Oyster card vs Travelcard?

An Oyster card can be used on trains, but only suburban trains within greater London. You cannot use it to travel to Cambridge for example. It's not zone specific like a travel card, but the more zones you travel through, the more your journey costs. Visit tfl.gov.uk for more information on Oyster cards and travelcards.

According to the National Rail site, the closest station to Duxford is Whittlesford Parkway (one stop before Cambridge). Some (perhaps all) NXEA trains departing from London Liverpool Street stop there on their way to Cambridge. Return (roundtrip) fares can be only slightly higher than single (one-way) fares. For example, the same day anytime return fare is £24.90. The same day off-peak return fare is £17.30. First Capital Connect trains to Cambridge depart from London Kings Cross and take a slightly different route. When you say "LONDON TRAVELCARD", you may be thinking of the London Pass. You can buy it for only discounted admission to various sights or for a combination of sights and transportation. IMO, it's not a good deal, especially the version that includes transportation. Nigel has given you an excellent summary of how Oyster cards work. Since your time in London will be split, using Oyster cards is definitely the way to go.

Donna Unless there are 2 of you, or multiples of 2s, and want to use 2 for 1 deals which are offered by the National Rail in conjunction with National Rail issued train tickets - of which a Travelcard issued at a train station window can be one - and you intend to use each Travelcard enough each day to make it pay, I see no reason to go that way. If you get Oysters and load enough credit on, your trip seems perfect for that route. You do need to pay a deposit, which you can reclaim at the end in Heathrow, and you also get back any credit you don't need. Oyster only charges the lowest fare available at the time, maxes out at or below the cost of a Travelcard, doesn't have any zone limits (unlike a Travelcard which normally would be for travel in zones 1 and 2 or zones 1 through 6. Oyster cards are valid for, as said above, suburban train travel within zones 1-9, but I would be surprised if you did any of that. If you want to, you can get to Hampton Court or Greenwich that way. Oyster credit never expires so if you don't use it nothing is charged. Perfect for the day around the trip to to Cambridge (not the actual trip as you need a train ticket - Oyster not valid so far as Cambridge) or the trip to France. You are just charged for what you use. Remember that both TravelCards and Oyster are valid on all London buses (virtually all) regardless of zone, and the Croydon Tram. None are valid on Heathrow Connect or Heathrow Express. If returning to London another trip just hold onto the card and you are good to go when you return.

Thank you for the info. So for the trip to Cambridge, a separate train ticket needs to be purchased, correct? And it sounds as though the Oyster card can only be used around the center of London and perhaps a few outlying areas. Can it be used on the tube from Kings Cross to Heathrow? Not sure of the benefits of either card at this point. There used to be a LONDON TRAVELCARD,good for prescribed days, good on the tubes, buses, light rail, and only available outside of United Kingdom (needed to be purchased before leaving the states). Is that no longer available?

Donna, Yes you will need a separate train ticket to Cambridge. That will run about £30 and can be purchased the day of travel. Yes, you can get to Heathrow on the tube. Just catch the Picadilly line at Kings Cross tube station. The trip will take about 1 hour.

An Oyster can be used on every London Underground (Tube) line, on virtually all red bus in the area called Greater London, and on every Croydon Tram. That includes the Piccadilly Line from Kings Cross to Heathrow. Only suburban trains within the 9 zones of Greater London can be used with one. All of Greater London is well within the M25 ring road. You need a rail ticket for the journey to Cambridge. I haven't heard of a London Travelcard as you describe it, but I live in the UK. For the Cambridge day trip, £21 return fare is available off-peak, upwards of £30 for traveling in the peak.

We used to use the "London Travel Card" you describe. You had to order it from the States. It no longer exhists (they stopped it 3 or 4 years ago). For your trip, the Oyster card is the best bet.

Travelcards used to come in one-, three-, and seven-day versions. They still exist, but the three-day version has been phased out. You can buy them in London so you don't have to order them from home. The seven-day travelcard can be loaded on an Oyster card, but the one-day travelcard cannot. But to say it again, since your time in London will be split, buying Oyster cards and loading pay-as-you-go pounds on them is your best option.

Thank you all so much....your answers helped clarify what the Oyster card is and does. But I have a few more!! Is the Oyster card available for purchase (and loading with money!) upon arrival at Heathrow? Can it then be reloaded with more money at any tube station? Are there any guidelines as to how much to start with? The fact that the money is refundable if not used makes it all an easier decision as to "how much", though.

Yes, you can buy Oyster cards at Heathrow and use them to take the Tube into London. Yes, you can re-load them at any Tube station. I suggest that you start off with at least £20 and top up the cards as needed. As Nigel said, after you return to Heathrow for your flight home you can get a refund on any unspent pounds plus your deposit.

Everything the Transport for London folks have to say about Oyster cards (they run all London public transport) is at http://www.tfl.gov.uk/tickets/14836.aspx

Oysters can be purchased or "topped-up" at small shops, also. Anywhere you see the distinctive yellow pad (electronic reader) you can check your balance or add pounds to your Oyster. The Tube stations often have long lines but there is usually no line or waiting at the small shops.

Do remember that when you use an Oyster Card you need to allow it to work out where you have been so that it can work out how much to deduct. So: When riding a bus, you need to "tap in" by tapping the oyster card or its holder with the card inside onto the yellow pad by the driver. If using the Underground you tap in and tap out as you pass through the gates. If you don't tap out it will assume you have taken the maximum possible journey. If using the Croydon Tram, tap in. If using the DLR - Docklands Light Railway, or suburban trains, you must find the yellow tap pads at both ends, somewhere in the station, and both tap in and tap out. If you treat your Oyster well it will take care of you and max out at or below the appropriate Travel Card price. If you forget to tap out when you need to it will cost.

The answers regarding Oyster cards are great for my upcoming trip. An additional question - I'll be arriving from the continent at London City Airport and using the tube to get to Knightsbridge. I'm assuming I can use a credit card to fund an Oyster card and they're dispensed by machines at the tube station. Will the machines accept US cards (magnetic stripe only) or do they need Chip and PIN cards???
Thanks.

David...You can use your magnetic strip US credit cards on the Oyster Card machines to "top off" ie., reload the Oyster Card. A "chip and pin " card is not needed. Some machines take only cash, others both. I used both of them.

Hi Donna - Gosh, two weeks ago I was asking these same questions! We were there last week for 7 days. Our trip was 7 consecutive days so I don't know that you can use this advice, but here goes. We opted for a 7 day TravelCard which is a paper card. You buy these tickets for "zones of travel" and we bought for zones 1 and 2 which covered pretty much all the "in London sights." So hopped on and off the Tube or bus any time day or night. Easy stuff. Now - the reason we bought the Travel Card is because if you purchase it at a "National Rail Station" like Paddington or Victoria, you get 2-1 passes at many of the big sights. You can't do the 2-1's with an Oyster Card because in order to get your discounts your ticket needs the "crows feet" symbol of the National Rail. Crows Feet can be printed on the TravelCard but not on an Oyster Card. Bottom line - we used the 2-1's at Tower of London, Churchill War Rooms, City Boat Cruise, St. Paul's Cathedral, Hampton Court. It just gave us a free ticket at each stop and we saved a bundle and the cost of the TravelCard was no different from the Oyster Card - plus we didn't have to leave a deposit for the Oyster Card, top off the card or return it for the deposit when we left. Here is the link which describes it: http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london So we took the Heathrow Connect from airport to Paddington, walked up to the rail ticket counter and bought the TravelCard with the crows feet, then took the escalator downstairs to the Tube and on to our hotel. On the return trip to Heathrow we just took the Tube (Picadilly line). I don't know if the TravelCard comes in smaller denominations (2 days) or if you can do it for intermittent days.
This card was not good to go to Cambridge - you will need another ticket. Good luck - have fun!