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

[Clashed]

We are doing car service from London To Southampton with a stop in Stonehenge

 

if anyone has done this before, what should we be prepared for at Stonehenge? I'm guessing we still need to purchase tickets for Stonehenge even if arriving by taxi/car

[gdlamberth]

I'm sorry but I'm having trouble sorting thru the volumes on this thread. 

Can someone recommend a car/bus etc. service that will allow us to make a 1245 flight to US out of LGW  on disembark day?  Appreciate any help,

Greg

[gumshoe958]

1 hour ago, gdlamberth said:

I'm sorry but I'm having trouble sorting thru the volumes on this thread. 

Can someone recommend a car/bus etc. service that will allow us to make a 1245 flight to US out of LGW  on disembark day?  Appreciate any help,

Greg

A 1245 flight from LGW is quite tight. There’s no direct bus so you’ll need to book a taxi/car service and make sure you’re on the road by around 8.30 as it’s a 100-120 minute drive.

 

West Quay Cars are often recommended here, based in Southampton, but there are others.

[John Bull]

7 hours ago, gdlamberth said:

I'm sorry but I'm having trouble sorting thru the volumes on this thread. 

Can someone recommend a car/bus etc. service that will allow us to make a 1245 flight to US out of LGW  on disembark day?  Appreciate any help,

Greg

 

Yes, others have complained that this thread is now too cumbersome and much is out of date.

Perhaps a pm to the moderator.?

 

Can we presume that this is from Southampton ?

 

As per the reply from @gumshoe958 a fare-stage bus service will not get you to Gatwick in time.

 

Ships normally offer a bus transfer direct from your ship to Gatwick, the first bus (coach) usually leaves about 8 / 8.15am. They usually recommend their transfers for flight times from Gatwick after1pm, so there'd be a risk.

 

There are also options by train.

Except on a sunday some are a direct service from Southampton Central station, others involve one change of train but many of them are a simple same-platform change.

https://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/

 

You are likely to be able to disembark by 7am un-assisted (don't put your luggage in the corridor on the last night - instead schlepp it off the ship from your cabin). Regular disembarkation is usually in tranches from 7.30 - if you're allocated a later disembarkation time it's normally no problem asking at Guest Relations for an earlier time, citing your onward transportation.

Southampton Central is a five to ten minute taxi ride, depending on your cruise terminal

.https://www.southamptonvts.co.uk/Live_Information/Shipping_Movements_and_Cruise_Ship_Schedule/Cruise_Ship_Schedule/

The station at Gatwick is inside the airport's South Terminal, there's an internal shuttle to the North Terminal.

London Gatwick is busy, but not a big zoo like London Heathrow. Don't worry too much about airports' suggested arrival 3 hours before flight-time - 2 hours is sensible, less than 90 minutes would be rushed.

 

Whether by road or by train, at that time of day  journey time is about 2 1/2hrs except on saturdays or sundays,

In case of a major delay on the notorious M25 London orbital motorway, some transfer drivers prefer to take the shorter but slower cross-country route which adds about 30 minutes.

 

I think all private transfer operators on this thread are still in business, with the exception of Smiths for Airports which was a casualty of Covid. Any prices quoted on this thread more than 2- 3 months ago will be out-of-date because of high inflation and fuel prices.

It's better to use a local  Southampton/Portsmouth based operator at that time of day - that avoids the risk of a Gatwick-based car being delayed on its way to pick you up. Try West Quay Cars, Aquacars, and Gunwharf  Executive Cars.

 

JB 🙂

[Host Anne]

Hello everyone ~ first, THANKS to all who have posted so much useful information on this thread.  Members helping members is the best thing about Cruise Critic.  

 

I am not the moderator for this board (in fact, British Isles/Western Europe is a very broad board) but I do have several options.  I'll try to find out who covers this board as well.

 

First, all moderators here on Cruise Critic are volunteers!  We do this because we love cruising.  It's not possible for us to trim threads like this or to do editing.  What we can do is "close" this thread to additional posts and start a new thread.  That way, there would be more current information at the start. When I see threads this long, I typically start on one of the more recent pages (maybe at page 30).  I know that way, I'd be getting more current information.  But perhaps others wouldn't think of that or notice this thread began in 2019.  

 

I do have questions about a Southampton transfer so I'm happy to start a new thread.  I am going to unpin this thread and start a new one.  Let me know what you think!  

 

HAPPY CRUISING!