Southampton

[Slyfox16]

Our departure port was just moved to Southampton and trying to decide if we want to spend 2 days in London or not. Can anyone suggest what to do in Southampton?

[John Bull]

 

Southampton is a working port city, not a tourist city.

But it certainly does have enough to interest a visitor for a day.

Old town has the city walls & gates, historic buildings like Tudor Merchant's House (well worth an hour or more), Medieval Merchant's House (only open weekends), Westgate Hall, & Gods Tower (houses archaeological museum). At the northern end of the walled city is the Bargate, which was the old city's main entrance from the London road - the old town is known locally as "Below Bar".

Good pubs to try for a drink or meal in old town include the Dancing Man pub & micro-brewery housed in the 13th century stone-built Wool House on Town Quay, or just around the corner in Bugle Street the attractive & historic Duke of Wellington pub, very popular with cruisers.

But it's not like most folks' idea of a walled city - it was heavily bombed in the Blitz of 1940, and modern properties sit cheek-by-jowl with the historic ones.

On the other side of the Bargate, outside the walled city, is Above Bar -  the post-war main shopping street and several malls, notably the large West Quay Mall.

Elsewhere in the centre of Southampton are places like....

"Solent Skies", a super little volunteer-run aviation museum. A short walk from Ocean Terminal, and well worth an hour. It focuses on aircraft built or operated from Southampton. Exhibits include a Spitfire (designed, developed and first built in Southampton before the factory was blitzed) and a Princess flying-boat that you can get into (Southampton was the UK's premier flying-boat centre during the short pre and post-war life before regular long-haul aircraft were developed).

Sea City Museum, council-operated museum dedicated to Titanic. Relies heavily on dioramas and personal stories, comparatively few artefacts but very well-presented. It's at the northern end of the main shopping street, Above Bar, in the Civic Offices complex (identify the complex by its tall white clock-tower). Art museum in that complex too.

More Southampton detail at http://www.discoversouthampton.co.uk/visit including guided or self-guided walks.

So, enough for a lazy day in Southampton and all walkable (other than mebbe a short taxi hop from/to your ship).

 

But Southampton is a railway hub, with routes in five directions. if you want to travel out of the city ...............

 

Salisbury & Stonehenge There's a direct half-hourly train from Southampton central station (five minute taxi ride from your ship)) to Salisbury costs about £11 return-ticket, journey time about 40 minutes.

Take the Stonehenge ho-ho bus from Salisbury train station. Bus ride takes about 30 minutes, expect to spend about 90 minutes at Stonehenge then ho-ho back to Salisbury to check out the magnificent Salisbury cathedral and historic city centre. Ho-ho (if conveniently timed) or walk or taxi or local bus to Salisbury station for the train back to Southampton.

Post back if this is a sunday, there are a couple of complications.

Buy your Stonehenge tickets as well as ho-ho tickets from the ho-ho driver (same price as at the gate). This avoids the need for pre-purchasing a timed ticket to Stonehenge, and avoids wasting advance payment if your plans change.

Stonehenge is no fun in bad weather.

Salisbury is an historic & laid-back cathedal city (tallest spire in the country, one of the four original copies of Magna Carta, etc). A day in Salisbury is well worthwhile, even if you skip Stonehenge.

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/

https://www.thestonehengetour.info/

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge/

 

Winchester

Cathedral city only 15 mins by frequent trains from Southampton.

Older than Salisbury, it's the former capital of Wessex (King Alfred & all that). But narrow streets and rather more tourists make it feel more crowded, less laid-back.

Centred on Winchester Cathedral. Huge. IMHO not as inspiring as Salisbury's but centuries older. Houses the grave of Jane Austen. Interesting history of subsidence, and a tribute in the cathedral to the brass-helmeted deep-sea diver who a century ago spent years strengthening the foundations. 

https://www.visitwinchester.co.uk/

 

Queen Victoria's Osborne House, on the Isle of Wight.

From Town Quay take Red Funnel's traditional car ferry to East Cowes , not the hi-speed ferry to (West) Cowes.

Ferry ride about an hour.

Then a short bus ride (any bus from East Cowes) and ask the driver to put you off at Osborne House - it's less than ten minutes on the bus. Check return bus & ferry times. I'm always wary of ferries on a port-of-call day, but the Red Funnel car ferry is super-reliable.

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/osborne/

https://www.redfunnel.co.uk/en/isle-of-wight-ferry/

 

Beaulieu

Take the little Hythe ferry from Town Quay across Southampton Water to Hythe (very long pier, but a little historic train to take you from boat to shore), then a taxi from the rank for the 6 miles across a corner of the New Forest to Lord Montague's complex at Beaulieu. Arrange with the driver to return for you at a pre-determined time, there's no taxi rank at Beaulieu.

(the local bus service is extremely infrequent, and ignore any references on the web to the "beach bus", it no longer operates)

The Beaulieu complex majors on Britain's National Motor Museum, but for those in your party not interested in cars & trucks there's also the Bishop's Palace (home), the ruins of Beaulieu Abbey (sacked by Henry V11 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries), and various smaller attractions like the Secret Army - during WW2 it was a training school for spies.

https://www.beaulieu.co.uk/

http://hytheferry.co.uk/

 

Portsmouth. 

Home of the Royal Navy, the main attraction is the Historic Dockyard & Ships. And close by, the Spinnaker Tower (only bother to go up if visibility is good when you're there). Portsmouth has much more to offer like Old Portsmouth's harbourfront fortifications and harbour entrance. Its conjoined city of Southsea is a resort city. On its seafront are Southsea Castle and adjacent D-Day museum and views across the Solent to the Napoleonic Solent forts and the Isle of Wight and plenty more besides, and the ring of Napoleonic forts (google "Palmerston's Follies") which surround the city.

But in a single day, in all honesty you'll only have time for the dockyard & ships.

If you want to major on Portsmouth, then travel direct to the city, and choose a hotel convenient to the historic dockyard and transport to Southampton. Places like Holiday Inn Express in Gunwharf Quays, or the Royal Maritime Club - originally it was for Navy officers, nowadays it's a regular hotel but with a Royal Navy atmosphere and a sprinkling of Royal Navy clientele.  By train your destination is Portsmouth Harbour station (it's at the end of the line, after the main city station), by bus it's The Hard / Travel Interchange. Three different names for the same place, and it's only a two-minute walk to the Historic Dockyard gate. Portsmouth to Southampton  is about a hour by train or bus, very easy on youur cruise departure day

https://www.historicdockyard.co.uk/

https://www.visitportsmouth.co.uk/

 

The historic spa city of Bath is only 90 minutes from Southampton by train, return fare £30 to £40. 

Roman baths, Georgian architecture, lots of Jane Austen connections. You could travel from airport to Bath & spend all your time there, but expect higher accommodation costs in Bath.

https://visitbath.co.uk/plan-your-visit/visitor-information

 

Assuming that you're flying into a London airport, depending on whether you have two full days or just the one,  you could make a decent fist of staying in central London. 

Travelling down to Southampton on the morning of your cruise departure is no problem. By train (about 90 minutes, could cost as little as £10 - £15 per person) or bus (about 2hrs 15, could cost as little as £8 per person) or private transfer (?£150? the car). With your limited time in London you need a hotel that's convenient to the sights and transport options from your airport (we need to know your airport - Heathrow or Gatwick) and to Southampton (we need to know your preference for bus or train). Accommodation in central London is expensive, especially compared to Southampton or Portsmouth.

https://www.londontoolkit.com/

 

JB 🙂

 

[Turtles06]

15 hours ago, John Bull said:

Queen Victoria's Osborne House, on the Isle of Wight.

From Town Quay take Red Funnel's traditional car ferry to East Cowes , not the hi-speed ferry to (West) Cowes.

Ferry ride about an hour.

Then a short bus ride (any bus from East Cowes) and ask the driver to put you off at Osborne House - it's less than ten minutes on the bus. Check return bus & ferry times. I'm always wary of ferries on a port-of-call day, but the Red Funnel car ferry is super-reliable.

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/osborne/

https://www.redfunnel.co.uk/en/isle-of-wight-ferry/

 

Always appreciate your helpful info!  We are going to have a full day in Southampton this fall and, having been there before, are thinking about going to Osborne House.

 

Quick question: clicking on your link to the Red Funnel car ferry, the web page also shows the passengers-only Red Jet ferry.  That seems to be the one that goes to West Cowes, which we should not take, right?  Thanks!

[John Bull]

9 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

 

Always appreciate your helpful info!  We are going to have a full day in Southampton this fall and, having been there before, are thinking about going to Osborne House.

 

Quick question: clicking on your link to the Red Funnel car ferry, the web page also shows the passengers-only Red Jet ferry.  That seems to be the one that goes to West Cowes, which we should not take, right?  Thanks!

 

I replied a couple of hours ago but it's not appeared.

Guess I hit a wrong button.🙄

 

Both the Red Funnel car ferries and the Red Jet passenger ferries operate from Southampton's Town Quay.

 

Can be done via the car ferry or the Red Jet, but car ferry is simpler, more relaxing, more reliable.

From its terminal in East Cowes it's a one minute walk across the roundabout (traffic island) to the bus-stop outside the Waitrose grocery store.

 

The Red Jet goes to West Cowes, divided from East Cowes by the River Medina which you have to cross by chain-ferry.

Red Jet terminal to the chain-ferry is a ten-minute walk, then a three minute walk on the other side of the river to that bus-stop.

Altho the Red Jet is quicker, the time saved is then spent getting to East Cowes.

(BTW, the trusty old chain-ferry which had been giving faithful service for donkeys' years was replaced by a new one a few years ago, and it's beenlagued by a variety of design & mechanical issues ever since it was introduced. When its out of service pedestrians are taken across by motor launch, and drivers have to make a 10-mile detour.)

 

https://goo.gl/maps/ccA1uJkiCMAFtoCM9

 

JB 🙂

Edited March 26, 2022 by John Bull

[brookmill18]

I'm helping someone plan one overnight in Southampton. She would be arriving in Southampton on a TA from NY and would spend that day and night in town, then transferring out the next morning. She is interested in the Isle of Wight but has some mobility issues, so a taxi or bus tour with stops is probably the best option. We haven't yet found any tours that begin in Southampton--any recommendations? 

[John Bull]

22 hours ago, brookmill18 said:

I'm helping someone plan one overnight in Southampton. She would be arriving in Southampton on a TA from NY and would spend that day and night in town, then transferring out the next morning. She is interested in the Isle of Wight but has some mobility issues, so a taxi or bus tour with stops is probably the best option. We haven't yet found any tours that begin in Southampton--any recommendations? 

 

[John Bull]

For a number of reasons, that's a tough one.🙁

 

Your friend doesn't have a full day in port, and I don't know just how mobility-impaired they are.

It would also help if you could tell me the number in her party - if she's a singleton a taxi tour would be very expensive, if the cost is split between two of them it's much more bearable, if there are four of them a taxi tour would be the way to go. 

 

There are plenty of day-tours from distant  places like London or Brighton, but because of the cost of taking a coach (bus) on the ferry, tours starting in Southampton don't make a lot of sense, esecially because there's insuffiient local demand - So'tonians take their car or cross on foot & use public transport on the island. 

 

There should be no difficulty in joining and leaving any tours at the ferry terminal in Southampton, but your fare would include unused travel from places like London.

 

I did find one coach tour which starts from Bournemouth (about 25 miles away) but also picks up at the ferry terminal in Southampton - so comparatively little of the £51 pp fare would be for their empty seat/s between Bournemouth and Southampton.

https://discoverdorset.co.uk/isle-of-wight-tour/

The problem with that tour is that they'd need to be at the Red Funnel ferry terminal at 8.30am on the day their ship arrives. It can be done, and if time is tight she could even head straight to the ferry with her luggage - as long as the tour operator is advised/agrees in advance (since this is just a day-trip for others there'll be plenty of room in the coach's lockers)

That tour it's not an option on day two because the tour won't get back to Southampton til around

6.15 pm, so ferry and cruise ship are likely to pass each-other in Southampton Water or the Solent.

 

This tour is much more expensive at £109 because it starts in London, but that may mean the hours are more likely to suit (insufficient info on the website, you'd have to e-mail for Southampton depart/return times. It does use the Southampton to Cowes ferry 🙂, most use Portsmouth to Fishbourne ferry - travel to/from Portsmouth eats up too much time.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/AttractionProductReview-g186338-d11456926-Isle_of_Wight_Guided_Day_Tour_from_London-London_England.html

 

To look for other IoW day-trips, google "day-trips to the Isle of Wight", 

Don't worry too much about where they start from, concentrate on the price (£100 wouild be about the max for value-for-moey) which ferry port it uses (Southampton, not Portsmouth or Lymington, and the ferry times & finish times. Some of this you'll have to figure from other times  given, or ask on the website or by e-mail.

It'll only work on Day One, and you'll need a ferry which leaves at or after 9am

Like I said, this is a tough one.

-------------------------------------------------

 

Most economical would be foryour friend to make their own way to Cowes on the island as a foot-passenger. They have the choice of the Red Jet (half-hour crossing to West Cowes, and best for most purposes) or car ferry to East Cowes (one hour crossing, and best for just visiting Osborne House).

 

Then either.....

Buses.

Only feasible on Day One, because your friend has no deadline to get back to Southampton

The Island's bus operators are Southern Vectis. They also operate the island's ho-ho buses but the ho-ho routes are rather limited and slow.

Within a slightly-shortened day I''d suggest using just the island's frequent local buses.

Take the frequent Number 1 bus from the Red Jet terminal (buy an all-day Rover ticket for £10 from the driver, you won't need any more bus tickets). It's a short ride to Newport, the hub of the island's bus services.

From Newport take the Number 3 bus (top deck, left-hand seat is best) through the delightful little village of Godshill (mebbe stop off here for a wander & some refreshment), then some super elevated southerly coastal views over Ventnor and Bonchurch, thro the resorts of Shanklin & Ventnor & back to the north coast at Ryde. Another refreshment opportunity here, views across the Solent to Portsmouth.& mebbe watch a ferry or hovercraft arriving or departing.

From Ryde take

- either  the Number 4 to East Cowes (if there's time ask the driver to put you off at Osborne House - takes 90 minutes plus - then any bus from the same stop to complete your journey to East Cowes).

If you're tired & want a leisurly cruise back to Southampton take the car ferry from East Cowes, 60 minute crossing. Or if you're still full of beans, from East Cowes take the chain-bridge across the River Medina which divides Cowes into east & west, and a 10- 15 minute walk to the Red Jet terminal through the narrow streets of this little yachting & tourist town

- or the Number 9 to Newport & switch to the Number 1 back to the Red Jet terminal

 

I've not mentioned The Needles, the most iconic sight on the island. Can be done, but it's time-consuming. It involves the Number 7 from Newport to Yarmouth, then the Needles Breezer, then the number 7 back to Newport. IMHO your time is better-spent elsewhere.

 

I've not checked out the timetables for these suggestions - that's your job 😉

https://images-islandbuses.passenger-website.com/2021-09/SV_iownetworkmap 287x210_0120_WINTER.pdf

https://www.islandbuses.info/services

https://scenicbuses.uk/routes/southern-vectis-the-needles-breezer/

 

Taxi Tour

You'd need to cross to the island by ferry to meet your taxi in Cowes.

I found only one guide on the island - £30 per hour plus transportation costs. !!!!!!

https://www.isleofwightguidedtours.co.uk/index.php/day-tours

Your best bet is to google "taxis Cowes Isle of Wight", and contact likely prospects which quote their e-mail addresses. You don't really need to give them an itineray, they'll know the sort of places, just ask for the price of 2 hour / 3 hour / 4 hour tours. 

It'll be expensive for a singleton - perhaps cut it to just two or three hours, with a drop-off at Osborne House. Then you can tour the house & gardens & "Swiss Cottage" before taking a bus for the short journey to East Cowes and the choice of car ferry or Red Jet ferry back to Southampton.

 

Finally, if you want to wing-it, talk to taxi drivers at the Red Jet rank when you get to West Cowes. If you can agree a tour that you like & won't break the bank, take it. If not, jump on the Number 1 bus as described above.

 

That was a pig to research.🥴

If you think it'll be a pig to do, there are plenty of alternatives from Southampton, like Salisbury & Stonehenge, or Winchester, or Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. Check my post earlier in this thread.

 

JB 🙂

 

 

[John Bull]

6 hours ago, John Bull said:

.From Newport take the Number 3 bus (top deck, left-hand seat is best)

 

JB 🙂

 

 

 

Dannit........... make that right-hand seats

 

JB 

[brookmill18]

@John BullThank you so much for the information--so appreciated! I actually found something--if she does end up doing it I will report back, but it is a private tour with someone on the island for the day. I think she is leaning towards dropping her bags at the hotel, heading over for the day, and then back just to sleep before leaving in the morning. Thank you again!

 

PS--you found the tour guide she is thinking of using!

Edited March 31, 2022 by brookmill18

[Magiemae41]

@John BullI recall seeing a post about the times from each port to the local cities or towns and different methods of transportation, the currency and other useful information for the cruise out of Southampton.

I can't seem to find this post, no matter how much I search 🙂

Was this one of your posts by any chance?  If so would you mind sharing again please?

Thanks for all your help. 

Mae

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Magiemae41 said:

@John BullI recall seeing a post about the times from each port to the local cities or towns and different methods of transportation, the currency and other useful information for the cruise out of Southampton.

I can't seem to find this post, no matter how much I search 🙂

Was this one of your posts by any chance?  If so would you mind sharing again please?

Thanks for all your help. 

Mae

What route are you looking at? I don't assume that British Isles cruises, Baltic cruises and Norwegian fjords cruises - all of which can have Southampton departures - would have been in the same post.

[Magiemae41]

1 hour ago, gnome12 said:

What route are you looking at? I don't assume that British Isles cruises, Baltic cruises and Norwegian fjords cruises - all of which can have Southampton departures - would have been in the same post.

I apologize.   It is the cruise that leaves from Southampton and ends in Amsterdam.  The British Isles Cruise.  

Thanks!

Mae

[John Bull]

20 hours ago, Magiemae41 said:

@John BullI recall seeing a post about the times from each port to the local cities or towns and different methods of transportation, the currency and other useful information for the cruise out of Southampton.

I can't seem to find this post, no matter how much I search 🙂

Was this one of your posts by any chance?  If so would you mind sharing again please?

Thanks for all your help. 

Mae

 

My reply on your other thread 

 

JB 🙂