Transportation question--Bristol to Bath to London
Mar 16th, 2007, 07:24 PM
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Transportation question--Bristol to Bath to London
OK, I give up. I need someone to hold my hand regarding..... No, that's not strong enough. I need someone to tell me what to do regarding transportation plans for our May trip to the UK. We'll be flying into Bristol from Edinburgh and want to go directly from the airport to Bath where we'll spend two nights. From Bath we'll go to London for five nights, after which we'll fly home from Heathrow.
I've poured over multiple posts regarding transportation and have also visited the BritRail website, but I'm still not sure that I've "got it right". If any of you experts out there can bear to take a run at another question in this vein, I would so appreciate the input.
From Bristol Airport to Bath: bus or taxi?
From Bath to London: I pull up a $92 fare on the BritRail site for the one-way trip. This seems expensive, but, then, I have nothing to compare it with.
As far as the 5 night London segment of the trip, we'll be staying at the Hilton Olympia in Kensington (was hoping for a place not so on the fringe of the main areas of interest, but it was a Priceline thing). We'll be using public transportation throughout the five days and will most likely remain in zones 1 and 2 with the exception of a possible trip to Hampton Court. And then, on the 6th day, there is the the trip to Heathrow for our flight home.
Am I correct in assuming that there is no more economical way to do this than treat each segment independently? That is,(1) pay for the taxi or whatever from Bristol to Bath; (2) pay the $92 for a one-way ticket from Bath to London; (3) once in London, get an Oyster card, a travel pass, or what? to take care of our London zones 1 and 2 travel, and then pay the extra fare for Hampton Court and Heathrow.
I realize that ticket costs are what they are. I just want to make sure that I'm not paying more than I have to.
If anyone is willing to take this on, let me just say, "Thank you so much. I appreciate the time necessary to think this through and to respond."
I've poured over multiple posts regarding transportation and have also visited the BritRail website, but I'm still not sure that I've "got it right". If any of you experts out there can bear to take a run at another question in this vein, I would so appreciate the input.
From Bristol Airport to Bath: bus or taxi?
From Bath to London: I pull up a $92 fare on the BritRail site for the one-way trip. This seems expensive, but, then, I have nothing to compare it with.
As far as the 5 night London segment of the trip, we'll be staying at the Hilton Olympia in Kensington (was hoping for a place not so on the fringe of the main areas of interest, but it was a Priceline thing). We'll be using public transportation throughout the five days and will most likely remain in zones 1 and 2 with the exception of a possible trip to Hampton Court. And then, on the 6th day, there is the the trip to Heathrow for our flight home.
Am I correct in assuming that there is no more economical way to do this than treat each segment independently? That is,(1) pay for the taxi or whatever from Bristol to Bath; (2) pay the $92 for a one-way ticket from Bath to London; (3) once in London, get an Oyster card, a travel pass, or what? to take care of our London zones 1 and 2 travel, and then pay the extra fare for Hampton Court and Heathrow.
I realize that ticket costs are what they are. I just want to make sure that I'm not paying more than I have to.
If anyone is willing to take this on, let me just say, "Thank you so much. I appreciate the time necessary to think this through and to respond."
Mar 16th, 2007, 08:03 PM
#2
Just time to help a bit right now but others will have more details for you and I'll be back later . . .
From Bristol airport the way I'd go to Bath is a coach to Temple Meads station and then a train to Bath. This should take between about 70 and 90 minutes depending onthe time of day etc. A taxi would be EXTREMELY expensive.
Don't worry about the Olympia Hilton - I just stayed there last month (also on a PL bid -- $75) and even though the reviews aren't all that good I had absolutely nothing to complain about. My room (didn't see any others) was large and spotless. The staff was great and the tube service at Olympia was a lot better than I remember from years past.
There are much better sites for looking up train fares than BritRail (BritRail is just a marketing company that sells overpriced rail passes. I'd probably start w/ http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/ - but maybe someone else has a better site you should use.
more later . . . . .
From Bristol airport the way I'd go to Bath is a coach to Temple Meads station and then a train to Bath. This should take between about 70 and 90 minutes depending onthe time of day etc. A taxi would be EXTREMELY expensive.
Don't worry about the Olympia Hilton - I just stayed there last month (also on a PL bid -- $75) and even though the reviews aren't all that good I had absolutely nothing to complain about. My room (didn't see any others) was large and spotless. The staff was great and the tube service at Olympia was a lot better than I remember from years past.
There are much better sites for looking up train fares than BritRail (BritRail is just a marketing company that sells overpriced rail passes. I'd probably start w/ http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/ - but maybe someone else has a better site you should use.
more later . . . . .
Mar 16th, 2007, 10:59 PM
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What or who is BritRail? Sounds like some funny foreign ripoff merchant to me.
If you walk up to the ticket machine at Bath station, a single to London will cost you £46. If you go to www.firstminutefares.com and commit to a specific train in advance, it'll cost you from £9. Whatever BritRail may be, it's not a reliable source of information about the British railway system.
There's no serious alternative to janisj's suggestion about getting from Bristol airport to Bath, except to fly from Edinbugh to Heathrow, from where there are direct buses to Bath.
Yes you buy each bit of the travel separately
If you walk up to the ticket machine at Bath station, a single to London will cost you £46. If you go to www.firstminutefares.com and commit to a specific train in advance, it'll cost you from £9. Whatever BritRail may be, it's not a reliable source of information about the British railway system.
There's no serious alternative to janisj's suggestion about getting from Bristol airport to Bath, except to fly from Edinbugh to Heathrow, from where there are direct buses to Bath.
Yes you buy each bit of the travel separately
Mar 17th, 2007, 12:38 AM
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A taxi from Bristol Airport to Bath may be the best option, depending on where in Bath exactly your are going to, how many people, how much luggage, etc.
The taxi concession at the airport is changing on 1st April, but if you go to the airport site at www.bristolairport.co.uk/, and follow the links in "Getting to the airport", you will find out how to get a quote for the journey.
If you decide against a taxi, you have a choice between airport bus/train and airport bus/bus. There are frequent express buses from Bristol to Bath.
The taxi concession at the airport is changing on 1st April, but if you go to the airport site at www.bristolairport.co.uk/, and follow the links in "Getting to the airport", you will find out how to get a quote for the journey.
If you decide against a taxi, you have a choice between airport bus/train and airport bus/bus. There are frequent express buses from Bristol to Bath.
Mar 17th, 2007, 03:09 AM
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use trainline it is easier to use
www.thetrainline.com
you can put in a serach for bristol international airport to bath spa the first part is from teh airport to the train station , it is not a train but a bus shutle service between the airport and train staion easy to use cheap and just outside the exit of the airport.
I use it when ever I fly from Bristol and we dicide not to take the car from Cardiff. Then the train from Bristol temple meads to Bath Spa only takes about 1 hour max. Bath to London paddington again straight forward no changes about 1hr 30 mins.
www.thetrainline.com
you can put in a serach for bristol international airport to bath spa the first part is from teh airport to the train station , it is not a train but a bus shutle service between the airport and train staion easy to use cheap and just outside the exit of the airport.
I use it when ever I fly from Bristol and we dicide not to take the car from Cardiff. Then the train from Bristol temple meads to Bath Spa only takes about 1 hour max. Bath to London paddington again straight forward no changes about 1hr 30 mins.
Mar 17th, 2007, 03:28 AM
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I forgot to add depending on I also think that you can not book before 12 weeks. If you do a search on some train sites and the date is more than 12 weks in advanced it gives you the impression there are no tickets left. If you can travel on cheaper times it is worth booking as they only allocate a few seats per trip at that price. I think from your post you would be looking at single fares i.e going one way and not a return ticket. If I have that wrong they it is some times worth looking at the cost of 2 single tickets instead of a return as they often have cheap offers on these. Wat time you are travelling, you can book cheaper tickets like saver tickets. There are resitrctios on when you can travel and some of them say you have to travel on the time you booked. It should tell you on the website about restrictions. It is things like not during peek time in the morning or end of the working day.
The
The
Mar 17th, 2007, 08:46 AM
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another alternative to London is National express and you could log on to megabus.com to see if they go to your destinations, I agree with the other emailer there are cheaper train tickets available.type in British rail enquiries they list any cheap fares available.
Mar 17th, 2007, 09:49 AM
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<<< use trainline it is easier to use
www.thetrainline.com >>>
But it requires you to register to get prices - unlike www.nationalrail.co.uk - and they are the only company that charges for using a CC to make bookings
My advice, always use nationalrail to get prics then go to the website of the company running the trains as you may get discounts or some other special offers which would never show up on thetrainline
www.thetrainline.com >>>
But it requires you to register to get prices - unlike www.nationalrail.co.uk - and they are the only company that charges for using a CC to make bookings
My advice, always use nationalrail to get prics then go to the website of the company running the trains as you may get discounts or some other special offers which would never show up on thetrainline
Mar 17th, 2007, 12:26 PM
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Thank you all for taking the time to get back to me with your good guidance. I'm not a novice traveler, but in this case I feel like one. My friend Gloria and I got a good fare from LAX to London through Best Fares, and we're looking forward to a 10 day girlfriends' time-out. This will be an especially well deserved vacation for Gloria since she has heavy caregiver responsibilities at home. With her husband and two of her daughters assuming those responsibilities while she's away, hopefully this trip will give her the positive change of pace that she so needs.
At any rate, going directly from Heathrow to Edinburgh where we'll stay for three nights. Flying BA Connect. Then, EasyJet to Bristol for a 2 night stay in Bath before going to London for 5 nights.
Your help with the transportation logistics is greatly appreciated.
For those who are interested, our Edinburgh B & B is Gerald's Place which has wonderful reviews on Trip Advisor, and in Bath it's the Paradise House Hotel. This also has very positive reviews, but if you look on Trip Advisor, the reviews are mixed in with another lodging, somewhere in the Caribbean, I think, whose reviews are iffy, so one has to take care in sorting them out.
I will post a trip report upon our return to Los Angeles on May 21, outlining how the transportation worked out and also how we found our lodgings. I've had some concerns about the Olympia Hilton in London. As I mentioned in the original post, I had been hoping for something else, but it was what Priceline came up with. Thanks, Janisj for the heads up on the hotel. And, also Janis, I've enjoyed reading your report on the trip you just made.
I will also report, of course, on our activities. I sometimes feel that I'm not expert enough to share helpful information. Got to get over that. I know I like to to read reports from just regular travelers like me, and I have learned many things from them. Hopefully, I can return the courtesy.
At any rate, going directly from Heathrow to Edinburgh where we'll stay for three nights. Flying BA Connect. Then, EasyJet to Bristol for a 2 night stay in Bath before going to London for 5 nights.
Your help with the transportation logistics is greatly appreciated.
For those who are interested, our Edinburgh B & B is Gerald's Place which has wonderful reviews on Trip Advisor, and in Bath it's the Paradise House Hotel. This also has very positive reviews, but if you look on Trip Advisor, the reviews are mixed in with another lodging, somewhere in the Caribbean, I think, whose reviews are iffy, so one has to take care in sorting them out.
I will post a trip report upon our return to Los Angeles on May 21, outlining how the transportation worked out and also how we found our lodgings. I've had some concerns about the Olympia Hilton in London. As I mentioned in the original post, I had been hoping for something else, but it was what Priceline came up with. Thanks, Janisj for the heads up on the hotel. And, also Janis, I've enjoyed reading your report on the trip you just made.
I will also report, of course, on our activities. I sometimes feel that I'm not expert enough to share helpful information. Got to get over that. I know I like to to read reports from just regular travelers like me, and I have learned many things from them. Hopefully, I can return the courtesy.
