Reply to: Durham/Newcastle -> Canary Wharf by train

[MrFancyPants]

I don't know London well enough to tell how easy/long such a trip might take. The only thing I know is the direct express train is 3hr from Durham to King's Cross, from there I'm lost. Small-town mentality says "oh just hop across on the tube", but I recall you can easily spend 1hr+ on the tube...

http://journeyplanner.tfl.gov.uk reckons 25min from Kings Cross, though it has about 5 choices for Kings cross, not sure they are the same...

I travel from the Midlands to Canary Wharf every week. The journey time from KingsX St Pancras is 40 minutes usually. Thats from stepping off the train at 09:15 , northern line tube to bank, dlr to canary wharf, at my desk, which is just next to the plaza, just before 10.
You can also do northern line to London Bridge and then jubilee to Canary Wharf...there's not much in it as far as journey time, but the exit from the platform at London Bridge is staired not an escalator and I'm lazy!
You want to book your train journeys well (at least a month) in advance and check the website regularly. A standard open return purchased at the station on the day of travel for me is £138. Purchased in advance on the web I can get this down to about £60!

[threaded]

This is the best way to get there. If you have the time. You would walk through Islington, past a lovely pub called The Dove. The whole walk takes in romantic urban London.
You gotta have an eye to appreciate it. If you don't like London then it would not interest you.

WHS++

Much the same reason why I liked to walk it.

[aussielong]

I think he wants to avoid sweating etc ...... hence the cab. Not sure how walking for an hour approaching summer helps the cause.

This is the best way to get there. If you have the time. You would walk through Islington, past a lovely pub called The Dove. The whole walk takes in romantic urban London.
You gotta have an eye to appreciate it. If you don't like London then it would not interest you.

A Northerner like you would get robbed for your Dunlop trainers then thrown in the Canal.

"Oi! If you just let me take my glasses off i'll fight yer!"

[Scrag Meister]

Oh and 1 tip for the DLR

Make sure you 'beep out' with your oyster card. The DLR is a friggen nightmare for this. I once went, got off a station and couldnt see where to beep out. So just went on my merry way, I went to go back in another tube station an hour later and couldnt get access and was charged full whack for my previous journey as I never beeped out.

Turned out the machines were located OUTSIDE the friggen station. What kind of moronic set up is that???

I wonder how many tourists have been caught out by this.

Anyway just remember, always beep your oyster card on your way out even with no barriers, or you'll be sucker punched for the costs later.

WHS

You'll only do it once though

[AngelOfTheNorth]

Cool, thanks.

Oh and 1 tip for the DLR

Make sure you 'beep out' with your oyster card. The DLR is a friggen nightmare for this. I once went, got off a station and couldnt see where to beep out. So just went on my merry way, I went to go back in another tube station an hour later and couldnt get access and was charged full whack for my previous journey as I never beeped out.

Turned out the machines were located OUTSIDE the friggen station. What kind of moronic set up is that???

I wonder how many tourists have been caught out by this.

Anyway just remember, always beep your oyster card on your way out even with no barriers, or you'll be sucker punched for the costs later.

[d000hg]

Do tube & DLR both accept it? YES YES

do London taxis take cards or cash only - BOTH

Cool, thanks.

[AngelOfTheNorth]

Not really. Not if day one on site I find out a cab takes an hour and I'm late and out £50

But thanks for the help all, it sounds fairly reasonable cost-wise by taxi and time-wise by public transport. I'm still not too sure how long a cab would take, I have never been in a car in central London that I can recall.

Also, do all public transport types accept Oyster these days? Last time I was in London was before they invented it, I believe. Do tube & DLR both accept it?

And a really silly question - do London taxis take cards or cash only? When I go abroad, taxis seem to but in England I can't remember one that would accept plastic.

Do tube & DLR both accept it? YES YES

do London taxis take cards or cash only - BOTH

[d000hg]

I can't help feel you're fussing about this now.

Not really. Not if day one on site I find out a cab takes an hour and I'm late and out £50

But thanks for the help all, it sounds fairly reasonable cost-wise by taxi and time-wise by public transport. I'm still not too sure how long a cab would take, I have never been in a car in central London that I can recall.

Also, do all public transport types accept Oyster these days? Last time I was in London was before they invented it, I believe. Do tube & DLR both accept it?

And a really silly question - do London taxis take cards or cash only? When I go abroad, taxis seem to but in England I can't remember one that would accept plastic.

[Lockhouse]

A cab will be around the £25-£30 mark - no more than £35 including a tip.

[Gonzo]

BANK STATION: During escalator replacement work there is no step-free access to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and a reduced escalator service between the DLR and Northern/Central/Waterloo & City lines at Bank. A one-way system, via the staircase from the Northern line platforms, will operate for customers accessing the DLR from Bank station. Allow extra time to change between the DLR and Bank station in either direction. Reported: 05/03/10 00:18 Last Updated: 05/03/10 00:18

Jeez, is this still going on? It was this work that ruined my easy commute into the City and made me start using the river service. That was two years ago.

I appreciate that it is a difficult site to get materials and equipment in and out of but still.

Northern Line to Bank and then DLR to Canary Wharf,
or Northern Line to London Bridge and Jubilee Line to Canary Wharf

I reckon either should take about 30-40 mins once you are into Kings Cross.

The change from Northern Line to DLR at Bank is quite easy because the DLR platform is directly underneath the Northern Line platform. The only trouble will be that the work going on at the moment means that you have to travel a more round-a-bout route. I haven't done it myself recently so don't know what it is like at the moment.

The change between lines at London Bridge is a longer walk and the Jubilee line trains will probably be rammed with people going to Canary Wharf, some coming from across town and others that have travelled up through Kent into London Bridge.

I think it's possible to go round the back of Kings Cross and get on Regents Canal. Then you can walk all the way down to Limehouse. Canary Wharf is a short walk from there, I think. You could probably do that walk in an hour (if you don't get mugged).

Good plan - although the canal runs through a tunnel underneath Islington and I don't know how easy or pleasant it is to go through it. Plus this part of the canal runs through some truly tulipe parts of London. In the other direction, past Regent's Park it would probably be quite nice...

EDIT - I agree with Platypus. Cab it. Get a receipt. Expense it. If it is more than £20 it won't be much more than £20.

[Platypus]

In the event I can't find a rich lord to get me chauffeur-driven, anyone know the time & cost of a taxi then? Would it actually be quicker at rush-hour than 2 tubes/tube+DLR?

If it was 20min, I'd (to pick a number out of thin air) guess around the £30 mark?

I doubt it would take less time than by tube.

I'm not being funny, but for the sake of +/- £20 why not do it once, find out how long it takes and how much it costs. Anyway the cabbie will be able to tell you approx cost before he sets off.

I can't help feel you're fussing about this now.

[AngelOfTheNorth]

I think it's possible to go round the back of Kings Cross and get on Regents Canal. Then you can walk all the way down to Limehouse. Canary Wharf is a short walk from there, I think. You could probably do that walk in an hour (if you don't get mugged).

I think he wants to avoid sweating etc ...... hence the cab. Not sure how walking for an hour approaching summer helps the cause.

[TykeMerc]

CUK is damn good for this sort of advice since there are plenty of posters who know loads of places and travel routes.

Since it was first suggested to me on here I've used Stanmore as a place to park and take the tube into London repeatedly, saved me loads of hassle.

[aussielong]

Regents Canal

The cab rank can be a bit crowded in the mornings. Sometimes on a sunny day I'd set off walking and pick one up somewhere along Gray's Inn Road or if it was particularly nice walk the whole way.

(I used to do the same trip, but from Doncaster.)

I think it's possible to go round the back of Kings Cross and get on Regents Canal. Then you can walk all the way down to Limehouse. Canary Wharf is a short walk from there, I think. You could probably do that walk in an hour (if you don't get mugged).

[d000hg]

Not nearly as exhilarating as helping you with your terribly complicated but fascinating travel plans.

You're too poor a troll to be worth fighting.

Whose first try at sock-puppets is this?