Air
London Heathrow and London Gatwick principally serve international travel, with Heathrow the most convenient to travel to. We are also served by Southampton Airport – which connects to many UK and European destinations. The University of Southampton is well served by public transport:
Travelling from London Heathrow
Connecting options onward to Southampton include:
- National Express direct bus from Heathrow T2/3 to Southampton Coach Station – with several stops including the University.
If taking this option, on average the coach journey to Southampton takes 2hrs 20mins (fastest journey 1hr 45mins). Coaches leave Heathrow roughly every hour and a quarter/half until 12.30pm, and then roughly every 90 minutes/two hours thereafter. First departing coach at 00.40; last departing coach at 23.00. Fares (as at Jan 2023) from £16.50 one-way.
Another option if travelling from Heathrow is to take the Heathrow Express from Heathrow Central to London Paddington, change to the London Underground (Bakerloo Line) onwards to London Waterloo, and from Waterloo take a South Western Railway train to Southampton.
This route does involve multiple changes, incurring varying fares. The cheapest fare on the Heathrow Express leg is the Advance Saver Ticket priced at £5.50 (as at Jan 2023) purchased at least 90 days before travel. The cheapest fare on the Waterloo-Southampton leg is £15.20 (as at Jan 2023) for an advance ticket (depends on time of travel).
Trains depart Heathrow every 15 minutes, with the journey to Paddington taking 15 minutes. London Underground journey from Paddington to Waterloo approx 30 mins. Trains from Waterloo to Southampton depart every 30 mins; journey time approx 1hr 20m.
Travelling from London Gatwick
You can take a train from Gatwick Airport Station towards London Victoria, then change at Clapham Junction Railway Station where you will be able to pick up services onwards to Southampton (Southampton is principally served by Southampton Central and Southampton Airport Parkway stations). Journey time approx 2hrs 10m in total. Cheapest fare (as at Jan 2023) from £40.00 (single ticket).
Delegates should note that cheaper fares are available when booking in advance – tickets go on sale 12 weeks in advance.
Other options for onward travel from both these airports include taking a taxi/booking an airport car service – there are plenty of providers if searching via Google, though n.b. costs will vary.
Rail
We have two main train stations served by South Western Railway which connect to London in just over 1 hour.
Southampton Central – https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/sou/details.html (Unilink Bus service (U1A or U1E) can be caught directly from the station on to the campus).
Southampton Airport Parkway – https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/SOA/details.html (Unilink Bus service (U1C) can be caught directly from the station on to the campus).
Train tickets can be purchased from South Western Railway or Trainline.
Coach
National Express runs to Southampton from Heathrow Airport and around the UK
https://www.nationalexpress.com/en/help/coach-stations/southampton
Road
We are also well connected to the main UK motorway system (M3 and M27).
Bus
The University campus is served by the Unilink bus service, operated by the university. For more details see here.