We are planning on visiting London for a week and read up on the London Pass. After putting together our itinerary and costs the Pass will save us time (with lines) and money. Are they a credible organization? Any pitfalls? Positives?
Posted by
Chicago
1334 posts
Are they legitimate, yes. Is it worth the money? That’s doubtful. It requires a very aggressive sightseeing schedule and most of London’s museums are free to enter. I’d suggest making a temporary itinerary and seeing if the pass works for you. Don’t look at attractions that are covered by the pass and let that drive your itinerary.
It goes on sale frequently and others have reported that Costco has discounts if you’re a member.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8913 posts
I’ve used the London Pass before and it was a positive experience. It sounds like you have already done the most important thing, pricing out admissions at the places you plan to visit to make sure it will save you money. Positives: you pay once and are done, you might try someplace you didn’t already plan to go.
Costco sells a 4 day pass for the price of three.
Posted by
Hampshire, England.
1075 posts
As you are a "we", the 2 for 1 offers may work out better than the London Pass:
https://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london
Posted by
Rural Georgia
2201 posts
We were in London for a week in May and I bought a London Pass for myself and my 19 year old grandson. I broke even on my London Pass on lost money on my grandson's, because he opted out a couple of days to go his own way.
There are a couple of sites where it saved time with the lines. However, we got to the Tower of London at opening time and wouldn't have stood in line anyway.
There are some main attractions, however a lot of the discounts are for what I consider second tier attractions. We took the Beefeater's Gin tour and had a great time, but it ate up a couple of hours and it was out of the way. If it is your first visit, then I'd stick to first tier attractions.
There's just so many wonderful things to see that are free or not covered by the London Pass. The problem with the pass is that it makes you a slave to foregoing free sites in favor of London Pass sites if you are trying to get your money's worth.
I had reservations about buying the London Pass when I ordered and now that I've used it I'm ambivalent. However, I downloaded the tickets to our iPhones and it was very convenient to use it for admissions.
Next time we are in London I'll forego the London Pass and concentrate on the free attractions.
Posted by
Seattle, WA
17563 posts
It may or may not save you time, depending on what you plan to see. There are only 8 attractions that offer "skipmthe line" admission with the Pass, and they are not the ones with long lines. So you skip the (short or non-existent) line at London Zoo, Kew Gardens, and St. Paul's, but not at major sites with long lines like London Eye or Churchill War Rooms.
Posted by
33 posts
We used a 6 day pass. Overall, we broke even (we would've saved money but the Globe Theater was having shows day and night-we tried to go twice but couldn't get in due to performances). There were no long lines at any of the attractions we visited...but if you are there during the busy season of Summer, I think the pass would really be a time saver. Visited a couple of things we otherwise wouldn't have considered (The Shard, The Royal Mews, The Banqueting House) and were very happy we did. We ordered the visitor Oyster card as part of the package...we got off our plane at Gatwick and were able to skip the LOOOONG line at the Oyster card machines, which was wonderful. Used it to get to Earl's Court via the Southern Rail line to Victoria, then the tube. All in all, a good purchase and positive experience for us.