Getting to London International Cruise Terminal from Doubletree Hotel in London.

Slightly complicated journey, as the terminal is in Tilbury, far to the east of London proper. The easiest would be an Uber from the hotel straight to the terminal, but it’s a long, long way with heavy traffic and would take a long time and probably cost a lot. You could also take a taxi/Uber to Fenchurch Street Station and then a C2C train to Tilbury Town station, and then a Minicab from outside the station to the terminal which is close by. You could also take public transport all the way, but with luggage, I wouldn’t.

If you go onto Google Maps and search for terminal, you’ll see what the journey consists of.

Apologies if you've already considered and ruled this out, but I always find that just buying the cruise's transfer to ship is the way to go. It's a hassle free way to start your cruise.

If that's the one by Victoria Station, then I would take the tube (District Line) from Victoria to West Ham. Then a C2C train from West Ham to Tilbury Town station. Board at the very rear of the District line for easy interchange tap out at West Ham, using the lift/elevator.
The actual interchange is cross platform- so you could instead buy a London Underground Zone 1 (the Zone, not Victoria) to Tilbury Town through ticket, for £9.70 Off Peak Single to avoid the tap out/in at West Ham or Grays- then just do the cross platform West Ham change.

Alternatively tube to Tower Hill, walk up the street, use the side entrance to Fenchurch Street station for the same train, but I believe West Ham is the easier interchange, from long experience.
The bus #99 (not Sunday) runs every 30 minutes to the port. It is free to any rail ticket holder (as it is a permanent rail replacement for the liner trains which used to run to the docks).
It stops outside the Southend bound platform (where you arrive), goes to the Asda supermarket, then stops outside the London bound platform on the way to the LICT.

The way I do it is to Oyster/contactless to West Ham, tap out, then a C2C paper ticket from West Ham to Tilbury Town.

But Grays (the station before Tilbury Town) is in TfL Zone 9 (although in Essex) so you can tap out at Grays, then a ticket to Tilbury Town (a bit more expensive, oddly than the West Ham Combo).

There is interesting history in the Check in Hall- the Empire Windrush arrived at the LICT from Jamaica in 1948, and Gunter Pluschow made the only successful WW1 German POW escape home using the Tilbury to Gravesend ferry in 1915, then the ferry to the neutral Netherlands.

If you have time do go round the corner to the World's End pub, and the Culloden memorial stone- Jacobite prisoners from the Battle of Culloden were held at Tilbury Fort and in prison ships on the River Thames. A number of whom died- it was a grisly tourist attraction at the time to sail from central London to Tilbury to see the prison ships.

Alternatively your cruise line may run buses from London Victoria Coach Station to the terminal- mine does, but I prefer to make my own way there in my own time.

Thanks for the quick responses! We would normally get the transfer with the cruise line but we’re heading there a few days before, and it is not included. Would be worthwhile checking I guess. We’re thinking the cab/train/cab route but looking for input from other travelers. Thanks again!
I

It's abou 30 miles if you are staying at the Doubltree near Victoria.

The other option would be a car service that would pick you up at your hotel and drop you at the cruise terminal. Probably cheaper than a cab and you would know the price before booking.

London has many Doubletree hotels - which one are you staying at? If it’s not the Doubletree London Tower could you change to there? It’s an excellent location for tourism being between the Tower of London and St Paul’s but also just a 5 minute walk from Fenchurch St station.

Hi, we’re at the Doubletree London Victoria, which we thought was located more centrally.

I’d say that the Doubletree near the Tower of London is a bit better located for tourist sites, although the City of London (ie financial district) is very quiet at weekends The big win, though, is that according to google maps it is a 3 minute walk from Fenchurch Street station. I’d be tempted to change if I could.

That was my point Bill. The Tower site is for me a much better location for sightseeing, being next to the Tower of London, very close to St Paul’s and just across Tower Bridge is Borough market and all the bars and restaurants around there, as well as those at St Katherine’s Dock. But specifically it’s right next to Fenchurch St station making the trip to the cruise very easy.

It's not even 3 minutes to Fenchurch Street because Google Maps incorrectly takes you to the front entrance of Fenchurch Street. If you are coming from the Doubletree or Tower Hill tube any commuter uses the Cooper's Row entrance to Fenchurch Street

It does boil down to personal opinion but I disagree that a hotel by the Tower of London is better for tourist sites than one in Victoria. The Victoria area is much better for Westminster, the West End for theatres, shops and restaurants, South Kensington for the museums…..

The sites in London are spread out so no one area is the best and public transport means you can get to where you need to go reasonably easily.

If being near Fenchurch Street station is the priority then the hotel nearby does make sense but staying near Victoria shouldn’t be too much of a problem. You could easily get a cab/Uber to Fenchurch Street for the train. Or there might be a suitable coach service from Victoria Coach Station that will take you straight to the docks?

I would not switch hotels to the Doubletree Tower of London if you're staying over the weekend. As BillS719 said, the area is very quiet on weekends. And, IMO, that is an understatement.

If you're planning to take public transportation and not a car service/taxi to the cruise terminal, the Doubletree Tower of London would be worth considering.

@frankII, would you be able to give me the name of a car service I can look into?
@emma, it seems like only other cruises have coach service to the cruise terminal. Viking doesn’t.
Were familiar with taking trains so we’re ok with that, but if there is a more direct route at a comparable cost, we’ll be glad to consider it!
Lots to chew through but glad I did this ahead of time? Thanks everyone.

Blackberry Cars is often recommended on this forum for private transfers:

https://www.blackberrycars.com/

Thank you Mary!

The bus ride down from Tilbury Town Station to the Terminal is only 2 minutes from the London side, 17 minutes from the Southend side (but only because the bus waits at Asda for 10 minutes- 7 minutes actually travelling).
Coming back is 10 minutes to the Southend side because the bus does a circuit of the town.

They are used to carrying people with luggage, it is a well used service by cruise passengers, although many cruisers choose to walk down- it's that close. Maybe 10 to 15 minutes. Many walk down the Dock Road- I prefer to come out the Southend side into Tilbury, then over the Skew Bridge back to the Dock Road.

Driving time, on a Sunday afternoon is shown as 1 hour 15 minutes, slower on a weekday, and no faster (probably slower) than the train. It's Hobson's choice whether a car would use the Dartford Crossing, or the A13 on the north side. Neither is a great route.

Thanks for the bus info from the town station. Did not know of that option. How do I find the London route vs the Southend route bus?

https://www.ensignbus.com/uploads/1/5/6/5/15657682/ensignbus_99_08-24.pdf

Dock Road is the Southend bound side of the station, St Andrew's Road is the London bound side of the station. There are lifts/elevators up to the bridge between the platforms, and down the other side.