driving from Heathrow

The Cotswolds and vicinity is a fairly largish area, reachable easily by motorway, either the M40 or the M4.

Heathrow has its tunnel and motorway entrance onto the M4.

Where are you going first after you arrive? If I know where you are going I may be able to give a hint or two.

Don't forget about Oxford, in the vicinity but not officially in the Cotswolds.

I agree with your husband's friends - Heathrow is not a great place to start out after flying all night plus not being used to driving on the left. I've taken the bus to Oxford several times to get the rental car - it's just a safer way to begin the trip.

You will be fine, I would get on A4 (close to the airport) which would take you to the Cotswolds. Of course you could take M4 (the interstate) but you would miss seeing a lot.

Driving straight after flying is the biggest worry. However the traffic is not too bad since you'll be out of central London. As an Australian who has driven in the US, I am used to driving on the left and I found in the US that it was easier on the freeways since I was just following all the other traffic. It is on the quiet roads with no other traffic that you have remind yourself which side of the road to drive on.

I have driven from Heathrow quite a few times. Think LEFT and it is no problem. You can hop on the motorway right out of the airport. Think about this - if you take a bus somewhere to rent a car you then have return the car to that rental agency unless you make other arrangements. Also, renting a car off the airport is usually from an agency that has more limited hours. That is a pretty inefficient use of time. When I am done with a trip I want to return the car as close to the airport as possible.

Whether it makes sense to drive from the airport will also depend on the time of day. Plenty of people living near Heathrow do drive into and out of London for work, so the roads will probably be jammed during the peak hours. I think this is what your husband's London friends may have been referring to.

Putting aside being tired after the flight, the biggest problem driving away from Heathrow might just be getting out of the airport successfully. The place is big and often confusing.

Oxford is a busy city of around 170,000, so driving there is comparable to driving around Heathrow. i don't think you'd gain much on the traffic stress front.

If your plans include spending a night someplace before heading out to see the Cotswolds, then you might want to consider taking the bus to Oxford, or somewhere else, and picking up the rental the next morning.If nothing else you'll save a day's car expenses.

I am totally worried now!! We are planning to go into Heathrow at the end of August and spend about 18 days in the UK. I have never been on a train in my life and can't remember when I was last on a bus. I live in rural Maryland and we don't use anything but our car. I thought we could fly into the airport get a car and start sightseeing. I was told you can't drive a car into London because of the congestion fines. I have scoured the internet looking for bus stations and rail stations. I almost don't want to go on the trip. Plus, I begged my husband who has never flown to fly 7 hours his first time. If this trip goes horribly wrong, he will never leave Maryland again. Is is as bad out of the city? I thought we could just drive to whatever sights we want to see.
Pam
Frazzled in MD

Pamela: Probably better that you get accurate advice, so that your husband knows what to expect. I can't remember anyone on this site recommending driving in London. A few travelers have done it, but don't generally admit it :), and don't do it again.

If your husband has no experience driving in the UK, and you start him off driving in London, he's not likely to be a happy camper after the first day.

In London, people here walk, take taxis, take the Tube, or buses.

Outside of London, some travelers choose to drive. However, some US and Canadian travelers without experience driving on the left side and shifting gears with the left hand (rental cars are virtually all manual gear shift in the UK), do find driving there to be, well, not the relaxed and obvious choice that renting a car is in the US or Canada.

Elizabeth and Pamela, If two old ladies from Washington State can do it so can you. We arrived at LHR, took the shuttle to our car (equiped with GPS of course)rental agency, pluged in the address of our B&B near Salisbury and off we went. There were some reminders to keep left but even more to watch the curb on the left side. It really is not hard. On returning we dropped our car at the rental agency, the shuttle back to the airport and took a taxi to our B&B. There is no reason to drive into London and I also do not remember anyone on this site recommending that you do.

Pamela and Elizabeth,
I too had never ridden a train/bus prior to going to the UK for the first time more than 20 years ago. Hubby and I found we LOVE the freedom of NOT having to drive,park, find a gas station (and gas /petrol is soooo very expensive in the UK). Trains and buses are easy to use in the UK. We mostly use the trains and have found this site very helpful

http://www.rail.co.uk/

In London we use the Tube (the color coded map is great) and walk alot. In Scotland we have occassionally use buses for local travel, especially in the highlands.

Feel free to private message me. Don't stress over this-- it really is a non-issue for us.

We're back from our trip! We rented the car at Heathrow with our GPS and off we went to the Cotswolds, York, the Lake District, and Edinburgh. The GPS, which we named Fiona, saved our trip and possibly our marriage. Don't leave home without it. Thanks for all the advice!