Arriving into London, UK

Ok, for those that happen to travel to London (in the UK, not Connecticut =P):

In most cases you will arrive either into London Heathrow or London Gatwick. Both airports have several ways to get into London. The most expensive and longest are the taxis. Remember to not accept offered taxi rides when you come out of the arrivals hall. Use the taxi stands, but you could spend up to 100 quid from Heathrow to London, and even more than that from Gatwick.

The best way is either the Heathrow Express or the Gatwick Express. The Heathrow Express takes about 15 minutes and you'll arrive into Paddington Station. From there, you can take the local tube or bus to your final destination, or the taxi stand. The Gatwick Express takes about 30 minutes and you'll arrive into Victoria Station. The same thing applies to using the tube, bus, or taxi.

Remember! The doors of either Express train are manually controlled. This means you have to press the open/close door button to gain access. Always, the usual tourist would just wait and think the door will open automatically, then you get the Brit behind the person sighing, and pressing the open button, and the tourist would act all surprised and such.

When exchanging currency, use the buyback with Travelex. While the rate you are buying may not be advantageous, using the buyback when switching back actually helps. Of course, you can use the ATM machines to get a direct market rate. Buying a ticket to either Express can be done at the booth or at any of the automated machines. They can accept coins, notes, or credit cards.

One good thing to do is stop by any of the c-stores in the Terminal, and buy a power converter plug. Sometimes if you check into the hostel or hotel in London, it will be hard to find a nearby store that would offer such converters.

Remember if you arriving into Heathrow Terminal 1, 2, or 3, it is a bit of a trek to get to the Express train from the arrivals area. Terminal 4 is a short distance. For Gatwick, the North/South terminals are just a short hop to that respective Express train.

If you need some help with getting into London, let me know, and I'll post some answers here.