I have a couple of questions, any information on buying train tickets. I know they can be bought on line, but I don't know if we want to do that before we go, committing to exact times and days. Has anyone just bought as you go? We need tickets to Winsor Castle and to York and back to London.
Also any experience with some of the Rick Steves suggested hotels around Victoria Station?
Thanks everyone
There won't be any cost saving on buying tickets to Windsor in advance. The savings going to York by contrast could be considerable if bought early compared to on the day - 80% less is achievable.
Hard to help unless you list the names of the hotels. Since the data is so sparse with this new website, you might profit from going to www.tripadvisor.com, London forum, and ask your hotel questions there listing the names of each. You could also search the reviews of those hotels, from current reviews to those several years old. All train questions can be answered at seat61.com.
I recommend The Lime Tree Hotel on Ebury Street, not far from Victoria Station. We stayed there the first time we were in London. There is no elevator or lift, just the stairs, so ask for a downstairs room if you don't want to go up and down the stairs. Also entire place is nonsmoking. Hosts are very nice and helpful. They have recently undergone some redecorating and repainting. Great location with buses, tube and the train station nearby. Steps away from the hotel is a good restaurant that serves reasonably priced (but not cheap) English food, sandwiches, roast dinners, steak, and burgers; The Ebury Restaurant & Wine Bar.
I'll second the recommendation for the Lime Tree Hotel. We had a great stay there last year. It's just a short walk from Victoria Station in a nice area. Our room was a nice size and well kept. A nice breakfast was included. The staff was friendly. I'd return.
I recommend staying at the Millenium Bailey Hotel in the Kensington area. It is directly across the street from the train station and within walking distance to Victoria and Albert Museum and Harrods. Many embassies are located here.This is a safe and very nice area for walking. The hotel staff are extremely friendly and helpful. This hotel is clean with large rooms. The breakfast is worth the extra charge as well as the upgrade for the Club Room. Don't forget the Rick Steves London travel guide. Worth every penny!
I was in London in September of 2012 and took a day trip to Canterbury. I went to Charing Cross train station to buy my ticket and talked to a ticket-seller about my options. I ended up buying an off-peak round-trip ticket for the next day which I could use any time except during rush periods. I did that because the weather that month was awful - it rained every day and there was flooding in northern England, so I wanted a flexible ticket in case of bad weather. I don't remember how much it cost but it wasn't astronomical; I want to say around 20 pounds at the most.
About trains, Marco has it in a nutshell, above. "buying train tickets. I know they can be bought on line, but I don't know if we want to do that before we go, committing to exact times and days. Has anyone just bought as you go?" We buy mainly as we go. The problem with buying far in advance is that the tickets are no good and cannot be refunded or exchanged if you see that you are going to miss the specific date/time your ticket is for. That would mean that that you would have to buy a new ticket, full price, when you are ready to board your train.
It's a matter of how certain you are that you will be traveling on that date, that time. We have bought tickets one or two days before the date of travel; not two months before. That way, the discount is not as substantial, but we are more sure we will be making that train on that day. We have also just bought our tickets at the window an hour before boarding, paying full price. Expensive, yes, but needless to say, we did not miss our train.
