Getting Around London
As a big city, London has a large and well used public transport system. Driving is not recommended in central London. Not only do you face dealing with the congestion charging (and paying), the parking charges are very expensive, and if you park at a meter, you need to watch your time, because you will be fined if you return to your car late.
More effective (and interesting) ways of getting around London are to use the London Underground and its extensive tube network or, even better, buses. Or splurge, and use one of her famous London Black cabs.
There are a variety of different ticket types for the underground and buses and it is worth checking out which one will be the best value for you. You are also able to use the ticket booth at the tube stations, where a 'helpful' guide should be able to suggest the most economical way of travelling. Londoners who do use this network travel with the 'Oyster' card. This card could save you money if you plan on using it for more than a few days - you do need to purchase the card in advance, but if you plan on staying for more than a few days, it can well be worth the effort.
There are 5 airports that serve London
- The City airport is small but central and well connected ot the underground system via the Docklands Light Railway commonly known as DLR
- Heathrow is a very large airport wilh most of the International flights. There is also a speedy (and frequent) rail link which will take you into Paddington station on the centre of London
- Gatwick is another large ariport with lots of international links. It is to the South of London and it too has a rail link that will take you into Victoria Station.
- Luton is to the North of the city
- Stanstead is to the Nort East and has a rail link which will take to to Liverpool St.
