Single Centre Self-guided Holidays

Travel Information

Nearest or recommended International Airports

London airports; Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Dorset Coast, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, South Downs, River Thames, Cotswolds, Pembrokeshire Coast, Shropshire Hills, Derbyshire Dales, Hadrian’s Wall Country, Northumberland Coast, Scottish Borders

Cardiff Airport; Pembrokeshire Coast

Bristol Airport; Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, Pembrokeshire

Exeter Airport; Cornwall, South Devon Coast, Dartmoor, Exmoor

Southampton Airport; Dorset Coast, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex

Manchester Airport; Lake District, Yorkshire Dales, Derbyshire Dales

Newcastle Airport; Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast

Edinburgh Airport; Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast

Glasgow Airport; Northern Lake District, Scottish Borders, Hadrian's Wall Country, Northumberland Coast

Although we have detailed the most convenient airports against each destination one of the London airports could be used as the port of entry for any of the holidays, so the journey time from London to the closest railway station for all tours have been included in the list of typical journey times below.

Travel between various international airports and their nearest mainline railway station

Heathrow Airport
Guests travelling to destinations other than those detailed below will have to go into central London before embarking on the next leg of their journey. The Heathrow Express is a direct rail link Heathrow Central station and London Paddington railway station. Trains run every 15 minutes and the journey time ranges from 15 minutes for Terminals 1, 2 and 3, to 30 minutes for Terminal 4 and 5.

Guests travelling directly from Heathrow Airport to Cornwall, Exmoor, Devon, West Wiltshire Downs, Ancient Landscapes of Wessex, the Cotswolds and Pembrokeshire need not go into the centre of London. Instead they can take the Rail-Air Link bus from Heathrow Airport to Reading to intersect with the train travelling westwards out of London. The service departs every 30 minutes (every 20 minutes at peak times of day) and the journey time (from the furthest terminal) is 55 minutes.

Gatwick Airport
There is a railway station right in the heart of the airport complex and the Gatwick Express to London Victoria departs every 15 minutes. The journey takes 30 minutes (35 minutes on a Sunday).

Other airports in England
Manchester Airport has its own mainline railway station. From Cardiff Airport there is a bus link to Cardiff Central Railway Station; journey time 25 minutes. From Bristol Airport there is a bus link to Bristol, Temple Meads Railway Station, journey time 30 minutes. Birmingham Airport is adjacent to Birmingham International Railway Station, and from Newcastle Airport there is a Metro Service to Newcastle Railway Station which takes 15 minutes.

Scottish airports
From Glasgow Airport there is a frequent coach service to central Glasgow which calls at Glasgow Central Railway Station (for links to stations in the north west of England) and Glasgow Queen Street Railway Station (for links to Edinburgh, the Scottish Borders and north east England). From Edinburgh Airport there is a continuous shuttle bus to Edinburgh Railway Station (for trains to the north east of England and the Scottish Borders); journey time 25 minutes.

Typical rail journey times

The journey times quoted below are for a typical train journey between the mainline railway station nearest to the recommended airport (central London stations in the case of Heathrow or Gatwick Airports) and the mainline railway station closest to the hotel at which the holiday is based. Where there is a change of train en route waiting times may vary so allowance should be made for this when planning your journey.

TOUR	NEAREST RAILWAY STATION	APPROXIMATE RAIL JOURNEY TIME	ONWARD TRAVEL
Far West of Cornwall	Penzance	5 hours 15 mins from London 3 hours 15 mins from Exeter	Bus or taxi
North Cornwall	Bodmin Parkway	4 hours from London 1 hours 45 mins from Exeter	Bus or taxi
Cornwall's Lizard Peninsula	Redruth	5 hours mins from London 2 hours 30 mins from Exeter	Bus or taxi
South Devon Coast	Totnes	3 hours 15 mins from London 45 mins from Exeter	Bus or taxi
Exmoor	Taunton	2 hours from London 45 mins from Bristol 30 mins from Exeter	Bus
Dorset	Wareham	2 hours 15 mins from London 1 hour 15 mins from Southampton	Bus or taxi
West Wiltshire Downs	Warminster	1 hours 45 mins from London 50 mins from Southampton	Bus or taxi
Ancient Landscapes of Wessex	Swindon	1 hour from London 1 hour 20 mins from Southampton	Bus or taxi
South Downs	Berwick (Sussex)	1 hour 40 mins from London	Bus or taxi
River Thames	Didcot Parkway	50 mins from London	Bus or taxi
Cotswolds	Moreton-in-Marsh OR Honeybourne	1 hour 35 mins from London 1 hour 35 mins from London	Bus or Taxi Pre-arranged taxi
Pembrokeshire Coast, South	Tenby	5 hours from London 3 hours 30 mins from Cardiff Airport	Taxi or on foot
Pembrokeshire Coast, North	Haverfordwest	5 hours from London 2 hours 30 mins from Cardiff	Bus
Shropshire Hills	Craven Arms OR Shrewsbury	3 hours from London 2 hours 30 minutes from London	Community bus or taxi Bus
Derbyshire Dales	Derby	1 hour 45 mins from London	Taxi, or bus to Ashbourne then taxi
Central Lake District	Windermere	4 hours from London 2 hours from Manchester Airport	Bus or taxi
Northern Lake District	Penrith	3 hours 45 mins from London 2 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport 1 hour 45 mins from Glasgow	Bus or taxi
Yorkshire's Northern Dales	Garsdale Head	4 hours 30 mins from London 3 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport	Bus or taxi
Yorkshire's Limestone Dales	Settle	4 hours from London 2 hours 15 mins from Manchester Airport	Taxi
Hadrian's Wall Country	Hexham	4 hours 15 mins from London 45 mins from Newcastle 2 hours 30 mins from Edinburgh 3 hours 15 mins from Glasgow	Taxi or on foot
Northumberland Coast	Berwick-upon-Tweed	4 hours 15 mins from London 45 mins from Newcastle 45 mins from Edinburgh	Bus or taxi
Scottish Borders	Berwick-upon-Tweed or Tweedbank	5 hours from London to Berwick-upon-Tweed Alternatively, fly into Edinburgh and take train directly from Edinburgh to Tweerdbank (1 mile from Melrose, OR fly into Glasgow and take train to Edinburgh and then train to Tweedbank	Bus

If you would like further advice on travel within the UK we are always willing to help, so please do contact us.

Specific train times are always sent with final joining details but can be made available earlier on request. The rail timetable for trains in Great Britain are rolled out online eight weeks prior to date of travel, although the rail companies do reserve the right to make further changes after than point, particularly if engineering works become necessary.

National Rail Enquiries have an excellent website with interactive timetable information.

Travel Information Quick Links

National Rail Enquiries for British train times and other rail-related information http://www.nationalrail.co.uk

BritRail Information on the British rail system, exclusively for the use of travellers from abroad seeking information prior to their arrival in Britain http://www.britrail.com

London Heathrow Airport http://www.heathrowairport.com

London Gatwick Airport http://www.gatwickairport.com

Manchester Airport http://www.manchesterairport.co.uk

Rail-Air Link timetables and information on coach transfer from Heathrow Airport to Reading railway station, for travel to the south West of England. http://www.railair.com

Heathrow Express for travel from the airport into central London https://www.heathrowexpress.com

Gatwick Express for travel from the airport into central London http://www.gatwickexpress.com

National Express for cross-country coach travel http://www.nationalexpress.com

The Automobile Association (The AA) for lots of information on British roads and travel/route planning, including mileage calculator http://www.theaa.com

GoEuro for door-to-door travelling planning within Europe http://www.goeuro.co.uk

Google Map http://maps.google.co.uk