Travel
Entry and visas, flights and baggage, trains and ferries, insurance and passenger rights when things go wrong — always with the date the rules take effect.
Lost your passport abroad: an emergency travel document costs £125 and takes two days
An emergency travel document is issued to British nationals abroad when the passport is gone and travel is due within six weeks. It costs £125 and usually covers one journey through up to five countries.
Overseas residents made an estimated 40.8 million visits to the UK in 2025, ONS says
Provisional figures released on 16 October estimate that overseas residents spent £29.8 billion during visits to the UK. This is not tourism-industry revenue, and visits are not the same as unique visitors.
England's railways move into public ownership: who has transferred and what it means for tickets
On 13 October 2026 the Department for Transport confirmed to the Commons that Chiltern Railways is in public ownership. Ten of fourteen operators have now transferred, Great Western Railway follows on 13 December and Avanti West Coast on 7 March 2027. Here is what changes for passengers and when Great British Railways starts.
Piccadilly line part closed to Cockfosters as Elizabeth line recovers
By 10:15 the Piccadilly line had become the worst line on the network: no service between Arnos Grove and Cockfosters after a signal failure, with severe delays elsewhere. Tickets are accepted on buses, Great Northern, the Elizabeth line, SWR and the Overground. The Elizabeth line has largely recovered.
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Elizabeth line shut to Heathrow, severe delays on Victoria
Overnight engineering work finished late: the Elizabeth line is not running between Paddington and the Heathrow terminals or out to Reading, with tickets accepted on the Underground. The Victoria line has severe delays from cancelled trains, with tickets accepted on buses and four rail operators. Croydon trams are in the last day of their closure.
Contactless eGates at UK airports: no need to put your passport on the reader
From 6 October 2026 UK airports began switching eGates to contactless: the gate photographs your face, checks it against verified data and opens without a passport on the reader. Testing shows it is up to 25% faster. For now it is British citizens only and East Midlands only; every eGate is due to be upgraded by early 2027.
Jubilee line part suspended to Stanmore after fire alert
Updated at 08:30: there is no Jubilee line service between Wembley Park and Stanmore while TfL responds to a fire alert at Stanmore, and Underground tickets are being accepted on London Buses. The District line, by contrast, is back to normal. The Windrush line shuts after 23:15 tonight.
Windrush line delays and Croydon tram closures: London tube today, 5 October
A nearly clean morning: the whole network is in Good Service except the Windrush line, where overnight engineering work finished late and left minor delays. Croydon's tram closures are in their fourth day. The bigger catch is tonight — after 23:15 there is no Windrush service between Surrey Quays and Clapham Junction, and no replacement buses at all.
Getting home after midnight in London: what runs at night and what it costs
The Night Tube runs only on Friday and Saturday nights, and not along the whole line — only specific sections. On every other night it is the bus: N-prefixed and 24-hour routes cover the city roughly from 23:00 to 06:00, seven nights a week. Here is which lines run, where they end at night, what a journey with changes costs, and what changes on 1 November.
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London Tube closures this weekend, 3–4 October: Victoria shuts on Saturday evening, Jubilee closed to Canary Wharf both days
The Victoria — Brixton section is closed from 7.30pm on Saturday until 10am on Sunday — exactly over the evening and the morning. The Jubilee does not run between Green Park and Canary Wharf on either day, the DLR loses Shadwell — Tower Gateway on Sunday, and Acton Main Line on the Elizabeth line is shut overnight. Line by line, with times and alternatives.
Cheap train tickets in Britain: a third off fares, and the money back when the train is late
A Railcard costs £35 a year and pays for itself in two or three journeys: it takes a third off most fares, and linked to an Oyster card it cuts off-peak London travel by 33%. Here are all nine railcards with prices, the £12 minimum fare rule before 10am, split ticketing (it is legal), Advance tickets, and Delay Repay — compensation from 15 minutes late, claimable within 28 days.
Airlines to be banned from charging parents to sit with their children: under-14s must be seated with an adult free of charge
On 2 October the government announced that airlines operating in the UK will be required to seat children under 14 next to a parent or accompanying adult free of charge. Today a parent and child can pay up to £104 on a return journey for that, and up to £40 to correct a typo in a name. The part missing from the headlines: it does not start today — the government says the measures will be delivered after Royal Assent of the Civil Aviation Bill, with next summer as the target.
Victoria line severe delays, Circle running again: London Underground today, 2 October
Updated at 08:20. The morning has flipped: the Circle line, suspended by a points failure at Gloucester Road, is running again, while the Victoria has gone into severe delays after a track fault at Brixton. Buses and six rail operators are accepting Victoria tickets. District severe delays now only Barking to Upminster. What to take instead, and what tonight looks like.
London Tube and TfL closures in October 2026: the Piccadilly line stops entirely at Halloween, and no Tube to Heathrow on 17–18 October
TfL has published its planned closures calendar. The headline: the Piccadilly line does not run at all on 31 October and 1 November, and on 17–18 October the Hammersmith to Heathrow and Uxbridge section is shut — so there is no Tube to the airport twice this month. South London trams stop for nearly a fortnight, the Northern line skips Burnt Oak for two weeks, and this coming weekend the Jubilee is closed between Green Park and Canary Wharf. Here is the whole month, weekend by weekend.
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From the airport into the city: Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton — train, tube or bus, what it costs and where to buy tickets
Part two of our guide to Britain's airports. The golden rule of London transfers: the express is fast and expensive, the ordinary train or tube is two to three times cheaper, and the bus is cheapest of all but hostage to traffic. The Heathrow Express costs £26 while the Tube from the same station charges an ordinary fare; the Stansted Express starts at £9.90 booked ahead; the Luton DART is £4.90 for a 4-minute ride. All four big airports plus London City: what to take by day, what at night, where to buy tickets — and why your bank card already is one.
Lost or delayed luggage: what the airline must pay, how to claim and the deadlines you can’t miss
Your case didn’t come off the carousel. What to do at the airport, which purchases the airline should cover, when a bag counts as lost, the maximum under the Montreal Convention, and why 7 and 21 days are the numbers that matter. A guide based on UK CAA rules.
UK passport in 2026: what it costs, how long it takes and when Europe will turn you away
An adult passport costs £102 online and £115.50 on a paper form, and normally takes up to three weeks. Yet a technically valid passport can still keep you out of the Schengen area: it must be less than 10 years old on the day you enter, and have at least three months left on the day you leave. Here are the fees, the waiting times, the urgent services and the traps that get people turned away at the airport.
Flight delayed or cancelled: up to £520 compensation, a free hotel and refunds — UK passenger rights
A 3-hour delay that's the airline's fault means fixed compensation of £220–£520 per person. From 2 hours — free food and calls; overnight — a hotel. From 5 hours — the right to refuse to fly and get everything back. The Citizens Advice rules, and how to make the airline pay.
Schengen biometrics explained: how EES works, when ETIAS arrives, and what Britain does instead
Since 10 April 2026 EES has run at every Schengen border: no stamps, fingerprints and a facial image instead. ETIAS is expected in Q4 2026 — €20 for three years. British status does not exempt you from EES, and Britain itself requires a £20 ETA. Point by point.
No more stamps: how the EU border works now
The Entry/Exit System became fully operational on 10 April 2026. Fingerprints and a facial image replaced the passport stamp, and a computer now counts your days. ETIAS is expected to follow later this year.
The UK ETA: a £20 travel authorisation, explained
Visitors who do not need a visa now need an Electronic Travel Authorisation: £20, valid for two years, usually decided in minutes. British and Irish citizens and holders of UK status are exempt.