Globaliser

To your hotel, it'll be much easier to walk across Westminster Bridge than to walk around from Waterloo. With luggage, I think that the only line to Waterloo that makes sense is the Jubilee Line, using the exits to the street at that end of the station (to Waterloo Road) - this is because I think there's still no step-free exit from the other lines. But from the Jubilee Line exit at Waterloo, the various walking routes to your hotel are all a bit irritating, even without luggage.

No, that doesn't mean that you are comparing apples to apples. All it means is that you're comparing different fares that allow for the same number of bags. There are all sorts of other things that may yet be different between the fares - and possibly invisibly different, if you're trying to shortcut the selection process.

If you're all fit enough to take the Tube (which presumably you are if you've been researching it), what you actually need is the Piccadilly Line from Heathrow to Barons Court, then a cross-platform change (about 10 feet) to the District Line to Westminster. There is step-free exit from Westminster station. Then just walk across Westminster Bridge to the hotel. If you're travelling during the morning peak on a weekday, or in inclement weather, change at Hammersmith instead of Barons Court. The walk is about twice as long.

Although I think I prefer the non-animal saying in the UK about future weather: "Yes, we will be having some."

It sounds like you have a number of mutually inconsistent requirements. The only other thing that I can think of is to pick an on-airport hotel instead, so you have easier access to the facilities in the airport. That could get you out of the hotel restaurant, although I wouldn't be confident that the landside restaurants in the airport would really be any better.

I don't think it's possible to even guess whether it's a good option unless we have some idea of what you'd want for breakfast. For a first suggestion: At either hotel, you're practically next to Waterloo station - so if you don't want a hotel breakfast you can always walk in to the station and get something from the very many options there. Just like many commuters do, daily.

"Cheapest" is certainly a competition that National Express will often win, and is a big contributor to its passenger mix. So if that is of overriding importance, then it'll often be the winner.

Unless you have vast amounts of luggage (in which case you could exceed the baggage limitations for National Express), dealing with luggage on these trains isn't difficult. Millions of people travel on trains with their luggage, all over the country. It may sometimes require a bit of improvisation, but we're all doing that all the time.

I believe that trainline.com does usually charge a booking fee. For most purchasers, this means paying extra money in return for getting nothing extra over what one of the TOCs will give you.

I think this adds to the reasons for treating the TfL planner's results with some scepticism, although those of us who use it frequently see plenty of reasons already. For anyone with luggage, it's not a public transport route I'd recommend. The Elizabeth Line --> District Line change at Whitechapel is OK (although slightly irritating) if you don't have luggage. But if you do, don't do it, given that there's a better route for people with luggage: Piccadilly Line to Barons Court, cross-platform change, District Line to Tower Hill. Frankly, you could easily waste the best part of 10 minutes waiting for lifts at Whitechapel, especially with nine people and nine people's luggage. Funnily enough, I'm not sure that revenue actually enters into it (for TfL). AIUI, the Elizabeth Line premium is to pay for the use of the tunnel, which has to be paid over to Heathrow.

Yes, generally. Long-haul, at any rate. Short-haul international can be very different now.

More bluntly than markeb, I would say "please do not do this". You will only end up with a longer list of things and places that you actually have not seen; a drive-by photo of a building is no replacement for visiting it. As for your question about traffic, I will say only one thing: HOHO buses make London traffic worse than it would already otherwise be, at pretty much every time of the day that the HOHO buses operate.

All of the companies that you name are actually other National Rail train operating companies. Almost every fare on every National Rail service will be sold by any of these TOCs, and they don't charge booking fees. In addition, many/most of them will deliver the tickets to you as a PDF via email, so you don't even need to pick up physical tickets at the station. I personally buy more tickets via LNER than via any other TOC, but I do have accounts with Avanti and GWR too. FWIW, your spelling of "Southampton" is correct. This can help with searching.

Why? Apart from the element of backtracking in this route, one would have to negotiate the change at Whitechapel. With, presumably, all nine people's luggage. And pay the Elizabeth Line premium for the privilege.

But what you actually said was "to Southampton from London". It's true that train is a difficult option from Heathrow (which only just counts as London) - but this thread concerns all London transfers and different people planning different journeys will be reading it. Hence the clarification.

If you you have to clear customs at all, you'll have to clear customs when you disembark. Otherwise you'd be free to roam the Netherlands with uncleared goods. Very few countries require customs clearance on departure for normal air passengers. Immigration, of course, is a different kettle of fish.

From central London to Southampton, the train is dead easy, and (as so often the case) faster than road.

Do you have one ticket covering both flights, or do you have separate tickets? From what you say, I suspect that you will have a through ticket, but you will need to check this when you get the details. You need to check the 13-digit ticket number(s) that you're given. If you have a through ticket, and you're both arriving at and departing from Heathrow, then you do not need to clear immigration or customs at Heathrow, and you do not need to collect your bag. BA will through-check it on to the VS flight. When you get to Heathrow, you should be at Terminal 5. You need to follow the purple Flight Connections signs. You should be departing from Terminal 3, so when the signs become sufficiently specific, look for Flight Connections Terminal 3. These will take you to a bus stop, from where an airside bus will take you to T3. You will clear security there before you can go to the gate. (Do check the terminals nearer the time.) The published Minimum Connection Time is 1:30, at which the airlines still expect that most passengers will make the connection most of the time - so you have 35 minutes more than that.

It depends on whether you have one ticket covering both flights, or whether the two flights have been booked separately. It also depends on the London airport(s) that you're arriving at and departing from.

My first impression from these figures is that you may simply have to adjust your expectations of what is reasonable. London hotels are just really expensive at present. No hotels have shuttles from Heathrow (assuming that's the airport you're likely to fly to); they are banned by the airport. So far as the transfer is concerned, the cost is exacerbated by the fact that Southampton is a long way away from London. Otherwise, I would echo CruiserBruce's advice: there is a lot of information about all of this on this board already.

Some previous threads are available via this search. Some more, which may also have information of relevance, are available via this search.

As Harters says, you absolutely won't stick out. There are lots of reasons why people choose non-alcoholic drinks in pubs - either long-term, or on the day, or just that hour or round - so it's entirely normal. I often order non-alcoholic drinks for myself, and it's unusual for anyone to even notice that.

Tube: Piccadilly Line to Barons Court, a cross-platform change (a walk of about 10 feet), District Line to Victoria. Step-free at Heathrow, small steps between train and platform at Barons Court, step-free at Victoria (best to use an exit to the mainline station). You are then almost at the hotel's front door. The National Express coach takes you to Victoria Coach Station, which is about a third of a mile away from the hotel.

But (in theory) a train from Amsterdam to Brussels would work, and then you could change trains to get to London. Nevertheless, flying (esp to London City if you can) makes more sense anyway.

I don't think it's physically possible to feel the difference in flight, other than through already knowing that your seat is aft-facing.