Is there any reason you would buy a weekly travel pass for the London Tubes? I've seen that the pay as you go weekly cap won't exceed the cost of the weekly pass so it would make sense to just see if you reach the limit and at worst you pay the same amount. Seems pretty straight forward that the pay-as-you go option is the best option.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8913 posts
It used to be that people would buy a travel pass to try to take advantage of "2 for 1" offers. I haven't paid complete attention to this topic, but it seems to me that someone recently explained that this won't really work anymore, or at least, shouldn't work anymore.
I am sure that some of the UK experts will be able to clarify this. I think pay as you go is a reasonable approach. I found myself taking far more buses than tube on my last trip which was a major change for me. I also started using the city mapper app and now I wouldn't try to do London (or Seattle) transit without it.
Posted by
OP
34 posts
The 2 for 1 deals with the travel pass was part of the reason why I was considering it over pay as you go. I havent seen anything about it no longer working but that would make the decision easy! Thanks for the response.
Posted by
Niagara, Ontario
1682 posts
As of this coming June the 2 for 1 paper ticket will no longer exist. I don't know if anything else replaces it.
Posted by
OP
34 posts
Interesting! Do you have a link to where they talk about it?
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
34007 posts
what link do you want? Which "they"? Do you mean our discussions here or a combination of TfL, ATOC and others to build up the answer?
I don't have the time just now to create all that for you. Just be aware that Oyster or TfL issued media is invalid for the 2 for 1 which a promotion by the mainline train companies.
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5866 posts
The pay as you go weekly cap runs Mon to Sun. A weekly travelcard can be any 7 days. If you are starting on a day other than Monday and plan to stay a week, then a travelcard may save you money.
Posted by
Oxford, United Kingdom
5467 posts
TfL would like to eliminate the paper ticket altogether on their services in favour of contactless media, whether dedicated smartcard or payment card. The only reason it is currently still supported are for National Rail issued travelcards, whether within London or from the outside. The former have been chipped away mostly by agreement with train operators in London, the latter needs government approval.
On the other hand TfL does not support the use of QR-like codes at its barrier, which are increasingly becoming the most common National Rail ticket.
Posted by
OP
34 posts
Good to know. I just wanted to read more on it, but no problem! I'll plan on using pay as you go. We are staying in London for 3 weeks before taking the train to Edinburgh. I know that myself and my girlfriend would save a bit of money getting the "two together" rail pass but I'm now wondering if getting the 16-25 rail pass (and therefore essentially paying for two rail passes) would be worth the extra $40 investment as the rail pass comes with 1/3 off single off-peak pay as you go fares.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
34007 posts
but not on the tube
Posted by
OP
34 posts
Hi Nigel,
It sounds like the 16-25 railcard does in fact get you 1/3 off the tube. https://www.16-25railcard.co.uk/ If I was to get the "two together" then I wouldn't get that discount on the tube.
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
34007 posts
but if you want to do that there are several hoops to jump through. Generally visitor and tourist Oysters are not registered and the Oyster has to be previously registered to be able to have the Railcard loaded onto it.
With an Oyster card, you can get your Railcard discount loaded onto your Oyster card to save 1/3 on single off-peak pay as you go fares on London Underground and Docklands Light Railway services in London. You will need to have registered your Oyster in your name to do this. Simply take your Oyster card and valid Railcard to a London Underground station and ask a member of staff to set the discount for you. You can also get the discount set at Oyster Ticket Shops and Visitor Centres.
Posted by
Niagara, Ontario
1682 posts
Budget, my neighbour will be visiting London in September, and I'm off to London in December. We will both be staying outside the main core. This is a reply she received from an employee at South Western Rail:
"As from the 1st June 2022 Weekly Travelcard season tickets cannot be purchased on paper tickets. They will be only available on our Smartcard or TfL Oystercard.
It would probably be easier to pick an Oystercard when you arrive in London. If you want one of our Smartcards, you can order one on our Website. I have provided a link below."
https://www.southwesternrailway.com/train-tickets/smart-ticketing/touch-smartcard