My sister and I will be flying into Heathrow, staying one night in London and taking the train to Bath the next day. We'll stay in Bath one night and then take the train to Penzance and stay three nights. Then take the train to London and stay one night before leaving for home. I know that I can get train tickets in advance but if I purchase tickets online, will I just pick them up in London for all three train trips? And can they be picked up at any station? We've been to London before but haven't taken the train out of London before. We would like to stay in the Bloomsbury or South Kensington area and need to find a B&B or hotel in the $100-150 range. Is that possible? Also, we want to visit Hampton Court. How would we get there from London, by train or tube? Thanks.
Posted by
London, United Kingdom
4684 posts
You should be able to pick the tickets up at any large station, but if you're worried you can get the Heathrow Express or Connect train to Paddington when you arrive and pick up the tickets then. You'll leave from Paddington for Bath and Penzance. For Hampton Court you need to get the train from Waterloo station in central London. It's only included in a Travelcard if you get one with all six zones, so you'll either need to do that, use Oyster pay-as-you-go, or simply buy a ticket from Waterloo.
Posted by
OP
Tijeras, New Mexico, USA
25 posts
Thanks so much for the info, it helped a lot. I tend to be a worry wart, so the more I know, the better I feel.
Posted by
Chicago
792 posts
I have an itinerary similar to yours. I booked the tickets online and then will use the credit card to pick them up at the station. According to the website, it is cheaper to buy tickets in advance online. A thought- there is a national express bus that leaves from Heathrow and goes to Bath. It is a shorter trip than the train- I think 1 1/2 hours. If you haven't booked hotels yet, maybe consider going directly to Bath. It may cut down on your back and forth.