Covid testing London to US

I recommend buying and bringing the proctored test (or two) with you. That's what I plan to do when I go to France in September, unless they lift the re-entry test requirement. Fingers crossed!

Easy as can be, booked one for 3 PM at Leceister Square around 11 am back on 15 May, my last full day in London, flight out was on Monday. £39 and in and out fairly quickly.

It still took time out of my trip, I can’t just teleport myself back and forth from the testing centre. But, it’s definitely easy.

I left London 4/30 and booked my test at Collinsons at St Pancras a week before I left home—about $40 US, negative result in 40 minutes. I chose that location as I planned my last day to include the British Library and Museum, both nearby. Otherwise I would have chosen Express Test at Paddington, which is near Bayswater—many others on the forum have used it recently as well. Or, your hotel or Google may have other suggestions. I tested myself every few days during my trip just to keep an eye on things, but didn’t want to do a proctored test for the official return test.

We're going to the UK in June for 3 weeks and face the same issue. We've opted for the Abbott Binax tests (United provided a link to purchase the tests) rather than risk testing either in town the day prior or at the airport the day of the flight. We thought the quick turn around of results (about 15 minutes advertised while you're online with the test proctor) coupled with the flexibility of not checking out of our hotel until we all tested negative (there are 4 of us) made the most sense for us. There's an associated phone app that they send your results to, which can be shown to airport agents allowing you to board your flight. Sounds simple enough--let's hope it works out that way!

Thanks all! I didn't think about being able to book a location ahead of time. Our last day will be mostly spent at the British Museum and with our hotel in Bayswater both locations would work. I will check them out. Thanks!

dknapp3 - so if I did the proctored Binax test in my hotel room prior to heading out for the day (fly the next morning) say 8:30 am London time would that work? I want to make sure any time zone differences aren't an issue. Our flight out the next day is at 8 am London time.

Just making sure...the Antigen test taken in person at St. Pancras would be accepted to get back to the US, correct?

I just returned from London yesterday. Express Test is located in several train stations and other locations. You can schedule your appointment on-line. Apparently, the fee increases the closer you get to your test-date.

When you make your testing appointment, they will ask the purpose of your test and will then select the proper test for your situation.

Don't be late for your test. I saw staff tell folks because they were late for their appointment their test results would not be available until late in the day instead of the 40 minutes promised. This might not work for you if you wait until your flight date to test.

My fee was 50 pounds.

Jlkelman—yes, the antigen test, or fit-to-fly, is what I had at Collinsons St Pancras—it gives results within an hour, cost is around £32 or so.

Thank you both Becky and Krista. I think I'm going to go for St. Pancras in the morning, we won't be late! We'll probably be early because that is how we roll. And then we can head to our ticketed entry to the British Museum nearby for The World of Stonehenge exhibit! So excited!

One more thought since you are going to book with Collinsons St Pancras--they sent me a confirmation email for my test and it said no eating, drinking, smoking or gum chewing an hour prior to the test...of course I complied, thinking they might swab inside my mouth, but they didn't. Still not sure what that warning was about, but if they said to stand on my head and twirl I'm sure I would have done it to ensure an accurate result!

Needless to say I was hungry when I got out of there at 10:30 am so had a great breakfast sandwich at the Euston Flyer, a comfy pub on Euston Rd...then I spent an hour in the British Library just across the street as their Treasures room is always worth a visit, if you have time before your Stonehenge ticket at the British Museum.

For my recent trips to the US, I’ve used Doc Tap not far off of Oxford Street. Antigen/fit to fly test was £24 and I had the result within 20 mins. Book ahead for the best price.