London Theatre and West End Shows from West End Theatre.com » Travel Guide

Half Price West End parking

admin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 15:23:18 +0000

Q Park’s Theatreland Parking Scheme

Driving into the West End to see a show? Then take advantage of Q Park’s Theatreland Parking Scheme, saving 50% off your car parking charge, up to 24 hours.

HOW TO OBTAIN YOUR DISCOUNT

1. Drive to a participating car park (see below) and take a parking ticket upon entry

2. Take parking ticket with you to the West End theatre

3. At the West End theatre, ask the Box Office staff to validate your parking ticket

3. Return to the car park and insert your parking ticket in the payment machine

4. A 50% discount will be automatically applied to the standard daily tariff

5. Insert this parking ticket at exit barrier to raise barrier

Tariffs vary between car parks and this promotion cannot be used with any other discount schemes, including Q Park’s advanced booking service.

PARTICIPATING CAR PARKS

This scheme operates in Q Park’s central West End Theatreland car parks: Chinatown, Pimlico, Soho, Park Lane/Marble Arch, Trafalgar, Oxford Street

Click here for further information from Q Park about the scheme

Click here for a list of participating theatres in the scheme

Please note that all information is correct at the time of press and please check with Q Park ahead of your theatre trip.

Getting Around London

admin — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:04:05 +0000

Tips and advice on getting from London’s airports to the centre of town, and using public transport to get around London.

Getting to and from London airports

When you fly into London you will arrive at one of the capital’s five airports – all of which are an hour or less from central London: Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton or City Airport.

BY TRAIN:

Train travel from London’s major airports can be expensive but it’s often the quickest option. At Heathrow and Gatwick airports you also need to decide between fast but expensive services such as Heathrow Express and Gatwick Express and the mainline train companies, who offer cheaper but slightly slower alternatives.

Heathrow airport

Heathrow Express to Paddington station in approx 15 minutes.

Heathrow Connect (which is cheaper) to Paddington station in approx 25 minutes.

Gatwick airport

Gatwick Express to Victoria station in approx 30 minutes.

Southern trains to Victoria station in approx 40 minutes.

First Capital Connect trains to London Bridge station in approx 30 minutes.

Luton airport

A shuttle bus (5 minutes) to Luton Airport Parkway station, then First Capital Connect trains to St Pancras station in approx 30 – 40 minutes.

Stansted airport

Stansted Express to London Liverpool Street station in approx 45 minutes.

London City:

Dockland’s Light Railway from London City Airport to Bank station in approx 25 minutes.

BY BUS:

By far the cheapest way of getting from the airport to central London is by bus – but only if you have the time. The bus companies run fares from as low as £2.

National Express: travel between central London and Luton, Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.

Also:

Heathrow: Number 9 night bus to Trafalgar Square: Transport For London

BY LONDON UNDERGROUND:

Travelling by tube is only really an option from Heathrow to central London, although at only £4 full fare (and as low as £2.20 with an Oyster Card off-peak) it’s a good budget choice.

London Heathrow airport to central London on the Piccadilly line (blue) in approx 50 minutes to 1 hour (to Piccadilly Circus): Transport For London

TAXI:

London black cabs are expensive by most world city standards but make sense if there are a few of you (up to 5) travelling. See approximate taxi fares here.

Private hire and mini cab companies run airport transfers to all the major London airports. Companies include Addison Lee.

HIRE CAR:

Unless you plan to combine a trip to London with other places in the UK, then hiring a car is an expensive option in London given hire car costs, the congestion charge in central London and parking fees.

Parking: If you are staying out of London but driving in for the theatre then make use of Westminster City Council Car Park’s Theatreland Parking Scheme. You can save 50% on your car parking charge by driving to a participating car park and taking a paper ticket upon entry. Then at the West End theatre you are attending ask the box-office staff to validate your paper ticket using their special validation machine. When you return to the car park and insert your paper ticket in the payment machine you’ll enjoy a 50% discount off the standard casual tariff. The participating car parks are: Chinatown; Pimlico; Leicester Square; Soho; Marble Arch / Park Lane; Trafalgar Square; Oxford Street. See more details of theatres and corresponding car parks here.

When hiring a car it’s worth getting Car Hire Excess insurance to protect yourself against the excess charges you are expected to pay if the car is damaged. You can insure yourself rather than the car and choose between annual policies for unlimited car hire or day rates. Taking out independent excess insurance is cheaper than taking out a car hire company’s excess insurance policy. Read more about Car Hire Excess Insurance at CarHireInsure.

Car Hire companies:

Parking at the airport:

It’s usually cheaper and easier to pre-book if you intend on parking at one of London’s airports. See Purple Parking for details.

Getting around London

London has an extensive (and expensive) public transport system to whisk you around London. Run by Transport for London (TfL) you will find a wealth of maps and resources online at Transport For London

LONDON UNDERGROUND

London’s eleven tube routes provide the fastest way of getting around town – but are not great for sightseeing! All you have to work out is which coloured line you need to travel on and in which direction (northbound, eastbound, southbound or westbound).

If you plan to be nipping about on tubes and buses then buy an Oyster Card for Visitors.

See more on London Underground here.

BUSES

Ken Livingstone may have had his faults but there have never been so many buses on London roads. The days of waiting days for a bus are gone – and with electronic timetable signage at many bus stops and helpful automated signage and announcements on the bus it’s easy to get around.

On many buses you now need to buy a ticket BEFORE boarding – from one of the machines at the bus stop or from an Underground station. Bus passes, Travelcards and Oyster Cards are all a good idea to make life easier and cheaper.

See more on London buses here.

TRAINS

There is an extensive London Overground train network in London – particularly useful if you are travelling to South London: see Transport For London or National Rail.

TAXIS

London’s metered black cabs are expensive for single travellers, but if there’s a few of you (up to 5) then it often makes sense. Plus every black cab driver has to take the ‘Knowledge’ test so knows London like the back of his hand.

Minicabs and private hire taxis must now be licensed in London – and you should only take a mini cab that features one of the blue Transport for London “Private Hire” stickers in their car window. The CabWise service provided by TfL will text you the numbers of one taxi and two licensed minicab firms in the area you are texting from. Text HOME to 60835 (only within the UK) to get the numbers or see more on hiring mini-cabs here.

If you fancy some thrills and spills on the streets of London then bicycle taxis and rickshaws are everywhere – particularly outside West End theatres after the show.

DRIVING

It’s not as scary as you might think, but driving in London requires a bit of planning. The Congestion Charge zone is an area of central London that you have to pay £8 per day to enter on Mondays to Fridays 7am to 6pm. There are no toll booths or barriers – but rather cameras patrol the zone and you need to pay the charge online or call 0845 900 1234 or pay at selected service stations or newsagents.

Parking can be expensive – although if you are going to the theatre you can save up to 50% (see Parking above).

BOATS

The ambition is for a whole network of Thames river boats to become an important means of transport in London. The current reality is rather different with a limited service of Thames River Boats – and quite expensive fares. However, it does make for a fun way to travel.

Westendtheatre.com is not responsible for the content of external internet sites. Please check all information before you book or travel.

Hotels – Finding London Deals

admin — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:11:07 +0000

The global economic crisis has seen hotel rates fall by up to 10% in London. That means there are some great deals out there – you just need to find them. The type of deal you get depends on your preferences, so we’ve broken down some of the options:

Theatre and Hotel packages

Westendtheatre.com has negotiated rates with a range of hotels across London to combine with our great value theatre tickets. These packages make it easier than ever for you to see a show in London and stay in a comfortable hotel. See more information on booking our hotel and theatre packages here. Superbreaks also offers a range of hotel and theatre packages in London for all the major London shows.

Book a flight and hotel package

There are savings to be made by booking a flight AND Hotel together. Flight agents have direct relationships with the airlines and hotels and often provide good value packages. Top flight and hotel agents include Expedia and Ebookers.

The right hotel

The star system in the UK is a useful and trusted guide to gauging the venue’s facilities but doesn’t always help to find something of quality within your price range. Turn to sites such as Tripadvisor to read about people’s experiences in specific hotels in London. Also Hotelchatter features everything related to hotels and lodging around the world including hotel deals and reviews, which celebrities are staying where and hotel industry news.

Discount rooms

Big international sites like Hotels.com, Expedia and Laterooms have big buying power so do a good job negotiating discount room rates. However, it’s always worth double-checking with the hotel’s own website in case they are running a deal or promotion running. Big chains include Accor Hotels (which include the Ibis, Sofitel, Novotel and Mecure chains) , Best Western, Choice Hotels, InterContinental Hotels, Hilton, Hyatt, Radisson Edwardian, Starwood and Travelodge.

Hotel comparison websites are also handy as they aggregate prices across a number of sites. Check out Travelsupermarket or Kayak.

Be careful when booking rooms that are ‘On Request’ – which means that the website checks availability manually with the hotel and comes back to you. This can be irritating if you have to wait to hear from them whilst missing out on cheap deals elsewhere. Try and always go for ‘instant confirmation’ bookings.

Top Secret Deals

Discounts can also be found through Top Secret Hotel deals from sites such as Laterooms. They will give you the star rating of the hotel and a general guide to the facilities but you won’t know the hotel name or where it is. This can sometimes be a big gamble in London – which is a city spread out over quite a large area. That said, most of the swankiest hotels in London are very central – so it can be a great way of saving money at the top end of the market. Also, to minimise the mystery and practice your best Sherlock Holmes impersonation, google the hotel description before you book to try and work out which hotel it might be, or look up the amenities on Betterbidding. Also try Hotwire for a number of Secret Hotels at keen prices.

You can also bid for hotel rooms with websites such as Priceline, using its Name Your Own Price tool. Like Top Secret Hotels, you don’t get to know which specific hotel you are booking but do get to choose the area and star rating. You have to agree to pay immediately if your bid is successful.

Overseas websites

It’s sometimes worth checking out websites designed for visitors travelling to other countries to check out London hotel deals. For example Agoda, Wotif and Asiarooms all provide London hotels – occasionally at great rates.

Cheap and Cheerful

If hotels are out of your league in London then try some cheaper alternatives:

Camping – yes London does have campsites, although it’s a brave person who attempts this in winter. UKcampsite lists a range of sites – some only a short journey to central London.

Stay on a friendly couch: why not crash on someone’s sofa – and return the favour – all for free with Couchsurfing and their worldwide network of hosts. Also Airbnb lists people who will let you stay in their spare room for money.

Rent a flat: Sometimes it’s more civilised – and cheaper – to have your own space, and be able to cook your own food. London is notoriously expensive for eating out, so renting a holiday flat could be a good option. Try Homeaway or Holidaylettings for hundreds of options.

Hostels: there are some great YHA hostels in London – check them out at the YHA website. Or see Hostelbookers.

Travelodge is a UK wide chain that offers some great deals on its London hotels (especially if you book in advance) – and they are expanding fast. Current locations include Tower Bridge, Covent Garden and Euston.

Easyhotel: the EasyJet company has five hotels in London: Earl’s Court, Heathrow, Paddington, South Kensington and Victoria.

Student accommodation and Bed & Breakfasts: many of the capital’s universities let out student rooms in holiday periods. Plus there are a number of B&Bs across the capital. Check out Travelstay.

By Paul Raven.

Westendtheatre.com is not responsible for the content of external internet sites. Please check all information before you book or travel.

Trains to London

admin — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 12:55:06 +0000

In an ideal world getting to London by train should be easy – and much less stressful and cheaper than driving. But that’s not always the case, so we’ve put together some helpful hints on getting to Theatreland by train.

Book early

It’s always the way – planning ends up being key, and this is doubly true with train tickets. If possible book 12 weeks early, which is when new train timetables are first published. Use TheTrainline’s ticket alert email to find out when advance fares go on sale.

Even if you haven’t planned ahead then it’s still worth finding out about advance fares – they can still apply up to an hour or two before your journey.

National Rail Railcards are also a nifty way of saving on rail – especially if you are over 60 (Senior Railcard) or a student or young person (16-25 Railcard). The Network Railcard is also excellent value: £20 a year gets you savings of up to a third for off-peak travel across the Network Rail region – which covers London, the home counties and the South East. It is also handy for tourists who plan to do lots of day trips from London as it is valid for up to 4 people to travel together. The Family & Friends Railcard can be used if there is a minimum of one adult and one under-16 travelling together – and a maximum four adults and four children – and saves a third off adult fares and up to 60% off kids fares.

Finding cheap fares

There are promotional train fares out there – they just need hunting down. Here’s a few places to start:

NationalExpress: Unlike other sites if you book your train travel through Nationalexpress you don’t have to pay any fees

Megatrain fares (who also run buses too)

National Rail: special offers by region of the UK

Virgin Trains farefinder

Raileasy

If you are coming to London by train from continental Europe, then it’s worth taking a look at Rail Europe for information on passes and ticket fares.

Booking fees are levied on many of the train booking sites so it’s always worth checking prices on the rail franchise’s own site too.

Some of the best deals are only available on one-way fares so check first before you get a return fare as two singles might work out cheaper.

You can pre-buy Carnets of tickets if you are planning to travel around a lot on the same route. See NationalExpres

Also travel in the cheapest times if you can. Avoid Peak hours (which tend to be before 10am Monday to Friday).

Finally it is worth mentioning Seat61 - which has to be one of the world’s most useful and comprehensive sites for organising your train travel.

Westendtheatre.com is not responsible for the content of external internet sites. Please check all information before you book or travel.

Flights – cheap deals to London

admin — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 08:33:20 +0000

Everyone wants a cheap flight to London – so here are some handy tips on getting a good value flight and a check-list of what you need to remember.

1. Book early: as soon as you know when you are heading to London, get your flights booked.

2. Choose the site you book your flights on carefully – and before you start searching make sure you know: (a) your travel dates – and if these are flexible; (b)whether you are only booking a flight – or need a hotel too

Choosing your site

There are different types of flight-booking sites – each of which work in a certain way. ‘Screenscrapers’ are sites that compare prices from lots of different airlines and travel sites – such as Skyscanner or Kayak. You should always try a couple of these sites as they check prices with different airlines. Also useful is Travelsupermarket. These websites make their money by getting a small fee from the airline every time they redirect you to the flight website.

Saving on flight and hotel packages

If you want to book a flight AND Hotel together then Expedia is a useful site, often providing good value packages on hotels and flights and is impressive for its sheer range. Also try Ebookers for more offers and deals.

Also Westendtheatre.com offers a range of theatre AND hotel packages – making your tickets and hotel cheaper when booked together. See our latest hotel and theatre packages here.

“Free” European flights

These are possible if you try and grab promotional flight sales from airlines such as Ryanair and EasyJet – although remember that if the sale price doesn’t include taxes and charges this can add a lot to the final price. Sign up to their e-newsletters to get the inside scoop on their sales.

Some websites such as Lastminute.com offer Top Secret Flights where you choose your dates and departure and arrival city, and they tell you the flight length and any stopover details – but not exactly which airports, airline and departure times. The mysterious nature of all this allows airlines to privately off-load their spare capacity and can result in some good value fares. However, remember that by not getting to choose your arrival airport you could end up at an airport that’s technically where you want to go but not as close as other airport options. In terms of London this is less of an issue as all airports bar Heathrow are a reasonable distance from the centre but good transport links make it easy to get around.

Other tips

Don’t take the airline’s travel insurance as it’s invariably more expensive than other alternatives. You often have to UNCHECK a travel insurance option on the flight booking page to avoid paying for this. However, always make sure you have comprehensive travel insurance before your holiday. Columbus Direct Travel Insurance or AA Travel Insurance are good options.
Print out your airline confirmation email: you may not be asked for this at the check-in desk but you should always carry it with you.
Student or Under 26?: don’t forget that you can often get cheaper fares through youth travel companies such as STA Travel.
Parking at the airport: If you are flying into London from within the UK then parking at your departure airport is a necessary evil. But there are ways to make it cheaper by booking your parking in advance. Check out Purple Parking.

Useful London airport websites:

Heathrow airport: www.heathrowairport.com

Gatwick airport: www.gatwickairport.com

London City airport: www.londoncityairport.com

Luton airport: www.london-luton.co.uk

Stansted airport: www.stanstedairport.com

Car Hire Advice

admin — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:25:58 +0000

Hiring a car to get around in London can be an expensive option unless you plan to also see other places in the UK. Hire car costs, the congestion charge and parking fees all add to the expense, plus the city is relatively compact and a good public transport system makes getting round easy (see our Getting Around Guide).

Hiring a car

If you’d like to hire a car in London then often picking it up at the airport makes sense. All of the major car hire companies are represented at London’s five major airports and at major railway stations and key areas across the capital. See a comprehensive guide and advice on hiring a car at CarHireInsure.

You have two main choices in hiring a car:

1. Go direct and hire a car with the car hire company. Major hire car companies represented in the UK include Hertz, Sixt and Alamo. They often run special offers and promotions.

2. Use an aggregator that scans across a number of car hire companies to find a good deal. Major players include Ebookers, Carrentals.co.uk, Holiday Autos and Expedia.

Parking at the airport:

It’s usually cheaper and easier to pre-book if you intend on parking at one of London’s airports. See Purple Parking for details.

Parking in London

If you are staying out of London but driving in for the theatre then make use of Westminster City Council Car Park’s Theatreland Parking Scheme. You can save 50% on your car parking charge by driving to a participating car park and taking a paper ticket upon entry. Then at the West End theatre you are attending ask the box-office staff to validate your paper ticket using their special validation machine. When you return to the car park and insert your paper ticket in the payment machine you’ll enjoy a 50% discount off the standard casual tariff. The participating car parks are: Chinatown; Pimlico; Leicester Square; Soho; Marble Arch / Park Lane; Trafalgar Square; Oxford Street. See more details of theatres and corresponding car parks here.

Car Hire Excess Insurance

Driving in London

Parking can be expensive – although if you are going to the theatre you can save up to 50% (see Parking above).

Westendtheatre.com is not responsible for the content of external internet sites. Please check all information before you book or travel.