Travel Manchester / Liverpool / London.

I can't recall anyone here recommending driving a rental car in London.

Tom,

Using a rental car would be the worst option IMO, as it will add to the travel times. I've found that travel by car always takes longer than planned, especially in the U.K.

Manchester is a good choice for inbound flights. It's a smaller airport and quite easy to get around.

For transportation you might have a look at www.nationalexpress.com for Bus or Train options. The website indicates you can board a Bus at Manchester Airport for travel to Liverpool, and travel times are as short as 50 minutes (depending on which Bus is used).

For travel from Liverpool to London, rail would be my choice. Using the same website with Liverpool Central and London Victoria as the stations, the travel time shown was as short as 2H:52M.

I tend to use rental cars "strategically" to reach places that aren't well served by public transit. However, in this case there are good transit options, so a car shouldn't be necessary.

Happy travels!

If you are just ding city stuff you won't need a car.
Manchester -London by trian can be horriffically expensive, pre book.
You could also consider going via Sheffield, its only £4 prebooked (Northern trains)train fare, its a scenic route through the national park, and prebooked fares Sheff-London can be had from £12
If you hit megatrain, Sheff-London can be about £13 return.Theres even fares soemtimes of £1 if booked far enough out.

I visit Man at least 2-3 times a year on business, and once there, I go rail any where else. Usually, if going to London, do Virgin, and intercity to Liverpool.

If you do fly into London you may be able to get a cheap flight to Liverpool?.

Train from London - Liverpool takes approx 2hrs 10mins but be warned: If you travel on a Sunday anywhere in UK by rail be prepared for delays due to engineering works.

• Not Recommended. :-)

Note that the station at Liverpool where the London trains arrive is Lime Street - Not Central. There's about a 10 - 15 min walk between the 2 stations (Prob a bit more if you are new to the area and have luggage)

Booking 3 months in advance for the train can save a fortune. I always travel 2nd class but I managed to get a 1st class ticket for £15 one way last year and that included a few glasses of "House Red" and a tasy sandwich and fruit thrown in....Not sure about the term "1st class" more like "1.5 class"

Manchester to Liverpool by car: Anywhere between 1 - 1.5 hrs depending on your knowledge of the UK roads and the time of day.

Best go by coach (Bus) or train but try to keep away from peak times.

The UK trains in my humble opinion can be great (albeit expensive) when you are not travelling in rush hour or on a Sunday - Why is it that in Rush Hour everything stands still?

Have a great time in Liverpool - How long are you planning to stay?

Gary

Walk up fares for longer train routes are very expensive. If you book well in advance at www.eastcoast.co.uk, you can get a fare as low as £11 for direct trains from Liverpool to London. Those tickets are for a specific departure date and time and are non-exchangeable and non-refundable. The furthest advance booking date is shown on the right-hand side of the home page. The site accepts US credit cards.