I’ve messed up!

[Cupofteaandbiscuits]

I got excited by the rail sale and got some very cheap train tickets to London Victoria for half term. We haven’t got lots of money and I had massively underestimated how much it would cost on the tube etc to go to other places!
what can we do from London Victoria without spending additional money on the tube? We have a nine and ten year old.
lesson learnt not to get swept away by bargains 🤦🏻‍♀️

Are you packing lunch? You've got St James and Hyde Park to walk around with loads to see

Ask chat gpt to plan you a day out within walking distance of London Victoria for kids of their ages and you'll get a decent itinerary!

Travel by bus has a £5.25 daily cap for adults and children under 11 are free. Does that help?

im guessing you are coming for a day?

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel

If they are both 10 or under and not 11 and travel with you they are free

It's about half hour to walk to the Science Museum and Natural History museum both free and loads to see, that could take all day

Where were you thinking of going on the tube? What sort of things are they in to

You can get a bus to the V&A, Cromwell Road, direct from Victoria. Just across one road from there are the Natural History and Science Museums, both excellent for your age group, weather proof in February, and mostly free!
Look up tfl journey planner and select buses only from the filters.

Go to a visitor office. Buy an Oyster card and have the visiting youth discount applied to the card.

We did this last week. Put £20 on it on Monday night. Came home Thursday and there's still over £8 on it. I think there was a balance of £2 on the card when we started. So Monday- Thursday we spent £14 on the Tube and we went all sliver the place zone 1 and 2. There's a daily cap.

Don’t forget the underground and buses are free for under 11s

I would plan a circular walk taking in Buckingham Palace, St James Park, Trafalgar Square then cross over the river using the footbridge at Embankment, walk along the South Bank (nice playground etc), back across Westminster Bridge for the Houses of Parliament and Bjg Ben, then up Victoria Street back to the station.
With looking time, lunchtime, playtime this could take the best part of the day and if you carry lunch with you then ice cream money only needed.

Under 11 goes for free- and zone 1 and 2 is capped at £8.50. Buses are £1.75 for an hour.
Saying that, it's like 25min walk to the Tate Britain. It's a lovely day out!

Far better to walk- you miss loads on the tube!

How much are you thinking it's going to cost and what's your budget? It's not that expensive, It's capped at £8-10 for you if you don't go beyond zone 3, which is likely, and DC are free.

Take the bus. Daily cap.
Walk.
Buy meal deals from Tesco local for lunch.
https://www.timeout.com/london/food-drink/londons-best-cheap-eats

https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/free-and-discounted-travel/5-10-zip-oyster-photocard?intcmp=55572#on-this-page-0

Free bus and tube travel for the kids.

How much cash will you have for the trip, and how happy are your kids walking a reasonable distance?

Work that out, see what you think you'll need for lunch/dinner etc, and then you should be able ti see e.g. could you walk somewhere in the morning and then just get a bus back when everyone is tired?

Citymapper has "bus only" options and shows prices and bus stops.

Where are you planning to go? That is the info we really need to help you OP!

What do your kids like doing? What were your plans? London is great for free activities and Victoria is a pretty good place to start. You’ve got the museums/Ken Gardens etc half an hour’s walk in one direction and Buck Palace/Houses of Parlt/St James’s Park etc half an hour in the other for example. If neither of those work for your kids sit down with google maps and you should be able to figure out what’s walkable and free.

You'll be perfectly central enough to do so much on foot. Walk up Victoria Street to Parliament Square, over Westminster Bridge to the Southbank. Poodle along there to the Tate Modern (it's mostly free and stuff for all), walk over the footbridge towards St. Paul's and then up Fleet Street toward Aldwych, down the Strand to Trafakgar Square and from there you can go to Leicester Square/China Town/Piccadilly Circus. Back down to Trafalgar Square, down the Mall, and then down Buckingham Gate back to Victoria.

Or it's a nice walk to South Ken and the Science and Natural History Museums and up to Kensington Gardens.

Take a packed lunch. If it's shitty weather (none forecast, but will be a little chilly), the number 11 bus takes in some sites between Victoria and Waterloo. 139 will take you up to Piccadilly Circus and Oxford Street.

Kids are free on buses. £1.50 for as many buses as you use in a 1 hour period or a cap of around £6 per day if you use the same contactless card for an adult. Don't shop for water etc around Victoria/Waterloo, there are lots of little Tesco/Sainsbury's all over the place.

Cant edit - the 139 is from Waterloo, 11 from Victoria Station. Always lots of TfL employees about as major hubs, so will point you in right direction.

Thank you so so much. I put it in journey planner and it came up as £22 for the tube which from what you’ve said can’t be right?!
I’ll look at your suggestions. Thank you :)

The tube cap for Zones 1-3 (and you won't be going further out than that anyway) is £10. Children are free (under 11) when with an adult. Just make sure you use the same card to tap in and out.

I think it might even be a quid or so cheaper if only zones 1-2 - and again unlikely you'll venture out of zone 1.

These are free but have to be booked

Advisable to book, but not essential for NHM. Science Museum needs to be booked.

Comfy trainers and small back-packs, pack drinks and snacks and walk.