Customs

It's really hard to guess. I've walked through in an hour and I've taken over 2. If the flight you arrive on is full of EU passengers you'll get to go faster, but I was in the Non-EU line with 3/4+ of the plane. Then there is waiting for your luggage which usually is waiting for you after the passport check. If you are trying to plan something away from the airport I'd give 3 hours for transport and other hold ups, just in case.

It will vary; Heathrow is busier than Gatwick, in my opinion. I would allow 1-2 hours for customs.

I've been to Heathrow three times and it has taken five minutes, 90 minutes and 30 minutes. It depends on how you time it. You should be arriving after the morning rush of transatlantic flights so you might get lucky, but Heathrow is so busy you never know.

We will be carrying on our bags, so we don't have to worry about that. I guess the trains don't need to be reserved anyway, we will just be taking one to Bath that afternoon. Thanks everyone!

Hi Jenny, on any of my trips to the UK, it has never taken me longer then an hour to get thru customs and get my luggage. You should plan on an hour, but it will probably be less.

The wait is not on getting your luggage, the wait is on how long the line is at the passport check. I have never had to wait more than two to three minutes for bags at LHR.

It really varies depending on flights before you and arrival terminal. If you happen to arrive after several 747s from non EU countries, it will take a while. I usually find terminal 3 to have the longest line. For me it has taken anywhere from 10 minutes to more than an hour, but usually passport control is pretty efficient.

The bigger problem with Heathrow is that often your landing is delayed due to the air traffic.