Hello, I'm Simon Calder, welcoming you to my independent travel podcast, bringing you the latest on travelling,

whether you're just dreaming of a great escape or actually away, and I hope having the time of your life.

Today, I want to talk about why this week, yes, from Monday the 27th to Friday the 31st of

December, is the ideal time to be in London. Of course, this podcast is completely free,

as is my weekly travel email. You can sign up at independent.com.uk forward slash newsletters well i live in london and i enjoy every day

the great city that it is with its many amenities its sweeping river views its great architecture

and of course the wealth of things to see and to do.

Indeed, tonight I'm going to the Christmas Carol performance at the Old Vic Theatre.

So I called them this afternoon, I said, I'd like to come to your performance of Dickens' great work.

And they said, okay, well, I almost said, how much you're willing to pay?

They said, okay, well, stalls normally £90, but we've got what's called day seats,

and you can have one for £30.

And that is being repeated right across London

because, of course, many, many people are staying away. They are not buying tickets. They are

canceling their bookings because they are worried about COVID. Now, I am all in favour of everybody

taking every possible precaution,

but life goes on. I want to support theatres and restaurants and hotels and train companies.

And if you want to, you can do just that too. And let me tell you why it's a great time to be travelling. First of all, train fares are

really cheap. For example, Avanti West Coast, which normally would cost an absolute fortune for an

early morning train from Manchester or Birmingham to London. Well, they're saying actually we will apply off-peak fairs all through

this week. So it's £94.50 is going to take you from Manchester to London and back,

and that can be on the absolute peak time trains. Of course, if you want to use a a rail card you may not be able to get the

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