Originally Posted by Mallory

Just a quick question. Hubby is retiring next spring, and we will spending time in UK visiting family much more often, for a couple of months at a time. We have both driven rental cars over there in the past, but now in 60s we are thinking of using the train more. Do non-residents get discounts on tickets if over 60, or is that just for residents?

Originally Posted by DDL

Here you go Mallory, I was finally able to get into the Visit Britain website where I found a link to BritRail.

To answer your question, yes, senior non-residents can get discount train tickets. There are flexi-passes that cover just England, or one that covers all of Great Britain.

Here's a link that will give you all the info you should need, including how to order online, paying with dollars:
http://www.visitbritainshop.com/usa/...lexi-pass.html

Originally Posted by Mallory

Thanks so much for the info Denise. We will probably do partly rental car and partly trains. I have a cousin that lives near Richmond, and I know the traffic is horrendous around there. Good luck with your driving. I've driven over there a few times, and I think the fear will go away after a few weeks of driving.

Originally Posted by DDL

Cheers for that, Mallory.

By the way - just fyi - if you have an American Express credit card, you can enroll in their Premium Car Rental Protection.

If you use the card to rent a car (anywhere), American Express will charge you $24.95 and for that amount you get:

• $100,000 primary Collision and Theft coverage for a rented vehicle
• $100,000 Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage
• $5,000 per passenger Excess Personal Property coverage (maximum $10,000 for all)
• $15,000 per passenger Excess Medical Expense coverage

Something like this can save you a lot of money if you are coming over here and renting a vehicle and having to purchase their insurance.

Disclaimer: I am not saying that this is a substitute for the insurance offered by the car rental company, but it is something you may wish to check into so that you can compare rates/coverage.

Originally Posted by Mallory

Thanks for all that info. I do have an American Express card, and we are going on a trip to Germany this June. We are renting a car for our visit, so will definitely look into that. Thanks!

Originally Posted by trottytrue

DDL..Your remarks on the panto took me back many years to when I went, we always made the trip after Christmas and it was a family affair. Can I ask were the tickets expensive and howabout parking.

Jasper/Rodney...I can just imagine you sitting behind the door with your computer. Does that mean you are going to have to have it hard wired in. I dont know what I would do without my extension cords. My mums house in the UK had only one place in each room that you could plug things into. My Dad was famous for overloading it. Wires everywhere.

Originally Posted by jasper123

nope your not even close my friend, in your list the only thing I have found so far is swearing from 14 year olds, I hear the boys and girls across the street at the school when they are going home, pretty filthy mouths I would say, they need to be washed out with a nice perfumed bar of soap,
But thats it, havent heard adults swearing yet, --- I think the kids just pick it up from the TV programs that they watch,
no my list is quite small and I will post them tomorrow maybe, but one that comes to mind now is when my Modem/router was delivered last week the power cord needed to be plugged in to a socket close to the phone jack of course, but the nearest power wall socket to the only downstairs phone jack was too far away to reach the phone jack ---- so all I needed to buy was a 10 foot extension cable, ----- so if I were in Vegas I would have just gone into Walmart and bought it for about $3 and thats it, so I just took a trip to Asda and they had nothing but big thick white cord power surges, so I found a couple of electrical shops and they didn't even know what I was talking about when I asked for an extension cord,
Apparently UK used to have them and they were the same straight forward ones like ours in US but since UK joined the EU Germany who runs it told us here years ago that we cant have those nice managable easy to use thin extension cords anymore, and just like everything they tell the UK to do we just jump and do it, but thank goodness we were at least able to keep the pound, that took a big fight on the British Governments to be able to keep our pound so hats off to that,
So I just have to sit my modem on the floor in the hallway just by the door across from the phone, its alright as long as we remember that when we open front door to not open it too far to knock it,
Rodney.

Originally Posted by cheers

thanks for info!
Insurance is very reasonable.
Fillup not as bad as it could be.
I would say the fillup is my Med Ins. payment
Do you know about how many miles you put on the car per week or month. Thats probably all going to change now that hubby is working.
I say that because we think the costs balance out because we drive more in the states?

Originally Posted by Derrygal

Sorry - I completely missed this post - I hope you don't think I was rude!! Whenever I go back to Ireland I stay with family, so I honestly wouldn't be able to give you any advice on accommodation. You might want to check out the Irish Tourist Board website or Northern Ireland Tourist Board website. Also, I believe Expedia is quite good when it comes to booking accommodation and flights together. I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time. May is a nice month of the year - don't forget your umbrella and raincoats. It rains a lot (more than England). That's why it's called the Emerald Isle!!

Originally Posted by Beedubya

Yes we do Sue, thank you even if we sometimes get a little bit carried away, it's our age you know.

Originally Posted by DDL

Cheers for that, Mallory.

By the way - just fyi - if you have an American Express credit card, you can enroll in their Premium Car Rental Protection.

If you use the card to rent a car (anywhere), American Express will charge you $24.95 and for that amount you get:

• $100,000 primary Collision and Theft coverage for a rented vehicle
• $100,000 Accidental Death and Dismemberment coverage
• $5,000 per passenger Excess Personal Property coverage (maximum $10,000 for all)
• $15,000 per passenger Excess Medical Expense coverage

Something like this can save you a lot of money if you are coming over here and renting a vehicle and having to purchase their insurance.

Disclaimer: I am not saying that this is a substitute for the insurance offered by the car rental company, but it is something you may wish to check into so that you can compare rates/coverage.

Originally Posted by jasper123

Oh yes the lake District, one place I have never been to, but seeing all the lovely pics on this thread over the past couple of months makes me just want to hop on a train right now and go there, but it will have to wait for a while, maybe in the Summer when things warm up a little,
Well you dont have long now Barb 16 more days --- oh boy I can still remember what a state I was in a couple of weeks before the flight, asking myself time and time again have I done everything? have I taken care of every little detail? but in the end the date comes and everything just seems to fall into place on the flight day, but anyway for you Barb this is your second time around so at least you are somewhat used to it, but make this the last time, and when you get there just think of it as the start of your new life, you can still keep in touch with your family back in Oz, but this is the time you need to think of yourself, and we aint getting any younger,
But you know what since I have been living with Mum who is 91 she makes me feel young cause whenever I say that Im not as young as I was, she says absolute Rubbish --- you are young your only 65 and you not what Im starting to feel younger too, --- and the sunday mail said last week that we are all in UK going to live till we are 100 so thats good Huh
Take care,
Rodney.

Originally Posted by jasper123

nope your not even close my friend, in your list the only thing I have found so far is swearing from 14 year olds, I hear the boys and girls across the street at the school when they are going home, pretty filthy mouths I would say, they need to be washed out with a nice perfumed bar of soap,
But thats it, havent heard adults swearing yet, --- I think the kids just pick it up from the TV programs that they watch,
no my list is quite small and I will post them tomorrow maybe, but one that comes to mind now is when my Modem/router was delivered last week the power cord needed to be plugged in to a socket close to the phone jack of course, but the nearest power wall socket to the only downstairs phone jack was too far away to reach the phone jack ---- so all I needed to buy was a 10 foot extension cable, ----- so if I were in Vegas I would have just gone into Walmart and bought it for about $3 and thats it, so I just took a trip to Asda and they had nothing but big thick white cord power surges, so I found a couple of electrical shops and they didn't even know what I was talking about when I asked for an extension cord,
Apparently UK used to have them and they were the same straight forward ones like ours in US but since UK joined the EU Germany who runs it told us here years ago that we cant have those nice managable easy to use thin extension cords anymore, and just like everything they tell the UK to do we just jump and do it, but thank goodness we were at least able to keep the pound, that took a big fight on the British Governments to be able to keep our pound so hats off to that,
So I just have to sit my modem on the floor in the hallway just by the door across from the phone, its alright as long as we remember that when we open front door to not open it too far to knock it,
Rodney.