A Visitor Oyster card is a quick and easy way to pay for travel on public transport in London. Buy your card before you leave home and save money with special offers.
A Visitor Oyster card is a smartcard. It's a quick and easy way to pay for journeys on bus, Tube, tram, DLR, London Overground, Elizabeth line, River Bus and most National Rail services in London.
Put money on your Visitor Oyster card and use it to pay as you go.
If you don't touch in and out on a yellow card reader, you might be charged a maximum fare, charged a penalty fare or prosecuted.
Only touch your Visitor Oyster card on the yellow card reader at the start of your journey. Don't touch out when you get off a bus or tram, or you will be issued with a penalty fare.
Only touch in with your Visitor Oyster card on the yellow card reader when asked to do so by a member of staff and remember to touch out again at the end of your journey.
You can't top up pay as you go credit on your Visitor Oyster card at the pier, so make sure you have enough credit before you travel.
A Visitor Oyster card costs £5 (plus postage) and is pre-loaded with pay as you go credit for you to spend on travel. You can choose how much credit to add to your card: £10, £15, £20, £25, £30, £35, £40 or £50.
The credit on your card never expires - it stays there until you use it. If you run out of credit on your card, it's easy to top it up and use it again.
Tube, DLR, London Overground, Elizabeth line and National Rail services
Bus and tram services
On buses and trams an adult single pay as you go fare is £1.75 and the daily fare cap is £5.25. You can't use cash to pay for your bus fare.
Trains to/from Gatwick Airport
You can use pay as you go using your Visitor Oyster card on National Rail services between Gatwick Airport and central London.
Find the cost for a single journey on Southern or Thameslink train services to/from central London on our single fare finder.
Thames Clippers river bus services/IFS Cloud Cable Car
River buses and the IFS Cloud Cable Car are great ways to explore London.
You can pay as you go using your Visitor Oyster card on Thames Clippers river bus services. Find out more about paying for river bus services.
Your Visitor Oyster card is accepted on the IFS Cloud Cable Car. Pay as you go fares are up to 26% cheaper than buying a paper single ticket. Find out more about IFS Cloud Cable Car.
If you run out of credit on your Visitor Oyster card, it's easy to top it up at:
If you'd like to cancel your Visitor Oyster card before you've used it, you can ask for a refund by emailing tflenquiries@visitbritainshop.com.
The pay as you go credit on your Visitor Oyster card never expires so you can keep your card until your next visit, or lend it to family and friends.
If you don't need your Visitor Oyster card, you can get the remaining credit refunded. The £5 you paid for your card won't be refunded.
You can't get a refund for any credit on your Visitor Oyster card if it's lost or stolen.
Children under 11 travel free on buses and trams. Children under 11 also travel free on Tube, DLR, London Overground, Elizabeth line and some National Rail services when accompanied by a fare-paying adult (up to four children per adult).
If you're travelling with children aged 11-15, buy a Visitor Oyster card before you leave home and, when you arrive in London, you can ask a member of our staff to add a Young Visitor discount to a Visitor Oyster card at:
Child must be present when adding a Young Visitor discount. This discount gives your child half adult rate pay as you go discount for up to 14 days.
You can also buy child Travelcards online for children aged 11-15.
With your Visitor Oyster card you can enjoy special offers and discounts and save money in leading London restaurants, shops and entertainment venues - plus discounts on the IFS Cloud Cable Car.
You can't buy a Visitor Oyster card in London.
Go to the Visitor Shop website to buy your card before you leave home and it will be delivered to your home address.
If you don't have time to buy your card online, you can also buy a Visitor Oyster card before arriving in London from different locations in the UK and overseas.