Travel Cards and National Rail

1. Yes, yes
2. There have been various colour schemes etc through the years but the cards work the same.
3. West Dulwich station from Victoria is zone 3 so you would need an extension for that station. North Dulwich which is only a little further to walk from is in zone 2 and 3. Direct from London Bridge or available as a connection from VIC at Peckham Rye.

Hi Laurie,

Marco already gave you some good answers but here is some more info that might help. One thing that confuses many folks is that Oyster is a payment method (like a credit card vs cash), whereas a travelcard is a type of fare that is pre-paid. You can load your Oyster with travelcards (1 day and 7 day are available for various zones) AND you can load it with cash (in order to use Pay as you Go or to cover extensions when you go outside your pre-paid zones). Using a combo of the two is pretty common. That said, if you are going to be mostly in zones 1 and 2 for less than 6 days, it is highly likely that you will spend less just using pay as you go, thanks to the daily fare capping. With capping you can travel all day in zone 1-2 for a maximum of £6.40. 7-day travelcards for zones 1-2 are £32.10. So only if you travel for 6 days or more does the travelcard make more sense.

"Is there a difference in Oyster cards? One has a white Tube symbol in the lower corner, one has a Red, and one has a Tube symbol with the National Rail symbol???? "

These function the same for transit. But only the National Rail one, with the "crows feet" logo instead of the Tube symbol, is good for the Two For One offers through DaysOut. The savings from the 2-4-1 can be substantial: http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london

Oyster cards Do NOT qualify for the 2 for 1's, only paper travelcards bought from a National Rail station do:

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Travel-g186338-c195600/London:United-Kingdom:2.4.1.Travelcards.Step.By.Step.html

Originally Oyster pay as you go was not accepted on National Rail services. The double arrow was added when this became the norm.

Consider using a suitable contactless credit/debit card if you have one.

There are different Dulwich stations. The nearest to the Picture Gallery is West Dulwich which is served from Victoria and is in Zone 3. North Dulwich station is a little further away, but is on the borders of Zones 2-3 and can be reached with a Zone 1-2 Travelcard from London Bridge. If you are using a weekly paper Zone 1-2 Travelcard and want to go to West Dulwich, you will have to buy a separate rail ticket. However, if you buy your ticket from the counter (not machine) at Victoria and show them your Travelcard you will be able to get a reduced fare from the edge of Zone 2 only.

Thank you all, very very much for your help!
We will be in London for 6 days, so the Travel Card option will work nicely. I'm glad this includes National Rail as well, and a short walk (Dulwich stations) seems a very pleasant option. Are the Dulwich villages worth a visit? Any recommendations on eateries in the area?
Thanks again,
Laurie

If you are planning on using the promotion by National Rail (ATOC) involving rail travel and called Days Out, which allows entrance for 2 for the normal price paid by one, a Travelcard, weekly or one day, put onto any Oyster Card will not qualify.

The only Travelcards honoured on that scheme must be paper ones issued by a railway company. They must have the "crow's feet" double arrow design, and even if it is printed on the plastic card it will not be honoured.

The Dulwich Picture Gallery has got some very nice pieces. Yumm...

If you can avoid London Bridge, particularly starting your voyage at London Bridge, for the next few months you will be happier than if you have to deal with it. At the moment there is a terrific amount of building work there because of the trackwork for the Thameslink upgrades. The paper is full of all the problems that commuters and other travellers have on nearly a daily basis.

If you have to use London Bridge you will know what to expect.