Credit cards and Oyster cards

Your debit card will work at all ATM machines. You may have some problems using your cards at automatic ticket machines, but otherwise they will be accepted most everywhere else, no problems.
Oyster cards can be purchased at the Heathrow Tube stations. How early are you arriving, the tube trains, and Heathrow Express train should be running by the time you arrive. That's the quickest way into central London. Use the travel planner at the London Transport site: www.tfl.gov.uk/ You can even use "Lime Tree Hotel" as your destination and you'll get complete directions.

Take the Tube. Piccadilly Line from Heathrow to Hammersmith. Walk a few feet to the other side of the platform and take the District Line to Victoria. Take a five-minute walk to the Limetree Hotel.

Agree with what has been posted already. Your ATM card will work fine in ATM machines and your credit card in the credit card places including ticket machines. There are plenty of ATM machines in Heathrow if you don't want to step onto transit without pounds. There are live people in the transit booth to buy Oyster cards from. The only warning I have is that you may need two different cards to buy two different Oyster cards. I ran into this at the automated machines in Victoria station when I couldn't buy two new cards in a row. This restriction may not exist if you get Oyster cards from the live people in Heathrow. Your Oyster cards include a deposit for the cards themselves - be sure to cash these in for any remaining money and the deposit back as you pass through Heathrow again. We did this with the live person and it took two minutes. You can either take the tube or take the train which ends up at Victoria Station and close to your hotel. You can take the bus but that would probably be my third choice behind the other two but will also end up at Victoria station. There are 5 terminals in Heathrow so it helps to know what terminal you're arriving at and where you need to go to catch the form of transit you want. There are many people to help and give advice in Heathrow if you're not sure what's happening you can ask them. Hope that helps,
=Tod

I'm traveling to London in September and am also staying at The Lime Tree hotel. I am taking the National Express bus that leaves between Heathrow Terminals 1 and 3 and goes to the Victoria Coach Station in the heart of the city. It looks like the Lime Tree is just around the corner from the station. Just another option for getting into the city. Mike

Just for clarification - there is not a train that goes from Heathrow to Victoria. Your options are a car service, bus or tube. There is a train to Victoria from Gatwick Airport.
Also - as you leave London make sure you take your Oyster cards back to an underground station ticket office and get your 5 pound deposit plus any remaining funds left on each card.

Nancy's right, of course, living in London. Trains from Heathrow go to Paddington and then you would need to get to Victoria Station from there.
=Tod

Thanks to everyone who answered my questions. I think we should not have any trouble getting to the hotel even if we do arrive very early. I have been to London a couple of times, but my husband has never been. I'm excited to show him that great city. Cheers!
Carmen