Single Centre Self-guided Holidays

 

Travel Information

 

Nearest or recommended International Airports

London airports;  Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Dorset Coast, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, South Downs, River Thames, Cotswolds, Pembrokeshire Coast, Shropshire Hills, Derbyshire Dales, Hadrian’s Wall Country, Northumberland Coast, Scottish Borders

Cardiff Airport;  Pembrokeshire Coast 

Bristol Airport;  Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, Pembrokeshire

Exeter Airport;  Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor

Southampton Airport;  Dorset Coast, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex

Manchester Airport;  Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, Derbyshire Dales

Newcastle Airport;  Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast

Edinburgh Airport;  Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast 

Glasgow Airport;  Northern Lake District, Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast

Although we have detailed the most convenient airports against each destination one of the London airports could be used as the port of entry for any of the holidays, so the journey time from London to the closest railway station for all tours have been included in the list of typical journey times below.

 

Travel between various international airports and their nearest mainline railway station

Heathrow Airport
Guests travelling to destinations other than those detailed below will have to go into central London before embarking on the next leg of their journey. The Heathrow Express is a direct rail link Heathrow Central station and London Paddington railway station. Trains run every 15 minutes and the journey time ranges from 15 minutes for Terminals 1, 2 and 3, to 30 minutes for Terminal 4 and 5.

Guests travelling directly from Heathrow Airport to Cornwall, Exmoor, Devon, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, the Cotswolds and Pembrokeshire need not go into the centre of London. Instead they can take the Rail-Air Link bus from Heathrow Airport to Reading to intersect with the train travelling westwards out of London. The service departs every 30 minutes (every 20 minutes at peak times of day) and the journey time (from the furthest terminal) is 55 minutes.

Gatwick Airport
There is a railway station right in the heart of the airport complex and the Gatwick Express to London Victoria departs every 15 minutes. The journey takes 30 minutes (35 minutes on a Sunday).

Other airports in England
Manchester Airport
has its own mainline railway station. From Cardiff Airport there is a bus link to Cardiff Central Railway Station; journey time 25 minutes. From Bristol Airport there is a bus link to Bristol, Temple Meads Railway Station, journey time 30 minutes. Birmingham Airport is adjacent to Birmingham International Railway Station, and from Newcastle Airport there is a Metro Service to Newcastle Railway Station which takes 15 minutes.

Scottish airports
From Glasgow Airport there is a frequent coach service to central Glasgow which calls at Glasgow Central Railway Station (for links to stations in the north west of England) and Glasgow Queen Street Railway Station (for links to Edinburgh, the Scottish Borders and north east England). From Edinburgh Airport there is a continuous shuttle bus to Edinburgh Railway Station (for trains to the north east of England and the Scottish Borders); journey time 25 minutes.

 

Typical rail journey times

The journey times quoted below are for a typical train journey between the mainline railway station nearest to the recommended airport (central London stations in the case of Heathrow or Gatwick Airports) and the mainline railway station closest to the hotel at which the holiday is based. Where there is a change of train en route waiting times may vary so allowance should be made for this when planning your journey.

 

TOUR NEAREST
RAILWAY
STATION
APPROXIMATE RAIL
JOURNEY TIME
ONWARD TRAVEL
Far West of Cornwall  Penzance

5 hours 15 mins from London
3 hours 15 mins from Exeter

Bus or taxi
 
North Cornwall Bodmin Parkway

4 hours from London
1 hours 45 mins from Exeter

Bus or taxi
Cornwall's Lizard Peninsula  Redruth

5 hours mins from London
2 hours 30 mins from Exeter 

Bus or taxi 
South Devon Coast Totnes

3 hours 15 mins from London
45 mins from Exeter

Bus or taxi
Exmoor  Taunton 

2 hours from London
45 mins from Bristol
30 mins from Exeter 

Bus 
Dorset Wareham 

2 hours 15 mins from London
1 hour 15 mins from Southampton 

Bus or taxi 
West Wiltshire Downs  Warminster 

1 hours 45 mins from London
50 mins from Southampton 

Bus or taxi 
Ancient Landscapes of Wessex Swindon

1 hour from London
1 hour 20 mins from Southampton 

Bus or taxi 

South Downs 

Berwick (Sussex) 1 hour 40 mins from London 

Bus or taxi 

River Thames  Didcot Parkway  50 mins from London 

Bus or taxi 

Cotswolds 

Moreton-in-Marsh 

OR

Honeybourne

1 hour 35 mins from London 

 

1 hour 35 mins from London

Bus or Taxi

 

Pre-arranged taxi  

Pembrokeshire Coast, South  Tenby 

5 hours from London
3 hours 30 mins from Cardiff Airport 

Taxi or on foot
Pembrokeshire Coast, North  Haverfordwest 

5 hours from London
2 hours 30 mins from Cardiff 

Bus
Shropshire Hills

Craven Arms 

OR

Shrewsbury

3 hours from London  

 

2 hours 30 minutes from London

Community bus
or taxi 

Bus

Derbyshire Dales  Derby  1 hour 45 mins from London  Taxi, or bus to Ashbourne then taxi
Central Lake District  Windermere 

4 hours from London
2 hours from Manchester Airport 

Bus or taxi 
Northern Lake District 

Penrith 

 

3 hours 45 mins from London
2 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport
1 hour 45 mins from Glasgow

Bus or taxi 

Yorkshire's Northern Dales  Garsdale Head 

4 hours 30 mins from London
3 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport 

Bus or taxi 
Yorkshire's Limestone Dales   Settle 

4 hours from London
2 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport 

Taxi 
Hadrian's Wall Country  Hexham 

4 hours 15 mins from London
45 mins from Newcastle
2 hours 30 mins from Edinburgh
3 hours 15 mins from Glasgow 

Taxi or on foot
Northumberland Coast  Berwick-upon-Tweed 

4 hours 15 mins from London
45 mins from Newcastle
45 mins from Edinburgh 

Bus or taxi 
Scottish Borders Berwick-upon-Tweed or Tweedbank 

5 hours from London to Berwick-upon-Tweed

Alternatively, fly into Edinburgh and take train
directly from Edinburgh to Tweerdbank (1 mile from Melrose, OR fly into Glasgow and take train to Edinburgh and then train to Tweedbank

Bus

 

If you would like further advice on travel within the UK we are always willing to help, so please do contact us.

Specific train times are always sent with final joining details but can be made available earlier on request. The rail timetable for trains in Great Britain are rolled out online eight weeks prior to date of travel, although the rail companies do reserve the right to make further changes after than point, particularly if engineering works become necessary.

National Rail Enquiries have an excellent website with interactive timetable information.

 

 

 

 

Travel Information Quick Links

National Rail Enquiries for British train times and other rail-related information http://www.nationalrail.co.uk

BritRail Information on the British rail system, exclusively for the use of travellers from abroad seeking information prior to their arrival in Britain http://www.britrail.com

London Heathrow Airport http://www.heathrowairport.com

London Gatwick Airport http://www.gatwickairport.com

Manchester Airport http://www.manchesterairport.co.uk

Rail-Air Link timetables and information on coach transfer from Heathrow Airport to Reading railway station, for travel to the south West of England. http://www.railair.com

Heathrow Express for travel from the airport into central London https://www.heathrowexpress.com

Gatwick Express for travel from the airport into central London http://www.gatwickexpress.com

National Express for cross-country coach travel http://www.nationalexpress.com

The Automobile Association (The AA) for lots of information on British roads and travel/route planning, including mileage calculator http://www.theaa.com

GoEuro for door-to-door travelling planning within Europe http://www.goeuro.co.uk

Google Map http://maps.google.co.uk

 
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