Getting Around

Surfing for Rental Cars -- For booking rental cars online, the best deals are usually found at rental-car company websites, although all the major online travel agencies also offer rental-car reservations services. Priceline and Hotwire work well for rental cars, too; the only "mystery" is which major rental company you get, and for most travelers the difference between Hertz, Avis, and Budget is negligible.

Travel Blogs & Travelogues

Travel blogs include:

By Plane

British Airways (BA; tel. 800/AIRWAYS) flies to more than 20 cities outside London, including Manchester.

For passengers planning on visiting widely scattered destinations within the United Kingdom, perhaps with a side trip to a city on Europe's mainland, British Airways' Europe Airpass allows discounted travel in a continuous loop to between 3 and 12 cities anywhere on BA's European and domestic air routes. Passengers must end their journey at the same point they begin it and fly exclusively on BA flights. Such a ticket (for instance, from London to Paris, then to Manchester, and finally to London again) will cut the cost of each segment of the itinerary by about 40% to 50% over individually booked tickets. The pass is available for travel to about a dozen of the most visited cities and regions of Britain, with discounted add-ons available to most of BA's destinations in Europe as well. (This Airpass is a good bargain for round-trip travel between London and Rome, but not very practical for air travel from, say, Rome to Madrid. You'd be better off traveling between points on the Continent by full-fare airline ticket, or by train, bus, or car.)

BA's Europe Airpass must be booked and paid for at least 7 days before a passenger's departure from North America. All sectors of the itinerary, including transatlantic passage from North America, must be booked simultaneously. Some changes are permitted in flight dates (but not in destinations) after the ticket is issued. Check with British Airways for full details and restrictions.

By Train

A Eurailpass is not valid in Great Britain, but there are several special passes for train travel outside London. For railroad information, go to Rail Travel centers in the main London railway stations (Waterloo, King's Cross, Euston, and Paddington).

You can download faxable order forms or order online using a BritRail Pass Shopping Cart feature (www.britainontrack.com).

BritRail Travel Passes -- BritRail Passes allow unlimited travel in England, Scotland, and Wales on any British rail scheduled train over the whole of the network during the validity of the pass without restrictions. If you're traveling beyond London anywhere in the United Kingdom and plan to hop on and off the train, consider purchasing a BritRail Consecutive Pass. These passes allow you to travel for a consecutive number of days for a flat rate. In first class adults pay $349 for 4 days, $499 for 8 days, $748 for 15 days, $950 for 22 days, and $1,124 for 1 month. In second class, fares are $232 for 4 days, $332 for 8 days, $499 for 15 days, $631 for 22 days, and $748 for 1 month. Seniors (60 and older) qualify for discounts in first class travel and pay $296 for 4 days, $425 for 8 days, $636 for 15 days, $808 for 22 days, and $956 for 1 month of first-class travel. Passengers younger than 26 quality for a Youth Pass: $185 for 4 days, $265 for 8 days, $400 for 15 days, $505 for 22 days, and $599 for 1 month. One child (younger than age 15) can travel free with each adult or senior pass when the BritRail Family Pass is requested while buying the adult pass. Additional children pay half the regular adult fare.

A more versatile pass is the BritRail FlexiPass allowing you to travel when you want, during a 2-month period of time. In first class, it costs $436 for 4 days, $638 for 8 days, and $960 for 15 days of travel. Second class costs $293 for 4 days, $425 for 8 days, and $644 for 15 days of travel.

A pass for travel in England only, the BritRail England Consecutive Pass is sold at a price 20% lower than regular BritRail Passes which cover rail travel throughout the U.K. (Britain, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland). Starting at $185 for 4 consecutive days of travel in standard class, the BritRail England Pass is also offered for 8, 15, or 22 consecutive days or 1 month or as a FlexiPass (days may be consecutive or nonconsecutive) for 4, 8, or 15 days within a 2-month period. It is also available in first class, starting at $279 and at discounted prices for seniors (60 and older) in first class and youth (younger than 26) in standard class. As with other BritRail Passes, one child younger than 15 may travel free when accompanied by an adult or senior purchasing a BritRail England Pass and requesting the Family Pass.

A Freedom of Wales Flexi Pass allows you to discover the small country by bus and rail. The pass also offers 20% discounts on narrow-gauge railways. The pass costs £65 ($124). You're granted 4 days of rail travel and 8 days of bus travel. You can also inquire about passes granting more extended travel time. Check their website at www.walesflexipass.co.uk. More information is available from Arriva Trains Wales, St. Mary's House, Penarth Road, Cardiff CF10 5DJ (tel. 0845/6061-660).

The BritRail London Plus Pass is best suited for visitors wishing to make day trips in Southern England to Oxford, Cambridge, Brighton, Canterbury, or Salisbury. For 2 days within an 8-day period adults pay $113 first class, $74 second class; 4 days in an 8-day period $187 first class, $140 second class; and 7 days within a 15-day period $249 first class, $187 second class. One child (younger than age 15) can travel free with each adult or senior pass by requesting the BritRail Family Pass when buying the adult pass. Additional children pay half the regular adult fare.

For more information on train pass options and on rail vacation packages in England and the U.K., contact BritRail (tel. 866/BRITAIL or 877/477-1066; www.britrail.com and www.britainsecrets.com).

Travelers who arrive from France by boat and pick up a BritRail train at Dover arrive at Victoria Station, in the center of London. Those journeying south by rail from Edinburgh arrive at King's Cross Station.

By Bus

In Britain, a long-distance touring bus is called a "coach," and "buses" are taken for local transportation. An efficient and frequent express motor-coach network -- run by National Express and other independent operators -- links most of Britain's towns and cities. Destinations off the main route can be easily reached by transferring to a local bus at a stop on the route. Tickets are relatively cheap, often half the price of rail fare, and it's usually cheaper to purchase a round-trip (or "return") ticket than two one-way fares separately.

Victoria Coach Station, on Buckingham Palace Road (tel. 020/7730-3466), is the departure point for most large coach operators. The coach station is located just 2 blocks from Victoria Station. For information, call tel. 020/7222-1234 (www.tfl.gov.uk), 24 hours a day. For cash purchases, get there at least 30 minutes before the coach departs.

National Express (tel] 0870/580-8080; www.nationalexpress.com) runs long-distance coaches that are equipped with reclining seats, toilets, and nonsmoking areas. You can obtain details about all coach services by calling the company between 8am and 10pm. The National Express ticket office at Victoria Station is open from 6am to 11pm.

National Express (www.nationalexpress.com) offers several passes for the explorer who'd like to hop around Britain. These include Hobo, costing £79 ($150) for 7 days of bus travel. Sample itineraries are suggested but you can also plot your own -- that's how flexible this pass is. There's no need to book. Footloose, at £139 ($264), grants 2 weeks of bus travel from a choice of 1,000 destinations throughout the U.K. Finally, Rolling Stone, at £219 ($416), lets you travel by bus coach in the U.K. for 28 days. You plan your own trip using the journey planner offered by National Express.

For journeys within a 56km (35-mile) radius of London, try Green Line coach service, 23-27 Endsleigh Rd., Merstham Redhill, Surrey RH1 3LX (tel. 0870/608-7261; www.greenline.co.uk).

Green Line has bus routes called Country Bus Lines that circle the periphery of London. Though they do not usually go directly into the center of the capital, they hook up with the routes of the Green Line coaches and red buses that do.

In Wales, 65 independent bus operators serve the little country. Public transport guides for local areas are available at tourist offices. One of the most important is TrawsCambria (tel. 0870/120-1088), servicing the main north-south route through Wales. This bus will carry you from Cardiff to Holyhead and other points in the north of Wales, and BritRail and Freedom of Wales rail passes are valid on this run. The area around Cardiff is covered by Cardiff Bus (tel. 029/2066-6444; www.cardiffbus.com). Most of North Wales is serviced by a regional bus company, Arriva Cymru (tel. 0870/9000-773; www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk).

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Maps

• Train Routes in England

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

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				Frommer's England 2009 Author: Darwin Porter Pub Date: September 22, 2008 Price: $24.99				Related Titles: England For Dummies, 4th Edition Frommer's Best Day Trips from London: 25 Great Escapes by Train, Bus or Car, 3rd Edition Frommer's Britain's Best-Loved Driving Tours, 8th Edition