Southampton to London via National Express

[herbanrenewal]

Anyone with experience arriving on TA from NYC to Southampton?? I'm planning on using National Express bus to London. How do I get from pier to bus station? Do I need to prebook bus or can I just get to bus station and catch next bus?

[Huntingdon1701]

It's possible to walk to the coach station in about 15-20 minutes if fit and with good wheeled luggage, but a taxi would be easier and can be picked up outside the cruise terminal. (Walking time depends a bit on which terminal you dock at.) https://www.accessable.co.uk/national-express/access-guides/southampton-coach-station#:~:text=The National Express Coach Station,are the M3 and M27.

 

The coaches are rarely full but booking ahead guarantees you a seat in the event you hit a busy day (weekends and football matches). You get a slight discount for the ticket if you set up a free account with them. If you don't then they have self serve kiosks at the station where you can get your ticket on the day. 

 

[dhanakorn]

We took the National Express bus from London to Southampton due to the train strike. The bus station is within the walking distance from the cruise terminal (about 15-20min) but it’ll be a little uphill from terminal to the bus station. 

 

Very nice and clean bus. Advanced booking is highly recommended so you can reserve the seat in the front rows. 
 

 

 

[The Traveling Man]

The bus does sometimes sell out.  It depends on the time of day, of course, with mid-morning buses from Southampton to Heathrow being quite full on days when a ship arrives in port.  You may be able to walk to the bus station, but with a load of luggage it probably will be worth it for you to take a taxi.

 

Be sure to allow enough time to debark the ship.  On a cruise on the Pr1ma last year, we allowed 90 minutes from the time we reached the debarkation deck until our scheduled bus departure.  Having been to Southampton previously, we thought it might actually take about 30 to 45 minutes, which we believed would leave us with 45 minutes to an hour to bide our time at the bus terminal.  The British customs / border patrol / immigration officer who was assigned to check the passports of the 3000 passengers on board certainly took his time to complete the task.  Yes, ONE officer for 3000 folks, so we finally arrived at the bus station just as our bus was pulling out.  The rules in place for the bus meant that they couldn't let us on after they had backed away from the terminal, so we tried to change our tickets to the next bus, scheduled for an hour later.  Unfortunately it was fully booked, so we would have to wait until about three hours after our originally scheduled departure.  That would have been too late for our flight, so we took a cab all the way to Heathrow.  Lesson learned.  Next time we will allow at least two hours, and probably more, to get from the ship to the bus in Southampton.

[Mike Senior]

Also be aware that you may need to pay for your luggage depending on number/size https://www.nationalexpress.com/en

[UKstages]

you can indeed take the coach (bus). and it looks like you are leaning that way.  

 

but i researched this extensively and found it much simpler to take the NCL transfer to heathrow and then take the tube into central london.  it's more expensive, to be sure, but sometimes, it's actually quicker. and there is nothing easier and more convenient than walking off the ship and going directly onto a waiting bus and having it depart the moment it's filled.

 

this was my experience as a solo traveler. the monetary equation changes considerably when you add more people and the transfer/tube journey may not be as advisable.

[John Bull]

@The Traveling Man had a bad experience when immigration  / customs decided to target one cruise ship, checking every passenger.

Everyone else, including those in the city centre traffic snarl-up, suffered the same TheCity Council was spitting feathers - customs won’t be doing that again in a hurry !!!

 

normally no delay in disembarkation, sometimes a line for taxis but it tends to move quickly. - all trips in taxis at the pier are short, to the train or bus stations or city hotels - no more than a £10 ride.

Definitely pre-book the Nat Express bus.

Nat express buses go to Victoria coach station in central London.

 

Alternatively take the train, direct to central London’s Waterloo station. Fares are complicated, cheapest mainly booked from about 6 weeks in advance and for trains after about 9am.

 

Another potion is  a door- to -door tour-transfer from your cruise ship to your Heathrow or central London hotel, including stops at Salisbury and Stonehenge and Windsor Castle or Bath and Windsor Castle or the Cotswolds.

Long-established and reputable coach operator, popular with cruisers

.Google International Friends cruise transfers

 

JB 🙂

 

 

 

Edited December 4, 2023 by John Bull