WirelessPhreak.com

I like to travel, f*ck with technology, and partake in the occasional tropical drink.
I am also a co-host on The NBD Show podcast.
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Are you planning a trip to London? If you're an apple user think about getting/bringing an apple watch before you go. We just got back from London and first off their public transit is bar non the best I have used. Between the underground and the buses in London, we were never more than a 5-minute walk to anything we wanted to see in London.

In addition to public transit, tap-to-pay is everywhere in the UK, even the village pub we ate in had a tap-to-pay terminal. I only had to unsheathe a credit card once the entire trip and, to be honest, it was probably a user error.

So back to setting up Apple Pay and the Watch....

First setting up apple pay is pretty straightforward if you haven't done it. On your phone, if you open the wallet app you will see a little + sign in the upper right corner if you touch on the plus symbol it will walk you through adding your credit card to apple pay. For traveling overseas make sure you add a card with no foreign transaction fees. Once the card is added you should make this card your default card so it will come up automatically when you double-click to bring up tap-to-pay.

Once your card is added you will want to go into your setting app under wallet and go to the express transit settings and select the credit card you just added. What this does is set up express transit to let you tap in and out of the UK underground with no need to download an app or buy an Oyster card.
 
For the apple watch, you will want to add the same card via the wallet app. Usually, the cards that have been configured on the phone will show up in the watch app, but you will need to verify the security code to authorize the watch to use those cards. Once the card is added you can go to the wallet settings in the watch app on your phone and configure a default card, you will also want to add the card you want to use for express transit. This will need to be configured on the watch through the watch application on your phone.

Now that it is configured how do I use my phone or apple watch for London transit?
 
On the Tube/Underground when you tap your phone or watch on the turn stall sensor (the yellow plastic disk) the gates will open and it will register at what station you entered. Once you get to your destination you will need to tap the sensor at the exit gates using the same device you used to enter the underground, each device is unique and will even work if there is no cell service. The TFL will determine where you tapped in and where you tapped out and will bill the card you had configured for express transit directly. It's as simple as that.
 
If you are planning a trip to the UK I would recommend setting up Apple Pay and especially the express transit if you are going to London. It was a major convenience and took my major concern about using public transit and threw it out the window.