Travelling around London / Carnaby Street/ theatre

[Kittyhasababy]

I'm British but haven't lived in the UK for decades and don't know the best way to do this! We'll be in London for 3 days, 2 adults, 2 teens. I know you can use a bank card on the tube but what about the teens? And does it have to be a British card? Are travel cards an option? Is Uber ok for 4 people?

Also dd13 wants to go to Carnaby Street as apparently it's cool. I think she might be 50 years too late but what do I know? 😂

Finally - cheapest/best theatre at the moment? We are on a tight budget but really keen to see something.
Any tips welcome! Thanks.

You can buy Oyster cards and load money onto them for the teens. You need to do this at a tube station (not a train station). No idea about non uk cards for contactless, but I imagine that if you can use your cards in shops etc they will work on TFL

uber should be ok for 4 people - but why do you need an Uber? Where are you staying?

by Theatre do you mean west end? No idea about that I’m afraid but for good, reasonably priced stuff theatre you could look at fringe venues like Battersea Arts Centre, Camden people’s theatre, Brixton House

Carnaby st is no longer very alternative but it’s still fun and teenagers will enjoy it I think. Combine with a wander round soho and China town.

enjoy!

Thanks! I don't know if we'll need to take an Uber but just wondered if it's even an option for 4/5 people. Might be cheaper when travelling as a group? Possstaying in Canary Wharf.

Non-UK cards work fine on the tube/DLR as long as they're contactless. You can also use Apple / Android Pay on your phone (or Apple watch) if that's easier. The daily cap per person within zones 1 & 2 is £8.10 so you won't spend more than that no matter how many times you get the tube in that one day. (Canary Wharf is zone 2). You don't need a travelcard as long as you use the same bank card for all your journeys, the daily cap will apply regardless.

Uber's unlikely to be cheaper but it depends on your travel plans. A regular Uber only carries up to 4 people so make sure you book Uber XL if you want it for 5 people. Uber can't use bus lanes (whereas black cabs can) so be aware of your journey taking much longer when there's traffic. London traffic is pretty dire these days (way worse than it used to be), in fact last year we were the world's slowest city for car travel. 🙄

Carnaby St is 'in' again, for teens at least. Westfield is also very popular with teens (if you want to go, Westfield Stratford is very close to you and an easy tube or DLR ride from Canary Wharf).

Carnaby Street is still grubby! Far nicer to have a look around Liberty and certainly Chinatown for food. The Nordic Bakery in Golden Square is great. Then look around Covent Garden.

You can check every Theatre on line. Just look at listings and see what’s available. Prices have gone up a lot so be prepared.

Canary Wharf is not very handy. So just use underground in and out. Jubilee Line is best. Download TFL Go. Plus you might like Borough Market for food. That’s handy enough in the Jubilee Line.

Yeah - dont get an Uber from Canary Wharf to the West End - it will take forever.

Get the Elizabeth Line and get off at Bond Street or Tottenham Court Road.

Just so you’re aware, if you’re here over a weekend, Canary Wharf will be pretty dead. It’s busy in the week but at weekends the pubs and restaurants are really quiet and lack atmosphere.

Although a walk along the river towards Wapping will yield some nice riverside pubs that are well used at the weekend.

There's an official Tktks ticket booth in Leicester Square. I would advise going there for cheap tickets rather than any of the dodgy agencies that are scattered around.
https://officiallondontheatre.com/tkts/

The Elizabeth Line is a godsend for Canary Wharf, you can be in the West End in about ten minutes.
Carnaby Street isn't grubby any more! It's full of fairly smart shops.
Canary Wharf is great for food. Anything you want you can pretty much get there. There's a Big Easy BBQ place that will probably be popular with teens.
On the DLR in the other direction is Greenwich (Cutty Sark Station). As well as the Cutty Sark itself, which is well worth a look, there's the Royal Observatory, The National Maritime Museum and a fantastic market. Walking up the hill to the observatory gives you a fantastic view over London. You could also get the river bus from Canary Wharf either to Greenwich or upstream to Westminster. It's a nice ride.

The massive Waitrose at Canary Wharf with the internal bar is always fun!

Canary Wharf can be quite buzzy at the weekend - especially in the summer - but it tends to be more lcoals comiung for a shopping trip or lunch rather than bankers.

Depending on age the kids may enjoy "driving" the DLR if you fancy a trip across the river to Greenwich or up to the Tower of London. The Queen Elizabeth park (where the Olympics were held) is a short trip away and a good place for letting off steam.

If your teens are under 16 then you can get a visitors Oyster card and have the young persons discount put onto it. Otherwise you may as well use contactless for them (one card per person)

Thanks everyone! Canary Wharf was purely chosen as hotels seemed cheaper there. That said, I love the idea of the massive Waitrose. 😁I've looked at the TKTS site and "Six" isn't on there - I guess it's still too popular? Any theatre recommendations? Getting excited now!

Borough Market
Brick Lane
Walk along the Southbank for the cafes, and vibe
Carnaby Street and China Town are worth a look
If pennies are an issue, look.at fringe theatre such as the White Bear.

Just a note re contactless if it's not a UK/Sterling account - you could get hit by transaction/currency conversion charges - check with your provider. 40p for a public loo ended up costing a NZ friend much more than double.

You can try for rush tickets on the TodayTix app. Six is on at a very small theatre and they tend to sell out in advance.

I think SIX may have moved outside London!

Use the TodayTix app for theatre tickets. You get better deals on there than at the tkts booth now, and more choice too.

Carnaby is perfect for your 13 yr old DD. Brandy Melville, Subdued, Monki and so on.

We got very good seats for Wicked at the half price ticket booth in Leicester Sq on a summer Saturday last year.

Its at the Vaudeville

Canary Wharf is actually quite a nice location to be in. Lots of transport options with Elizabeth and Jubilee lines plus DLR including the river boat - which you could get to the Tower of London or even into the West End. You're also an easy hop on the Jubilee to the O2 (lots of shops and restaurants) if the teens want to get the cable car over the Thames and back. Or hop on the DLR to Island Gardens (8 mins) and then walk under the Thames in the Victorian pedestrian tunnel to the Cutty Sark and the rest of Greenwich.

It's pretty busy at weekends (and has been for the past 20 years - people saying it's dead are very out of date) as not only is it a bit of a shopping / eating / cinema / gym destination but it's also increasingly residential (with some quite fancy flats) so lots of people living there including families.

My ds got rush standing tickets for Guys & Dolls at The Bridge theatre and said it was amazing.

Carnaby is perfect for your 13 yr old DD. Brandy Melville, Subdued, Monki and so on.
Thanks. Although we have several Subdueds and Brandy Melvilles in our town that she already spends hours in!! Hopefully she'll still love it.

Liberty might be fun for her to visit for the sheer prettiness value (hold on to your purse though!)

Err, I used to work in Canary Wharf. I wouldn't be making plans around an unremarkable windowless bar in a supermarket...

If you do want CW recommendations

Roka for sushi and robata grill is very popular at weekends and is my favourite. Sticks n sushi again is great too.

Roka used to do a weekend bottomless brunch which was amazing!

The Gun pub, bit of a walk but gorgeous old pub right on the river right opposite the dome.

Most places are open in CW at weekends just not bustling like the week

Ha ha ! I used to work in Canary Wharf too (not any more thank god) - I loved the massive Waitrose with bar. I didn't really seriously mean to recommend it as a tourist attraction - just good place to go for provisions and some people watching. During the week I used to astounded by the amount of money people could spend in one go on not much food.

Thanks @Comefromaway I'd read theybwere touring but perhaps it was a different cast.

Six changes casts all the time! We saw it on its initial run at the Arts Theatre around 6 years ago and has evolved. It’s fun though.

Carnaby Street is still yuk. So many more iconic places to visit that don’t have the same shops as home.

Canary Wharf is cheaper because it requires travel to get anywhere. A Waitrose (or not) is hardly a deal breaker in London.