mrsd1

My husband and I will arrive at Heathrow airport midweek this fall and want to go directly to Bath by public transportation. I don't know which terminal we will arrive at. From my reading, I see that we may need to take a bus to Paddington Station and the train from there to Bath. But the bus seems very expensive for such a short ride! What are the transportation options? I've looked at National Express and National Rail websites and just get more confused. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks, Patsy

Roger

Hi, I can think of two ways. One is to take the Heathrow Express train to Paddington and then on the train to Bath. Another option would to take the Bus to Reading and then by train to Bath. I am sure others will reply with other suggestions. Have a fun trip.

flanneruk

You have three serious choices. A bus to Paddington makes no sense

1. Bus to Bath from LHR. Almost certainly the cheapest, though he may have to make his way from the terminal he arrives at to the airport's central bus station (a short walk from T1-3, but a free train journey from T4) Check prices at National Express. Go past the first screen, selecting the journey yourself, and not using the pre-selects on the first screen

2. Bus from the airport to Reading station (again, taking the connecting shuttle from T4 if that's where he arrives). Regular (every half hour or so) trains. National Rail is pretty straightforward, but remember you have to book separate tickets for the train and the bus. There is no point booking either the bus or the train in advance: the walk-up, post-0930, return train fare from Reading to Bath of approx £24 is about as cheap as any advance purchase fare is likely to be.

3. Train to Paddington. then get the same train you'd have got at Reading. This is slightly faster than the bus/train option, even though you're going back on yourself, since the two train legs are remarkably efficient by our standards. It's less hassle (the train connection at Paddington is a same-level 10 yard walk with luggage trolleys easily available, whereas the bus/train connection is more cumbersome, and it can be tricky to find a trolley at Reading if you're travelling alone), and significantly more expensive (possibly as much as twice the bus/train option) Mile for mile, the LHR-Paddington train is indeed close to the most expensive transport option in the world, costing at least three times the price of the Concorde (RIP).

Unless he's arriving at a time that doesn't fit the bus schedules very well, I'd have thought the bus would be the easiest as well as cheapest option. It can however take about 45 mins longer than the options that involve trains.

Robespierre

The bus to Bath may be the cheapest, but personally, I wouldn't want to be cooped up like that after a long flight. I'd rather take the train.

You can get to Paddington by Tube for a single fare of £3.80 by taking the Piccadilly Line to Hammersmith, and changing to the District Line (Direction Edgeware Road) to Paddington. The connection is a short walk across the platform.

ron

The 3 viable options are well-portrayed by Flanner. Robes 4th option is something I would never have considered; wacky is perhaps the best word to describe it.

I have used all three of the real options, although in the case of the National Express coach it was in the Bath to Heathrow direction. These are large comfortable intercity buses. The ride in parts is a bit rougher than the train options because you do go into and out of a couple of town centres on the way. The coach station in Bath is a couple of hundred yards closer to central Bath, not enough difference to be a real factor.

The National Express coach would be my choice.

Robespierre

"Wacky"? I don't get that.

It's just another possibility - one that's less hassle than a bus to Reading, and still takes less time than a bus to Bath. And without the "ride in parts that's rougher."

PatrickLondon

And you can't get an Edgware Road train from Hammersmith. You'd make the change at Earl's Court, though Robespierre is right that you wouldn't need to change platforms. On the other hand, it makes for a long-ish journey into Paddington, and the train indicators at Earl's Court might be a bit confusing to the jet-lagged, especially if you arrive in the rush hour.

PatrickLondon

oops, I'm mistaken myself. It's two changes, once at Hammersmith and again at Earl's Court, though admittedly neither requires you to change platforms.

mrsd1

Thanks everyone for your replies. It seems that the bus may be the best idea. Usually we stay in London first, before heading elsewhere, but we decided to go to Bath first this time. We haven't used the buses much, so this will be interesting for us. Thanks again. Patsy

Robespierre

No, you were right the first time (so saith the TfL Journey Planner): you transfer to the District at Earl's Court.

You can also transfer to the Circle at Gloucester Road, or the Hammersmith & City at Hammersmith (a bit of a hike).

Steve_James

I often travel between Heathrow & Bath and would choose National Express every time.

Journey time 2-2.5 hrs or less, with departures about every 2 hours from Heathrow's main bus station.

Hassle-free ... and much cheaper than train. Book in advance.

Steve

P.S Train is unlikely to save you more than 20 mins.

GeoffHamer

Via Reading, there are services every half hour. You can buy a through ticket from Heathrow to Bath this way. The service is run by First Great Western (www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk). Sometime this year, they are due to start a service of stopping trains between Paddington and Heathrow; these will take longer than the Heathrow Express but without the ludicrious fares charged on that service.

louceea

I agree with Steve. The National Bus Service from Heathrow to Bath is an affordable hassle-free way to go. (we purchased advance tickets online) The ride was comfortable too, and no problem at all despite the long plane ride before-hand. Once in Bath there were plenty of taxis available to take us to our lodgings.
Louceea

mrsd1

Louceea, Who did you book your advance tickets through?

Also we want to use the bus system to do some day trips from Bath to Tintern Abbey and other places in Wales. Is there someplace I can get a bus map?

Thanks for all the info. Patsy

ron

Louceea would have purchased her tickets from www.nationalexpress.com, which is a national intercity bus operator.

There is no national bus system. There is National Express, plus a number of local and regional bus companies. To get to Tintern Abbey from Bath, you would take the train to Chepstow and a local bus to Tintern.

mrsd1

Thanks Ron, I appreciate the info. I'll check into a bus guide from Chepstow.

Patsy

hopingtotravel

Another vote for the National Express bus. Unfortunately, I don't remember how I got my ticket because it was August 1998. We had been told that after an overnight flight from Seattle to Heathrow, it wasn't a good idea to immediately try to drive.
We probably flew in to the international terminal and had to take the airport bus to the domestic terminal and had time for lunch before catching the National Express.
Not only was it comfortable but the seats were very high up so visibility was great. My husband slept during the 2 plus hour ride. We picked up our car rental in Bath almost across the street from the bus depot. They let us rent the car, then leave it parked there while we walked around town for a bit. As I recall we weren't many blocks from the cathedral--my first ever sighting of a flying buttress!
I would think that going in to London to catch a train would involve a lot of backtracking and pulling your luggage around.

flanneruk

mrsd:

As Ron says, there is no simple national bus system. British buses are highly deregulated and services are very fragmented.

www.transportdirect.info seems reasonably reliable for local buses. "Local" means journeys up to 10 miles or so, and Bath to Tintern (or anywhere in Wales) definitely isn't local. www.carlberry.co.uk is a reasonable portal for buses generally, though you really need to have a pretty good map of Britain by your side or in your head to plan complex journeys.

A large proportion of inter-city bus routes are on www.nationalexpress.co.uk

Both this board and the Lonely Planet board have a number of harmless drudges on hand to advise on specific journeys. You may find it easier to post a separate question about a journey than try to use Carlberry to get from Glastonbury to Abergavenny.