south London. Minicab kiosks can be found near many Tube or BritRail stops, especially in outlying areas.

If you have a complaint about taxi service or if you leave something in a cab, contact the Public Carriage Office, 15 Penton St., N1 9PU (Tube: Angel Station). If it's a complaint, you must have the cab number, which is displayed in the passenger compartment. Call tel. 020/7918-2000 with complaints.

Cab sharing is permitted in London, as British law allows cabbies to carry two to five persons. Taxis accepting such riders display a notice on yellow plastic, with the words "Shared Taxi." Each of two riders sharing is charged 65% of the fare a lone passenger would be charged. Three persons pay 55%, four pay 45%, and five (the seating capacity of all new London cabs) pay 40% of the single-passenger fare.

By Car

Don't drive in congested London. It is easy to get around without a car, traffic and parking are nightmares, and -- to top it all off -- you'd have to drive from what you normally consider the passenger seat on the wrong side of the road. It all adds up to a big headache.

By Bicycle

One of the most popular bike-rental shops is On Your Bike, 52-54 Tooley St., London Bridge, SE1 (tel. 020/7378-6669; Tube: London Bridge), open Monday through Friday from 8am to 7pm, Saturday from 10am to 6pm, and Sunday 11am to 5pm. The first-class mountain bikes, with high seats and low-slung handlebars, cost £12 ($22) per day, £25 ($46) per weekend, or £60 ($111) per week, and require a £200 ($370) deposit on a credit card.

City Guide

London United Kingdom Tourism: Getting Around

Getting Around

London Travel & Vacation Deals

London Travel Deals