Rail Southampton < > Gatwick Airport. Revisions effective June 03, 2024

[Canuker]

Southern Railway, who operates this very handy - and inexpensive - service is making changes. There is good news and bad news.

First the bad news. The hourly direct service between Southampton Central station (10 minutes tops by taxi from the ship) and Gatwick Airport, then on to London Victoria station is to cease. This is a shame since, for cruisers with baggage it is a very handy service, with Gatwick station directly under the airport concourse.

The good news is that the rail journey is still possible, but with a single, straight forward change, which might even shorten the overall journey time. Take the Brighton train (this service is doubled to 2 per hour). Change to another 30-minute service (Portsmouth Harbour to Victoria) at Havant station, where both services use the same platform (either direction). Expect a wait at Havant of about 18 minutes between trains - time to grab a coffee. From Southampton, Havant is about 40 minutes; Havant to Gatwick is about 70 minutes. another 35 minutes if going on to London Victoria.

Both Southampton Central and Gatwick Airport stations have elevators. Service may vary somewhat on Sundays and holidays.

Note: there is no straightforward rail service between Southampton and Heathrow. Better to use the direct bus service, which leaves/arrives at the bus terminal near Southampton Central station.

Edited March 10 by Canuker