We are flying into Heathrow on a Tues. morn at 8 am. We will take transport into Paddington Station and then the train to Bath. I wish to purchase advance tickets to Bath as I see how much less they cost then waiting until we arrive. But I don't know how much time to allow getting through customs at the airport to guess at a time for a train ticket to Bath. Any thoughts?
Posted by
St Paul
138 posts
We have gone through Heathrow twice in the past 9 months, June and February. It has taken approximately 30 minutes to get through immigration. Of course, it depends on your seat placement in the plane, your speed walking and then the number of planes coming in at that time. Allow more time to collect your baggage and then to purchase any tickets needed for travel out of the airport. We are generally on the tube to London in an hour. Better to allow more time so you aren't stressed. Good luck! P.S. We landed at noon.
Posted by
2081 posts
hi, fwiw, on all of my travels last year, i wasnt delayed. But on all of my xfer points, i allowed 1 or 2 hours jic of any issues. the down time allowed me to gt my plans in order and to chill and chow down if necessary. just an fyi, according to RS book, there is a direct bus to bath from heathrow for approx 20 pounds and trip duration of 2~3 hours. its from my 2010 book so you may want to check for any changes if youre interested. would save you time from backtracking. happy trails
Posted by
Virginia, USA
5516 posts
JoAnn, It is hard to predict. If everything goes smoothly you could be at Paddington 2 hours after landing. On the other hand, if your flight is delayed or you encounter a long queue for immigration it could be much longer. When you buy your train ticket, I would suggest that you read the terms of the ticket very carefully. Some of the tickets are limited to a specific time whereas others are more flexible. Hopefully someone more familiar with the various categories of train tickets (Nigel, Tim) can make a recommendation.
Posted by
OP
Hickory, NC, USA
6 posts
Thanks so much for your posts. Since our plane is landing in the morning I'll assume there will be a long line for customs. Now my husband is thinking he would rather take the bus to Bath, as we could perhaps have no transfers to make. So that changes everything.
Posted by
Tel Aviv
15582 posts
The last time I flew into Heathrow, passport control was pretty quick, but then there was a long delay getting the luggage. And that was after my flight was delayed for 5+ hours because of a mechanical problem. Since then, I am leery of buying non-refundable tickets.
Posted by
OP
Hickory, NC, USA
6 posts
I think you are right. I'm rethinking my plan to purchase train tickets before the trip and will likely just get a bus to Bath when we arrive at Heathrow.