Earliest Flight after disembarking Southampton?

We are planning a cruise next summer that ends in Southampton. It is scheduled to dock at 6 am. What is the earliest flight from LHR that everyone would recommend? I plan to use a private transfer such as Smithsforcars, etc.

Thanks,

Charlotte

Day of the week? Month of the year?

Not an exact reply to your question, but the following might help you to come to a decision.

 

I live roughly 40minutes to the west of Southampton and drive past the M271/M27 intersection to get to both Heathrow and Gatwick.

 

Last year I flew out of LHR T5 for Miami at roughly 1300 and planned to drop off my car at around 1000 just to the north of the airport, on the Great West Road.

 

Because of my concerns over traffic on the M25, I allowed an extra half an hour and left home at 0730, which would be the equivalent of around 0800 from Southampton. I arrived a few minutes earlier than planned and was at Terminal 5, having dropped the car off, by 1000.

 

FWIIW:

This year I am flying out of Gatwick North (to Tampa) again at roughly 1300.

 

I will probably leave 30 minutes earlier as the long term car park I use is further away from the airport and, if I elect to take the M25 route, as opposed to the route up from Chichester through Pease Pottage, the journey is roughly 15 minutes longer in good traffic conditions than the journey to Heathrow. In fact I will probably take the slightly shorter, but normally a little slower, Chichester route as there is less risk of traffic delays on the M25.

 

Folks who are more used to driving on the right hand side may find it easier to take the M3/M25 route when going to Gatwick as it is split highway all the way.

 

However, the bottom line is, tell your chosen airport car service what time your flight is and they will tell you what time they need to pick you up. I would call them before booking the flight and say, 'if I book this flight what time would we need to leave?'

Edited August 27, 2014 by Corfe Mixture

Maybe contact Smithsforcars and ask them? I'm sure that from all their experience, they will tell you the earliest you can safely aim for?

Thanks for the info so far. I am looking at Aug 2,2015 which is a Sunday. I would like to make an 11:55 am flight on British Airways.

 

Charlotte

We live near the M3 and know the route well from Winchester to LHR - I would think the roads and motorways would be quite clear early on a Sunday morning and you would whizz along.

 

I assume you would be aiming to get to LHR by 9 am?

 

I would def ask your private transfer people if they thought it feasible as I am sure they will do that journey many times.

I would book after 12 noon

 

Just because the ship docks at 6 am does not mean you will getting off then

Most international flights want you at the airport 2-3 hrs prior so you can jump through the security hurdles

 

Do not forget it may take 1-2 hrs driving time to the airport as well

 

 

 

JMO

Edited August 27, 2014 by LHT28

I am looking at Aug 2,2015 which is a Sunday. I would like to make an 11:55 am flight on British Airways.

With a 6.00 am docking, you should be fine on a Sunday morning in August, in that direction. I think you'd be unlucky not to make that - but I would also wait for John Bull to confirm this when he's next on the board.

 

Assuming your flight departs from Terminal 5, one time point you should bear in mind is that the absolute deadline by which you must have dropped your bags is 45 minutes before departure (ie 11.10 am). If you're doing this by private transfer, you could basically leave the dock at 9.30 am and still just about make it (although it would not be stress-free if you are that late).

 

With a 6.00 am docking, you ought to be able to be on the move well before 9.30 am.

one time point you should bear in mind is that the absolute deadline by which you must have dropped your bags is 45 minutes before departure (ie 11.10 am).

.

 

IMHO:

45 mins from bad drop to the gate is not do-able unless you are travelling Club World or First or are Silver or above in the BA Executive Club and can use the Fast Track security clearance.

 

If you do not have Fast Track, the flight will be well into boarding by the time you clear security.

 

Also, most long haul flights depart from one of the two satellites (boarding gates with a B or C prefix indicate the aircraft is at a satellite).

IMHO:

45 mins from bag drop to the gate is not do-able unless you are travelling Club World or First or are Silver or above in the BA Executive Club and can use the Fast Track security clearance.

 

If you do not have Fast Track, the flight will be well into boarding by the time you clear security.

If it wasn't do-able, BA wouldn't have set it as the last bag drop time.

 

Ditto for conformance, which is set at T-35m. (For those who don't know, that's the absolute deadline by which you have be through the boarding pass scanner at the entrance to the security area.) A common complaint of frequent flyers, which you may know, is that this is too conservative because even if you pass the conformance point at T-35m you will almost always be at the gate before it actually closes and any offloading starts to happen.

 

I don't recommend planning to do it like this, and I agree that you could not do this without stress - but almost all should be able to make it to the flight. Fast Track security is no faster than normal security if you make it known that you have a flight that's about to depart. As at most airports, in such a situation someone will usually be able to help you jump the queue. And most of all, knowing that these times are the deadlines, and that they should allow you to get to your flight, will do quite a bit to reduce the stress.

If it wasn't do-able, BA wouldn't have set it as the last bag drop time.

 

Ditto for conformance, which is set at T-35m. (For those who don't know, that's the absolute deadline by which you have be through the boarding pass scanner at the entrance to the security area.) A common complaint of frequent flyers, which you may know, is that this is too conservative because even if you pass the conformance point at T-35m you will almost always be at the gate before it actually closes and any offloading starts to happen.

 

I don't recommend planning to do it like this, and I agree that you could not do this without stress - but almost all should be able to make it to the flight. Fast Track security is no faster than normal security if you make it known that you have a flight that's about to depart. As at most airports, in such a situation someone will usually be able to help you jump the queue. And most of all, knowing that these times are the deadlines, and that they should allow you to get to your flight, will do quite a bit to reduce the stress.

 

OK I concede. It is always possible to jump the queue at security, if you are late, but you may not be the only one trying to do this and......

 

Whatever, you clearly know T5 much better than I do.

BUT

My personal experience is that:

1. Gates for long haul flights which normally use satellites B & C are typically announced 45 minutes before departure and I would not want to be landside and dropping my bags off at the time the gate was announced.

2. Even passengers in the Executive lounge in building A (upper level and main concourse and not far from the entrance from security clearance) are typically called to the gate at least 25 minutes before departure time when their flight is departing from one of the satellites.

 

 

What BA actually say is:

You must pass through check-in no later than 45 minutes before your flight.

You must have entered Security at least 35 minutes before your flight departs.

You must be at your boarding gate at least 20 minutes before your flight departs.

If you do not meet these times, you will not be allowed on to your flight.

 

though elsewhere, in the same section, they say that you must have cleared security 35 minutes before the flight.

 

They do not however say that, if you check-in 45 minutes before your flight, you will get through security with 35 minutes to spare or that you will get to the gate with 20 minutes to spare.

 

This is what BAA say about check in

http://www.heathrowairport.com/heathrow-airport-guide/checking-in

 

I agree with your earlier post that we should wait for John Bull to reply, though, this week at least, he flew out through Terminal 3 and so I do not know how familiar he is with T5. My own personal view, given they don't need to drop a car off, the tightest they should be looking at, is to be on the way by 09.00 to get to T5 by 10.30 and depart T5 at 11.55, but some folks like to cut it finer than others

 

Confession:

 

Back before 9/11 I once was parking my car at the Long Term Car Park 30 minutes before take off time and made the flight. I have to confess, however, that my secretary was talking on two phones to both American Airlines and myself and giving them an update on my progress with the result that there was a people mover waiting for me at check-in, and I then went very quickly through a very unfamiliar security clearance path, arriving at the gate when the last three passengers were going up the ramp.

Edited August 28, 2014 by Corfe Mixture

BUT

My personal experience is that:

1. Gates for long haul flights which normally use satellites B & C are typically announced 45 minutes before departure and I would not want to be landside and dropping my bags off at the time the gate was announced.

Why not? Gate numbers are sometimes posted 75 or more minutes before departure. Would you similarly want to ensure that you were not still landside 75 minutes before the flight, simply because a number's appeared on a display screen airside? I don't understand the logic of that linkage.

What BA actually say is:

 

...

 

though elsewhere, in the same section, they say that you must have cleared security 35 minutes before the flight.

That is incorrect.

They do not however say that, if you check-in 45 minutes before your flight, you will get through security with 35 minutes to spare or that you will get to the gate with 20 minutes to spare.

This is true. However, as you have pointed out, these are times that are published by BA. The last that BA wants is for people who conform to the 45 minute time point to routinely fail to make it to their flights. That costs BA a lot of money. If it was happening routinely, BA would increase the latest bag drop time to something like (a more conventional) 60 minutes before departure. But the 45-minute bag drop and 35-minute conformance points have not changed since T5 opened, and some frequent flyers complain that 35-minute conformance is too early.

 

I reiterate: I don't expect anyone on this board to plan on the basis of arriving just in time to drop bags at the 45-minute point. For an 11.55 am flight, you should be looking to get going as early as possible from Southampton. The point about these times is that it is worth knowing that these are the absolute deadlines. If something goes wrong and your car rolls up outside check-in at 55 minutes before departure, you have not yet missed your flight.

I have already already accepted that you know more about T5 than I do, but please don't tell me I was incorrect when I said that 'elsewhere, in the same section, they say that you must have cleared security.' without bothering to check it

 

CHECK THIS LINK.

 

http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/airport-information/london-heathrow-t5

 

 

When expanded, the top line reveals:

You must pass through check-in no later than 45 minutes before your flight.

You must have entered Security at least 35 minutes before your flight departs.

You must be at your boarding gate at least 20 minutes before your flight departs.

If you do not meet these times, you will not be allowed on to your flight.

BUT

The top line actually says

'Check in and clear security at least 35 minutes before your flight'

 

As I said 'elsewhere, in the same section.....'

 

Liked the link on Netiquette in your signature

Edited August 28, 2014 by Corfe Mixture

I have already already accepted that you know more about T5 than I do, but please don't tell me I was incorrect when I said that 'elsewhere, in the same section, they say that you must have cleared security.' without bothering to check it out.

 

CHECK THIS LINK.

 

http://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/airport-information/london-heathrow-t5

 

The top line says

'Check in and clear security at least 35 minutes before your flight'

Sorry, that's my fault. What I wrote was ambiguous.

 

It's true that BA says "Check in and clear security at least 35 minutes before your flight" on the page to which you've linked.

 

But it would not be true for BA to say that you must have cleared security 35 minutes before the flight.

 

The time point is that you must enter security (specifically, have your boarding pass scanned at the scanner at the entrance to the security screening area) at least 35 minutes before departure.

 

BA agents can actually override this in unusual circumstances, but that is the normal operation of the system at this point. (It's different at the conformance points for transfer security, but that doesn't concern the OP.)

Chipping in from somewhere quite remote in British Columbia, all fingers n thumbs on my I-pad.

I strongly recommend early unassisted disembarkation, ie haul your own bags from the cabin, this wil be about 6.30 to 7am, with a car booked for 7.15 from smithsforairports or westquaycars or aquacars. Theoretically this is over-kill for a SUNDAY! But there.s always the chance of the motorway being closed after a fatal Saturday late-nite crash, which will delay even Sunday traffic.

But in theory this would get you to Heathrow by 9am excluding such problems.

 

Airlines recommend arrival 3 hrs before flight time, that's over-cautious n allows for folk getting delayed enroute, going to the wrong terminal n such, and eases the pressure on check-in staff. 90 minutes out is plenty, even with delay at security which is the usual bottleneck.

But that's just my limited experience, be guided by others on that.

 

A noon transatlantic is doable on a weekday, on a Sunday it should be no worries to Heathrow :)

 

JB :)

From my albeit limited experience and living in the area, I fully endorse JB's suggestions. That is what we would do.

Edited August 30, 2014 by Scriv

Chipping in from somewhere quite remote in British Columbia, all fingers n thumbs on my I-pad.

I strongly recommend early unassisted disembarkation, ie haul your own bags from the cabin, this wil be about 6.30 to 7am, with a car booked for 7.15 from smithsforairports or westquaycars or aquacars. Theoretically this is over-kill for a SUNDAY! But there.s always the chance of the motorway being closed after a fatal Saturday late-nite crash, which will delay even Sunday traffic.

But in theory this would get you to Heathrow by 9am excluding such problems.

 

Airlines recommend arrival 3 hrs before flight time, that's over-cautious n allows for folk getting delayed enroute, going to the wrong terminal n such, and eases the pressure on check-in staff. 90 minutes out is plenty, even with delay at security which is the usual bottleneck.

But that's just my limited experience, be guided by others on that.

 

A noon transatlantic is doable on a weekday, on a Sunday it should be no worries to Heathrow :)

 

JB :)

So John Bull, best time to book transfer from Southampton for a flight that leaves Heathrow in June, on a Friday, at 1pm ?

 

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So John Bull, best time to book transfer from Southampton for a flight that leaves Heathrow in June, on a Friday, at 1pm ?

 

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I reckon 8.30.

Should get you to Heathrow by 10.30. That's 2.5 hours before your flight, so an hour for unforeseen delays.

Or play safe and book for 8am, though travel is always slower between 7am & 9am so you'd not open your one hour window by more than 15 to 20 minutes.

 

But I suggest you ask your transfer operator - they'll have vehicles doing the journey every day so they're a better source than me.

It also means that if the timing turns out to be tight you can take it out on the driver instead of me :D

 

JB :)

I reckon 8.30.

Should get you to Heathrow by 10.30. That's 2.5 hours before your flight, so an hour for unforeseen delays.

Or play safe and book for 8am, though travel is always slower between 7am & 9am so you'd not open your one hour window by more than 15 to 20 minutes.

 

But I suggest you ask your transfer operator - they'll have vehicles doing the journey every day so they're a better source than me.

It also means that if the timing turns out to be tight you can take it out on the driver instead of me :D

 

JB :)

You Rock John Bull!!

Isn't it strange how on Cruise Critic, we trust unknown people with basically, our bank accounts, lol!

Thank you so much for your advise, I wouldn't travel without Cruise Critic ! :-)

 

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