7 hour layover in Heathrow-what can we do?

[scrapncruz]

Not on a cruise this time, but this is the best place for good info! We have a 7 hour layover (will have to go through customs though). Is there somewhere we could go or something we could do instead of sitting in the airport? Thanks for all advice!

[gumshoe958]

Ok so you’ve effectively got 4-5 hours outside the airport. Not really enough time to do much in London other than have a meal and/or a circuit on a HOHO bus.

 

So my suggestion would be to jump in a cab to Windsor - it’s about a 20 minute drive. You’d have time to wander around the town (it’s very compact), visit the Castle (cheaper if booked in advance online) and have a meal.

 

Importantly, check which terminal(s) your flights use at Heathrow. Terminals 2/3, 4 and 5 are completely separate and several minutes’ drive apart so you can’t just ask your cab driver to take you to Heathrow! If you arrive into a different terminal to the one you fly out of you’ll need to think about what to do with your luggage.

 

Edited April 17, 2023 by gumshoe958

[John Bull]

That's tough to advise.

5 hours is a no-no, 8 to 9 hours isworthwhile

 

If "7-hours" is the time between your scheduled landing time & your scheduled take-off time you'll lose 90 minutes to 2 hours clearing airport formalities after landing, and to be safe you should check in for your second fight a minimum of two hours before your flight.

Customs is a wak-thru unless your collar is felt, but immigration and security could be time-consuming.

So 7 hours becomes 3 or a little more.

If your bags aren't on through tickets you'll have them with you, or lose more time depositing them into left-luggage & retrieving them - and there's even more time if your flights aren't at the same terminal (T's 2 & 3 are adjacent, but T's 4 & 5 are on remote sides of the airport.)

 

Windsor and its castle are about 9 miles / 20 to 25 minutes away, Hampton Court Palace is between 9 miles / 20 mins from T's 4 or 5 and 12 miles / 30 mins from T's 4 and 5.

Public transport is too slow & complicated for your circumstances, you'll need to travel by car.

If you take your bags with you, you'll need a pre-booked car for the duration or if unencumbered you could just take a taxi each way (there are convenient taxi ranks in Windsor and at Hampton Court station which is adjacent Hampton Court Palace). A one-way taxi to either would cost £35 to £45, for a car for the duration you need to get quotes.

 

(Gumshoe has just replied - we seem to agree on Windsor, we reckon different time-scales but timescale is very difficult to predict.

I don't see central London as an option - you'll need to stash your luggage at the airport & take the Heathrow Express (15 mins e/w) or the Tube (40 mins e/w) into London, a round-trip on a ho-ho takes 2 hrs to 2 hrs 30 mins.)

 

It'll cost -  though I guess you'll save on over-priced drinks & snacks at the airport 😏

Google Windsor and Hampton Court Palace, see what you think.

Or, if you've already been to both, Kew Gardens (10 miles / 20 mins) is a third option.

 

JB 🙂

[Globaliser]

1 hour ago, scrapncruz said:

We have a 7 hour layover (will have to go through customs though). Is there somewhere we could go or something we could do instead of sitting in the airport?

 

See a dinosaur!

 

Even if a dinosaur doesn't appeal, the museums in this area (the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum) are all a stone's throw away from South Kensington Tube, which is on the Piccadilly Line and can therefore be reached direct from any of the Heathrow terminals. Assuming you are connecting on a through ticket, so you don't have to deal with bags or checking in again, you've got enough time to make one worthwhile museum visit.

[Globaliser]

2 minutes ago, John Bull said:

If "7-hours" is the time between your scheduled landing time & your scheduled take-off time you'll lose 90 minutes to 2 hours clearing airport formalities after landing, and to be safe you should check in for your second fight a minimum of two hours before your flight.

 

If the OP is on a through ticket, so their bags are checked through, it won't take anything like that amount of time to get out. If they are on an eGates passport, they should normally expect to be able to walk out of customs and into the public area within 30-45 minutes of the aircraft arriving at the gate.

 

Similarly, if they don't have to check in again on their return to the airport, they will have ample time if they enter security 60 minutes before their onward flight.

[John Bull]

Just now, Globaliser said:

 

If the OP is on a through ticket, so their bags are checked through, it won't take anything like that amount of time to get out. If they are on an eGates passport, they should normally expect to be able to walk out of customs and into the public area within 30-45 minutes of the aircraft arriving at the gate.

 

Similarly, if they don't have to check in again on their return to the airport, they will have ample time if they enter security 60 minutes before their onward flight.

 

Thanks for that, G., but it's not clear whether the OP is on a through ticket.

 

JB 🙂

[Globaliser]

7 minutes ago, John Bull said:

Thanks for that, G., but it's not clear whether the OP is on a through ticket.

 

From what the OP has said, there's no reason to assume that they are not. So they now have some perfectly good options for both situations.

[scrapncruz]

Such good advice! I knew this was the place to ask. Thanks all. I don't have all the details yet, as we are traveling with a group, but it's a stopover from the US to S. Africa. So it's a layover between a 7 hour flight and an 11 hour flight! I just cant sit in an airport! Like the idea of Windsor. Thanks, all!

[Globaliser]

2 hours ago, scrapncruz said:

... it's a stopover from the US to S. Africa.

 

Is this on a through ticket, or are you on two separate tickets? And is this British Airways --> British Airways, or Virgin Atlantic --> Virgin Atlantic, or some other combination of operating airlines?

[CCWineLover]

We did a quick/short visit to Windsor.  It was a beautiful day, and a really nice place to walk around and sightsee!  Very close to Heathrow.  Walked a lot so then tired for the plane flight!

[scrapncruz]

It's a through ticket on British Air.

[Globaliser]

28 minutes ago, scrapncruz said:

It's a through ticket on British Airways.

 

Then that makes things a little bit easier if you do want to do Windsor, as Terminal 5 is on that side of Heathrow. Also, when you get back to T5, your hard deadline is that you need to scan in at the entrance to security no later than 35 minutes before your scheduled departure time - so you're probably a little less pressured for time than if you were flying from one of the other terminals.

[John Bull]

14 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

 

Then that makes things a little bit easier if you do want to do Windsor, as Terminal 5 is on that side of Heathrow. Also, when you get back to T5, your hard deadline is that you need to scan in at the entrance to security no later than 35 minutes before your scheduled departure time - so you're probably a little less pressured for time than if you were flying from one of the other terminals.

 

 

OK. OK, I concede 🤣

 

JB 🙂

[scrapncruz]

 That sounds good, thanks!