lynnewriter

Traveling from Iceland to Amsterdam, we will have a 4.5 hour layover in Heathrow. Is this enough time to take the Heathrow Express into London and actually do something? And if so, any suggestions about what to do?

francophile03

I don't know about you but I think 4.5 hours is too short of a time to go sightseeing. Heathrow, in my opinion, is one of the worse airports to connect.

Lori

About the only thing you have time to do with this layover is stay at the airport. 4.5 hrs is not enough time to go anyplace. Heathrow is not a bad place to spend a few hours, there are shops and places to eat. I would never in a million years chance missing a flight by going into London with such a short layover (yes, I realize 4.5 hrs seems long, but in reality it is not). Most gates are very far from security, etc. at Heathrow, another reason not to wander too far away.

AAFrequentFlyer

A voice of reason fom the other side.

I'm assuming you'll be checked-in all the way to AMS. Coming from Iceland, you'll be through the EU immigration(I'm not even sure you have to do that), but if you do, you'll be through in few minutes. Another 15 minutes to get to EX, and another 15-25* minutes to get to Paddington station. So far, we're talking no more than 1 hour. Paddington is located about a 15 minute walk from Hyde Park. You could walk around the park, maybe take some pictures in front of the Kensington Palace. Catch a lunch/dinner at the Hard Rock on Bayswater Rd. or the many pubs there and about 2 hours later get back to Paddington. Another 15-25 minutes to get back to LHR and 15 minute walk to the terminal, 15 minutes to go through security and 15 minutes to get to the gate. NO PROBLEM MON!

Now the real question is, is it worth it? That will have to be your call. The EX is about 25BP R/T That's a lunch/dinner with few drinks at some nice airport restaurant.

You make the call!

Have a great trip.

* - I know the actual train trip takes 15 minutes, but if you just miss one then the trip could take up to 29 minutes. They run every 15 minutes.

AAFrequentFlyer

<>EX = HX

adrienne

I sympathize with you, having just done a 5 hour stint at LHR. I settled myself into a pub and had interesting chats with lots people who sat at adjoining tables, wrote in my journal, read a bit.

It probably isn't enough time to be worthwhile. On the outbound trip I went through passport control to get into the main part of the terminal, rather than take the connecting flight option, and it took 45 minutes to get through. That was after a very long hike from the plane. So total time after landing was 1 hour to see daylight.

Kayb95

I wouldn't try it. By the time you de-plane and get through passport control; and have to be back at the ariport 2 hours before your flight, you might have time to take the Heathrow Express into London, then turn right back around and return to the airport.

True, if everything went perfectly as AAFF mentioned, you might be able to do it. But realistically you would be risking missing your flight to Amsterdam.

flanneruk

There is no requirement to be at Heathrow 2 hours before a flight to Amsterdam. Get your onward boarding pass before you leave the airport, and you merely need to be back in time to get to the gate before it closes.

But AAFF is slightly confused on one point. Coming from Iceland, you go through the same immigration stuff as from any foreign country except Ireland. That is, if you have an EU or EEA passport (and Icelanders have EEA passports), you shuffle through a brief passport flash: if you're really foreign, you can queue for a long time to go through a brief interrogation.

You won't know how long all this, plus the incomimng flight's inevitable lateness, will take until you're through.

If it's been as quick and painless as it usually is for EEA citizens, you'll have time to do as AAFF suggests. But he's obviously a slow walker: any non-disabled European would get to the Park from Paddington in 5 mins.

Coming back, if you came in on Icelandair at T1, don't forget that BA and KLM use T4 for Amsterdam, which is another 5 mins' journey on the HEX. bmi use T1.

Ann41

Depending on the time of day you arrive, you may be circling over Heathrow for awhile. Then sitting on the tarmac waiting for a gate to open, since your flight missed its slot because it had to circle waiting to land. Then if you don't actually get to pull up to a terminal, you'll have another wait for the bus to come to offload the plane.

So after you've missed your flight to Amsterdam, you'll have an entire evening and morning to explore London.

m_kingdom2

For a fee you can book into an upgraded lounge if you are not already travelling business class or better. I believe the cost is around twenty pounds per person, in this lounge, internet access and complimentary beverages and snacks are available, as well as a shower.

I wouldn't attempt to get into central London, if there was traffic, etc. you could miss your flight, what's the point in that?

P_M

m_k, you have made my day!! I had no idea it was possible to use the lounge unless you have an upgraded ticket. I normally fly coach, but once I was upgraded to business class and I really enjoyed the lounge. I think that's a better use of your time and money than going into London just to spend a very short time sightseeing. If only I had known that last year when I spent 4 miserable hours at Heathrow. I will have a 4.5 hour layover at Gatwick this year, so I will look into that.

m_kingdom2

www.abcholidayextras.co.uk

I only ever use a lounge if I'm not in business - I never upgrade to business out of my own finances if it's a flight under two hours, I'd rather spend that money on an ever better suite.

P_M

Actually I did not have to upgrade to business class out of my own finances, this was a mis-print on my ticket. It was a 10-hour flight, so this was a mistake for which I quickly forgave BA....

Thanks for the extra info.

Ann41

If you fly quite a bit, you can pay about US$400 to use United's lounge for a year. I'm assuming other airlines are the roughly the same. The only thing is that you have to be flying United or a partner to use the lounge.