Bath Travel Forum

Hi,

I'm planning to travel from London to Bath late this month.

Could someone please recommend:

1) Which train or bus is best to take, and what is the cost? I assume the earlier I leave the better so I can spend the whole day there.
2) Any nice quaint village nearby I can spend the night, and get the feel of a typical English countryside village ? or I can find this in Stratford-uopn-Avon ?
3) transport from Bath to Stratford-upon-Avon and from thereon to either Gatwick or Stansted. Also is Startford-upon-Avon doable in about 1/2 day ? I'm planning a late afternoon flight to Amsterdam.

thanks in advance!

Hi! I'd suggest you to join a guided day tour from london to Bath and Stradford Upon Avon + Stonehenge . It might cost 65 pounds. the journey was great, I did that last year. Bath is amazing. I love it.

Train is much faster than coach, although the latter is cheaper. www.nationalrail.co.uk has all UK train times and fares.

Journey time to Bath (search for Bath Spa) by train is around 1 and a half hours, from London Paddington. Although going earlier would be better, the cheapest fares are not available until after the rush hour: the earliest is 9.30, arriving at 11 and will cost you 47GBP return (the Saver/Cheap Day). Last train back is at 22:46. You don't need to buy this ticket online in advance, you can just buy it on the day at the station (or the day before if it's convenient).

www.nationalexpress.com has coach times and fares. Journey takes 3 - 4 hours (and here may be traffic congestion too), return fare varies from 16GBP or so upwards. Coaches go from London Victoria to Bath Spa.

I am not convinced that you will have time to see Stratford. You will need to be at the airport by mid-afternoon, and neither Gatwick nor Stansted is easily accessible.

The train journey to Stratford takes 3 and a half hours, from Stratford to Gatwick 3 - 4 hours, from Stratford to Stansted 4-5 hours. There may be coach services too, but these are unlikely to be much faster.

I think you may need to cut out Stratford this time, and focus on Bath. Have a look at what accommodation is available nearby on the official tourist info site on:

http://visitbath.co.uk/site/where-to-stay

And yes, a guided tour might be worthwhile if you are desperate to see both Bath and Stratford: in fact, it's your only real option, imo, unless you can find more time.

http://www.londontoolkit.com/whattodo/london_day_tours.htm

Thanks!

All your hints are helpful.

Yes, I agree just concentrate on Bath and enjoy the day.

Though I'm now tempted to see Stonehedge instead of Stratford.
Is Stonehedge nearer ?

I plan to make a very early morning trip (like 6am to beat the rush hour , hopefully) to Bath from London, look around until I'm satisfied, maybe in the afternoon, grab a half day trip to Stonehedge.

Since if I spend the night around Bath, I can still explore around Bath the next morning, before making my way either to Stansted or Gatwick by late morning. I guess I take the train also ?

thanks again!

oh, one more thing, I plan to fly via easyjet.

I think the option via Luton sounds better. Is it easier to get to Luton ?

Luton, Amsterdam
dep. 16:15, arr. 18:25

Am I able to make it, if I leave Bath around noon ?

You'll need to be at the airport for at least 14.15, and get into/out of London from Bath. So the answer is no, you'll have to leave earlier (you cannot risk being even a minute late for a budget carrier's check-in).

Journey by train takes around 3 hours (search for Bath Spa and Luton Airport Parkway), with another 10 minutes or so from Luton station to the airport by shuttle bus. The latest you can leave Bath is 11:13 (arriving 14.05) but you would be well-advised to take an earlier train in case of delays.

The National Rail site is playing up at the moment; www.thetrainline.com offers the same information.

The coach will be cheaper, takes 4+ hours, can get caught in traffic congestion and you'll have to change at Heathrow. http://www.nationalexpress.com/

If you go to the First Great Western website, it looks like the cheapest fare is the £48 saver but go a little further down and click on "2 singles could be cheaper" and you'll find fares for as low as £9.50 each way depending on the day and time. The train takes about 90 minutes, much faster than the bus which I think was over 3 hours when I looked at it.

You have to book those £9.50 tickets in advance AND you have to be on the train that you book. If you can't use your postcode (ie it's not a UK address), put in the address of your hotel and you can fix later.

http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/

Also take a look at this part of the website, there are some great 2 for 1 offers for Bath including the Roman Baths, print out the vouchers before you leave

http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/Content.aspx?id=1741

Thanks again!

This helps very much to settle my accomdation in Bath and my trips.

Ta!

Have you thought of flying to Amsterdam from Bristol Airport ? - it is only about an hour away from Bath and much easier than heading back into London.