Stonehenge from port of Southhampton

Hi, just wondering if someone could recommend a tour company that does private tours from the port of Southampton to Stonehenge and back in May. Or would hiring a taxi be best? We are on a b2b and looking at visiting Stonehenge in md May.

Thanks for any assistance in this respect.

Liz

Life gets a bit complicated and expensive fixing up a private guided tour of Stonehenge.

The guides are based in Salisbury or beyond, and the normal routine is for the visitor to travel to the guide's home by their own car or rented car or private transfer & carry on to Stonehenge, and drop the guide on the way back.

The guides are at their busiest during pre public-opening and post public-closing hours, when the site is available for limited numbers (doesn't suit your hours in port), These folk are seriously interested in archaeology & pre-history.

I can recommend guides and transfer operators if you ask, but the vast vast majority of visitors are happy with the audio-guides available at Stonehenge.

And the much cheaper and simpler option of travelling by train and ho-ho.

Southampton central station is a five-minute taxi ride from any cruise terminal, and there will be taxis lined-up on the pier - max fare £10, or walkable from some cruise terminals (quote your terminal or ship+date).

Direct trains to Salisbury every half-hour, journey time about 35 minutes, round-trip fare under £10 per person (ask for cheap return tickets, pay in GBP or with plastic).

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/

The Stonehenge ho-ho picks up at Salisbury station - during May it operates hourly, first bus at 10am so aim for the 9.10am train from Southampton

http://www.thestonehengetour.info/the-stonehenge-tour

IMPORTANT - buy your Stonehenge admission tickets with your ho-ho tickets. Stonehenge operates a timed ticket arrangement, if you buy at Stonehenge you may be delayed if the site is busy - but tickets issued by the ho-ho are exempt so you'll have no delay at the entrance.

You really need more than an hour at Stonehenge, so expect to catch the return ho-ho two hours after you arrive. Go see the stones first, then the visitor centre & cafe with such time as you have left before returning on the ho-ho.

I don't think you can spare the hour to stop at Old Sarum, but get off the ho-ho in Salisbury city centre and go see the magnificent cathedral.

(You can buy cathedral-included ho-ho tickets, but I suggest you don't - if you do have time for the cathedral give a donation of about £5 each, that's effectively what's included with the ho-ho's cathedral-inclusive ticket)

Then head back to Salisbury station - by ho-ho if the timing is good, or by taxi or local bus, or a 15 - 20 minute walk - then the train back to Southampton.

It's worth checking out your b2b arrangements with your cruise line - the formalities both on arrival & before departure. For instance, do you have to be back at the ship in time to re-register or do you have a back-on-board time of 30 mins before sailaway.

JB :)

Thanks John Bull, you are a wealth of information on these boards. We really do appreciate all your help. Thanks also for taking the time to respond so quickly.

Liz

John Bull's information is excellent as usual. Do NOT take a taxi; it'll cost an arm and a leg.

Be prepared for a SUPER, SUPER crowded venue. I expected crowds in mid-May, but WOW. :o The tour buses there were incredible - tons of double decker buses filled with college kids, high school kids, old folks and everything else. I have only been packed in like that one other time (tube at rush hour) and it was a bit shocking. We walked out to the Henge en masse - squished together like sardines in a can. It was one giant movement of wall-to-wall people. You couldn't move, change direction or hardly breathe. The gift shop was the same. Long lines for the bathrooms too. My advice is to GET THERE EARLY and enjoy!

John Bull's information is excellent as usual. Do NOT take a taxi; it'll cost an arm and a leg.

Just to clarify DLMario's post, a taxi lined up at the pier is good for short trips within the city, such as to old town, shops, bus & rail stations.

But Stonehenge is over 30 miles away, and yes just hailing a taxi for that journey would be seriously expensive - even for a one-way trip, let alone wait & bring you back.

For private transport for more than about 5 miles you need to get quotes & pre-book.

JB :)

JohnBull and DriveslikeMario, you are amazing. Thanks for your wealth of information. Looks like we will really have to boogie on to make it back to ship before sail away.

Have a great week and thanks from the bottom of my heart.

Liz

Life gets a bit complicated and expensive fixing up a private guided tour of Stonehenge.

The guides are based in Salisbury or beyond, and the normal routine is for the visitor to travel to the guide's home by their own car or rented car or private transfer & carry on to Stonehenge, and drop the guide on the way back.

The guides are at their busiest during pre public-opening and post public-closing hours, when the site is available for limited numbers (doesn't suit your hours in port), These folk are seriously interested in archaeology & pre-history.

 

I can recommend guides and transfer operators if you ask, but the vast vast majority of visitors are happy with the audio-guides available at Stonehenge.

And the much cheaper and simpler option of travelling by train and ho-ho.

 

Southampton central station is a five-minute taxi ride from any cruise terminal, and there will be taxis lined-up on the pier - max fare £10, or walkable from some cruise terminals (quote your terminal or ship+date).

Direct trains to Salisbury every half-hour, journey time about 35 minutes, round-trip fare under £10 per person (ask for cheap return tickets, pay in GBP or with plastic).

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/

 

The Stonehenge ho-ho picks up at Salisbury station - during May it operates hourly, first bus at 10am so aim for the 9.10am train from Southampton

http://www.thestonehengetour.info/the-stonehenge-tour

 

 

IMPORTANT - buy your Stonehenge admission tickets with your ho-ho tickets. Stonehenge operates a timed ticket arrangement, if you buy at Stonehenge you may be delayed if the site is busy - but tickets issued by the ho-ho are exempt so you'll have no delay at the entrance.

You really need more than an hour at Stonehenge, so expect to catch the return ho-ho two hours after you arrive. Go see the stones first, then the visitor centre & cafe with such time as you have left before returning on the ho-ho.

I don't think you can spare the hour to stop at Old Sarum, but get off the ho-ho in Salisbury city centre and go see the magnificent cathedral.

(You can buy cathedral-included ho-ho tickets, but I suggest you don't - if you do have time for the cathedral give a donation of about £5 each, that's effectively what's included with the ho-ho's cathedral-inclusive ticket)

Then head back to Salisbury station - by ho-ho if the timing is good, or by taxi or local bus, or a 15 - 20 minute walk - then the train back to Southampton.

 

It's worth checking out your b2b arrangements with your cruise line - the formalities both on arrival & before departure. For instance, do you have to be back at the ship in time to re-register or do you have a back-on-board time of 30 mins before sailaway.

 

JB :)

Thanks for posting this. We are staying in Southampton the day before we sail and considered doing the trip to Stonehenge as you described. We also found a lack of tour guides to take us there and this seems like the best way to get the job done. Great explanation.