Cotswold Eagle

That seems quite optimistic....

Regarding formalities, if you are US citizens you will not require a visa to visit Germany and your trip in October 2023 will be before the introduction of the ETIAS travel authorisation scheme, so it will be very easy. You will of course pass through an immigration and customs control on entry from the U.K. You could book your travel as an open-jaw ticket (US- London Berlin-US) and add a separate London-Berlin flight, which as mentioned are plentiful and usually quite cheap, or a multi-city trip taking in all the flights. I am tempted to ask “Why Berlin?”, but I recognise that people may have deeply personal reasons to visit. I find it an endlessly fascinating city, with some world class museums (and, I am told, amazing nightlife), but also in part gritty and challenging, particularly a lot of the 20th century history, of course. But I doubt it would be near my top ten destinations for a first European trip, to be honest.

You should have plenty of time, although “safe” is an absolute that is impossible to give 😀 National Express have services directly from T5. After you exit airside into the public arrivals hall, leave the terminal building through the way out directly in front of you, passing between the lifts for the car park. There are numerous numbered bus stands on the roads outside (it is still under cover) - National Express use 11-15, which will be to the left on the first road, so no need to cross any.

It is perfectly possible to walk, but the hotel is attached to T2. The official connection route is via the underground walkway that connects T2 and T3 with the various transport options, such as the station. This will be step free and pretty much level (from memory). I have no mobility issues and would expect to walk that in 10-15 minutes, if that helps. It should be possible to do it a ground level, but on the busy and confusing roads in Heathrow Central, which are not primarily designed for pedestrian use. I would not recommend this. There is a hotel inside T3, the Aerotel, which would be more convenient for you.

Is this on the Saturday for your tour to the Cotswolds - in which case do you mean the coach station? The railway and tube stations are very close to the affected area and will be busy (they usually remain open during State occasions). In the past, including the Queen’s funeral, the coach station has closed, because of the logistics of getting vehicles in and out of the area.

Other than the date, there are no other confirmed details as yet. Very difficult to plan at this stage, unless a venue already gives specific information, such as the performance mentioned by Globaliser. But for now, do not take lack of notification as meaning there will be none. Things will change. Important to consider the impact in central London and the rest of the country separately. There will be extensive disruption around the event (so the Westminster area surrounding the Abbey and Buckingham Palace), with road closures, other transport disruption, such as closed stations, and restricted access (some areas may be ticketed) and large crowds. London generally absorbs large events very well, but this is literally a once in a generation occasion. Elsewhere, there will not be the “mark of respect “ aspect that accompanied the late Queen’s funeral, but there will be local celebrations such as street parties and it is likely that some (who knows how many) businesses will close or limit their services so that their staff can at least watch the events of the day. Public transport will be running. I would expect Royal sites across the U.K. to be closed. For now, I would be reconfirming hotel reservations and any already made arrangements. Make other plans, but keep in mind that they may change. Keep checking back!

I am very happy that you had a good experience, but I fear you may be setting expectations too high for others! The days of railway porters with luggage carts for passengers are long gone on British railways and many stations do not even have luggage trolleys or any platform staff. Did you book (or ask for) assisted travel - this is generally for passengers with mobility issues, not just large amounts of luggage? As an aside 12 bags between two passengers (which I understand you had) would exceed the limit allowed under the National Rail Conditions of Travel, which is three items per traveller and which you are normally expected to be able to manage without additional help. I don't think I have ever seen this enforced, but staff would be entitled not to assist in such circumstances, A few additional details of your great experience would, I'm sure, be helpful for others.

Pretty simple to London (Marylebone Station), but I think only one (early morning) direct train from Stratford-upon-Avon these days. Most services require a change at Leamington Spa and take just over 2 to 2-and-a-half hours. To LHR considerably more fiddly - a short tube ride to Paddington from Marylebone, and a train to LHR from there is probably best off the top of my head.

There are gates at 13 airports in the UK now: Birmingham, East Midlands, London City, Luton, Stansted, Heathrow, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol, Cardiff and Gatwick Airport And at the Eurostar terminals in Paris and Brussels for the inbound controls.

Looking at both the 10th and 17th, this seems to be because of engineering work (or the possibility of engineering work), which is common for weekends. The xx.28 services are usually direct, as you will see from searching other Saturdays.

Thanks for pointing this out. Bits of it used to be, but apparently it closed completely earlier this year as part of a multi-year transformation into a "visitor attraction", opening in 2025.