Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - How To Get Out of London - Train? Bus? To a Place to Rent a Car

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How To Get Out of London - Train? Bus? To a Place to Rent a Car

We are planning on renting a car outside London because we don't want to drive in London. So, we (daughter, wife and I) need to find a city outside London to rent a car -- preferably near a bus or train station. I checked a web site, and it had tickets to Oxford, for example, at about $100 per person, including the handling fee. That seems high (Oxford isn't far). So, would someone help with finding a reasonable transportation alternative. Also, would someone suggest a town outside London to rent a car.

Is this upon arrival at an airport for London - - or after you have been there a few days? To a certain extent, it might work for you either way to head out towards Cambridge to Stansted airport and rent there. Easy and pleasant bus ride from Heathrow, for example. Best wishes, Rex

Do you remember how much the bus ride was?

Rex, This will be after we've stayed in London for 5 nights. Looks like the closest train station to Kensington, where we are staying, is at Paddington. Don't have the slightest idea where to catch a bus. Then we plan to travel around England for 8 days before returning to London (Heathrow). So, actually we help first of all getting out of town to get a car, and then need help getting to the airport after we have dropped off the car. Many thanks, Jeff

In your circumstances, the easiest thing would be to pick up the rental at Heathrow. At least you would know where to go when you return it 8 days later. If you do want to pick it up in Oxford, you would catch the Oxford Tube coach (i.e. bus) outside Victoria Train Station - cheaper than the train and more frequent service.

Ron, We have been told that driving a rental car out of Heathrow is frightening, when you aren't accustomed to right hand driving. So, we thought it would be helpful to get a car somewhere less busy. Oxford was just a thought -- from looking at the map. You told me something I didn't know -- that the Tube went to Oxford. How much would a Tube ride to Oxford be, and how clumsy would it be to have our luggage on the Tube? Thanks, Jeff

No, the tube doesn't go to Oxford, the "tube coach", which is a bus, goes there as well as the trains. People commute between London and Oxford all the time, it's only an hour ride, so there must be a reasonable-priced bus, sorry I don't have details. Have you checked the transport sites? Try www.londontransport.co.uk

No Jeff, the Oxford Tube is a bus company, see: http://www.stagecoach-oxford.co.uk/oxfordtube/. Getting out of Heathrow is a little bit intimidating alright, but you are going to have to face it sometime, if you are returning the car there. Having walked a lot in Oxford, I would find driving there pretty intimidating, too. Maybe Reading would be better?

The only plan that makes any sense, Jeff, is to go back out to Heathrow and rent the car there. Depending on your luggage situation you can take the tube (altho I never recommend that)-you need the Picadilly line. You can also (and this is the least stressful manner to do this) hire a car pick up service to pick you up at the hotel. It will cost 29 pounds (+ tip)for 3 of you and they will take you to Heathrow (Hertz, Avis, whoever you rent from) door to door - no hassle. Contact Ray Skinner at www.london-transfers.com. We use him whenever we are in London and his service is marvelous. You can tell him Lori recommended him, I just saw him last week in fact. Once you get to Heathrow and rent the car you will survice the exit..trust me. You will also have to return it there so better get the lay of the land. What I would suggest also is that you do that at "off-times" .. i.e. non-rush hour. Since you will already have been in the UK for several days you will not have jet lag anymore so you will be OK I'm sure. I would not bother with training to Oxford, to be honest there is a lot of traffic in Oxford too. I would also suggest (and I cannot say this strongly enough) is that you get an automatic car. People think they are saving money with a manual .. you will all be nervous wrecks if you have never driven in the UK before with a manual. Go for the automatic and assign one of you to be the designated driver at all times. You adapt to the left much faster if one person handles the driving instead of switching back and forth. Remember, in the countryside roads are narrow - don't rent the largest car in the world! There are no tubes that go to Oxford (where did you ever get that idea). Since you seem somewhat perplexed about getting the rental car I'd go with my plan, it makes more sense then hassling trains, etc. to cities you do not know (and may not have an automatic as well). I cannot imagine any train costing $100 per person to Oxford, we were just in the UK and got cheap "day returns" to Canterbury for example for about 23 pounds (that's r/t .. you could gone one way and who'd care). Good luck and consider my plan.

When we were in London, we actually rented a car from Avis downtown. I believe it was on the north edge of Bloomsbury. It was, in fact, on a main road very close to the highway and it was no problem at all to get out of the city. We didn't actually drive IN the city much at all. So you might re-consider, it's not difficult to get a car out of the city.

It might help to know where you are planning on going with the car once you pickk it up. Gatwick might be a better option.

Jeff, Where did you get that rail ticket price? The cost for a one-way, ticket from London to Oxford should be in the £15 to £24 range. For rail schedules and fares, try this website: http://www.thetrainline.com You can purchase tickets online here, but they won't mail them outside of the UK (they will mail them to a hotel in London or hold them at London's Euston rail station for pickup). Oxford would be a good place to pick up a car outside of London, depending upon the direction that you are ultimately headed in your rental car. Bath, Salisbury, York and others all work too. Hope this helps you. David White http://www.KidsToLondon.com

Since you mentioned Oxford I assume you are going W or NW. If so, definitely rent your car at Heathrow. None of the rental agencies are on the airport so depending on which company, you take a shuttle bus from one to 5 miles and get your car there. You will be outside the airport ring road and near the motorways. Oxford is a terrible place to drove - narrow streest, one ways, thousands of bicycles, no parking, etc. Even most of the locals do not drive in the city center - they use park and ride lots on the outskirts. So you do the same thing - pick up the car at LHR and use a park and ride lot when you visit Oxford. And Lori - The reason Jeff may have thought the tube goes to Oxford is that the express Oxford coach service advertises itself as the "Oxford Tube". Jeff - that is just a marketing phrase not to be taken literally.

To everyone that answered -- a big Nashville thanks!

Jeff, Thanks for e-mailing me privately, but I prefer to answer here. A private answer helps one person, but a PUBLIC answer to a PUBLICly asked question helps many more people. And I like the cross-examination and tangential commentary that often ensues. If I let it happen, I would get a lot more private e-mailed questions, and steal time from here to answer those - - and then how would people like you know that I exist? But most importantly of all - - you got this answer - - the best one anyone could give - - right after you added clarification(s) to my question(s). from ron (rlw) - - ==================================== In your circumstances, the easiest thing would be to pick up the rental at Heathrow. At least you would know where to go when you return it 8 days later. ====================================