<p>Need to get from Heathrow to Central London (hotel is near the Holborn Tube stop). Have only had private car pick-ups in the past, since traveling on business. Now it’s my dime. How quick / convenient is the Tube, versus hailing a taxi, versus a pre-arranged ride? 4 people, each with a decent size suitcase, if that matters. I’ve gotten contradictory advice so I leave you all to sort it out.</p>
<p>I’ve used a car pick-up and the tube for travel from Heathrow into London. The tube is cheaper and it isn’t hard (in fact, I found it to be super easy), but it can become rather inconvenient when you have suitcases. For the price, I would go with the tube, put up with the inconveniences for about an hour, and save a good amount of money.</p>
<p>Have fun!</p>
<p>[Getting</a> To Bloomsbury and Holborn London, Transfers From London Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton & Stansted](<a href=“http://www.londontoolkit.com/accommodation/bloomsbury_transfers.htm]Getting”>Transfer costs & options from London airports to Bloomsbury) </p>
<p>[How</a> much travel time from London Heathrow Airport to Central London? - Yahoo! Answers](<a href=“Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos”>Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos)</p>
<p>To me, a lot would depend on when you are arriving and how much luggage you have. Tube is definitely cheaper. But if you are arriving on a weekday in the rush hour (between 7 and 9.30 a.m.) then the tube with suitcases will probably be miserable. Weekends it would not be so bad, though check for any works (many weekends the trains and tubes have maintenance going on).</p>
<p>I usually get the tube out to near where my Mum lives when I visit in the summer. But I travel light with one small suitcase. And I know where I am going. As there are 4 of you and if you are unfamiliar with London I think a taxi would not be a bad idea. Do not hail a taxi at the airport though, that will probably be pricey. If you do take a taxi you are better off prebooking a mini cab. It will be a set price so you will know up front what you will be paying.</p>
<p>It takes about an hour from Heathrow to Holborn by the Underground. I’d probably take the Heathrow Express train from Heathrow to Paddington Station (15 minutes, 16.5 pounds/person one-way if you book online), then a taxi from Paddington to your hotel. Even with a party of 4 that’s probably cheaper than a taxi all the way to your hotel, and almost certainly faster.</p>
<p>I am not sure it would be cheaper with 4 people. If you pre order a mini cab at a set price I would expect it to be cheaper than 4 x 16 plus a taxi at the other end. A mini cab to my Mums (which is further than going into London) runs me under 60 pounds.</p>
<p>That’s what I figured, swimcatsmom - that a private cab ordered ahead of time would be cheaper than the Express. Any recommendations for specific companies?</p>
<p>My Mum always orders a mini cab for me from a local company and she lives outside of London. So probably not the best bet for someone going into London. Have you thought of asking your hotel for recommendations? When I traveled with a girlscout group we asked our hotel for a recommendation for a mini cab to the airport.</p>
<p>Easiest
check Addison Lee for their pre booked (via credit card) airport pick ups. Could be a decent price for the four of you… I just checked and it is £70.40/4 = £17.60 each
depending on time of day, it could take a long time due to traffic…
do not get a black cab from LHR as they are extortionate… </p>
<p>Cheapest
the cheapest way (and actually quite easy) to get on the tube as it will go direct to Holborn station without you having to transfer - it will take about an hour and you will get seats if you’re getting on at the airport</p>
<p>Fastest
the Heathrow Express + cab from Paddington is prob the quickest, but you will have to lug your suitcases from train to cab etc and Paddington is quite a big station (the exit to the taxis is beside platform 1, not by the entrance to the tube)… it will also be the most expensive</p>
<p>I’ve used justairports.com.
For 4 people with luggage, it’s economical to use a car service and save all the hassles. When I was much younger, I would put up with certain inconveniences to save a few dollars, now, not so much.</p>
<p>I used Simply Airports, reserved online, and they were great. had to reschedule our pickup as our flight was changed due to snowstorms in December, and I was able to simply send them an email while I was at my US airport, which they promptly replied to and they showed up at the much earlier time. I agree for four of you it’s the best option.<br>
[Simply</a> Airports - Taxis to Heathrow London City airport transfers Stansted cheap transfers Gatwick Luton](<a href=“http://www.simplyairports.co.uk/]Simply”>http://www.simplyairports.co.uk/)</p>
<p>I agree with bclintonk: I’d take the Heathrow Express to Paddington, then take a taxi. The Heathrow Express has extra storage space for luggage in all of the cars. There are ticket machines that take credit cards, near the tube stops, at Heathrow. It’s very quick to Paddington. From Paddington to anywhere in central London is not that expensive by taxi, and the taxi really makes up for it in terms of convenience.</p>
<p>I’ve done the Heathrow to Central London probably 30 times over the years. Once you get more than two people, it is cheaper and faster to get a car service or even a cab rather than take Heathrow express. Two people or traveling alone, I take the Heathrow Express.</p>
<p>FOUR people PLUS suitcases? Definitely pre-book a taxi. [Heathrow</a> Airport Taxi and Transport Services - Heathrow Airport Guide](<a href=“http://www.heathrow-airport-guide.co.uk/taxi-transfer.html]Heathrow”>Heathrow Airport Taxi | Local Heathrow taxis, black cabs & prices) The reason for making arrangements in advance has to do with zoning regulations - it will be much cheaper than grabbing a taxi from the rank . We live in Surrey and always book our local taxi service to take us to Heathrow and pick us up again. Have a great trip!</p>
<p>With luggage and 4 people, I’d definitely do car service. I’ve taken the train but it is really a pain to drag along a good sized suitcase on this route. (I did it once and wouldn’t again).</p>
<p>Ok, I bow to the voices of experience, about the car service. I’ve never taken the trip with more than 2 people.</p>
<p>We’ve done this several times, and we always took the Tube. As long as you’ve got rolling suitcases, and nobody has trouble walking or with stairs, it’s not that hard.</p>
<p>I used to take the Heathrow Express then the tube to get to where I was going. While most tube stops have escalators, certain of the tube stops do require fairly long stairs with no escalators or lifts, and whether this is important will depend on the condition of the travelers. Also, my hotels are usually pretty close to a tube stop. If yours is not, that’s a big consideration. Even wheeled luggage can be a hassle if you have to walk far to the hotel from the tube stop.</p>
<p>If I arrive at night, or with a colleague, we take the Express to London, then flag a cab. But I agree with the other posters who recommend prebooking a cab at Heathrow if you have 3 or more people traveling together.</p>
<p>Try Swiss Cottage cars <a href=“http://www.swisscottagecars.com/[/url]”>http://www.swisscottagecars.com/</a>
It should run you around £40.00 from Heathrow to Holborn
Jackuk</p>
<p>Thanks, all. We are arriving during the day on a weekend (Sunday); we are all physically fit (me, H, two teenagers) so no issues with walking, lugging bags, etc. Just didn’t have a sense how long it would take for either option.</p>
<p>PG: check out [London</a> Airport Transfer Heathrow Gatwick Stansted Luton City airport | batransfer.com](<a href=“http://www.batransfer.com%5DLondon”>http://www.batransfer.com)</p>
<p>My daughter found it, of course, after we “schlepped” the huge suitcases up the tube staircases…</p>
<p>you can book online; VERY dependable and very reasonably priced…</p>