Plan by line and direction
Before you set off, plan the journey in the TfL Go app, Citymapper or Google Maps and note three things: the line (by colour), the direction, and the stop where you get off. Platforms are signed by line and direction (for example 'Eastbound'), with a list of the stations that platform serves. If your destination is on the list, you are in the right place.
The Northern line has two central branches. Trains run 'via Bank' or 'via Charing Cross', so check the platform display and the front of the train.
Count your stops
Write down how many stops you are travelling. Every carriage has a line map above the doors and each station is announced in advance, so you can simply count.
Paying for your journey
- Tap a contactless card, phone or Oyster card on the yellow reader when you enter and again when you leave, even if the gates are open.
- A Zone 1 single costs £3.10 at peak times and £3.00 off-peak (2026 fares). Travel in Zones 1–2 is capped at £8.90 a day.
- Forgetting to tap out can cost a maximum fare of up to £9.90.
- Use the same card or device all day. A phone and the card inside it count as two different cards.
Avoid the rush hours
Weekday peak times are 06:30–09:30 and 16:00–19:00. Trains are crowded, fares are higher and there is little room for bags. Travelling even half an hour outside these times makes a big difference.
Watch out for confusing station names
- Bank and Monument are one linked station complex.
- Edgware Road is two separate stations: one for the Bakerloo line, one for the Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines.
- Hammersmith also has two separate stations on different lines.
- Tower Hill (Tube) and Tower Gateway (DLR) are different stations.
- King's Cross St Pancras is the Tube station for both King's Cross and St Pancras International.
- Leicester Square and Covent Garden are so close that walking is often quicker.
Luggage and step-free access
There is no luggage limit, but you must be able to carry your own bags and no item may be over 2 metres long. Only 95 Tube stations are step-free, and several busy central ones, including Leicester Square, Covent Garden and Piccadilly Circus, have stairs. The TfL Go app has a step-free mode, and staff offer turn-up-and-go assistance with no booking.
Travelling at night
Most lines close around midnight. The Night Tube runs on Friday and Saturday nights on the Victoria and Jubilee lines, most of the Central line, the Northern line's Charing Cross branch and the Piccadilly line (not to Heathrow Terminal 4). Night buses cover the rest of the week.
If you go the wrong way
It costs very little. Get off at the next station, cross to the opposite platform without leaving the barriers, and continue. Platform staff will always point you in the right direction.
Fares and times checked September 2026. Prices change, so confirm with the operator before you travel.