[martyn29]

1 Adult one child? anyone know of anything cheaper than £23.45?

Thanks

[Death]

Best I can find on the London Eye website is about £24.00 at the moment - Although tickets booked on there are currently being offered with a 10% discount.

If ye visit a number of Merlin Group attractions over the course of a year though, I'd advise considering the Merlin Annual Pass insted. It currently costs £150,- new, £100,- to renew, or can be had from Tesco Deals for about £40,- in Clubcard vouchers. 8)

Hope this helps!
>> Death <<

[yorkie]

Assuming it's like train tickets, then the following suggestions will all help.

1) Buy a ticket from further away, this means you can buy an Off Peak fare (at about half the Anytime fare quoted), and simple start your journey 'short' on the Wheel.
2) Split the journey into 2 parts: one to the top of the wheel (about £6), and another from there to the bottom (also £6), this will reduce the cost in half. However both of these tickets will be day returns so this is no use if you wish to be suspended mid-air for more than a day.
3) Another company may price a ticket that is valid on the Wheel, but they don't expect to use it, but it is permitted as part of the National Tourist Attraction Guide. In this case, buy the cheaper ticket. If challenged by an inspector, simply show them the relevant pages of the Guide and they will be forced to let you through. For example, tickets to a hot air baloon are valid into high places, it may be permitted to use the wheel due to an error in the guide. Exploit this before the Association of Tourist Attraction Companies (ATAC) put a stop to it.
4) Work for another tourist attraction hundreds of miles away, this gives you PRIV rate 75% off, however if you show this PRIV pass the chances are they'll let you on for free at their discretion. They may even let you in a 1st class compartment (if available) and let you have freebies, possibly even a meal if you get a Primo service.
5) Get a FOSW. When questioned, this stands for Freedom Of Skyhigh Wheels.

[metrocammel]

Originally Posted by yorkie

3) Another company may price a ticket that is valid on the Wheel, but they don't expect to use it, but it is permitted as part of the National Tourist Attraction Guide.

You're not a million miles off here! If you get a 'Freedom of Merlin Rover*' (*otherwise known as a Merlin Annual pass), you get unlimited access to Tussauds attractions, Sealife centres, the Dungeon attractions, Chessington, Alton Towers, Thorpe Park etc.....

The 'individual' 'Advance Online Purchase' price is £120pa, which, if you plan to visit any of the other places within a year, would beat £20-odd for a single ride on the Eye....

http://www.annual-pass.com/buy_now/prices.asp?css=1


I didn't read the thread- Death beat me to it.... however, you've quoted the 'pay on day' pass price of £150, instead of the 'advance' rate of £120

[Death]

Originally Posted by yorkie

Assuming it's like train tickets, then the following suggestions will all help...

Originally Posted by metrocammel

If you get a 'Freedom of Merlin Rover*' (*otherwise known as a Merlin Annual pass), you get unlimited access to Tussauds attractions, Sealife centres, the Dungeon attractions, Chessington, Alton Towers, Thorpe Park etc.....

Nice one guys...Those gave me a right laugh!

Originally Posted by metrocammel

I didn't read the thread- Death beat me to it.... however, you've quoted the 'pay on day' pass price of £150, instead of the 'advance' rate of £120

I must admit that I'm rather peed off at Merlin for not being very helpful when I bought my pass earlier this year.

I'd gone to Thorpe Park with a fistful of old season passes to prove that I'd been a long-term customer - Aside from 2007-08CE (Due to financial difficulties) I'd held Tussauds season passes annually since 1998CE - And asked if it'd be possible for me to get the pass at the renewal rate, after my circumstances had been taken into account. No dice - I still got chinged for the full £150,-. At no point though did the staff at the park mention that I could save £30 by buying online (Or get it for £40,- of Clubcard vouchers - I only learned of that deal a month later!) even though it was clear that I wanted to make as best a saving as possible...

Incidentally, I've always considered the offering of lower prices to Internet customers only to be a rather unfair practice - Given that not everyone is fortunate enough to have Internet access or a bank account that can be used to pay online - And I've always wondered if the act of giving discounts to online customers only could be considered a discriminatory (And thus illegal) practice. Thoughts, anyone?

As it is, it looks like us AP holders are going to be expected to pay extra to attend Fright Nights this year (Which hasn't happened in previous years AFAIK) and again I'm not happy about that either. I'm going to be writing a rather strongly opinioned letter to Merlin Entertainments quite soon, I think...

Farewell...
>> Death <<

[Mojo]

IMO there is no reason why people can't connect to the internet. There are plenty of libraries and internet access centres in cities, towns and villages across the country and free training courses for those who don't know how it works. Many companies also offer basic PCs for under £200 and some give free broadband access with your landline.

As for not having a bank account: -
1. Why?
2. There are plenty of companies out there who will provide you PrePaid cards similar to a mobile phone topup (I understand these cards are causing headaches for TOCs)

[Aussie_Rail]

Originally Posted by Mojo

IMO there is no reason why people can't connect to the internet. There are plenty of libraries and internet access centres in cities, towns and villages across the country and free training courses for those who don't know how it works. Many companies also offer basic PCs for under £200 and some give free broadband access with your landline.

As for not having a bank account: -
1. Why?
2. There are plenty of companies out there who will provide you PrePaid cards similar to a mobile phone topup (I understand these cards are causing headaches for TOCs)

A lot of people still don't trust using the internet with their money combo, the risk of being robbed online is apparently too great for some. A lot of people still prefer paying things with cash to a person rather than swipe their card in a machine and see no one.

I imagine that theology will die out in the next 30 or so years.

[Tom B]

That is a choice, though, and we should not do things against stupidity.

A company can accept whatever form of payment it wants to or not. For example, not every company accepts cheques these days. Some English shops will only accept English banknotes. Both discriminatory against those who wish to pay with a cheque or with a RBS banknote, but both legal.

[Death]

Hail all!

Originally Posted by Mojo

IMO there is no reason why people can't connect to the internet. There are plenty of libraries and internet access centres in cities, towns and villages across the country and free training courses for those who don't know how it works. Many companies also offer basic PCs for under £200 and some give free broadband access with your landline.

There are several reasons why people may not have ready access to the Internet, and although some of them may be the result of personal choice/preference, others are caused by one's unavoidable situation. Here's a brief list:

• Technophobes, the technologically inexperienced, and older persons probabally won't own a computer, and may never wish to own one,
• Although the cost of computers has come down over time, they are still too expensive for a large number of people,
• Certain religions and lifestyles (I.E: Orthodox Bhuddism, Traditionalism, and possibly Orthodox Judaism) forbid the use of computers and other similar equipment,
• Computers may not be readily available or wise to possess in certain circumstances, such as living in less deprived and crime ridden areas, or in communities where modern technology is frowned upon,
• The internet may not be readily available in one's home area (Many isolated and rural parts of the UK are still "offline"),
• Due to credit rating or provider issues, it might not be possible for someone to obtain an ISP contract,
• The cost of Internet access in certain areas may be far too high for it to be reasonably affordable,
• The level of available ISP service may not be suitable for using a lot of modern websites that require high-spec PCs and broadband connections.
• Plus a vast number of other potential reasons that I don't have time to relate here.

As a working example: I have a friend who lives in Nant Peris (Snowdonia) whose only route to the Internet is via his BT line, as the area is too mountainous for even standard GSM communications to work reliably (So forget about GPRS mobile broadband). Although he is fortunate enough to be just within line distance of his local exchange to get ADSL, I've never heard him report having a speed in excess of 384Kbps - On many days, it's slower than that.
Sometimes he has to fall back to using dial-up access insted (Which seldom exceeds 32Kbps net speed) over which even retrieving plain text e-mail takes a long time. With many websites and online shops making the erroneous assumption that everyone has broadband nowadays, he often finds that he can't use a lot of Web 2.0 sites like Facebook and a lot of the Merlin attractions websites, and consequently there are times when he isn't able to access the annual pass website!

It's worth bearing in mind that - Though a lot of us here have the luxury of high-speed internet connections at home - There are still a lot of people in rural and less affluent areas whose only available route to the internet is still via dial-up connections, which can prove too costly for continuous use.
A lot of us therefore tend to take our broadband connections for granted, and I do wonder how many people on this board realise just how fortunate they are to have such a connection!

Originally Posted by Mojo

As for not having a bank account: -
1. Why?
2. There are plenty of companies out there who will provide you PrePaid cards similar to a mobile phone topup (I understand these cards are causing headaches for TOCs)

I have the feeling that ye misread my statement there Mojo...I wasn't saying that people might not have bank accounts, I was saying that people might not have bank accounts that may be used for transacting online.

I happen to know several people who - Though they are now financially stable and solvent - Used to have difficulties with money management, which has led to them unavoidably having a really poor credit rating. Consequently the only accounts that they are able to open are basic bank accounts and Post Office accounts, both of which may only be used for counter transactions and limited cash machine withdrawls - They can't be used for buying and selling online, and many can't even be used for electronic Chip+PIN payments!

Again; It's easy to get the impression that a standard current account is available to anyone with £2.00+ in their pocket, but sadly that isn't the actual case. One such friend - Who uses XBox Live a lot (And can afford to use it) often bemoans the fact that he can't purchase certain game add-ons and XBox Live Gold memberships online due to only being able to get a basic bank account...And in one instance a while ago when he had an urgent and necessary payment that could only be made over the telephone, he actually had to give me the cash insted - Which I paid into one of my accounts, then used to perform the transaction via my account on his behalf!

Originally Posted by Aussie_Rail

A lot of people still don't trust using the internet with their money combo, the risk of being robbed online is apparently too great for some.

That's exactly the case with me...Because electronic banking (And the relative ease with which it may still be hacked) makes the potential for loss and theft far too great for my liking...Thus I refuse flat-out to use online banking, and I always will. Indeed, I keep my main current account completely isolated from any and all forms of activity over the public Internet, and therefore if my account details become passed to an unauthorised party I know that it's the result of an information leak on the part of a second party.

To allow me to perform transactions over the Internet and phone, I opened a second account with a different bank (Which I still manage using offline methods only) in which I keep just enough money to cover me for known incoming transactions. At the moment, the account only holds about £25.00 which is the amount necessary to cover me for two domain names that I purchased recently. Once my name host has taken payment for both domain names, my account will drop back to it's normal £1.00 base balance, and will remain so until I need to purchase over the Internet again.
An added benefit of this - Though I'd trust PayPal about as far as I can throw 'em - Is that I can have an account linked to PayPal (Necessary for premium verified status) without putting all of my money at risk of PayPal intrusion! 8)

Originally Posted by Tom B

A company can accept whatever form of payment it wants to or not. For example, not every company accepts cheques these days. Some English shops will only accept English banknotes. Both discriminatory against those who wish to pay with a cheque or with a RBS banknote, but both legal.

Actually...I believe that all Scottish notes bearing the word "Sterling" have exactly the same status as those issued on the Bank of England, and thus legal tender for all forms of debt. As it is, I personally prefer Scottish money to the stuff that we have down here - Although ye all know how much I love Scotland...

For a company to be pfaddy about the types of payment that they accept though is iffy at best. Being one who likes to keep a firm hand on the way that his money is managed - And having bad experiences with allowing companies to ching his account directly in the past - I stalwartly refuse to use Direct Debit payments, and the only standing order I have is to my own savings account with a building society on a monthly basis.

I am currently in a long running dispute with Virgin Media over a £5.00 "Payment handling charge" that they apply to every bill that I receive - Even though I always pay my bills at the bank counter within three working days of receipt, thus ensuring they get the cash at the same time as a DD payment would arrive - And I am adamant about the fact that such a "payment handling charge" is discriminatory to both myself and several of my friends for whom the only way they can pay their bills is by cash at a bank or PayPoint outlet. So far I havn't involved the Office of Fair Trading in this matter yet, but I may well do if VM don't stop trying to stonewall me on the issue.

In closing: It's interesting to note that my electricity and water providers don't do the same even though I pay my bills in the same way...Insted they give me a discount off of my next bill for prompt payment, which means I can get the same discount whether using Direct Debit or not - A much fairer system, IMO! 8)

Farewell...And apologies for the long post!
>> Death <<

[yorkie]

Originally Posted by Death

Actually...I believe that all Scottish notes bearing the word "Sterling" have exactly the same status as those issued on the Bank of England, and thus legal tender for all forms of debt.

Correct, but Tom B was not referring to debt, so you are both right!

I don't see how a restaurant can refuse to accept Scottish notes if you are paying after the meal, but if you go to a shop asking to buy something with the same notes they could (but shouldn't) refuse to proceed with the sale.