JetBlue to Heathrow then best transportation to Millennium Gloucester Hotel

[KruzingGal]

I'll be arriving early in the morning  and traveling solo. 

[gumshoe958]

Very easy: from the arrivals hall at Heathrow Terminal 2, follow signs for the Underground. Catch the Piccadilly line (every 5 minutes) direct to Gloucester Road (40 minute journey). The hotel is right next to the station.

 

If you have a contactless debit or credit card or Apple/Google Pay on your phone you don’t need to buy a ticket, just tap in and tap out at the barriers.

[KruzingGal]

Thanks gumshoe958...seems easy enough, but as a 65 year old senior traveling solo...I'm just a little nervous.  I'm going to research further.  Any steps as I will have (1) piece of luggage plus my carry on?

[KruzingGal]

looks like the tube is more than I can handle.  😗

1 set of stairs down

1 set of stairs up

 

 

 

[gumshoe958]

5 minutes ago, KruzingGal said:

Thanks gumshoe958...seems easy enough, but as a 65 year old senior traveling solo...I'm just a little nervous.  I'm going to research further.  Any steps as I will have (1) piece of luggage plus my carry on?

No steps at the Heathrow end - there are elevators and escalators. Unfortunately you would have to use stairs at Gloucester Road.

 

An alternative would be to get off at the station before, Earl’s Court, which does have elevators. It’s then a half mile/10 minute walk to your hotel at street level, on good sidewalks.

 

If you’re not confident using the tube, you could just jump in a cab - there’ll be plenty outside the terminal at Heathrow. That would probably cost around £50-60.

 

Or you could catch the Heathrow Express or Elizabeth line train to Paddington - with elevators at both ends - and get a cab from there. So lots of options.

 

 

 

 

[KruzingGal]

thank you for your input but since I get shots in my knees I will probably just get a cab and not hurt myself being cheap.

[gumshoe958]

5 minutes ago, KruzingGal said:

thank you for your input but since I get shots in my knees I will probably just get a cab and not hurt myself being cheap.

Fair enough. 
 

You can either jump in a taxi (known in London as a black cab) right outside the terminal, or pre-book a car & driver to meet you in arrivals.

 

https://www.limo.co.uk and https://www.blackberrycars.com have been recommended here before, but there are many others.

 

Or there’s Uber, although it may be a bit of a walk, including elevators, to their pick-up point in one of the car parks.

[KruzingGal]

Thanks.  Been looking at minicabit app also

[phabric]

I have used 

www.justairports.com

 

from/to LHR to/from my London hotel.  Use your hotel postal code to get a quote.

[Meander Ingwa]

@KruzingGal I am a 65 year old soloist and love the Underground.  However, if you have tricky knees I would either get a cab full way, or take the Elizabeth line to Paddington and get a cab there.  The walk from the terminals thru immigration then on to the rails take a bit of will power after a 10 hour overnight, but my passion for London knows no bounds.  Not sure how much closer the taxi ranks at Heathrow are, I haven't paid attention , but it sounds like the best option in your case

[Globaliser]

1 hour ago, Meander Ingwa said:

Not sure how much closer the taxi ranks at Heathrow are ...

 

There's an official taxi rank outside each terminal.

[Cotswold Eagle]

1 hour ago, Meander Ingwa said:

take the Elizabeth line to Paddington and get a cab there

Why would you take the Elizabeth Line to Paddington to catch a cab? 
 

You seem to be recommending the Elizabeth Line on several threads where it is hard to follow the reasoning, in my opinion. 

[LeeW]

26 minutes ago, Cotswold Eagle said:

Why would you take the Elizabeth Line to Paddington to catch a cab? 
 

You seem to be recommending the Elizabeth Line on several threads where it is hard to follow the reasoning, in my opinion. 

OP has knee issues that may require cab.  Paddington and Earl's Court are closest stations with elevator but both would require longish walk to her hotel.

Edited June 2, 2023 by LeeW

[Twickenham]

5 hours ago, Cotswold Eagle said:

Why would you take the Elizabeth Line to Paddington to catch a cab? 
 

You seem to be recommending the Elizabeth Line on several threads where it is hard to follow the reasoning, in my opinion. 

 

I can't talk regarding the Elizabeth Line, as I have not been to London since it opened, but I have taken - and would recommend - the Heathrow Express to taxi combo, and here's why: it offered the best combination of time, comfort and convenience for our circumstances. At the LHR end, the HEX was, at least the times I have taken it, a much closer walk than the underground station, and you can get much closer to the trains with your luggage cart than the tube - and believe me, when you have bad knees, any walking distance saved is huge! At the London end, unless your hotel is right beside a tube station - like the Millennium Gloucester and Gloucester Road tube station, actually - you'll want transport to your final destination, and a taxi is a heck of a lot easier to get at Paddington than any tube station. There is method to my madness... 😁

[Globaliser]

47 minutes ago, Twickenham said:

At the LHR end, the HEX was, at least the times I have taken it, a much closer walk than the underground station ...

 

... and a taxi is a heck of a lot easier to get at Paddington than any tube station.

 

From memory, I think that the HEX / EL platforms can only be "a much closer walk" than the Tube if you happen to arrive at T3. The Tube station is closer to T2.

 

And there are plenty of Tube stations where it's easy to get a taxi. Again from memory, the taxi queue at Paddington can be a very long one (which is one of the reasons why it's been a very long time since I've done HEX + taxi). By the time you've waited in that queue for 15 minutes and then taken a taxi into central London, you might already have reached your destination by some other route.

[gumshoe958]

1 hour ago, Twickenham said:

 

I can't talk regarding the Elizabeth Line, as I have not been to London since it opened, but I have taken - and would recommend - the Heathrow Express to taxi combo, and here's why: it offered the best combination of time, comfort and convenience for our circumstances. At the LHR end, the HEX was, at least the times I have taken it, a much closer walk than the underground station, and you can get much closer to the trains with your luggage cart than the tube - and believe me, when you have bad knees, any walking distance saved is huge! At the London end, unless your hotel is right beside a tube station - like the Millennium Gloucester and Gloucester Road tube station, actually - you'll want transport to your final destination, and a taxi is a heck of a lot easier to get at Paddington than any tube station. There is method to my madness... 😁

For the avoidance of doubt, the Elizabeth line is not the tube despite its name suggesting otherwise. At Heathrow it uses the same stations as the HEX and follows the same route into London before it dives underground just outside Paddington.
 

It’s a bit slower than the HEX as it makes more stops en route, but has the advantage of continuing across London and providing direct journeys to many more areas. It now runs 6 times an hour to/from T2/3 and, being brand new, it’s fully accessible for those with restricted mobility or heavy luggage.
 

So it really is a game-changer and, at some point, will probably render the HEX redundant.

 

But coming back to the OP, if comfort and convenience are key public transport is probably not ideal as all the rail/tube options involve a fair amount of walking and manoeuvring luggage on to and off lifts, escalators and trains. So in her case a cab all the way may be more suitable.

[Cotswold Eagle]

3 hours ago, Twickenham said:

 

I can't talk regarding the Elizabeth Line,

Why quote my post about the Elizabeth Line, then? 🤣

 

[RNCheryl]

KrusinGal, my husband and I are slightly your seniors, without the knee issues.  We have used, and plan to use, steps at tube stations when we return this summer.

 

But with luggage, and following an overnight flight, we have selected Blackberry Cars to pick us up at Heathrow and deliver us directly to our hotel in South Kensington.  Cost was 189 GBP.  They gave explicit directions where to meet them outside the airport.

[gumshoe958]

16 minutes ago, RNCheryl said:

KrusinGal, my husband and I are slightly your seniors, without the knee issues.  We have used, and plan to use, steps at tube stations when we return this summer.

 

But with luggage, and following an overnight flight, we have selected Blackberry Cars to pick us up at Heathrow and deliver us directly to our hotel in South Kensington.  Cost was 189 GBP.  They gave explicit directions where to meet them outside the airport.

£189 to South Kensington? Sorry, but you’ve been robbed.

 

A normal cab should cost around £50-60.

[Cotswold Eagle]

6 hours ago, RNCheryl said:

Cost was 189 GBP. 

That’s insane to South Ken. Not being rude, but are you sure that’s what you booked - it’s more like their fare to Southampton! 

[RNCheryl]

Cotswold Eagle, of course you are right.  The fare from LHR to S.Kensington was 66GBP.

 

And the 189 was from hotel to Southampton.  Thanks for the heads up.