Cardiff Travel Forum

Hi members,
My question is quite easy... As I'm gonna spend few days in Cardiff, I'd like to know which is the best and/or cheapest way to get to Cardiff from London Stanted Airport? Any direct bus or train? what else?
Hoping to hear back from u...
Thank u in advance...
CHEERS

Train times and fares on www.nationalrail.co.uk Journey time is around 4 hours+ (some are longer, some a bit shorter), involving 2 or more changes to get from one London railway station to another. Not cheap either: 69GBP return (193 if it's an 'open' return). Single tickets start from 30.50GBP if brought in advance, which is not always easy anyway (you need a credit card which wil be accepted online, and tickets are not posted abroad).

Using the coach will be slower but cheaper. Takes nearly 6 hours minimum (witrh a wait in central London or Heathrow), return is 50.50GBP. http://www.nationalexpress.com/coach/index.cfm

There is only bus or train to choose from, I'm afraid. It's a considerable distance, and you are travelling across the country which always makes for a lengthier journey (it's just the way the UK is).

If you can change your flight (or haven't booked yet) it will be considerably easier to fly Pisa-Bristol with Easyjet, and certainly cheaper to get to Cardiff from there. Or even Ryanair to Birmingham.

There is also an unpublicised way of doing it by train. There are rains that go through Birmingham New Street to Stansead Airport (and back) and from Birmingham there's 2 routes to Cardiff by train.

It's not so much an unpublicised route as one to no real advantage. The nationalrail site gives the most 'normal' route (i.e. most obvious/convenient).

Nearly 3 or 3+ hours to Birmingham (mostly with 2 changes) (return from 52GBP very much upwards: 52GBP is the saver return fare) then another 2 hours to Cardiff (another 50+GBP return).

You could try www.megabus.com - coaches leave from Victoria Station in London.
If you book in advance you can get fares from £1 - £10 one way (these are regularly available).

Trip takes about 3.5 hours.

You will need to book though to get these fares. Tip: if you think you might miss the coach you are booked on book another for a couple of hours later for a £1.

This is a handy little route planning site at visitbritain.

http://www.visitbritain.us/redirect/bounce.aspx?cid=154&url=http://visitbritain.transportdirect.info/visitbritain/en

Unfortuately I don't think the wales tourist board is involved with visit britain to any great extent now. There's been some major expenditure cuts. I'm pretty sure last year (or the previous year) the Welsh tourist board was substantially subsidising rail tickets between London and Cardiff.

Can not find the details any more though sorry.
But check prices of buying tickets before you get to bristian becasue there are some good toursit deals available if you hunt around.

kevin