Hi I am planning on traveling to London with several teens and I want to find a way to inexpensively get us out of London after we have explored it enough and into the rest of Europe. Last year we flew out but that ended up being a bit costly. If anyone has any ideas I would greatly appreciate it.
Posted by
Napa, CA
3580 posts
The coach (bus) transportation throughout Britain is fairly inexpensive and covers the entire country. National Express coaches also schedule trips to Europe. Check with their website. Their main station in London is outside Victoria train station. You may be able to find flights on the budget airlines for very little.
Posted by
Lincoln, NE, USA
390 posts
It depends on where you want to go - I'm what I'd call an "extreme budget" traveler - I'm taking National Express to Paris from London in a few months - it's about £17 one way. We're taking the overnight bus to save on two nights hotel as well. Check out their website at www.nationalexpress.co.uk for more info on where they go. Often they have special rates if you book early called "fun fares" which can make it very cheap. (£10 to Paris One Way). However, it is a long slow trip and it may be easier to fly with several teens. We flew from London to Dublin for $40USD RT on Ryanair and One-way to Madrid for $45 USD. Check out skyscanner.net for budget airlines fares throughout Europe. For Paris I'd recommend the bus or the Eurostar - they have youth rates starting at £24.50 to Paris. If you want to get further than Amsterdam, Paris, or Brussels, I'd recommend flying.
Posted by
Minneapolis, MN, USA
8700 posts
If you want to take the Eurostar from London to either Paris or Brussels, book as far in advance as possible (up to nine months allowed) at www.eurostar.com to get the best fares.
The Dutch Flyer train-ferry-train combo is a good way to get from London to Amsterdam. See www.dutchflyer.co.uk.
Another good budget airline search engine is www.whichbudget.com.
Posted by
Charlotte, NC, USA
3428 posts
If you want to stay in the UK, I'd suggest a BritRail pass. You could "do" Scotland, England and Wales! If you need Ideas, let me know. We've been to the UK over 40 times and still find lots of new things to do. We took our kids when they were teens and they LOVED Scotland.
Posted by
victoria, Canada
11507 posts
I travelled with 14 yr old son two years ago from London to Paris on the Eurostar and paid only 90 euros total, return!! I booked exactly 89 days out as website would not allow me to book the tickets I wanted more then 90 days out. I booked to travel during non peak hours, and on non peak days( which are tues, weds, and thurs) . I picked up tickets at Waterloo station by just showing emailed confirmation. YOu pay more to have tickets mailed to you.
I also just planned a trip my hubby and other son took this past June. I booked them on cheapo airlines, and got some amazing inter europeon deals.
I think night buses would suck with teens.