Transportation

[azgrandmax3]

Has anyone used a private shuttle service to get from Heathrow to Southampton? 

[emeraldlake]

Blackberry cars.  Used them from Southampton to Heathrow.

[Diver2014]

We used National Express.  Not private but not expensive either!

[Thrak]

In 2019 we pooled with 2 (3?) other couples from our roll call. One of them booked the transportation through British Airport Transfer. The cost at that time was GBP £147.96. The van met us at the airport and took us to the Premier Inn Hotel in Southampton. They handled the luggage.

 

www.british-airport-transfer.com

 

 

 

[Rick&Jeannie]

1 hour ago, emeraldlake said:

Blackberry cars.  Used them from Southampton to Heathrow.

Blackberry is EXCELLENT.  I have never used them for that long of a run, though I did get a quote just recently for that.  We use them all the time for airport/hotel runs any time we are in London.  They will be a bit pricey but you will not find better or more professional service.

[Thrak]

1 hour ago, Thrak said:

In 2019 we pooled with 2 (3?) other couples from our roll call. One of them booked the transportation through British Airport Transfer. The cost at that time was GBP £147.96. The van met us at the airport and took us to the Premier Inn Hotel in Southampton. They handled the luggage.

 

www.british-airport-transfer.com

 

Quoting my own post as I failed to state that the price listed above was for a maximum of 8 people and their luggage. We split that fare among the various couples who used this transfer.

[Lady Arwen]

We’ve used Blackberry and London Cars.  Both very good service.  Nice, clean cars and personable, professional drivers.  So nice after a long flight to have a car waiting for you.

[Paula_MacFan]

1 hour ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Blackberry is EXCELLENT.  I have never used them for that long of a run, though I did get a quote just recently for that.  We use them all the time for airport/hotel runs any time we are in London.  They will be a bit pricey but you will not find better or more professional service.

Thanks for the tip!  We're planning our fall trip and I've been stumped on the best option for Heathrow to hotel.  We're spending several days in London prior to our cruise from Southampton.  

[nini]

We booked with two other couples for our transfer from Southampton to LHR; using BlackBerry Cabs.

[nini]

2 hours ago, Paula_MacFan said:

Thanks for the tip!  We're planning our fall trip and I've been stumped on the best option for Heathrow to hotel.  We're spending several days in London prior to our cruise from Southampton.  

We used Blackberry Cabs for that transfer. We could not have had a better driver!

[Knickearth]

We don’t do things the easy way.  We went from Southampton to Clapton Junction via train.  We could have opted to go to the airport also.  Yes, we had full luggage from the transatlantic cruise.

[Paula_MacFan]

23 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Blackberry is EXCELLENT.  I have never used them for that long of a run, though I did get a quote just recently for that.  We use them all the time for airport/hotel runs any time we are in London.  They will be a bit pricey but you will not find better or more professional service.

 

Dumb question -- do you tip the driver on a pre-paid transfer in London? I looked online elsewhere and found conflicting advice.  If so, do you obtain local currency in advance to tip in cash?  This is our first trip to London so I am learning -- thought I'd ask you since you mentioned you've used them many times.  Thanks! 🙂 

[Rick&Jeannie]

36 minutes ago, Paula_MacFan said:

 

Dumb question -- do you tip the driver on a pre-paid transfer in London? I looked online elsewhere and found conflicting advice.  If so, do you obtain local currency in advance to tip in cash?  This is our first trip to London so I am learning -- thought I'd ask you since you mentioned you've used them many times.  Thanks! 🙂 

Yes, I usually do tip those drivers...especially because it is "pre-paid".  They may very well get a portion of the payment (hopefully they do...) but I refuse to believe that a "cash in hand" tip is not appreciated.  For a hotel/airport run I usually tip £10.  Admittedly not a lot...but I've never had it refused or "looked down on".

[Paula_MacFan]

41 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Yes, I usually do tip those drivers...especially because it is "pre-paid".  They may very well get a portion of the payment (hopefully they do...) but I refuse to believe that a "cash in hand" tip is not appreciated.  For a hotel/airport run I usually tip £10.  Admittedly not a lot...but I've never had it refused or "looked down on".

Thanks for the feedback. Now I need to figure out getting some pounds before we leave. Was hoping we could use our cards for most expenses while in London. Our cruise is visiting 9 countries and only 3 of them use Euros so I hope we don't need bunch of different currencies.

[Rick&Jeannie]

1 minute ago, Paula_MacFan said:

Thanks for the feedback. Now I need to figure out getting some pounds before we leave. Was hoping we could use our cards for most expenses while in London. Our cruise is visiting 9 countries and only 3 of them use Euros so I hope we don't need bunch of different currencies.

You could just visit a local ATM if you don't want to have to deal with it before you leave.  My particular bank charges a rather poor exchange rate in addition to a handling fee.  And I have to order at least $200 dollars worth of whatever foreign currency I'm wanting.  I *should* try to do more with my card...but I just like the feeling that I can be "flexible" should the situation dictate.

[Paula_MacFan]

3 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

You could just visit a local ATM if you don't want to have to deal with it before you leave.  My particular bank charges a rather poor exchange rate in addition to a handling fee.  And I have to order at least $200 dollars worth of whatever foreign currency I'm wanting.  I *should* try to do more with my card...but I just like the feeling that I can be "flexible" should the situation dictate.

I'd have to rely on an ATM at the airport to have pounds in hand for the car pickup. I'll do some more research in the meantime. Thanks again for your input and quick response 🙂

 

[Rick&Jeannie]

Just now, Paula_MacFan said:

I'd have to rely on an ATM at the airport to have pounds in hand for the car pickup. I'll do some more research in the meantime. Thanks again for your input and quick response 🙂

 

I cannot say for sure...but I would be surprised if they refused American $ as a tip.  While they might have to make a special run to their bank to handle it they would probably still accept it.  But then again...you don't want to "inconvenience" them for the sake of a tip.  I'm just sharing what I usually do...you will very likely get others that will say that no tip is needed.  I try not to perpetuate the myth of being a "snooty American" and tip where appropriate.

 

You might ask this same question over on the Ports of Call forums (British Isles) to get different viewpoints.

[nini]

10 hours ago, Paula_MacFan said:

 

Dumb question -- do you tip the driver on a pre-paid transfer in London? I looked online elsewhere and found conflicting advice.  If so, do you obtain local currency in advance to tip in cash?  This is our first trip to London so I am learning -- thought I'd ask you since you mentioned you've used them many times.  Thanks! 🙂 

We tipped our BlackBerry cab drivers- in cash of THEIR currency. We always get the proper currency before we leave home - you order it from your bank. If you get it there or on the ship, it will cost more.

[Rick&Jeannie]

8 hours ago, nini said:

We tipped our BlackBerry cab drivers- in cash of THEIR currency. We always get the proper currency before we leave home - you order it from your bank. If you get it there or on the ship, it will cost more.

Count yourself very lucky as far as your bank's policy is concerned!  It is WAY more expensive through our local bank.  Foreign currency has to be "ordered" from a larger city (usually Atlanta) and ours has a hefty "processing fee" tacked on.  You have to really get a LOT for that fee to be minimized as a percentage of the total.  If you have a credit card that does not charge foreign transaction fees (getting more common) then you can just hit a local ATM and get just what you need.  Everybody has to make their own plans...there is not a "one size fits all" answer when it comes to this.  (Just my opinion!)

[Catchum]

17 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

I cannot say for sure...but I would be surprised if they refused American $ as a tip.  While they might have to make a special run to their bank to handle it they would probably still accept it.  But then again...you don't want to "inconvenience" them for the sake of a tip.  I'm just sharing what I usually do...you will very likely get others that will say that no tip is needed.  I try not to perpetuate the myth of being a "snooty American" and tip where appropriate.

 

You might ask this same question over on the Ports of Call forums (British Isles) to get different viewpoints.

US Dollars in the UK can be changed at Banks, Travel agents etc. BUT at a significant loss - especially for small amounts. Just like your bank charges you for buying pounds.  Withdraw what you need from an ATM at the airport in local currency - yes it will cost a bit but in general travellers can afford the exchange fee much more comfortably than your driver.

[nini]

58 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Count yourself very lucky as far as your bank's policy is concerned!  It is WAY more expensive through our local bank.  Foreign currency has to be "ordered" from a larger city (usually Atlanta) and ours has a hefty "processing fee" tacked on.  You have to really get a LOT for that fee to be minimized as a percentage of the total.  If you have a credit card that does not charge foreign transaction fees (getting more common) then you can just hit a local ATM and get just what you need.  Everybody has to make their own plans...there is not a "one size fits all" answer when it comes to this.  (Just my opinion!)

 

Wow! That is too bad about your bank. We also have our credit card that does not charge us if and when we go to any ATM on the planet. However, we wanted to be prepared for when we landed and not have to search for an ATM machine while our transfer was waiting. If we had been late, then he may have had to cancel. We did not have to pay a percentage fee at our bank... we are just in a tiny town on the Washington state coast.

Also, AAA also now charges for the foreign cash exchange.