Hamptons Purse

Hamptons Purse

How to purchase the London Pass

What is London Pass?

The London Pass is the ultimate sightseeing package that's specially tailor made for visitors and tourists in London. Holders get free entry to over 55 top attractions for one price, including the Tower of London, St. Paul's Cathedral, Windsor Castle, a Thames River cruise, London Bridge Experience and many more.

The pass comes with a comprehensive free 120+ page guidebook containing a wealth of detailed information including maps and directions as well as great tips on how to make the most of the city, queue skipping privileges, optional Travelcard and over 40 special offers!

How you benefit from the London Pass?

Saving You Money

London is a very expensive city, and its tourist attractions are no exception. However, go sightseeing with a London Pass and you could save loads. Take a look at the normal gate price for some popular London attractions.

London Pass Attractions Normal Adult Entry Price

Tower of London                              £17.00

London River Cruise                         £13.00

London Bridge Experience               £21.95

Windsor Castle                                 £16.00

Hampton Court Palace                     £14.00

London Zoo                                      £18.00

Churchill Museum                             £14.95

Visiting those 7 attractions will cost well over £100. With a London Pass, these and many more attractions won't cost you a penny.

On top of this, London Pass holders get over 40 exclusive special offers at restaurants, shops and leisure facilities across London.

Saving You Time

London is a popular destination, therefore, attractions and sights do get very busy. Waiting in line can sometimes take hours from your sightseeing experience. The London Pass can save time and make the most out of your sightseeing trip by skipping the long queues at attractions including Tower of London, London Zoo, Windsor Castle, Kensington Palace, Hampton Court Palace and London Bridge Experience.

How it work?

The London Pass is a ‘smart card' - like a credit card with a computer chip inside - which allows you completely cash free entry to your choice of 56 London tourist attractions.

It's a bit like an ‘all you can eat' buffet - once you've bought your London Pass you don't have to pay to get into any of the attractions covered by the pass and the more sights you see, the more money you save.

Simply show the attendant at a London Pass attraction your card, they will swipe it through a special machine and you will be allowed entry. For the full list of London attractions where you can get in free with the London Pass, click here. Your can check the full list of the properties and tourist attractions covered by the pass in the London Pass website.

Activating the London Pass

The London Pass will be valid for 12 months from the date of purchase. The smart card records when and where you first use your London Pass, as well as how long the pass will remain valid for. This means that regardless of what start date you give when you buy the pass, your London Pass is activated the moment that you first use it at an attraction or service.

Your London Pass is then valid for the number of days that you purchased - be it 1, 2, 3 or 6 days and is subject to the purse value of maximum gate prices related to the number of days. It is important to note that a ‘day' is based on a calendar day, so should you first use your pass at 4pm on Monday, Monday is counted as day one of your pass usage.

Validity of the London Pass

The London Pass and the London Travelcard are valid for use on consecutive days only. At the end of your validity period or when your purse value has been used up, the pass will expire and will no longer allow access to attractions.

If, for example, you used a three day pass for the first time on Monday, your pass will cease working at the end of Wednesday, regardless of how often you have used it in between.

Skipping the queue

As well as free entry, the London Pass allows you to skip long and frustrating queues at the busiest tourist attractions. Simply look for the London Pass signs and show the attendant your London Pass - they will swipe your card through the London Pass machine and you will be allowed entrance.

Add a London Travelcard to your Pass which enables you to use all public buses, the London Underground and trams ensuring that you make the most efficient use of your time.

What is London Travelcard and how you benefit from it?

London Public Transport Network is one of the biggest in the world and might seem little intimidating to new visitors. With access to Buses, Trams, Over-ground Trains and the famous London Underground or ‘tube' a day's travel can be very expensive.

A London Travelcard is available with every London Pass (London Passes with Travel) and makes your sightseeing experience more relaxing and cost efficent. The benefits of a London Travelcard include:

* Unlimited journeys on all London Underground, Buses, Trams, Docklands Light Rail and Over-ground Trains within zones 1 – 6.

* A hassle free day as you don't need to buy lots of different tickets – the travelcard includes everything you will need. * When you buy a 6 day London Pass with Travel you get a 7 day Travelcard - that's a whole extra day for free.

* Make huge savings as a single Underground ticket bought in London costs £4.00, a bus ticket is £2.00 so after 2 or 3 journeys you will be saving money.

You can use your Travelcard to catch the London Underground from Heathrow Airport into central London, but only if you opt to have your London Pass with travel shipped to your home prior to your trip.

The London Pass with Travel is a must for anyone sightseeing in London as the complete package will save you time and money, and it will make your sightseeing experience hassle free.

London Travelcard validity

The following validity rules apply:

* 1 day Travelcards (off-peak) can be used from 9.30am Mondays to Fridays, all day Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, on each day of validity and for any journey that starts before 4.30am on the day following the expiry date.

* 2 and 3 day Travelcards (off-peak) have the same rules as 1 day Travelcard and can only be used on consecutive days.

* 7 day Travelcards can be used at any time during the period of validity and for any journey that starts before 4.30am on the day following the expiry date.

* Children under 11 years of age may travel free of charge on the tube, buses, DLR and London Overground if accompanied by an adult holding a valid travelcard.

Please note: Delivered Visitor Travel Cards are date stamped on issue. Please ensure you have selected the correct start date when ordering as your Travel Card will have the date you selected.

How much does it cost?

London Pass [normal price]

1 Day Adult Pass -  £40.00 1 Day Child Pass -  £27.00

2 Day Adult Pass -  £55.00 2 Day Child Pass -  £41.00

3 Day Adult Pass -  £68.00 3 Day Child Pass -  £46.00

6 Day Adult Pass -  £90.00 6 Day Child Pass -  £64.00

London Pass with Travel [normal price]

1 Day Adult Pass -  £48.00 1 Day Child Pass -  £29.00

2 Day Adult Pass -  £70.00 2 Day Child Pass -  £45.00

3 Day Adult Pass -  £90.00 3 Day Child Pass -  £52.00

6 Day Adult Pass -  £137.00 6 Day Child Pass -  £86.00

Discount price may be offered in some special promotion period.

Note: Child Pass is valid for 5 – 15 years. Children under 11 years of age may travel free of charge on the tube, buses, DLR and London Overground if accompanied by an adult holding a valid travelcard.

Where to buy?

The London Pass with Travel is only available for online purchase. You can buy the London Pass and the London Pass with Travel in the London Pass website.

How to buy?

The process of purchase is quite convenience and easy!

Step 1 – Access the London Pass website. Click the "Price" or the red "BUY NOW" button to start the purchase process.

Step 2 – Choose the 1, 2, 3, or 6 day pass from the London Pass or London Pass with Travel options, and select the quantity you need. Then, click the red "ADD TO BASKET" button to begin your purchase.

Step 3 – Click on the green "CHECK OUT / PAY" button to continue. If you need to change any details, click on the blue "EDIT BASKET" button.

Step 4 – Fill in your name, e-mail address and billing address in the required field. The billing details must same with those registered with your credit card. If you would like your order shipped to a different address (only when you choose to ship the London Pass to your home), click on 'Add Different Delivery Address'. Then, click the red "NEXT STEP >" button.

Step 5 – Select the delivery option. Both shipping to your home and collection in London are available for your Pass purchase (see Note 1 below). You can decide whether to purchase the insurance. The order has been insured for a charge of 4.5% of your total order value. The policy covers you for non-use of your London Pass and London Travel Card. Uncheck the checkbox if you do not wish to purchase insurance. Then, click the red "NEXT STEP >" button.

Note 1 - Shipping or Collection of the London Pass

When you buy the London Pass online, you can choose to either have your order shipped to you or to collect it once you arrive in London.

Getting London Passes Shipped

If you choose to have your London Pass order shipped to you, you must allow for an appropriate amount of time between placing the order and your planned departure to London. Please refer to the table below for estimated shipping times and the associated costs of shipping.

Method Cost Delivery Time(working days)

Standard Worldwide Delivery          £5.95                        12 days

Express US Delivery                       £27.00                       3 days

Collect Passes in London               Free                            N/A

Collecting The London Pass In London

If you choose to collect your order in London you will need to print and bring with you the London Pass voucher which is emailed to you on completion of your online order.
Your London Pass order can be collected from:

The Britain & London Visitor Centre. No.1 Regent Street, London, SW1Y 4XT. (Nearest Underground Station: Piccadilly Circus, take the Southside exit)

Britain & London Visitor Centre Opening Times: Mon - Fri                                                    10.00 hrs to 16.30 hrs Saturday (June to September)

10.00 hrs to 16.00 hrs Sunday (June to September)

10.30 hrs to 15.30 hrs Saturday & Sunday (October to May)

10.30 hrs to 15.30 hrs

Step 6 – Make payment. Please carefully check your order details, and then enter your payment information, including Name of Cardholder, Card Type, Card Number, Expiry Date, Security Code, and click the green "AUTHORISE" button to finish the purchase. Be patient while the system process your payment. This may take a few moments and once complete, your order confirmation will be shown.

London Pass vs Great British Heritage Pass

The London Pass and the Great British Heritage Pass serve for different sightseeing purpose. The London Pass specially tailor made for visitors and tourists in London and cover the top attractions in London area. The Great British Heritage Pass is mainly for the visit of heritage properties throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Therefore, most of the attractions in London do not covered by the Great British Heritage Pass. For example, you can't use the Great British Heritage Pass to access to the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Windsor Castle, London Zoo, Thames River Boat Cruise and museums.

The attractions covered by both Great British Heritage Pass and London Pass include: Apsley House, Chelsea Physic Garden, Eltham Palace, Jewel Tower, Royal Albert Hall, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, St Paul's Cathedral.

So, if your trip is only in London, the London Pass may be the better choice, but if you plan to visit other heritage properties outside London, the Great British Heritage Pass may be more valuable.

This article was originally published in "Dilbert's Travel Blog"
Source link: http://dilbert-travel.blogspot.com/2010/07/how-to-purchase-london-pass.html

About the Author

Dilbert @ Dilbert's Travel Blog

Jack Rogers Hamptons Navajo Midwedge 7810760