Getting Around

Remember that cars drive on the left and vehicles have the right of way over pedestrians. Wherever you walk, always look both ways before stepping off a curb.

By Public Transportation

The London Underground and the city's buses operate on the same system of six fare zones. The fare zones radiate in rings from the central zone 1, which is where most visitors spend the majority of their time. Zone 1 covers the area from Liverpool Street in the east to Notting Hill in the west, and from Waterloo in the south to Baker Street, Euston, and King's Cross in the north. To travel beyond zone 1, you need a multizone ticket. Note that all single one-way, round-trip, and 1-day pass tickets are valid only on the day of purchase. Tube and bus maps should be available at any Underground station. You can download them before your trip from the excellent London Transport (LT) website: www.tfl.gov.uk/tfl. There are also LT Information Centres at several major Tube stations: Euston, King's Cross, Oxford Circus, St. James's Park, Liverpool Street Station, and Piccadilly Circus, as well as in the British Rail stations at Euston and Victoria and in each of the terminals at Heathrow Airport. Most of them are open daily (some close Sun) from at least 9am to 5pm. A 24-hour public-transportation information service is also available at tel. 020/7222-1234.

Discount Passes -- If you plan to use public transportation a lot, there are a range of fare discounts available. Travelcards offer unlimited use of buses, Underground, Docklands Light Railway, and National Rail services in Greater London for any period ranging from a day to a year. Travelcards are available from Underground ticket offices, LT Information Centres, main post offices in the London area, many newsagents, and some newsstands. Children under age 11 generally travel free on the Tube and buses.

The 1-Day Travelcard allows you to go anywhere throughout Greater London. For travel anywhere within zones 1 and 2, the cost is £6.60 ($13) for adults or £3.30 ($6.25) for children 5 to 15. The Off-Peak 1-Day Travelcard, which is valid after 9:30am on weekdays is even cheaper. For two zones, the cost is £5.10 ($9.70) for adults and £2 ($3.80) for children 5 to 15.

The system now features a 3-Day Travel Card, allowing adults to travel within zones 1 and 2 for £16-£20 ($30-$38) depending on the time (peak or off-peak), and allowing children to go for £6-£8.20 ($11-$16).

1-Week Travelcards cost adults £23 ($44) and children £12 ($23) for travel in zones 1 and 2.

Consider purchasing the Oyster Card, a travel discount card that's all the rage. You can prepay for single fares which cost considerably less than a paper ticket -- usually about half the price. Oysters are valid on the Tube, DLR, tram, and National Rail services within your chosen zones and across the entire London bus network. For 24-hour information, call the Oyster hotline at tel. 0870/849-9999. The card has a daily price cap which is frozen, meaning you never pay more than £3 ($5.70) regardless of how many trips you make in 1 day. You can buy an Oyster Card at any ticket office for £3 ($5.70).

The Underground

The Underground, or Tube, is the fastest and easiest way to get around. All Tube stations are clearly marked with a red circle and blue crossbar. Routes are conveniently color-coded.

If you have British coins, you can get your ticket at a vending machine. Otherwise, buy it at the ticket office. You can transfer as many times as you like as long as you stay in the Underground. Children 4 and under travel free if accompanied by an adult.

Slide your ticket into the slot at the gate and pick it up as it comes through on the other side and hold on to it -- it must be presented when you exit the station at your destination. If you're caught without a valid ticket, you'll be fined £20 ($38) on the spot. If you owe extra money, you'll be asked to pay the difference by the attendant at the exit. The Tube runs roughly from 5am to 12:30am (7:30am-10:30pm on Sun). After that, you must take a taxi or night bus to your destination. For information on the London Tube system, call the London Underground at tel. 020/7222-1234, but expect to stay on hold for a good while before a live person comes on the line. Information is also available on www.tfl.gov.uk.

The Jubilee Line Extension has been extended eastward to serve the growing suburbs of the southeast and the Docklands area. This east-west axis helps ease traffic on some of London's most hard-pressed underground lines. The line also makes it much easier to reach Greenwich.

By Bus

The comparably priced bus system is almost as good as the Underground and gives you better views of the city. To find out about current routes, pick up a free bus map at one of London Transport's Travel Information Centres, listed above. The map is available in person only, not by mail. You can also obtain a map at www.tfl.gov.uk.

As with the Underground, fares vary according to distance traveled. Generally, bus fares are £2/$3.80 (£1/$1.90 with an oyster card), slightly less than Tube fares. If you want your stop called out, simply ask the conductor or driver. To speed up bus travel, passengers have to purchase tickets before boarding. Drivers no longer collect fares on board. Some 300 roadside ticket machines serve stops in central London -- in other words, it's "pay as you board." You'll need the exact fare, however, as ticket machines don't make change.

Buses generally run 24 hours a day. A few night buses have special routes, running once an hour or so; most pass through Trafalgar Square. Keep in mind that night buses are often so crowded (especially on weekends) that they are unable to pick up passengers after a few stops. You may find yourself waiting a long time. Consider taking a taxi. Call the 24-hour hot line (tel. 020/7222-1234) for schedule and fare information.

By Taxi

London cabs are among the most comfortable and best-designed in the world. You can pick one up either by heading for a cab rank or by hailing one in the street (the taxi is available if the yellow taxi sign on the roof is lit); once it has stopped for you, a taxi is obliged to take you anywhere you want to go within 9.5km (6 miles) of the pickup point, provided it's within the metropolitan area. To call a cab, phone tel. 020/7272-0272.

The meter starts at £2.20 ($4.20), with increments of £2 ($3.80) per mile thereafter, based on distance or time. Surcharges are imposed after 8pm and on weekends and public holidays. All these tariffs include VAT. Fares usually increase annually. It's recommended that you tip 10% to 15% of the fare.

If you call for a cab, the meter starts running when the taxi receives instructions from the dispatcher, so you could find that the meter already reads a few pounds more than the initial drop of £2.20 ($4.20) when you step inside.

Minicabs are also available, and they're often useful when regular taxis are scarce or when the Tube stops running. These cabs are meterless, so you must negotiate the fare in advance. Unlike regular cabs, minicabs are forbidden by law to cruise for fares. They operate from sidewalk kiosks, such as those around Leicester Square. If you need to call one, try Brunswick Chauffeurs/Abbey Cars (tel. 020/8969-2555) in west London, London Cabs, Ltd. (tel. 020/8778-3000) in south London, or Newham Minicars (tel. 020/8472-1400) in south London. Minicab kiosks can be found near many Tube or BritRail stops, especially in outlying areas.

If you have a complaint about taxi service or if you leave something in a cab, contact the Public Carriage Office, 15 Penton St., N1 9PU (Tube: Angel Station). If it's a complaint, you must have the cab number, which is displayed in the passenger compartment. Call tel. 0845/602-7000 or 020/7222-1234 with complaints.

By Car

Don't drive in congested London. It is easy to get around without a car, traffic and parking are nightmares, and -- to top it off -- you'd have to drive from what you normally consider the passenger seat on the wrong side of the road. It all adds up to a big headache. Another reason not to drive is that you will have to pay a "Congestion Charge" of £8 ($15) between 7am and 6pm Monday to Friday, covering most of Central London.

London Fights Gridlock with Hits to Motorists' Wallets -- In a much-debated but desperately-needed attempt to ease traffic congestion in central London, the city's authorities began charging motorists a supplemental fee of £8 ($15) per vehicle per day if they entered some of the city's most densely populated neighborhoods. Known locally as the "Congestion Charge," it's levied every Monday to Friday between 7am and 6:30pm. A network of at least 700 cameras records license plate numbers, which are checked against a database; if you haven't paid by midnight the day after you enter the zone, you face steep penalties. These traffic fees, at least according to the mayor (who rides the Tube), have cut car usage by 10% to 15%. Neighborhoods affected include Bloomsbury, Soho, Covent Garden, parts of Southwark, Westminster, Mayfair, Green Park (with the notable exception of Park Lane, traffic on which is not affected), the streets around St. James's Park, and virtually everywhere in the City (that is, the financial district) of London. In February 2007 the zone was extended to the west of London, covering Kensington, Notting Hill Gate, Bayswater, Chelsea, Knightsbridge, Belgravia, and Pimlico.

How can a visitor, say, in a rental car, pay the required fee? Most Londoners log onto www.CCLondon.com and pay with a credit card or bank transfer online. Barring that, certificates showing proof of payment are widely available at key underground and railway stations (including Victoria); coin-operated machines, newspaper kiosks and shops, petrol (gasoline) stations, and supermarkets. Before renting a car to drive into central London (which isn't a good idea in the first place), check with your rental company about how the charges will apply to you. You can also pay by telephone by calling tel. 0845/900-1234. To find the nearest shop (mainly newsagents) at which you can pay log on to www.paypoint.co.uk. Many car parks have coin-operated machines where you can pay.

By Bicycle

One of the most popular bike-rental shops is On Your Bike, 52-54 Tooley St., London Bridge, SE1 (tel. 020/7378-6669; www.onyourbike.com; Tube: London Bridge), open Monday through Friday from 8am to 7pm, Saturday from 10am to 6pm, and Sunday 11am to 5pm. The first-class mountain bikes, with high seats and low-slung handlebars, cost £12 ($23) for the first day and £8 ($15) for each day thereafter, or £36 ($68) per week, and require a £110 ($209) deposit on a credit card.