Plane or train from London to Venice?
Feb 26th, 2004, 02:30 PM
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Plane or train from London to Venice?
I keep going back and forth on this. I found a non-stop rt Brit Air ticket for $170 w/ tax. The best train fares I found were through sncf.com (why are they so much cheaper there than through rail europe? Am I missing something?) london-paris is $90! each way and paris-venice is $75 each way, which includes a 1st class couchette. So rt train would be $330. Of course, the night trains save us the money for two nights hotels, but it wouldn't be quite as enjoyable. Another issue: our flight gets into Heathrow at 12:45pm, but the Venice flight leaves from Gatwick at 6pm. How far apart are those airports? Any thoughts would be appreciated! -Heather
Feb 26th, 2004, 02:32 PM
#2
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I forgot to mention that the flight lands in Venice at 9:40pm - would that get us to our hotel (near San Marco) at 11:30pm? The train option would get us there the next morning at 8am.
Feb 26th, 2004, 02:47 PM
#3
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 13,194
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
<<(why are they so much cheaper there than through rail europe? Am I missing something?) >>
Sure, you may have the common mistaken impression that desling with RailEurope is dealing with the railroad companies themselves. RailEurope is a NorthAmerican marketing consortium that bys tickets from the individual rail companies (there are 17 of them) and resells to the public.
It's the same reason that U-pick strawberries are cheaper at the farm than at the supermarket.
And $170 for RT air LON-VCE? I'm guessing that you have not looked at eayjet.com or ryanair.com
Best wishes,
Rex
Sure, you may have the common mistaken impression that desling with RailEurope is dealing with the railroad companies themselves. RailEurope is a NorthAmerican marketing consortium that bys tickets from the individual rail companies (there are 17 of them) and resells to the public.
It's the same reason that U-pick strawberries are cheaper at the farm than at the supermarket.
And $170 for RT air LON-VCE? I'm guessing that you have not looked at eayjet.com or ryanair.com
Best wishes,
Rex
Feb 26th, 2004, 02:52 PM
#4
Join Date: Mar 2003
Posts: 10,254
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
So you could arrive in Venice late but pay to sleep in a real bed and get real rest, or arrive the next morning after a very long train ride, possibly shell-shocked from a poor nights sleep.
From where are you traveling? (don't quite understand why both Heathrow and Gatwick come into play. . .)
Yes, you save money on hotel rooms for two nights, but you waste many hours of precious vacation time on trains.
From where are you traveling? (don't quite understand why both Heathrow and Gatwick come into play. . .)
Yes, you save money on hotel rooms for two nights, but you waste many hours of precious vacation time on trains.
Feb 26th, 2004, 03:04 PM
#5
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thank you for the info! I did actually look up Ryanair. Do they have a long and good flying record? I'm a wuss about flying and the "12.99 GBP" didn't seem like enough money to cover fuel. 
I'm flying on Brit Air from Denver into Heathrow, but the Venice flights I found leave from Gatwick. Ryanair flies from another airport I had never heard of.
I'm flying on Brit Air from Denver into Heathrow, but the Venice flights I found leave from Gatwick. Ryanair flies from another airport I had never heard of.
Feb 26th, 2004, 03:10 PM
#6
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 23,073
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Ryanair is the Southwest of Europe. Their biggest hub in the UK is Stansted, NE of London. If you want good price, you should really learn about them - not necessarily for this trip, but in the future as well.
It's 45 minutes on the Standsted Express from Liverpool Street Station, near City. Train runs every 15 minutes during the day, so from central London, it's basically as convenient as LHR or LGW.
It's 45 minutes on the Standsted Express from Liverpool Street Station, near City. Train runs every 15 minutes during the day, so from central London, it's basically as convenient as LHR or LGW.
Feb 26th, 2004, 03:25 PM
#7
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 6,873
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The fact that you haven't heard of Ryan Air shouldn't scare you off. They are a VERY well known airline. Some people LOVE them, some people HATE them (just like Southwest in that) but thay have been around a long time and are very familiar to most people who have flown around Europe.
And you don't even have to go into London to get to Stansted. You can catch a direct express coach from LHR to Stansted. But be sure to allow enough time for the transfer since Ryan Air is VERY strict about check in times.
If budget is at all a priority to you - Ryan Air is a great option.
And you don't even have to go into London to get to Stansted. You can catch a direct express coach from LHR to Stansted. But be sure to allow enough time for the transfer since Ryan Air is VERY strict about check in times.
If budget is at all a priority to you - Ryan Air is a great option.
Feb 26th, 2004, 03:28 PM
#8
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,124
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I don't know why one would take a train for that distance rather than a plane, regardless of comparative costs. So you get to Venice late in the evening; that's when Venice is at its best. And as already noted, you can sleep in your own bed that night.
I haven't checked into flight schedules, but I find it difficult to believe that only one flight goes to Venice from either of the London airports during the entire afternoon. Maybe I'm missing something. If you haven't checked all the airlines, you need to do so--including Alitalia. Good luck.
I haven't checked into flight schedules, but I find it difficult to believe that only one flight goes to Venice from either of the London airports during the entire afternoon. Maybe I'm missing something. If you haven't checked all the airlines, you need to do so--including Alitalia. Good luck.
Feb 26th, 2004, 03:59 PM
#9
Original Poster
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 99
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks again for all this good info. Can anyone tell me what the travel time btwn airports would be - Btwn Gatwick and Heathrow? And btwn Heathrow and Stansted? It would be on a Thurs afternoon around 2-3:30.
Feb 26th, 2004, 04:36 PM
#10
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 25,894
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
For London airport transportation, go to
http://www.baa.co.uk/
LHR-LGW is 70mins
LHR-STN is 1hr 40mins
Both by National Express
http://www.nationalexpress.com
Feb 27th, 2004, 05:18 AM
#12
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 74,699
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Mar 10th, 2004, 04:08 AM
#13
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 16,715
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Too bad you get into Heathrow so late. BMI (British Midlands) has a flight from <i>Heathrow</i> to Venice but I think it's at 11 am. Applefares.com and skyscanner.com are 2 websites that show flights & prices for the discount intra-European airlines. BA flies Gatwick/Venice also. Have you checked what the price would be from them? Bottom line, getting from one airport to another is a pain to be avoided if possible IMO.
To answer your question about how long from Marco Polo airport to the hotel- the Alilaguna (water bus) costs about 10e/person & takes about an hour (it makes stops before San Marco). Look for their schedule on alilaguna.it A water taxi would be the fastest & takes about 20-30 mins but costs 80e (for the boat-up to 6 people). If your hotel is on a canal, it will take you right to the door whereas with the alilaguna, you'd have to walk from their stop.
To answer your question about how long from Marco Polo airport to the hotel- the Alilaguna (water bus) costs about 10e/person & takes about an hour (it makes stops before San Marco). Look for their schedule on alilaguna.it A water taxi would be the fastest & takes about 20-30 mins but costs 80e (for the boat-up to 6 people). If your hotel is on a canal, it will take you right to the door whereas with the alilaguna, you'd have to walk from their stop.
