Travelling to England, need help... (Updated 19.08.2006) — Forum Archive

28 Jul 2006, 21:16

So, it looks like my wife is almost convinced! In fact, she even talked about it with me tonight, and of course I can't let it pass :evil4:

We would (speculative) flight to London on the 26th, and get back to Montreal on the 31st, or something like that, depends of the budget really.

Now, I will probably be alone in London from the 27 to the 29th, as my wife will be visiting a friend (and ex roomate) of her that moved to england a few year ago and stay there while I'm going to the shows in London and Wolverhampton, including NOOL day.

So, what are my options for a few cheap nights of sleep in London for a guy who's coming from Canada, is pretty strict on budget and though would like a decent place? Any ideas? recommandations?

I checked the flights.. British Airways from Montreal is about 400$ each, so 800$ round trip, still expensive but my cheap carrier doesn't go to London on those dates, just to Paris, and I'm not sure it would be that cheaper. Pretty decent price I would say.

Now, if I could find a place to stay for the 27 and 28 in London, and then 29 in Wolverhampton, that would be wonderful.. I'll figure out the rest of the mini-trip afterwards if budget allows it.

Great! Let's hope this time it's for real and it will work.. it's a lot of money to gather on such short notice, but I'm sure with good will I can do it ;)

29 Jul 2006, 01:38

If you can get a cheaper flight to Paris, say, 100 GBP difference you might be advised to get a Eurostar Deal into London. Certainly going from London to Paris they've got crazy deals on at the moment for cheap Eurostar travel PLUS hotel, so it might be worth looking at their website to get a deal from Paris which includes cheap travel into London PLUS accomodation on top!

29 Jul 2006, 03:55

If I still had my flat Nic, I could have put you up... however, Al's suggestion is a good one. If you sort out all your travel arrangements and still need somewhere to stay, I'd be happy to find a good hotel or B&B for you, if it's easier to do from England rather than Canada... Email me

29 Jul 2006, 06:37

You're welcome to stay at my house for these nights Nic - I'll be at the same gigs after all!

29 Jul 2006, 13:13

Last development is that I would go to England alone and catch up with my wife in Paris after the two shows. Of course this is going to change once we'll budget this.

Cheapest flight I found is Montreal->Manchester on the 25th (so arriving the 26th in Manchester), so sleeping in the air.

Since it's Manchester, I don't mind that much, however trains from Manchester to London sees rather expensive on the site I went to (http://www.raileurope.com) as it's 120$, which is more expensive than a roundtrip to New York from Montreal!

Otherwise the less expensive one-way flight is passing by New Jersey and is lasting, ech.. 12 hours, so there must be a very long wait at Newark.

Can you believe the price of a single one-way ticket to London costs 75% of the price of a round-trip for 2 on the same plane? That's aweful.

Idea is to take the Eurostar to Paris on the 30th and fly home from Paris later in the week.

29 Jul 2006, 13:27

nah, trains to London arent that expensive. Just travel off-peak.

http://www.virgintrains.co.uk/default.aspx

29 Jul 2006, 13:48

Spotty,

your more than welcome to stay at mine when you are in london.

29 Jul 2006, 15:09

I might have found a plane on the 25th, so getting in London on the 26th AM.. not too expensive and it's a direct flight!

So I would spend the 26/27/28 in London and go to Wolverhampton on the 29, and get back to London either after or the next day... don't know how it works yet and how far it is.

For the rest of the trip, it's still undecided.. might go to Paris, or do a little tourism elsewhere in England before going back, this should be decided later.

But right now I'm focusing on those 4 days. Thank you for the offer of shelter, it's very appreciated of course. Biggest problem will be the jet-lag...

Now I have to try to get freebies to enter the gigs :p

30 Jul 2006, 04:25

I know you've had a few offers, but it would be rude not to offer you a bed at our place too!

We are driving back to London from Wolverhampton on the night of the gig aswell.

Be good to meet you finally :)

30 Jul 2006, 20:11

Well, if I annoy somebody I have a plan b, that's great :lol:

I snore, so I might get very annoying, especially with jet-lag ;)

Thanks for the offer, I will most likely accept one of it since it assures me that I will be at the gigs...! So we'll sort that later.

On a more serious note, I'd evaluate the chances I'll be there to 95% right now... my wife is excited, so it's proof enough for me. I should buy my plane tickets at the end of the month. Fortunatly it's off-season, so there won't be any rush.

Since I will be there on the 26th, I'll probably find a room to stay and annoy nobody near the venue on that day since I'll be in London around 10 AM, so everybody will be at work and I will want to drop by bags somewhere before starting visiting a few places... I will try to travel light, but I don't have much of a choice... so any thing cheap near Wembley arena would be quite nice I must say...

I'll have to prepare a room for people visiting Montreal someday ;)

30 Jul 2006, 23:23

Spotnick wrote: so any thing cheap near Wembley arena would be quite nice I must say...

You do NOT wanna stop near Wemberlee. It ain't the nicest part of London and certainly does NOT cater for tourists!

Try get somewhere around Baker Street. There's a fast service into Wemberlee from there which doubtless most people will use. And it's Tourist Heaven around there (Madam Tussaud's, Planetarium, easy access to Oxford St, etc).

31 Jul 2006, 22:37

I bought my plane ticket today, :-)

Air Canada from Vancouver arrive into Heathrow Oct 26. Any suggestions on a good hotel in London? I don't mind spending 100 pounds or so per night.

What would be the fastest most convenient way to Wolverhampton? Bus (National express?) or train?

Any advice on how to get back to Heathrow quick? I fly out on Oct 30 at 13:30, so it will be tight. I am guessing I should get on the bus after the concert, to get to Heathrow at 3 or 4 am or some ungodly hour. If I wait until morning, I could miss my flight, is that right? What time will the concert end?

Any advice is greaty appreciated.

Spot, I could not convince my common-law to come out either, so I am bringing my sister! Yikes! But at least she is a true New order fan!

1 Aug 2006, 01:28

Wolverhampton's shite to get to by train or coach, they hadn't got a direct route when I checked yesterday.

Gig will finish around 11pm I would think, and as long as you are at Heathrow by 11am the next morning, you'll be alright for your flight.

As for London hotels, there are literally thousands. Difficult to recommend any as I generally go home rather than to a hotel!

1 Aug 2006, 03:59

so that's two Canadians and one Texan in town that week.

I must hide my rucksack from Rocket Mick!!!

:nod:

1 Aug 2006, 04:25

well seeing as you managed to hide it from yourself as well 4 years ago...... :evil4:

1 Aug 2006, 04:57

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote: so that's two Canadians and one Texan in town that week.

I must hide my rucksack from Rocket Mick!!!

Shot your boss finally? :wink:

1 Aug 2006, 05:45

oldmonkey wrote: Wolverhampton's shite to get to by train or coach, they hadn't got a direct route when I checked yesterday.

There are quite a few direct trains from London Euston to Wolverhampton, even on a Sunday (I do this trip every week or every other week), although it does take slightly longer on a Sunday - roughly 2 hours 45 minutes (even if you need to change at Birmingham New Street).

Bear in mind that if you're staying over, do check train prices if you need to be back in London at an early(ish) time on a Monday morning, as you might need to buy an 'open' single (i.e. if you arrive back in London during rush hour (before 9:30)), it might cost you a bit more...

Luckily, for this journey, I can get work to pay for travel/hotel/meals, as Telford is only 15 minutes train ride away! :evil4:

1 Aug 2006, 12:43

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote: so that's two Canadians and one Texan in town that week.

I must hide my rucksack from Rocket Mick!!!

Ok, so now I'll have to deal with a texan accent as well?

You guys will want to kill me, I'll be on "I'm sorry what?" mode all the time :lol:

1 Aug 2006, 13:21

Just tell them to speak very slowly, almost as robots, that should piss them off!!

Even Rocket Mick becomes quiet understandable when your ear gets kind of used to the accent :laugh:

Nothing worse than a proper Scottish talk, mind :nono: :eek:

1 Aug 2006, 21:41

Thanks for the info. Maybe we should hire a private coach and we can all ride out together from London to Wolverhampton! Any local person up for organizing this?

1 Aug 2006, 21:58

Foreign F**kwitt wrote:

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote: so that's two Canadians and one Texan in town that week.

I must hide my rucksack from Rocket Mick!!!

Shot your boss finally?

nope, but I did tell him that I needed a "NO" by July 31...he never came right out and said no....sooooooo....

silence is approval...anyways, now I'll just tell him he can keep me at work that week...if he, or the company, will refund my ticket...and THAT will NEVER happen...

so now you are going to have to put up with me for a night or two...you are buying the beers, right?

1 Aug 2006, 21:59

Spotnick wrote:

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote: so that's two Canadians and one Texan in town that week.

I must hide my rucksack from Rocket Mick!!!

Ok, so now I'll have to deal with a texan accent as well?

You guys will want to kill me, I'll be on "I'm sorry what?" mode all the time

don't worry Nicos, I come with French sub-titles!!!

2 Aug 2006, 02:36

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote:

you are buying the beers, right?

NO! :laugh:

2 Aug 2006, 08:36

Foreign F**kwitt wrote:

Jeffari-al-Texani wrote:

you are buying the beers, right?

NO!

well, what fecking good are ya?

2 Aug 2006, 12:02

Spotnick wrote: so now I'll have to deal with a texan accent as well?

You guys will want to kill me, I'll be on "I'm sorry what?" mode all the time

I always find the best way to understand a different accent is get roaring drunk... When everyone else has had a drink too you seem to drop into the universal language of the pisshead... a language no sober person will ever understand..

10 Aug 2006, 10:57

Last development would be I would be by myself in England for the whole week. So somewhere from October 20th to 30th.

The lenght of my trip depends of course on the price I can get for a room. Not sure I want to bother you people with me unable to sleep before 7 AM :p

11 Aug 2006, 09:16

Nicos, try

cheapest hotel in London

good for a laugh, at the very least!!!

19 Aug 2006, 09:13

Ok, I'm booking this this week-end.

So far, here's my plan:

Departure from Montreal at 19:45 - October 22nd (so I'll be in London on the 23rd at 7:30)

Staying in London until the 29th

Train from London to Wolverhampton on the 29th (time to be decided)

Hotel Britannia in Wolverhampton (already booked) on the 29th

Train from Wolverhampton to London on the 30th (early in the morning)

Departure from London - October 30th at 14:00, back in Montreal at 16:25

Now, Expedia has a pretty good deal at 100$/night at the The Strand Palace in London, I didn't check much, but is that a shite hotel? 3 stars though, and is it in the middle of nowhere?

My biggest concern is the trip back home, from Wolverhampton to London by train then the Heathrow for the flight back home. I'm no expert, but that might be risky, I have no idea how much time it takes to go from the train station to the airport, and the security at the airport will still be crazy then... maybe I should play it safe and come back the next day? What do you people think?

And I guess I should buy concert tickets.. might be a good idea, would be stupid to bet on the guest list after buying plane tickets...

19 Aug 2006, 09:38

The Strand Palace is, surprisingly enough, on the Strand, just a few yards from the Lyceum Theatre that JD played in 1980, and wihtin 5 mins walking of Charing Cross mainline and underground station. It's an ideal location for Central London. It's also a very good hotel!

I am staying overnight in Wolverhampton on the 29th, and getting the train back to London on the morning of the 30th. That train will get back to London by 10am, and for you it is very straightforward to get to Heathrow from central London - either the underground all the way (Piccadilly Line straught there, takes 90 minutes from Charing Cross one change of train, at Leicester Square) or the underground to Paddington (7 stops from Charing Cross) and then a Heathrow Express to Heathrow (takes 20 minutes, and costs about £10 one way, a far better option for getting to Heathrow quickly).

19 Aug 2006, 09:46

The 12.30 train from London Euston to Wolverhampton gets in at 15.08, which leaves plenty of drinking time before the gig. The following morning, the direct 8.05 will get you to Euston at 10.02. From Euston it will simply be a case of getting to Paddington and then onto Heathrow.

19 Aug 2006, 10:22

Yeah, Heathrow Express rail link from Paddington to Heathrow in just 15 minutes for £15. Twas my direct link last year cause I'm classy :laugh: At least, it saves you from 45 mins trip from the city center to the airport by tube

19 Aug 2006, 11:35

Spotnick wrote: Ok, I'm booking this this week-end.

So far, here's my plan:

Departure from Montreal at 19:45 - October 22nd (so I'll be in London on the 23rd at 7:30)

Staying in London until the 29th

Train from London to Wolverhampton on the 29th (time to be decided)

Hotel Britannia in Wolverhampton (already booked) on the 29th

Train from Wolverhampton to London on the 30th (early in the morning)

Departure from London - October 30th at 14:00, back in Montreal at 16:25

Now, Expedia has a pretty good deal at 100$/night at the The Strand Palace in London, I didn't check much, but is that a shite hotel? 3 stars though, and is it in the middle of nowhere?

My biggest concern is the trip back home, from Wolverhampton to London by train then the Heathrow for the flight back home. I'm no expert, but that might be risky, I have no idea how much time it takes to go from the train station to the airport, and the security at the airport will still be crazy then... maybe I should play it safe and come back the next day? What do you people think?

And I guess I should buy concert tickets.. might be a good idea, would be stupid to bet on the guest list after buying plane tickets...

I've just spent a full week in London and stayed at The Strand Palace. I couldn't fault it at all, plus it's really central. It's a big hotel, but has character. Out of the places i've stopped in whilst in London, this is definitely my favourite.

19 Aug 2006, 12:06

Thanks for the feedback, then I found my hotel. I will probably stay an extra day in London, I prefer to play it safe than missing the plane...

But I'll check it out before doing my final booking.

19 Aug 2006, 13:34

Alright, slight changes of plan, but it's booked.

Oct 24: Leaving from Montreal to London, I'll be there at 7:30. Oct 24-29: I stay at the The Strand Palace in London Oct 29: Train to Woverhampton + Night at the Britannia Oct 30: Train back to London and flying back to Montreal at 14:00

Only thing not booked (beside tickets for the show) is the train to Wolverhampton and back... I should do that soon as soon as I get the planning to make sure I get there on time.

Should be a fun trip, costing a lot less than what I was expecting! :clap:

21 Aug 2006, 23:11

I know that you've already booked your flight but I was in Manchester in May and I stayed in a hostel. It was the cleanest newest hostel we came across. I think they had recently renovated the place. Highly recomend...

http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/HiltonChambers-Manchester-14065

22 Aug 2006, 01:03

Vik D - Serotonin wrote: I know that you've already booked your flight but I was in Manchester in May and I stayed in a hostel. It was the cleanest newest hostel we came across. I think they had recently renovated the place. Highly recomend...

http://www.hostelworld.com/hosteldetails.php/HiltonChambers-Manchester-14065

Not a lot of point in staying in Manchester for London gigs though Vik, is there? :confused2:

26 Aug 2006, 14:04

Spotnick, I also hope to get to Heathrow on Monday Oct 30 from Wolverhampton to catch my early afternoon flight to Vancouver. It might be a bit tight with the trains. Maybe those of us who have to get to Heathrow can hire a cab to take us, we can all split the fare. (We could negotiate a fare ahead of time with a cabbie). That would likely be faster than taking all those trains. Unless some friendly NOOLer wants to give us a lift to Heathrow Monday am... I would be willing to pay for a reliable quick ride.

26 Aug 2006, 14:46

Robert Roy wrote: Spotnick, I also hope to get to Heathrow on Monday Oct 30 from Wolverhampton to catch my early afternoon flight to Vancouver. It might be a bit tight with the trains. Maybe those of us who have to get to Heathrow can hire a cab to take us, we can all split the fare. (We could negotiate a fare ahead of time with a cabbie). That would likely be faster than taking all those trains. Unless some friendly NOOLer wants to give us a lift to Heathrow Monday am... I would be willing to pay for a reliable quick ride.

I'm willing to consider all options... sure thing is I want to make it in time, I do have to work the next day :(

27 Aug 2006, 00:46

Honestly don't know what you are flapping about. If you get the 8.02 or whatever it is from Wolverhampton on the Monday morning, you will be at Euston station in London at 10am. It takes twenty minutes on the tube to get to Paddington, then a further 20 minutes to get to Heathrow. Your flight is what, mid afternoon? You'll be at Heathrow by 11am if don't dawdle between connections.

27 Aug 2006, 06:29

Thanks for the advice, Old Monkey.

My flight is at 13:30, and I think they want you to check in 2 hours ahead these days for international flights. So it is a wee bit tight. i am a bit nervous about managing train to Euston, then tube to Paddington, then is it a bus to to Heathrow? All that in just a few hours in a foreign country! We North Americans aren't used to trains remember!

But you would recommend that over hiring a car to take us striaght from Wolves to Heathrow? There is also a National express bus that goes from Wolves to Heathrow.

cheers,

Rob

27 Aug 2006, 07:31

Hiring a cab from Wolverhampton to Heathrow will cost you well over £100, it is not worth it at all.

If your flight is 13.30 then you are going to struggle anyway to be honest unless you get the earliest train from Wolverhampton on the Monday morning. National Express Coach will take a long time to get there, you may as well leave straight after the gig rather than getting a hotel if you are going to use the coach to get to Heathrow from Wolverhampton.

27 Aug 2006, 16:44

Mine is at 14:00, so only 30 mins later... I do plan to take the train.

However, due to extreme security, I feel I need to be there very early at Heathrow...

There is always the option to rent a car or something to go from London to Wolverhampton and come back very early in the morning... depending on the amount of people coming with us, it might get cheaper to just rent it and leave it at Heathrow.

Of course, my issues are that I'm not sure I want to start driving in England... should be quite complicated to get adapted to driving the wrong way of the road on the wrong side of the car :lol:

27 Aug 2006, 21:28

What I don't get at this point, is that according to http://www.virgintrains.co.uk, there are trains starting at 5 AM... so I really don't see how it's such a big deal to get in time to be at Heathrow before noon... is it?

28 Aug 2006, 00:48

It's no problem at all to get to Heathrow before noon if you get up early enough. No way will you find me getting on a 5am train though!

28 Aug 2006, 09:23

oldmonkey wrote: It's no problem at all to get to Heathrow before noon if you get up early enough. No way will you find me getting on a 5am train though!

Well, 5AM for me will be midnight.. should be even worst!

I don't want to get used to GMT too fast, otherwise I'll be home at midnight when I'll be back ;)

28 Aug 2006, 13:16

Just scored 2 Wolves tickets off eBay, so that's a pain less.

Now all is left is train tickets.

What I need to know is if it's better to buy them in advance or not.

28 Aug 2006, 14:04

Spotnick wrote: Just scored 2 Wolves tickets off eBay, so that's a pain less.

Now all is left is train tickets.

What I need to know is if it's better to buy them in advance or not.

Definitely yes - tickets can be cheaper in advance, and some journeys you have to pay a higher fare still if you don't get an advance ticket.

28 Aug 2006, 20:58

Well, Spotty, if you are going for the 5 am train, I guess i will too! I also thought about renting a car, but i agree driving on the wrong side of the road in a foreign country is a bit intimidating. Unless some local wants to take the wheel for us.

29 Aug 2006, 09:30

Robert Roy wrote: Well, Spotty, if you are going for the 5 am train, I guess i will too! I also thought about renting a car, but i agree driving on the wrong side of the road in a foreign country is a bit intimidating. Unless some local wants to take the wheel for us.

I'm up for it. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep and if I rented a room for a good reason though, beside hosting my luggage, if jet-lag is still in place, I could have went to the DJ set and straight to the train station afterwards!

Oh well. Thing now is to make sure to have transportation to the station then.

9 Sep 2006, 00:52

Well Spotty, I am thinking the best option is just to hire a cab to take us from Wolves direct to Heathrow Monday am. Even if they charge $200, divided by 3 or 4 people would be worth avoiding the hassle and stress of trying to take a train, then a tube then a bus to get to Heathrow in time. I will have my sis with me, so we can split 3 ways, or even 4 if there is someone else who wants to join us. I think there is even a website where we can negotiate a set rate off-meter ahead of time if we want to.

Let me know what you think...

9 Sep 2006, 04:21

Robert Roy wrote: Well Spotty, I am thinking the best option is just to hire a cab to take us from Wolves direct to Heathrow Monday am. Even if they charge $200, divided by 3 or 4 people would be worth avoiding the hassle and stress of trying to take a train, then a tube then a bus to get to Heathrow in time. I will have my sis with me, so we can split 3 ways, or even 4 if there is someone else who wants to join us. I think there is even a website where we can negotiate a set rate off-meter ahead of time if we want to.

Let me know what you think...

I would suggest that $200 is a conservative amount, maybe add another $100 and you'll be nearer the mark - Wolverhampton is roughly 200-odd miles away from Heathrow...

9 Sep 2006, 05:14

If you are seriously looking at this you need to look at airport transfer specialists, a minibus to Heathrow would be £140 between eight

Heathrow £115 car £125 estate £135 5/6 seater £140 minibus

http://www.centraltaxis.uk.com/content/airport.html

Google link for other firms http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=RNWE,RNWE:2004-45,RNWE:en&q=airport+transfers+wolverhampton

9 Sep 2006, 09:03

Robert Roy wrote: Well Spotty, I am thinking the best option is just to hire a cab to take us from Wolves direct to Heathrow Monday am. Even if they charge $200, divided by 3 or 4 people would be worth avoiding the hassle and stress of trying to take a train, then a tube then a bus to get to Heathrow in time. I will have my sis with me, so we can split 3 ways, or even 4 if there is someone else who wants to join us. I think there is even a website where we can negotiate a set rate off-meter ahead of time if we want to.

Let me know what you think...

I was planning to take a cab once in London by train of course.

Don't expect me to ride a bus ;) I hate those.

10 Sep 2006, 10:20

James Thomas wrote: If you are seriously looking at this you need to look at airport transfer specialists, a minibus to Heathrow would be £140 between eight

Heathrow £115 car £125 estate £135 5/6 seater £140 minibus

http://www.centraltaxis.uk.com/content/airport.html

Google link for other firms http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=RNWE,RNWE:2004-45,RNWE:en&q=airport+transfers+wolverhampton

Hey thanks for the info! That sounds pretty good to me.

All those wanting to share a car or mini-bus from Wolverhampton to Heathrow on Monday morning, Oct 30, say "Ayy"!!! The more people, the cheaper it will be. If Spotty is in with me, that would be 3 already.

10 Sep 2006, 23:54

erm....I'm still taking the train back to London on Monday...I didn't book passage back across the pond until Tuesday...

14 Sep 2006, 23:40

Ok, I am in on the central taxis of Wolverhampton, sounds like the easiest safest way to get to Heathrow on-time on Monday am. Anyone who wants to share the ride with myself and my guest, let me know, I will charge you a small nominal fee of $40 Canadian or 20 GBP.