This is part 3 of a 3-part series on travelling in London, held in collaboration with different hotels in London.

Using the underground network is hard enough, what with the connections, alternative routes and all too frequent delays. When you add the pernickety technicalities of the tube service costs, no one would blame you for getting a little confused. With different methods of payment, different costs for different ages as well as time periods in which you’ll be paying more than others. So, how do you traverse this web of discounts, price jumps and panic inducing rush hours? The answer is to understand how much you could be saving as a customer, are you entitled to any discounts? On top of this, you could benefit from knowing the best time of the day for you to save on your journeys.

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Rail cards

There are a range of rail cards available to a variety of different users. These include student travel cards, also known as 16 to 25 travel cards. Alongside this, seniors can purchase travel cards for only £30 for a year. These two different rail cards give their users 30 percent off rail prices and a third off their tube journeys during off peak times. You will also benefit from a reduced daily price cap as well as well as reduced daily travel card prices. You can enjoy these benefits only if you link your rail card up to your oyster card or con-tactless payment card.

Editorial credit: N Crittenden / Shutterstock.com

Peak time prices

One thing for you to keep in mind during your time in London is that wherever you are, whether it be from the outskirt suburbs of zone 6 or travelling from accommodation in Paddington London, peak times will really bite into your oyster top ups. With hefty price rises designed to both capitalize on and deter from rush hour journeys, commuters can see their weekly bills really spiral. If you don’t need to travel at peak times, it’s best to avoid them in part due to the prices and in part because of just how unenjoyable a rush hour journey can be.

Zone fares

Another price cap to look out for is the rise in price journeys depending on the starting point and destinations which you are travelling from. If you are travelling from further out, your journeys are n doubt going to be higher than if you are travelling from a zone 1 to zone 2 stop. These are important to take note of due to the sheer scale of the city. If you’re travelling from Gatwick airport to the Shaftesbury Premier London Paddington then it may be of greater value to purchase a travel card or one-way ticket, for instance. Always make sure you’re on top of the zones you’re travelling through so that you can keep the payments down.

Child prices

One benefit of the London underground system is that children under the age of five can travel for free. Not only this but ages five to fifteen can travel on buses and trams for free when unaccompanied, alongside TFL services when they own a Zip Oyster photocard.