London Transportation Tips by easyoar

'Mode': AROUND
Category: Other
Getting TO/AROUND: This strikes me as being a bit of a crazy way to get around - not quite Steptoe and Son (and old TV comedy where they were rag and bone men and went around in a horse and cart).

Pretty dangerous on London's roads which are full of buses and drivers trying to get through the next set of traffic lights.

These guys looked to be some sort of army types so were probably on official business. It is NOT common to see people using this mode of transport in London!

This picture was taken just by London's Marble Arch.

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'Mode': TO
Category: Airplane
Getting TO/AROUND: There are at least 5 London Airports. The City Airport only really takes small short distance flights so you will probably not go to this airport.

The best Airport to arrive at is London Heathrow (LHR), I believe it is the busiest airport in the world, and it certainly isn't the worlds nicest airport, but it is extremely convenient for getting in to the centre from as it is possible by bus, taxi, train and underground.

The next best bet is London Gatwick (LGW) which is a bit further out of London (well it isn't really London at all, but near enough to make it reasonable).

By the time you get to London Luton, you're starting to have a bit of imagination in terms of calling it a London airport.

London Stanstead is a bit of a pain in the butt as it really is quite far away!

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Subway/Metro
Getting TO/AROUND: London Underground (commonly known as the tube amongst Londoners) was the worlds first underground/metro service. For this reason, parts of it are looking a bit dated, and there are certainly nicer metros around the world these days.

However it still does what it is supposed to do, and that is take people around the city without having to worry about the congestion on the roads.

The down side is it is quite expensive. It costs over £5 to get a 1 day rover ticket for the 3 central zones (there are 6 zones in total).

Although it is known as the Underground, not all of it is underground. This picture was taken at ealing broadway which is one of the termini on the Central Line. As you can see, the train is actually outdoors.

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'Mode': TO
Category: Train
Getting TO/AROUND: As the roads are so congested in London and parking is very expensive, as well as all of the potential fines you can get see my Warning tips), if you are outside of London, train can be a very sensible option for getting in to London.

Again the downside is that it is not cheap, especially if you want to travel by rush hour (i.e. early in the morning or around 6pm in the evening). If you do go by train, you can buy a travelcard which allows you to use the Underground and the buses in London for an all inclusibe price.

The picture here shows the emblem for the railway lines in Britain. It used to be the British Rail logo, but now they are defunct, it is used by the regional railways to advertise that there is a station.

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Bus
Getting TO/AROUND: I have to admit that I normally travel around London by Underground. It avoids the congestion and it is simple to know when to get off, as well as working out which bus number you need and where the stop is to get on.

However buses have the advantage that you can see what is around as you travel, so you can just hop off at the next stop if you see something you like.

A bit of "horses for courses" really. If you haven't visited London before, you probably want to go on one of the big red double-decker buses just to say you have been on one!

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Other
Getting TO/AROUND: If you want to get somewhere easily with the least hassle in London, then a Licensed Black Cab is they way to do it.

However it does come at a cost. I almost never use them as the premium is just to high in comparison to buying a travelcard that lets you use the buses, trains and underground in London, but if you really don't want to travel with the great unwashed and you have a big wallet, then taxi is your transport!

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Other
Getting TO/AROUND: I'm a great believer that the best way to see a city is to go on foot. It is relatively slow, but for ths reason you get to see things that you would otherwise miss, and you get a much better feel of the place.

OK, you don't have to run, lke the couple in my photo, you'd probably miss stuff if you did, but certainly consider walking between sites that are close together, and with London having so much history, you'll probably find you discover something really interesting you didn't even know was there!

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Car/Motor Home
Getting TO/AROUND: If you consider taxi a common form of transport, you may wish to consider going by Stretch Limo!

This sort of thing doesn't appeal to me, but it is not uncommon to see people being driven around London in a stretch Limosine complete with chauffeur driver (Hey, you wouldn't want to drive one yourself and have to try and find a parking spot for it!)

You'll also get to turn peoples heads as you speed past (well maybe it will be crawl past in Londons congestd roads - or if you're really unlucky, you'll be watching the pedestrians go past YOU).

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Bicycle
Getting TO/AROUND: This is comparatively new thing in London, and to be quite honest I think people use them more for the experience of having used one than to actually go anywhere serious in one!

Bear in mind that London's roads are not the safest of places to be taken around by bicycle on, but if you want to turn a few heads at a relatively cheap price (certainly cheaper than by stretch limo), then it's probably a good choice!

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'Mode': AROUND
Category: Ship/Boat
Getting TO/AROUND: OK, you are seriously limited by the destination you can actually go directly to by boat, but you really don't have to worry about congestion!

A popular route is to go by boat to Greenwich (where the Cutty Sark boat and Millennium Dome are) from just outside the Houses of Parliament, but there are many other stops on the route.

I can't remember exact prices, but I seem to remember prices in the region of £7 to £10. It isn't especially cheap, but several of the boats give you a commentary of what you are seeing as you go down the river, and there is a lot to see!

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