I am flying into Heathrow on a Saturday morning and taking the Heathrow Express to Paddington to meet a friend. Since there is a lot of commentary whether to take the Heathrow Express I will tell you that those were my instructions. Should I purchase tickets in advance? If I do, what train should I buy them for considering that I land at 7:40am. TIA

We have never purchased in advance. We just buy the ticket and get on. I don't think they sell train specific. Maybe for first class. I haven't seen prior postings on this subject but I think HExpress is fast and convenient and a bit expensive BUT you are paying for fast and convenient. And at times it is worth it. I would not buy in advance unless there is a big discount.

With the possibility of flight delays you can never be sure exactly which train you will want to take. So wait until you arrive to buy your train ticket.

According to the HEX Web site, there is a discount for buying return (roundtrip) tickets in advance but not for single (one-way) tickets. Buy your ticket after you arrive. It will be good on any train.

I went through a faux booking on the HEX web site and it never asked me which time I wanted - just the date. If you want to save a couple of pounds and book online instead of using the ticket machine, I think you'd be fine to do so, but personally I'd rather just use the ticket machine. The printout would be one more thing to keep up with.

fmpden - the usual arguments against the HEX (and Heathrow Connect) are that both are expensive compared to other options and only get you as far as Paddington, which means if you're staying anywhere else you still have to either change for the Tube or bus or spring for a taxi to get you where you need to be. So often it's really neither faster, more convenient nor cheaper than other public transport or a car service, especially if you have more than one person.

Oops! I just checked the HEX site again. The cost of an online ticket is £16.50 and the cost of a ticket at Heathrow is £18.00. So booking online will save you £1.50.

And taking the Heathrow Connect will save you even more. The fare is £7.90.

I always book online and print my tickets. There are no specific times or seats assigned. It's a bit cheaper if you are buying round trip. As I recall you can also purchase your ticket directly from the train conducter with a credit card.Check the website

If your point is to get to Paddington - then the Connect would be just as good and a lot cheaper than the HEX.

then the Connect would be just as good and a lot cheaper than the HEX.>

well it is not the same as the Heathrow Express - it is not just as good - perhaps good but NOT just as good. There is a reason Heathrow Express charges a lot more than the stopping train Neathrow Connect - now is it worth it? that's a personal choice IMO - regular train or dedicated airport express that will not be get crowded en route perhaps

ummmm - you are always telling folks not to take the Gatwick express and take Southern instead. This is the exact same concept.

I am a strong strong advocate of the Gatwick Express as well - you, once again - find one mention of where i advise not taking the Gatwick Express, except in the case of folks going to the Kings Cross area on along the Thames Link line (old name now Capitol First i think.

The airport express trains are geared to tourists with luggage - anyone going anywhere else in London i always advise the Gatwick Express - am perplexed why you would even say that?

Janis - indeed just last week i said why the Gatwick Express was much more leisurely for the typical baggage-laden luggage traveler departing from Victoria.

The Gatwick Express has a dedicated siding in Victoria - no surprises always in the same place - the train almost always in waiting for you - no standing around. Southern trains though i expect (not sure but if typical commuter trains are) does not have a dedicated siding but passengers must wait in often mobs staring at the overhead boards to see, often very shortly before the train is due to depart, see what track the train will be coming in on - and then there is a mad dash to get thru the ticket checking at the barriers and to the train - the train is often disgorging its arriving passengers, etc. All in all not great for folks with heavy luggage, etc.

I have categorically NEVER EVER recommended taking Southern trains over the Gatwick Express and for you to say that does perplex me but i am not surprised.

Janis - i guess you missed my post last week about having observed several Southern Trains trains Gatwick to Victoria and several Gatwick Express trains Gatwick to Victoria - before a flight i spent a few hours on the platform just watching trains roll in and out - being a rail nut it was fun - but Southern Trains could well be rather crowded at times - some were very crowded - and Gatwick Express, perhaps because they cost more, had much more empty seats and the train cars themselves were more comfy - being a dedicated airport train with lots of room for luggage, etc. I have never advocated Southern Trains over the Gatwick Express but characterize each as i observed it.

The two cases aren't parallel, or even on the same planet.

For most people arriving at Gatwick, there's no alternative to getting a train to Victoria. Southern's train from Gatwick have already filled up before they get there between 7 and 9.30 in the morning, so it's probably going to be more uncomfortable than the Gatwick Express.

Arriving at Heathrow is a nuther thing entirely. LHR has a tube, excellent roads to its immediate catchment, an extraordinary local and medium-distance bus network and a railway station (Feltham) that's completely separate from the overpriced Heathrow Connect and Express, both of which are extortionately priced for those who don't work at Heathrow. The Connect is almost never crowded, since there are much more convenient commuter trains between Hayes & Harlington, Ealing Broadway and Paddington than the Connect - and few arriving passengers at LHR want to go to Paddington. Like the HEX, it uses dedicated platforms at Paddington.

Getting either the Connect or the HEX makes sense only if you want to get to Paddington. As roughly 50% of that market, I use the HEX if I've got a precisely timed meeting in the West End, or if I'm flush and it means I can get an earlier fast train home (or leave home later for a flight out). Few tourists are in either group: for most of those few the saved 20 mins don't matter and there's no comfort case, ever, for the HEX.