I just did a little looking around on the Heathrow Express website. I have not taken it the past two years (possibly three) because I took the Elizabeth Line to Paddington. I found it to be a very easy trip.
However, I'm noticing that booking the HEX this far in advance is 10 pounds, while the Tube is over 10. I always thought taking the HEX was more expensive than any other train.
Can anyone shed some light on this? Thanks!!
The cheaper rate for a ticket bought well-ahead has been in place for a number of years...maybe even before Covid? To me it's only advantageous if you are staying somewhere nearby Paddington or someplace that it's easy to get to from there.
In recent years, I've taken a cab from Paddington to Lambeth. I'm usually so exhausted I can't deal with the Tube for the last leg of the journey.
If you book in advance, usually 30 days or more, yes Heathrow Express is £10.
If you happen to have a National rail card you get a further 33% reduction.
After the 30 day deadline and on the day it's full price, of £25.
If going on by tube to elsewhere in Zone 1 and doing no other trips that day then the added tube ticket still works out cheaper than an Elizabeth Line fare.
But Heathrow Express doesn't count towards your daily or weekly TfL cap.
The essential reason is that the Elizabeth Line has a substantial premium within its price to use the airport tunnel, otherwise it would either be the tube fare from Heathrow or an even cheaper standard zone 6 fare. A mayoral decision to help pay the cost of the Elizabeth Line construction, and generally balance TfL books.
Even a tube fare from Heathrow is higher than it should be due to an airport premium fare.
I thought I remembered you stayed in the Lambeth area. Have you ever considered the National Express coach to Victoria Coach station? It's too far to walk from there to Lambeth especially after an overnight flight and with luggage but the taxi ride might be shorter and a marginally smaller fare. At the coach station at Heathrow the driver puts your luggage under the bus and you hop on. It's an express so no stops in between.
Thanks for explaining all this. I might just go for the advanced HEX ticket.
I have taken the National Express from Gatwick to Heathrow and found it to be an easy ride. hadn't considered taking it from LHR to Victoria Station--I'm going to look into that. Thank you!
I rarely sleep on my overnight flight LAX to LHR. I’ll doze. Once the flight lands all I want to do is quickly get into London and check in to my accomodation
Thus I always book the 15 minute ride on the Heathrow Express. Works for me as I’m not one to dawdle. That and I book my accommodation in the Paddington neighborhood at 3 months in advance.
Been doing this for years. Accomdation is near the Lancaster Gate Tube Station. Across the road is Hyde Park and the Serpentine.
IMHO Routine defuses any unexpected issue.
“hadn't considered taking it from LHR to Victoria Station--I'm going to look into that.”
Do note that the coach station is a block or so from Victoria Train station and the Tube station is at the end of Victoria Station away from the coach station. The Coach arrivals area faces onto Elizabeth Street. There is a taxi stand right outside the coach arrivals door on Eccleston Place. GoogleMaps is not showing me the correct location for the coach arrivals. It is right beside the Travellers Tavern, lol. I have often stayed at the Lime Tree Hotel which is right around the corner on Ebury Street so this is familiar territory for me.
National Express, even as a turn up and go ticket, is almost always less than a Heathrow Express advance ticket and several £ cheaper than the Elizabeth Line, maybe more after next March when TfL fares go up.
The wise Nat Ex user sets up a free account beforehand, then books the next bus on their device when through the airport, to save on booking fees, especially the fee of using the ticket machines.
At least officially you can't buy tickets from Heathrow on the bus.
The only thing is that most NatEx departures are from the Central Bus Station at Terminals 2/3, with a somewhat less frequent (although still pretty good) direct service from Terminal 5.
There can be odd pricing quirks, for instance at 0855 this morning there are two scheduled non stop (except for Central Bus Station) services- the #032 (started at Southampton) costing £10.50 and the #025 (started at Worthing, via Brighton and Gatwick) costing £8.90. I would check the vehicle trackers for both routes and if both were running on time then the #025 is the right choice!
The 025 is scheduled to take 10 minutes longer, but that's just schedule padding. If both are on time and non stop they will arrive at Victoria at the same time!
This morning, as I write at 0817 I see that the 032 at 0855 is 15 minutes early, and the 025 is 11 minutes early, so both will sit at Terminal 5 waiting time.
