Theatre costs - travel, accommodation?

[mkmswain]

Posted: 10/23/18 at 11:14am

What other costs do you have to factor in - and does that affect your theatre plans?

Or any top tips for cheaper journey/ticket combos?

[petey_p]

Posted: 10/23/18 at 8:45pm

Your question is a little unformed.

If you want to know what the costs are in going to London for a week's theatre trip you have to factor in:

1. Airfare

2. Hotel

3. Food

4. Transport while in London

5. Theatre tickets

6. Extras.

Airfare from the States can run anywhere from $400 or $500 upwards, I think. 

Hotels- even in less convenient areas- usually run at least $100/night. There are thousands of smaller ones and then on Priceline you can sometimes get a deal of $75-100 for one of the big chain hotels. I now use Airbnb and if you don't mind sharing with the people who live in the place, I have found some nice places for as little as $40-50/night.

Food is very expensive. Even middle-of-the-road chains like Pizza Express and Garfunkels rarely end up costing less that £25 (what is that? $35-40?). One of the advantages of Airbnb is that you can usually use the kitchen and make food at home or pack a lunch and dinner. Grocery store chains like Tesco, Sainsbury's and Waitress have very good "meal deals" (sandwich, pop and crisps for £5).

Unless you pay big bucks for a Zone 1 hotel, then you'll probably be depending on TfL (the subway, rail and bus network). they now have a scheme where instead of buying a weekly travel card, you do "pay as you go" and the system automatically caps you at the daily rate or the weekly rate. £30-40 is a typical cost for unlimited use of the four major parts of the system: the Tube, the busses, the Overground trains and the rail trains.

Theatre tickets are much more affordable than in NYC, especially with the Today Tix app, which offers both rush seats and lottery seats for a huge number of shows from £15-25 ($25-40). They are usually front row seats and the only challenge is making sure you go on the app the second they go on sale at 10:00 a.m..And be persistent as the app sometimes suggests the tickets are all gone, but give it a good 15 minutes and then if you don't get anything, check back in later. I was able to see COMPANY, THE INHERITANCE, two of the PINTER AT THE PINTER programs and THE HEIGHT OF THE STORM this way.

The main extra to remember is programmes. They are not free like in NYC and most cost £4 or £5.

The not-for-profit theatres like the Almeida, the National and the Donmar all have their own cheaper ticket schemes. For instance the Almeida sells "obstructed view" seats in the third and fourth row for £10 and the obstruction is a very thin pillar that it is quite easy to peer around.

[BIG BALONEY]

Posted: 10/27/18 at 9:38pm

Go to London frequently and never bought a program. When you see 15 to 20 shows it's costly and you have to carry them home, which fills up your suitcase. I stay in a hotel that serves a full English breakfast. That's my brunch daily. Plenty of supermarkets with salads, soup, sandwiches to take out. My hotel has a refrigerator in the room, I go on hotwire.com usually. Transportation around London is by bus, not underground. It's cheaper and I see things from the double decker.Usually see all the shows at the National theatre and search daily months ahead for 15£ tickets for the first three rows in the stalls. Museums are free and usually go on rainy days before theatre shows. Day tickets for shows on sale when box office opens and are 10 to 25£'s depending. Always talk to fellow theatergoers and you will learn a lot.
Mark & Spencer serves hot meals in their department stores and satellite stores. The cost is cheaper than a restaurant in many cases. The $ to £ is 1.28 not bad at present.

Updated On: 10/27/18 at 09:38 PM

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 12/8/18 at 11:38am

"The main extra to remember is programmes. They are not free like in NYC and most cost £4 or £5."

Yes they cost a few pounds but they are so much nicer than Playbills. I am heading over to London next weekend and will see 4 shows so that will not be that great an expense .