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

[Jadn13]

Hi All!

We are flying into LHR a day early but staying near the airport (staying in London on the return) 

I booked an airport transfer, in hopes of heading back to the airport the next morning.

can anyone who has done this share your experience?  Are the Princess reps easy to find. Is there a specific terminal that we should go to? 
Thank You!

[sbt518]

On 7/10/2023 at 12:27 PM, gumshoe958 said:

 

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).

 

 

Is the train from Southampton to Waterloo a commuter train? We will be traveling on a Friday morning if that matters for crowding.  I just don't love the idea of being in the midst of the morning commute with our luggage, given that I commute every day on the train in NYC and worry London will be just as crowded.

[gumshoe958]

6 minutes ago, sbt518 said:

Is the train from Southampton to Waterloo a commuter train? We will be traveling on a Friday morning if that matters for crowding.  I just don't love the idea of being in the midst of the morning commute with our luggage, given that I commute every day on the train in NYC and worry London will be just as crowded.

It is, but they’re (usually) long trains and more comfortable than, say, the LIRR or Metro North. And, so we’re told, many commuters now WFH on a Friday so leisure passengers and fellow cruisers may well outnumber them. You shouldn’t have any issues finding seats.

[Island2Dweller]

London offices seem to have the "TW&T" phenomenom.  Workers present in offices only on Tuesdays Wednesdays and Thursdays, and working remotely on Monday and Friday.  I needed to run some errands during rush hour on Monday and I was astonished how quiet the transport network was.

[John Bull]

5 hours ago, Jadn13 said:

Hi All!

We are flying into LHR a day early but staying near the airport (staying in London on the return) 

I booked an airport transfer, in hopes of heading back to the airport the next morning.

can anyone who has done this share your experience?  Are the Princess reps easy to find. Is there a specific terminal that we should go to? 
Thank You!

 

I used to drive cruise transfer coaches to & from Heathrow.

Unless Princess tell you differently when you book, choose the terminal which is most convenient from your hotel, tho T3 always used to have more cruisers than Ts 2 & 4 & 5, so have more-frequent cruise buses.

Go into the Arrivals Hall, and head for the exit from the Baggage Hall & Customs - as with any international airport there'll be quite a few drivers there holding up names. Staff from Princess, or more-likely their port agents, will be there in uniforms & very clearly Princess. 

 

BTW if you're up to it when you fly in, both Windsor (& its castle) or Hampton Court Palace are reasonably close for an interesting and not-too-energetic day.

 

JB 🙂 

[Jadn13]

13 minutes ago, John Bull said:

 

I used to drive cruise transfer coaches to & from Heathrow.

Unless Princess tell you differently when you book, choose the terminal which is most convenient from your hotel, tho T3 always used to have more cruisers than Ts 2 & 4 & 5, so have more-frequent cruise buses.

Go into the Arrivals Hall, and head for the exit from the Baggage Hall & Customs - as with any international airport there'll be quite a few drivers there holding up names. Staff from Princess, or more-likely their port agents, will be there in uniforms & very clearly Princess. 

 

BTW if you're up to it when you fly in, both Windsor (& its castle) or Hampton Court Palace are reasonably close for an interesting and not-too-energetic day.

 

JB 🙂 

Thank You!

[Globaliser]

1 hour ago, Island2Dweller said:

London offices seem to have the "TW&T" phenomenom.  Workers present in offices only on Tuesdays Wednesdays and Thursdays, and working remotely on Monday and Friday.  I needed to run some errands during rush hour on Monday and I was astonished how quiet the transport network was.

 

But if sbt518 would like to try an inbound deep line Tube near central London at about 8.30 am on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, we Londoners will still be happy to make them feel completely at home!

[Meishie]

On 7/11/2023 at 9:35 PM, John Bull said:

 

 

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 🙂

@John Bull Thank you so much for your prompt reply! It’s been a few years since our last cruise so I forgot how early we can get off of the ship, so I thank you for that note as well! 

[sbt518]

On 7/12/2023 at 2:15 PM, Globaliser said:

 

But if sbt518 would like to try an inbound deep line Tube near central London at about 8.30 am on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, we Londoners will still be happy to make them feel completely at home!

🤣 That is what I worry about, knowing how I feel about tourists and their luggage on my morning commute in NYC (which is also only TWTh)

 

But maybe the train to WAT and then a taxi or uber to our hotel would be OK.

[Globaliser]

29 minutes ago, sbt518 said:

But maybe the train to WAT and then a taxi or uber to our hotel would be OK.

 

Yes: as gumshoe958 and Island2Dweller say, you'll be fine with that.

[MMMCruiser]

Does anyone have any recommendations for a transfer from London to Southampton that is also a private tour?  We'd like to see Stonehenge on the way down, and are open to seeing other places along the route as well.  I figure we might as well make a day of it and see something new.  

[John Bull]

2 hours ago, MMMCruiser said:

Does anyone have any recommendations for a transfer from London to Southampton that is also a private tour?  We'd like to see Stonehenge on the way down, and are open to seeing other places along the route as well.  I figure we might as well make a day of it and see something new.  

 

 

Not a private tour, but serving most cruise sailings a door-to-door shared coach tour-transfer from London hotels to your Southampton cruise terminal via a 90-minute stop at Stonehenge.

Buy your Stonehenge admission with your tour ticket - tickets issued by coach tour operators admit when the coach arrives, they aren't subject to the pre-planned arrival times of individual direct bookings

https://www.internationalfriends.co.uk/london-heathrow-to-southampton-via-stonehenge.html

Long-established & reputable coach operator, they started cruise tour-transfers about 6 years ago.

 

JB 🙂

[sbt518]

How far in advance are the train strikes announced? I just looked at the national rail website and they have events listed through August 12th.  Is that it for August or could there still be more announced for later in the month?

[gumshoe958]

16 minutes ago, sbt518 said:

How far in advance are the train strikes announced? I just looked at the national rail website and they have events listed through August 12th.  Is that it for August or could there still be more announced for later in the month?

The law requires a minimum of two weeks’ notice. So yes, there could be more to come.

[karmacats]

Hello! I am also looking for a recommendation for private transfer from London to Southampton with a stop at Stonehenge this September. I saw someone just asked about one and a shared coach was recommended, but I don't think a shared tour will work for us because we are coming in the day before the cruise, not day of, and because we'll be arriving in London from France via the Eurostar so will need pickup at St. Pancras around midday.  I looked online at some of the companies recommended earlier in this thread, and it appears some have closed during covid and others have started to get mostly terrible reviews over the last couple of years.  Any recent recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

[gumshoe958]

6 hours ago, karmacats said:

Hello! I am also looking for a recommendation for private transfer from London to Southampton with a stop at Stonehenge this September. I saw someone just asked about one and a shared coach was recommended, but I don't think a shared tour will work for us because we are coming in the day before the cruise, not day of, and because we'll be arriving in London from France via the Eurostar so will need pickup at St. Pancras around midday.  I looked online at some of the companies recommended earlier in this thread, and it appears some have closed during covid and others have started to get mostly terrible reviews over the last couple of years.  Any recent recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

West Quay Cars (based in Southampton) are consistently recommended on here, and promote Stonehenge stopovers as an option on their website.

 

https://westquaycars.com/southampton-cruise-port-transfers/

 

Or at the London end Blackberry Cars are also frequently recommended, although they’re likely to be more expensive.

https://www.blackberrycars.com

 

 

Edited July 29, 2023 by gumshoe958

[karmacats]

18 hours ago, gumshoe958 said:

West Quay Cars (based in Southampton) are consistently recommended on here, and promote Stonehenge stopovers as an option on their website.

 

https://westquaycars.com/southampton-cruise-port-transfers/

 

Or at the London end Blackberry Cars are also frequently recommended, although they’re likely to be more expensive.

https://www.blackberrycars.com

 

 

Thank you! I appreciate it. West quay has a number of very poor reviews from other sites that seem to have started a few months ago, so i wasn't sure if they were still a good place to book. Have not looked at blackberry but will check them out. 

Edited July 30, 2023 by karmacats

[irisbax3]

We used Blackberry in August of 2022 and they were very good. I checked their prices for our June 2023 cruise but their prices had increased dramatically. Instead, we booked with Jewel Airport Transfers and the price was agreeable to us. We used them from Heathrow to Southampton and back to Heathrow after the cruise. They were very responsive to all communication. Our driver was Lucas and he was great.

[barbarapga]

On 7/12/2023 at 12:26 PM, John Bull said:

 

I used to drive cruise transfer coaches to & from Heathrow.

Unless Princess tell you differently when you book, choose the terminal which is most convenient from your hotel, tho T3 always used to have more cruisers than Ts 2 & 4 & 5, so have more-frequent cruise buses.

Go into the Arrivals Hall, and head for the exit from the Baggage Hall & Customs - as with any international airport there'll be quite a few drivers there holding up names. Staff from Princess, or more-likely their port agents, will be there in uniforms & very clearly Princess. 

 

BTW if you're up to it when you fly in, both Windsor (& its castle) or Hampton Court Palace are reasonably close for an interesting and not-too-energetic day.

 

JB 🙂 

JB, Thank you so much for all your helpful information throughout the years.

Staying at HGI.  Using Celebrity transfer to Southampton.  Would you advise walking to T3. or trying for T2 for getting access to bus?  
Thanks,

Barbara

[Globaliser]

2 hours ago, barbarapga said:

Staying at HGI.  Using Celebrity transfer to Southampton.  Would you advise walking to T3. or trying for T2 for getting access to bus?

 

The HGI is almost part of T2, so if that is an option it would be the more convenient one for you to reach.

 

I'm not sure whether John Bull was referring to the number of cruise passengers arriving at the current incarnation of T2, but the profile of flights arriving there is now different from those that used the old T2. I'd be surprised if there isn't now a significant number of cruise passengers there, given that it's basically the Star Alliance's terminal at Heathrow, and (for example) hosts all of United Airlines' flights.

[bedfordmom]

Hi, I  am staying at the Mad Hatter near Waterloo in October. I am planning on taking the direct  train from Waterloo to Southampton on 10/22  around 10:30am   I noticed that the fares became available today and surprised that they were 41 pounds as I thought that I had read that the earliest fares are the cheapest.  Does this mean that they will rise closer to the date.  Also I noticed that there is a Waterloo London and a Waterloo East London. Which one do I choose. I believe the end stop is Southamptom Central.  Thanks in advance

[Globaliser]

5 minutes ago, bedfordmom said:

I am planning on taking the direct  train from Waterloo to Southampton on 10/22  around 10:30am   I noticed that the fares became available today and surprised that they were 41 pounds as I thought that I had read that the earliest fares are the cheapest.  Does this mean that they will rise closer to the date.

 

£41 is the maximum that you should expect to have to pay, because that is basically a walk-up fare with no capacity constraints. It should be available to buy even if you buy it only 5 minutes before the train departs.

 

Advance tickets do have to be bought in advance, but they are not always on sale immediately that the trains come on sale. This page on Southwestern Railway's website gives you more information. At the moment, Advance tickets are only on sale up to 20 October. Keep checking back to see when the applicable period is extended. If you find that your travel date is a blackout date, then feel free to post again for more advice.

 

5 minutes ago, bedfordmom said:

Also I noticed that there is a Waterloo London and a Waterloo East London. Which one do I choose. I believe the end stop is Southamptom Central.

 

London Waterloo is the station that you need for trains to Southampton Central. That is not normally the final destination of those trains - from memory, I think that they're usually bound for Weymouth or Poole - but there should be no lack of clarity about which trains will call at Southampton Central.

 

Trains from London Waterloo East go in the wrong direction for you.

[barbarapga]

1 hour ago, Globaliser said:

 

The HGI is almost part of T2, so if that is an option it would be the more convenient one for you to reach.

 

I'm not sure whether John Bull was referring to the number of cruise passengers arriving at the current incarnation of T2, but the profile of flights arriving there is now different from those that used the old T2. I'd be surprised if there isn't now a significant number of cruise passengers there, given that it's basically the Star Alliance's terminal at Heathrow, and (for example) hosts all of United Airlines' flights.

Thank you so much!  This will make things so much better/easier

[bedfordmom]

3 hours ago, Globaliser said:

 

£41 is the maximum that you should expect to have to pay, because that is basically a walk-up fare with no capacity constraints. It should be available to buy even if you buy it only 5 minutes before the train departs.

 

Advance tickets do have to be bought in advance, but they are not always on sale immediately that the trains come on sale. This page on Southwestern Railway's website gives you more information. At the moment, Advance tickets are only on sale up to 20 October. Keep checking back to see when the applicable period is extended. If you find that your travel date is a blackout date, then feel free to post again for more advice.

 

 

London Waterloo is the station that you need for trains to Southampton Central. That is not normally the final destination of those trains - from memory, I think that they're usually bound for Weymouth or Poole - but there should be no lack of clarity about which trains will call at Southampton Central.

 

Trains from London Waterloo East go in the wrong direction for you.

Thank you so much most helpful

[John Bull]

15 hours ago, barbarapga said:

JB, Thank you so much for all your helpful information throughout the years.

Staying at HGI.  Using Celebrity transfer to Southampton.  Would you advise walking to T3. or trying for T2 for getting access to bus?  
Thanks,

Barbara

 

12 hours ago, Globaliser said:

 

The HGI is almost part of T2, so if that is an option it would be the more convenient one for you to reach.

 

I'm not sure whether John Bull was referring to the number of cruise passengers arriving at the current incarnation of T2, but the profile of flights arriving there is now different from those that used the old T2. I'd be surprised if there isn't now a significant number of cruise passengers there, given that it's basically the Star Alliance's terminal at Heathrow, and (for example) hosts all of United Airlines' flights.

 

Globaliser is right - when I retired from coach-driving Terminal One was in full operation serving domestic routes & Terminal Three was by far the busiest for trans-Atlantic flights. I was aware that T1 has since been incorporated into T2, wasn't aware of the level of flights from the USA.

 

Assuming your HGI is at T2 (there are at least two HGI's in the Heathrow area), them yes of course the T2 arrivals hall is easiest.

 

JB 🙂