Is London a good base?

Oyster card is available for anybody. Not sure of the rules but child Oyster cards are a little bit more tricky to buy. I don't think you can just buy one at a ticket office.

Try trivago.com for hotel bargains, you could try airbnb for an apartment.

Like alex sez, Oyster for all.

London is a good base for southeast England - consider day trips to Cambridge, Oxford, Bath, Salisbury (Stonehenge is popular), Brighton or Windsor (incl Legoland) and while they can often be done by train somewhere like Salisbury and Stonehenge would be better with a car rental.

Thanks for clarifying that Alex . And also thanks to Mark for the website. My family will be looking into that. However, I was told not to rent a car in London because the transport system is very reliable and renting a car is a hassle and more expensive than taking the public transport.

correct. don't even think of renting a car in London. Apart from the driving, parking and congestion charge will cost a fortune.

child Oyster cards are only for children resident in London. No problem though, you just buy child travelcards for them as you need them. Bring some picture Id to the station if they look older than they are.

if you give an idea of your interests I can suggest some day trips.

Thanks for the info neverwinter. We're interested in all the popular tourist attractions. It's our first time in Europe so we'd like to go where majority of the tourists go to.

Renting a car in London is stupid idea and I didn't ever suggest that. I suggested if you want to do Salisbury/Stonehenge then your better option is to rent a car.

If my thinking is correct child Oyster cards are free for children living in London but It seems completely daft that you can't get a child Oyster card and top it up. You are left with buying paper travel cards or buying an adult Oyster card.

yes, that's right Alex - non-Londoner children have to use paper travelcards. Not a big problem, really. Oh, and the younger one travels for free if with an adult.

OP - suggest you get a guidebook and see what is of interest to you. You can see a lot of London for free and on foot just by walking and looking, there are excellent free museums (you'll never take it all in) and if I could afford it I would visit Westminster Abbey and St Pauls. I also highly recommend a full day at Hampton Court Palace - 40 mins on the train from Waterloo and it is just over the bridge.

Where do you get these paper travel card? Does this apply to my 15 year old?