Luton road works
 

About how much long have the road works at Luton added to your journey to get there? I have a flight scheduled there in March and a possible one in April. I'd be taking the National Express bus to Luton from Oxford and arriving (supposedly) at 6:20 am.

Thanks.

I've not done this, but be very, very, cautious.

The Oxford-LTN bus doesn't always go the straightforward crosscountry route, but often goes via Hemel Hempsted. That means it hits the M1 roadworks that start on March 20 AS WELL AS the mess around the airport itself.

Even on an ordinary weekday, even northbound and quite unconnected with the airport, the M1 round Luton starts getting busy from 0530. 0600 is also a very, very busy time for the separate stream of people getting to LTN.

If it were me, I'd organise myself to get there by train. From Oxfordshire though, I'd transfer my business to LHR, LGW, STN or BHX - or even Southampton, though only by train - for the next few years.

If you're booked out of LTN already, add at least 2 hours to your plans.

Thanks. My first flight is March 17-19, and the March 17 flight takes off at 8:40. I am supposed to arrive at 6:20, so hopefully this is enough time. The other flight is in April and departs at 8:05. Maybe I should make alternate plans.

Is there a train from London to Luton? I didn't think there was.

I've not been through the roadworks - just looked at the map to decide about my own plans (which are to avoid LTN if starting from Oxfordshire).

I'd repost this question in detail on Thorntree, which has more SE England low-cost addicts than here. But since you're presumably on a low-cost, you need to have checked in for the first flight by 0800 at the latest, and I'd say you were too tight. Thorntree will have loads of recent LTN users. I don't know whether Flyertalk has a Luton board

The standard way to get to LTN is by train (First Capital Connect from Kings Cross Thameslink or Midland Mainline from St Pancras). Without checking, it's probably not possible to get a train in from Oxford in time to catch a suitable connection. It's a brisk 20 min walk from the Oxford bus stops round Baker St to St P, or 25 to KXTL.

Incidentally: one terrific piece of news for Oxfordshire travellers. Roadworks on the A34 are now over, so you can get to Southampton airport by road a lot faster than to anywhere but LHR.

Thanks. Yes, I do have to check in by 8. Fortunately the Hemel Roadworks will not have begun by then, so I hope I am okay. I think it is too tight for the second, so I'll look at alternate connections.

The penalties for being late are so high - I would worry about making these flights even w/o any roadworks.

Have you considered using priceline to get a hotel at Luton for the night before? You might be able to get the Thistle for a very low rate.

Thanks. I am changing my plans for flight 2, but I still have flight 1. I've never had a problem with making a flight before, and arriving at 6:20 would be a ton of time for an 8:40 flight. However, I know I will arive later than 6:20 ... the question is how much?