Please sign in to post.

Heathrow to London

Hello
I have 9 hr layover in Heathrow and like to know if Uber able to drive me through major London sites then return to Heathrow ? If not, is there another mode of transportation that can accommodate quick site tour

Thank you

Posted by
1414 posts

Just take the tube. It'll get you pretty much anywhere in London you'd want to go, and likely much quicker (and certainly far less expensively) than Uber. The Transport for London smartphone app will help you navigate the system.

Posted by
672 posts

The only mode of transport you need is the tube or possibly Elizabeth Line, unless you want to spend an absolute fortune and hours in traffic.

Where exactly in London do you want to see? Its a very big city.

Posted by
9064 posts

Driving through Central London is usually the slowest way to get anywhere and you have limited time.

I view your timeline as follows (assumes landing on time with full 9 hour layover)

45 minutes: This is how long it might take to deplane, walk to passport control, make it through the egates and get to either the train or tube.
Getting to Central London Options:
1. 15-30 minutes Heathrow Express (gets you to Paddington) either take taxi, tube, or Uber on to first desired location. Buy as far in advance as possible to save money.
2. Approx 1 hour (Elizabeth Line or the Piccadilly Line) from Heathrow to Central London.

So you can plan on arriving at your first site about 2 hours after landing. You will need to leave to go back to the airport and check in about 4 hours prior to your flight. This leaves you with 3 solid hours for sightseeing.

You can pick 1 (perhaps 2 if close) major sites to explore in that amount of time. You need to ask yourself what is the most important site that you want to see while in London?

Just a friendly reminder that you will need to get an UK ETA in advance if you haven't already done so.

Posted by
1414 posts

I like to see London bridge

Check to be sure you don't mean Tower Bridge. Many people - even some of my British collegues - confuse the two.

The tube will bring you to Westminster (Big Ben - you probaly mean the Elisabeth Tower) fast and cheap - at least cheaper than Uber. But Uber/ThamesClippers might be a good way to go from Westminster to Tower.

You can use a contactless card for the whole trip. No need to buy tickets or local cards.

https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/ can help you plan the details, but on the ground the app is better - or use CityMapper app or Google Maps.

Posted by
8708 posts

You could do Heathrow Express (book like now to get the best fares, cheaper that way than the Elizabeth Line) to Paddington, then taxi to Westminster via Marble Arch, Hyde Park Corner, Park Lane, then through Whitehall, down Fleet Street, past St Paul's and to Tower Bridge then back via Holborn, past the British Museum, down Oxford Street and back to Paddington).
You need to be back at Heathrow two hours before for short haul, three for long haul.
So if the inbound is on time you should have about three, maybe a touch more, useable hours in central London.

Posted by
9114 posts

You do realize that you have to go through passport control / immigration to enter the country, then through security on the way back. All of that eating up hours of your layover time. It takes a minimum of an hour to get to the center, not counting the walking time to get to the tube stations and to and from the sights. And not counting standing in line at the sights if you actually want to go in.

Posted by
9064 posts

I agree that you are probably talking about the Tower Bridge vs. London Bridge. It is not located that close to Westminster where you would see the Houses of Parliment (Big Ben). I think you might benefit from focusing your time and efforts on Westminster where you can walk by Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace easily in your time frame.