Transfer: Southampton—London (incl. LHR/LGW) train, car, other?

[irisbax3]

1 minute ago, gumshoe958 said:

This number is allegedly open for 6 more minutes (8pm UK, midday PST):

 

+44 3717 81 81 81

 

Failing that it will reopen at 8am UK, midnight PST.

Thanks, Gumshoe958, Iwill give it a try.

[mackfam]

Sailing out of Southampton on Sept 2nd. We are coming from Canada and will be arriving at Heathrow at 9pm. I’m thinking of booking a hotel at the airport then getting the 8:15am National Express coach to Southampton the next day.

 

My big dilemma is should we fly in 2 days before and also have a night in Southampton just to be on the safe side or just the day before. I’m not sure if National Express has been affected by the random strikes like the trains have (or even if these strikes are still ongoing).

[d9704011]

5 minutes ago, mackfam said:

Sailing out of Southampton on Sept 2nd. We are coming from Canada and will be arriving at Heathrow at 9pm. I’m thinking of booking a hotel at the airport then getting the 8:15am National Express coach to Southampton the next day.

 

My big dilemma is should we fly in 2 days before and also have a night in Southampton just to be on the safe side or just the day before. I’m not sure if National Express has been affected by the random strikes like the trains have (or even if these strikes are still ongoing).

Stick with your current plan.

[John Bull]

4 hours ago, mackfam said:

Sailing out of Southampton on Sept 2nd. We are coming from Canada and will be arriving at Heathrow at 9pm. I’m thinking of booking a hotel at the airport then getting the 8:15am National Express coach to Southampton the next day.

 

My big dilemma is should we fly in 2 days before and also have a night in Southampton just to be on the safe side or just the day before. I’m not sure if National Express has been affected by the random strikes like the trains have (or even if these strikes are still ongoing).

 

 

No, there's no need to fly in any earlier.

I can't think of any reason why Nat Express drivers will get drawn into a strike, but if there are still train strikes in September and one is planned for that day (by law the unions have to give advance notice) there may be a rush to book Nat Express buses - so don't leave it late before booking.

 

JB 🙂

[mackfam]

Thanks, I think the day before in all likelihood would be fine, but after DH saying “ I guess we’ve been on enough cruises it doesn’t matter if we miss one” I'm going to err on the side of caution and come two days early. Our main concern is flight delays or cancellations messing things up, which seem to be a common occurrence in our neck of the woods for the last 12 months or so.

[greydog]

Hi - Post OCeania cruise docking S'ton July 11 we are heading to Oxford for a few days.  I presume our best option, considering convenience and most direct routing, is private car service.  Is there likely to be problems finding  custom provider for car transfer to Oxford from the dock.  We're not too inclined for train alternatives.

Any other complications getting to Oxford?   Thanks

[njkruzer]

23 minutes ago, greydog said:

Hi - Post OCeania cruise docking S'ton July 11 we are heading to Oxford for a few days.  I presume our best option, considering convenience and most direct routing, is private car service.  Is there likely to be problems finding  custom provider for car transfer to Oxford from the dock.  We're not too inclined for train alternatives.

Any other complications getting to Oxford?   Thanks

Reach out to the car services mentioned in this thread and get bids.  Make your reservation in advance. 

[mackfam]

I’m looking at booking train tickets for our return trip to London after visiting family in Swansea following our cruise, and am wondering how I go about getting the Two together rail card?

[mackfam]

28 minutes ago, mackfam said:

I’m looking at booking train tickets for our return trip to London after visiting family in Swansea following our cruise, and am wondering how I go about getting the Two together rail card?

Actually I have found my answer and don’t think it’s worth the rail card for one trip

[Cotswold Eagle]

3 hours ago, mackfam said:

Actually I have found my answer and don’t think it’s worth the rail card for one trip

If you can get decent price Advance tickets then probably not.  Any others, I reckon it might be close….if you are intending to travel off peak. 
 

For others, the Two Together railcard costs £30 and gives a third off most off peak fares for two adults travelling together. So if an individual ticket costs £45 or more, the discount on one trip for two adults can be worth the cost  (£45x2 =£90, less a third =£60, saving £30). 
 

Of course, this thread is about Southampton travel, not Swansea 😀

Edited June 21, 2023 by Cotswold Eagle
Clarity

[scottbee]

13 hours ago, Cotswold Eagle said:

If you can get decent price Advance tickets then probably not.  Any others, I reckon it might be close….if you are intending to travel off peak. 
 

For others, the Two Together railcard costs £30 and gives a third off most off peak fares for two adults travelling together. So if an individual ticket costs £45 or more, the discount on one trip for two adults can be worth the cost  (£45x2 =£90, less a third =£60, saving £30). 
 

Of course, this thread is about Southampton travel, not Swansea 😀

 

But then again, Southampton FC did just hire away Swansea FC's manager; so there's always a connection.

[Shiba_Lover]

Hello all - I am flying from Barcelona and need to get to Southampton for a cruise.  I can fly into Southampton directly, but am a bit hesitant given the flight schedule (only a 45 minute layover in AMS and no direct flight available - if anything went wrong - I'd be out of luck).  So that leaves me with Gatwick or Heathrow.  Is one easier than the other in terms of then getting to Southampton?  From reading this thread - it looks like trains are an option for both or the National Express from Heathrow.  (of course private car from either)

 

For what it's worth - I am disembarking one cruise on a Saturday, flying over on the same Saturday, then the cruise from Southampton leaves on Monday.  So going over "earlier" is not an option to fly direct to Southampton.

[gumshoe958]

1 hour ago, Shiba_Lover said:

Hello all - I am flying from Barcelona and need to get to Southampton for a cruise.  I can fly into Southampton directly, but am a bit hesitant given the flight schedule (only a 45 minute layover in AMS and no direct flight available - if anything went wrong - I'd be out of luck).  So that leaves me with Gatwick or Heathrow.  Is one easier than the other in terms of then getting to Southampton?  From reading this thread - it looks like trains are an option for both or the National Express from Heathrow.  (of course private car from either)

 

For what it's worth - I am disembarking one cruise on a Saturday, flying over on the same Saturday, then the cruise from Southampton leaves on Monday.  So going over "earlier" is not an option to fly direct to Southampton.

If you fly into Gatwick, there is an hourly direct train to Southampton Central. It takes about 2 hours and there’s no need to book in advance (although you can, and it’ll be cheaper, but you must stick to your specified train).

 

If you fly into Heathrow, there’s a direct National Express roughly every 2 hours. It takes just over 2 hours and advance booking is strongly recommended as coaches can sell out.

 

So time-wise Gatwick probably just has the edge in terms of convenience of onward transport. But there’s not much in it so go with Heathrow if the flight times are better.

 

Edited June 22, 2023 by gumshoe958

[Shiba_Lover]

2 hours ago, gumshoe958 said:

If you fly into Gatwick, there is an hourly direct train to Southampton Central. It takes about 2 hours and there’s no need to book in advance (although you can, and it’ll be cheaper, but you must stick to your specified train).

 

If you fly into Heathrow, there’s a direct National Express roughly every 2 hours. It takes just over 2 hours and advance booking is strongly recommended as coaches can sell out.

 

So time-wise Gatwick probably just has the edge in terms of convenience of onward transport. But there’s not much in it so go with Heathrow if the flight times are better.

thank you for the information!

[cruisegirlkat]

Happy Thursday everyone,

 

I just want to send out my thanks for this thread and the help from all of the contributors that helped me with my transfer arrangements.  I read ALL of the pages and we ended up using Meadway Car Service for our ride from Heathrow to our VRBO down the street from Battersea Power Station and again from the VRBO to Southampton 5 days later.  There were 5 of us with lots of luggage and a large walker so they suggested that we order an 8 seat MVP.  I did everything via email, and we didn’t pay anything until the ride was completed.

 

We are back from our cruise, and I highly recommend using Meadway Car Service.  Our driver was Virgil and he met us at WHSmith in terminal 3.  He was fantastic and very nice.  He drove us directly to our VRBO, he also loaded and unloaded our luggage.  Virgil then picked us up on Saturday and took us to the ship in Southampton.  The LHR to our VRBO ride was $103.54 plus tip and VRBO to Ship was $323.73 plus tip.  Once we broke it down for 5 people, we felt the per person amount was reasonable as we didn’t have to make any transfers.  I would definitely use them again.  Thank you again for all the help. Kat

[getaway101]

Has anyone ever used Britway Airport Transfer Service?

[John Bull]

On 6/25/2023 at 8:30 PM, getaway101 said:

Has anyone ever used Britway Airport Transfer Service?

 

 

Haven't used them, but the name rings a bell.

Based at Heathrow, I did a dummy booking - sedan to Southampton midweek September £157. That's toward the top end of ballpark (£145 - £160) but not unreasonable, and overall they get good reviews on TrustPilot, TripAdvisor and Google.

But they require 33% of cost with booking.

Haven't read their terms eg add-ons for airport parking or waiting time. 

 

JB 🙂

[Moxiefurball]

On 5/15/2023 at 9:48 AM, b7440 said:

We are arriving @ Heathrow, on Virgin Atlantic. We have a car service picking us up. I am told to meet the car driver @ WH Smith? 
Not sure what this means.  I assume we go to Customs, and then get our luggage. Then go find the driver. Can anyone tell me how fare it is to this pickup spot?

 

thank you

Brian & Lisa

May I ask what transport company you used and if you would recommend them ?

[njkruzer]

6 minutes ago, Moxiefurball said:

May I ask what transport company you used and if you would recommend them ?

Not sure who they used but we used Meadway.  Meadway.com.  used them from LHR to hotel and also to Southampton.  Definitely recommend them.  A friend recommended them to us and as former Londoners they had used them for years.

[b7440]

1 hour ago, Moxiefurball said:

May I ask what transport company you used and if you would recommend them ?

We used Blackberry, from Heathrow to Southampton, and then from our hotel in London after the cruise, back to Heathrow. No problems, was on time, very professional.

 

[sbt518]

Hello, seeking some input on getting from Southampton Cruise port to the Holborn area of London after a cruise.

For the way TO the cruise we are taking the International Friends Bus that stops at Stonehenge and then drops us at the ship.

On the way back, we don't really want to spend all day on a bus tour, we'd like to go directly back to London.

We are balking at the cost of a private car service, although it is a long ride so it makes sense, it's just a lot.

And as native New Yorkers, we understand the challenges and annoyance of taking luggage on the subway (tube) during rush hour and up and down stairs etc.  It's not something we would do at home to get to the airport or ship.  So why would we consider doing it on vacation? This would be a Friday morning, probably right during rush hour and I hate to be that super annoying tourist in everyone's way while I lug my stuff around the stations and on the train.

 

On other trips, we've shared a van with other couples from our cruise critic roll call after the cruise (from Civitaveccia to Rome for example) but our role call for this cruise is really quiet.

 

Are there any shared vans or anything like that back to London? I have looked online but not seen anything.

Or should we do the National Express bus?

Or spend the money on a private car?

 

Secondary question, when we land at LHR (Virgin terminal) can we just go to the taxi stand and get a taxi into London or should we pre-book one?

 

[gumshoe958]

32 minutes ago, sbt518 said:

Hello, seeking some input on getting from Southampton Cruise port to the Holborn area of London after a cruise.

For the way TO the cruise we are taking the International Friends Bus that stops at Stonehenge and then drops us at the ship.

On the way back, we don't really want to spend all day on a bus tour, we'd like to go directly back to London.

We are balking at the cost of a private car service, although it is a long ride so it makes sense, it's just a lot.

And as native New Yorkers, we understand the challenges and annoyance of taking luggage on the subway (tube) during rush hour and up and down stairs etc.  It's not something we would do at home to get to the airport or ship.  So why would we consider doing it on vacation? This would be a Friday morning, probably right during rush hour and I hate to be that super annoying tourist in everyone's way while I lug my stuff around the stations and on the train.

 

On other trips, we've shared a van with other couples from our cruise critic roll call after the cruise (from Civitaveccia to Rome for example) but our role call for this cruise is really quiet.

 

Are there any shared vans or anything like that back to London? I have looked online but not seen anything.

Or should we do the National Express bus?

Or spend the money on a private car?

 

Secondary question, when we land at LHR (Virgin terminal) can we just go to the taxi stand and get a taxi into London or should we pre-book one?

 

Yes, a private car from Southampton all the way to Holborn will be expensive.

 

I’d use either National Express direct to Victoria coach station or the half hourly train to London Waterloo, then jump in a taxi or Uber from there to Holborn (which should cost around £15-25 depending on traffic). 
 

From Heathrow to central London, there’s no need to pre-book a private car unless you really want the driver to meet you in arrivals. That would cost more than a taxi or Uber which would be roughly £70-90.
 

Alternatively you could try the Elizabeth line (about £13 each) which, being new, is pretty easy to navigate with luggage with plenty of elevators and step-free access to & from trains. If you’re going to Holborn, get off at Tottenham Court Road and jump in a taxi there.

 

 

Edited July 10, 2023 by gumshoe958

[njkruzer]

23 minutes ago, gumshoe958 said:

Yes, a private car from Southampton all the way to Holborn will be expensive.

 

I’d use either National Express direct to Victoria coach station or the half hourly train to London Waterloo, then jump in a taxi or Uber from there to Holborn (which should cost around £15-25 depending on traffic). 
 

From Heathrow to central London, there’s no need to pre-book a private car unless you really want the driver to meet you in arrivals. That would cost more than a taxi or Uber which would be 

 

 

From Heathrow to central London we used Meadway for about £58.  Met us as we exited customs, actually by WH Smith, with our luggage and drove us to our hotel in Grosvenor Square area.  Driver had a sign with our name.  Easy to find him.  After a long flt well worth it.

[Meishie]

Good evening everyone. Post-cruise I’m looking for transportation from Southampton to Heathrow (flying internationally) and considering National Express. The flight I wish to take is departing at 2:40pm. Would it be wise to take the 9:45am National Express that arrives at Heathrow at 12pm? Will I have enough time to make my flight?

[John Bull]

20 minutes ago, Meishie said:

Good evening everyone. Post-cruise I’m looking for transportation from Southampton to Heathrow (flying internationally) and considering National Express. The flight I wish to take is departing at 2:40pm. Would it be wise to take the 9:45am National Express that arrives at Heathrow at 12pm? Will I have enough time to make my flight?

 

 

That shouldn't be a problem unless there's a major delay, like the motorway being closed due to an accident.

Arriving at the airport 90 mins before the flight is about as late as I would like to leave it. so you have wiggle-room of over an hour for any delays.

 

The 7.30am  bus is normally achievable if you disembark unassisted (usually 7am or a little earlier) and take a taxi to the coach station (£10 or less) 

 

For either bus you are very strongly advised to pre-book.

 

JB 🙂